Fiji Hub Achievement Report

September 2017 Caqalai

Objective: Survey Consistency

Achieving monthly surveys on Caqalai Island

Objectives

Long Term:
Coral Reef Surveys Around Caqalai- Collect long term data on the reefs around Caqalai and
Moturiki in order to inform the communities of Moturiki on the health of their marine resources and
support them in developing a sustainable management strategy

Short Term:
Survey each of the 14 sites around Caqalai twice per year (once every 6 months)

Summary

Having reviewed the September data from the ecological surveys collected on the reef around
Caqalai Island, we have completed 35 surveys, which meets the record number from March and
August 2017. This is amazing news as it shows consistent streamlining of volunteer science and dive
training; something which has been continuously improving on Caqalai over the past year and a half
and finally it is starting to show. This is a huge testament to volunteers and staff alike as their
continued increase in enthusiasm and understanding about the importance of the science
programme has led to increased effectiveness in volunteer training and a shorter period between
arrival of volunteers on base and when they are survey-ready and can accurately collect data from
the reefs. This not only greatly improves the feeling amongst the team that they have made a real
impact to the project but it also allows us to over-achieve on our short term objectives which is
never a bad thing, plus allows more time to focus on project development in order to continue
meeting SDGs 2,14 and 12 (http://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/).

Report
Number of surveys completed per
month on Caqalai- 2017
The long term monitoring surveys that we
40
conduct around Caqalai and will soon be
35
conducting around Moturiki are basic ecological
30
surveys intended to monitor the health of the
25
coral reef ecosystem over many years, and show
20
the effects of fishing relative to no-take protected
15
areas and areas which have never been fished.
10
This is in keeping with our long term objectives
5
and SDGs 2 and 14 as the communities of
0
Moturiki rely on the marine resources from the
coral reefs, and other reef associated habitats for
most of their protein and a large proportion of
their income. Coastal villages in Fiji, including
those that we work with in Moturiki largely rely on a subsistence lifestyle and have a very good
traditional knowledge of conservation and respect for the marine environment. However with the
introduction of modern fishing gear, the increasing pressure of climate change, the rising population
in Fiji and the subsequent rise in the cost of living- the demand on the in-shore marine resources has
never been higher. There is a definite need for a sustainable resource management strategy and the
in-water surveys we conduct in the area are combined with socio-economic surveys and community
workshops to increase awareness and work on conserving the reef biodiversity and food security
into the future.

A survey consists of four surveyors, all using the same survey tape with one person conducting an
underwater visual census of the fish present, one person counting the abundance of macro-
invertebrates, another person conducting a line intercept transect looking at what covers the seabed
and one person measuring the abiotic physical factors. The fish and invertebrate surveyors only
count target species which have been chosen because either they have a crucial role in the
functioning of the ecosystem or they might be critically endangered, or they may be very important
commercially for the communities (food and income). The numbers of these species are compared
with the relative percentage cover of different animals that live attached to the seabed- known as
benthic organisms, all this data together with the physical factors give us an understanding of the
health of the reef. We survey two different depth ranges 3-5m and 8-10m at every site (as many
corals and other animals only live at certain depths) and we do 5 surveys at each depth range.

We have 14 survey sites around the fringing reef of Caqalai, which includes all the different habitat
types that can be found. We survey each of the fourteen sites twice per year as outlined in our short
term objectives, which means we need to complete 140 surveys in 6 months, which means we
should be achieving an average of 23 sites per month. We have steadily been increasing the number
of surveys completed over the past three months, and in August we matched our March record of 35
surveys in one month. Then in September we again achieved this lofty figure, which is smashing our
monthly targets and a real achievement for all marine volunteers and staff.
Consistently completing record numbers of surveys has been achieved through the hard work the
staff have put into improving the volunteer science training, and the amazing enthusiasm the
volunteers have shown in the past couple of months in achieving our objectives and working hard to
contribute as much data to the long term monitoring database as possible. The volunteer science
training has consistently been improving through the quality of the presentations, improving
learning aids such as flash cards and encouraging the volunteers to help each other out with learning
(especially as we have many volunteers with marine science backgrounds who have been very
helpful!). We have also streamlined the science programme making the learning more effective with
regular quizzes and a definite structure to the volunteer identification training so they can track their
progress to getting survey-ready.

Consistently meeting and exceeding our monthly targets in the core components of the marine
conservation project is super important because it allows more time for project development, which
at the moment is a key priority on base. With the introduction of three new protected areas around
Moturiki in late 2016, and the stage one assessments of these areas compared to open fishing
grounds scheduled to happen soon, the sooner we can complete our Caqalai-based objectives the
better.