Worldwide, coral reefs are transforming due to global and local stresses. As these ecosystems reconfigure, millions of coastal people who depend on these reefs for their well-being will be compelled to adapt their resource use strategies. However, links between ecological state and human activities such as fishing remain poorly understood. One opportunity for exploring the reciprocal feedbacks between fishers and reefs arises when a sudden and dramatic change in ecological state occurs. The responses of local resource users in such cases are critical, as they may sustain ecosystem resilience or may amplify the shifts. Here we combine catch data (the size and taxa of 18,000 fish being sold by the roadside) underwater ecological censuses (more than 270,000 fish identified and sized on the reef), and 365 household surveys to explore how reef fish and fishers on the island of Moorea, French Polynesia responded to landscape-scale loss of coral resulting from a destructive cyclone and an outbreak of crown of thorns sea stars.
Results/Conclusions
We found that few people interviewed reported changing their fishing activities in response to the disturbances, and almost none reported changing what fish they bought or ate. Nevertheless, the taxonomic composition of the catch underwent very substantial changes between 2006 and 2015, with a steep decline in the contribution of unicorn fish (Naso sp.) that was mostly offset by an increase in the contribution of parrotfish (Scarus sp. and Chlorurus sp.). While the overall biomass of fishable resources on the reef changed little during the period, the relative abundance of fishable taxa changed, and changes in the catch and on the reef were closely correlated for abundant species. This suggests that while the species being harvested changed, there may have been relatively little alteration in the behavior or selectivity of the fishers, which may partially explain limited perceptions of change among the local communities. Our findings have broad implications for implementing effective local-level co-management and governance where resource users, coral reef scientists, and conservation practitioners may have different interpretations of what constitutes ‘change’ in these highly dynamic systems.