Final technical report - Baseline surveys of central California marine protected areas from 2007-2009: Quick-look report submitted to the California Ocean Protection Council

On September 21, 2007, 29 Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) were established along the central California coast from Pigeon Point to Point Conception. The 1999 Marine Life Protection Act that led to the formation of the new MPAs specifically required California MPAs to be monitored and evaluated. In preparation for this requirement, in the winter and spring of 2007 we conducted a series of five workshops with fisheries scientists and the fishing communities of Half Moon Bay, Monterey, Morro Bay, and Port San Luis, California to develop protocols for monitoring MPAs using hook-and-line fishing gear. In the summers and falls of 2007, 2008, and 2009 we used the protocols developed at the workshops to collect information about species composition, catch rates, and sizes of nearshore fishes in the Año Nuevo, Point Lobos, Piedras Blancas, and Point Buchon State Marine Reserves (MPAs), and corresponding reference (REF) sites. In 2008, we conducted additional workshops with members of the live-fish fishery to develop protocols for monitoring MPAs using trap fishing gear. Trap fishing protocols were used in 2008 to assess the Año Nuevo, Point Lobos, Piedras Blancas, and Cambria MPAs and REF sites. In 2009, trap sampling occurred in the Point Lobos, Piedras Blancas, and Cambria MPAs. Using hook-and-line survey methods, we completed 47 surveys in the fall of 2007, 48 surveys in the summer and fall of 2008, and 24 fishing trips in the summer and fall of 2009 in the Año Nuevo, Point Lobos, Piedras Blancas and Point Buchon MPA and REF sites, for a total of 115 hook-and-line fishing surveys from 2007 – 2009. Using trap survey techniques, we completed 43 fishing trips in 2008 and 25 trips in 2009, for a total of 68 sampling trips from 2008 – 2009 in the Año Nuevo, Point Lobos, Cambria, and Piedras Blancas MPA and REF sites (Table 1). During these surveys, all caught fishes were identified, measured, tagged with external T-bar anchor tags with individual identification numbers (if deemed able to sustain handling and tagging), and released at location of capture. To date we have worked with a total of 12 Commercial Passenger Fishing Vessels (CPFVs), 4 commercial trap-fishing vessels, and 415 volunteer anglers, who spent a total of 1,121 hours hook-and-line fishing, and 3,445 hours trapping. This combined effort resulted in a total catch of 26,262 fishes comprised of 42 species, and a total of 22,551 fishes released with tags. After each field sampling season, we held workshops in Morro Bay, Moss Landing, and Half Moon Bay to describe the results of the fieldwork, encourage project feedback, and receive suggestions from the fishing community. Each year, a total of about 40 people from the fishing community reviewed the data at these meetings. We also produced and distributed the following project summary.2007年9月21日，美国加利福尼亚州中部沿海从鸽点（Pigeon Point）至康塞普申角（Point Conception）沿线设立了29个海洋保护区（Marine Protected Areas, MPAs）。1999年颁布的《海洋生物保护法》（Marine Life Protection Act）催生了这批新的海洋保护区，该法案明确要求对加利福尼亚州的海洋保护区开展监测与评估。 为满足这一法定要求，2007年冬春两季，我们与来自加利福尼亚州半月湾（Half Moon Bay）、蒙特雷（Monterey）、莫罗贝（Morro Bay）以及圣路易斯港（Port San Luis）的渔业科学家与捕捞社区共同举办了五场系列研讨会，旨在制定利用手线钓渔具开展海洋保护区监测的操作规程。 2007、2008及2009年的夏秋两季，我们依托研讨会制定的操作规程，在阿尼奥纽诺（Año Nuevo）、罗伯斯角（Point Lobos）、布兰卡斯角（Piedras Blancas）与布尚角州立海洋保护区（Point Buchon State Marine Reserves，均属海洋保护区）及其对应的对照（REF）站点，采集近岸鱼类的物种组成、捕捞率及个体体长数据。 2008年，我们与活鱼捕捞业从业者开展额外研讨会，制定了利用陷阱渔具开展海洋保护区监测的操作规程。同年，我们依托该陷阱捕捞操作规程对阿尼奥纽诺、罗伯斯角、布兰卡斯角与坎布里亚（Cambria）海洋保护区及其对照站点进行了评估。2009年，陷阱采样工作在罗伯斯角、布兰卡斯角与坎布里亚海洋保护区展开。 采用手线钓调查方法，我们于2007年秋季完成47次调查，2008年夏秋两季完成48次调查，2009年夏秋两季完成24次垂钓作业，覆盖阿尼奥纽诺、罗伯斯角、布兰卡斯角与布尚角海洋保护区及其对照站点，2007至2009年间累计完成115次手线钓调查。 采用陷阱调查技术，我们于2008年完成43次垂钓作业，2009年完成25次，2008至2009年间累计完成68次采样作业，覆盖阿尼奥纽诺、罗伯斯角、坎布里亚与布兰卡斯角海洋保护区及其对照站点（见表1）。 本次调查期间，所有捕获的鱼类均完成物种鉴定与体长测量；对于经评估可承受操作与标记流程的个体，我们将为其加装带有唯一识别编号的外置T形锚定标签，随后在捕获地点将其放归。 截至目前，本项目已合作12艘商业客运垂钓船（Commercial Passenger Fishing Vessels, CPFVs）、4艘商业陷阱捕捞船以及415名志愿垂钓者，他们累计投入手线钓作业时长1121小时、陷阱捕捞作业时长3445小时。 本次联合调查累计捕获鱼类26262尾，涵盖42个物种，其中22551尾被标记放流。 每次野外采样季结束后，我们均会在莫罗贝、莫斯兰丁（Moss Landing）与半月湾举办研讨会，通报野外作业成果，征集项目反馈意见，并听取捕捞社区的建议。每年约有40名来自捕捞社区的代表参与上述会议，对项目数据进行审核。此外，我们还编制并发布了本项目的总结报告。