OBJECTIVES
Current management plans, in particular enhanced protection zoning, are essentially based on the protection and conservation of adult fish and/or invertebrate populations (fishing policies, stock management, no-take zones). Nevertheless, effective marine protected areas (MPAs) must implement conservation measures aimed not only at preserving adult populations and their breeding habitat, but also nurseries for juvenile fish.
The NURS-MED project is a follow-up to the MedHab project, but also an international transposition. Its overall aim is to initiate scientific cooperation to generate knowledge on juvenile fish nursery habitats within MPAs, useful for managers, and to ultimately use these essential habitats as a criterion for implementing and/or reinforcing protection and management actions.
DESCRIPTION
To meet these objectives, the following activities will be implemented in 2025:
Mapping and characterization of juvenile fish nursery habitats
In each MPA, a map of shallow nursery habitats will be drawn up, providing a useful database as a zoning criterion for identifying areas of enhanced protection.
Analysis of connectivities and spatial complementarities between essential habitats for advising on enhanced protection zoning.
Once the availability of habitats mapped, we will carry out a spatial analysis of habitat complementarities and connectivities: this will be analyzed and compiled as a decision criterion for conservation zoning, based on ecological solidarities, thus facilitating the designation of enhanced protection zones based on knowledge of nursery habitats.
Strengthening local managers’ capacities
In each MPA, once nursery habitats have been located, quantified and better protected, they will be used as sentinel habitats to set up a long-term monitoring protocol and training. This will enable us to monitor the conservation status of key habitats and detect the long-term effects of protection and human pressures.
Support for the declaration of new enhanced protection zones
Communication campaigns and meetings with local authorities, public decision-makers, stakeholders, citizens and schools will be organized to raise awareness and encourage the declaration of new enhanced protection zones based on the data collected during the project.
