Conservation benefits of a large marine protected area network that spans multiple ecosystems

Marine protected areas (MPAs) are widely implemented tools for long-term ocean conservation and resource management. Assessments of MPA performance have largely focused on specific ecosystems individually and have rarely evaluated performance across multiple ecosystems either in an individual MPA or across an MPA network. We evaluated the conservation performance of 59 MPAs in California's large MPA network, which encompasses 4 primary ecosystems (surf zone, kelp forest, shallow reef, deep reef) and 4 bioregions, and identified MPA attributes that best explain performance. Using a meta-analytic framework, we evaluated the ability of MPAs to conserve fish biomass, richness, and diversity. At the scale of the network and for 3 of 4 regions, the biomass of species targeted by fishing was positively associated with the level of regulatory protection and was greater inside no-take MPAs, whereas species not targeted by fishing had similar biomass in MPAs and areas open to fishing. In contrast, species richness and diversity were not as strongly enhanced by MPA protection. The key features of conservation effectiveness included MPA age, preimplementation fisheries pressure, and habitat diversity. Important drivers of MPA effectiveness for single MPAs were consistent across MPAs in the network, spanning regions and ecosystems. With international targets aimed at protecting 30% of the world's oceans by 2030, MPA design and assessment frameworks should consider conservation performance at multiple ecologically relevant scales, from individual MPAs to MPA networks.

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Publication Details

Journal
Conservation Biology
Published
2025-01-09
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1111/cobi.14435
Citations
2
Primary Topic
Coral and Marine Ecosystems Studies
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
3.43

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article

Conservation benefits of a large marine protected area network that spans multiple ecosystems

Kristin Kaschner, Shelby L. Ziegler, Christopher M. Free, Mallarie E. Yeager et al.
2 citations
Conservation Biology
Coral and Marine Ecosystems Studies
3.43
article

Conservation benefits of a large marine protected area network that spans multiple ecosystems

Kristin Kaschner, Shelby L. Ziegler, Christopher M. Free, Mallarie E. Yeager, Julien Brun, Clarissa R. Anderson, P. Raimondi, Michelle Marraffini, Joachim Claudet, Richard M. Starr, Barbara Spiecker, David Mouillot, Joshua G. Smith, David Gill, Scott L. Hamilton, Avrey Parsons‐Field, Tessa B. Francis, Mark H. Carr, Kerry J. Nickols, Jacob G. Eurich, Daniel P. Malone, Cori Lopazanski, Jennifer E. Caselle, Jenifer E. Dugan
article en
2 citations

Abstract

Marine protected areas (MPAs) are widely implemented tools for long-term ocean conservation and resource management. Assessments of MPA performance have largely focused on specific ecosystems individually and have rarely evaluated performance across multiple ecosystems either in an individual MPA or across an MPA network. We evaluated the conservation performance of 59 MPAs in California's large MPA network, which encompasses 4 primary ecosystems (surf zone, kelp forest, shallow reef, deep reef) and 4 bioregions, and identified MPA attributes that best explain performance. Using a meta-analytic framework, we evaluated the ability of MPAs to conserve fish biomass, richness, and diversity. At the scale of the network and for 3 of 4 regions, the biomass of species targeted by fishing was positively associated with the level of regulatory protection and was greater inside no-take MPAs, whereas species not targeted by fishing had similar biomass in MPAs and areas open to fishing. In contrast, species richness and diversity were not as strongly enhanced by MPA protection. The key features of conservation effectiveness included MPA age, preimplementation fisheries pressure, and habitat diversity. Important drivers of MPA effectiveness for single MPAs were consistent across MPAs in the network, spanning regions and ecosystems. With international targets aimed at protecting 30% of the world's oceans by 2030, MPA design and assessment frameworks should consider conservation performance at multiple ecologically relevant scales, from individual MPAs to MPA networks.

Conservation BiologyVol. 39(4)
NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service (US), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (FR), Environmental Defense Fund (US), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (US), California State University, Monterey Bay (US), University of Puget Sound (US), Scripps Institution of Oceanography (US), Ifremer (FR), University of California, Santa Barbara (US), California State University, Northridge (US), École Pratique des Hautes Études (FR), University of Freiburg (DE), University of New Hampshire (US), Duke University (US), University of California, Santa Cruz (US), Institut Universitaire de France (FR), Université de Montpellier (FR), Université Paris Sciences et Lettres (FR), Marine Conservation Institute (US), University of California San Diego (US), National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis (US), Marine Biodiversity Exploitation and Conservation (FR), University of Washington Tacoma (US), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (FR), Moss Landing Marine Laboratories (US)
National Science Foundation, David and Lucile Packard Foundation, California Ocean Protection Council, Biodiversa+, Fondation de France, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, University of California, Santa Barbara, University of California, San Diego, California Sea Grant, University of California, San Diego
Life below water
Openalex Percentile: Top 11%
Coral and Marine Ecosystems Studies
3.43
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