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The Impact of Trampling on Reef Macrobenthos in Northeastern Brazil: How Effective are Current Conservation Strategies?

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Abstract

Tropical reefs are used for intensive tourism in various parts of the world. However, few studies have investigated the effect of regular trampling on these fragile ecosystems. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of different conservation strategies (open access, partial protection, and total long-term closure) on intertidal reef tops in Porto de Galinhas and Tamandaré, Pernambuco State, Brazil. Analysis of the macrobenthic community was performed with photo transects and image analysis (CPCe). Twenty-seven transects were surveyed from January to August 2012, in intensively impacted (I) open-access sites, in partially protected (P) sites with occasional, illegal trampling, and in a permanently closed (C) site. In I sites, total live cover was half the cover found in adjacent P sites. The area of bare rock averaged 53.6 and 25.0 % in I and P sites, respectively. In the C site, the area of bare rock was only 19.8 %. In I and P sites, macroalgae (Palisada perforata) were dominating, while in the C site, the zoanthid Zoanthus sociatus was most abundant. Shell-bearing vermetids (Petaloconchus varians) and bivalves (Isognomon bicolor) were more abundant at the C site, being possible bioindicators for areas with zero or little trampling. Twelve years of total closure produced near-pristine communities in the C site, dominated by zoanthids and fragile mollusks. This study showed that trampling has severe and long-lasting consequences for the structure of these ecosystems.

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Acknowledgments

We would like to thank the Federal University of Pernambuco (UFPE), the CEPENE research centre in Tamandaré, and the office for the environment of the City of Ipojuca for logistical support. Many thanks to Mauro Maida for methodological and logistical support and helpful hints. Thanks to Patrícia F. R. S. M. Nogueira and Daniele L. B. Mallmann for participating in fieldwork and helpful suggestions. Thanks to the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) for the M.Sc. scholarship granted to the first author. We are greatly indebted to the anonymous reviewers whose invaluable suggestions greatly improved this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Oceanography, Federal University of Pernambuco (UFPE), Cidade Universitária, s/n, Recife, PE, 50670-901, Brazil

    Gleice S. Santos, Simone M. A. Lira & Ralf Schwamborn

  2. Department of Biology, Federal Rural University of Pernambuco (UFRPE), Dois Irmãos, Recife, PE, 52171-900, Brazil

    Douglas C. Burgos

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  1. Gleice S. Santos
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  3. Simone M. A. Lira
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Correspondence to Ralf Schwamborn.

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Santos, G.S., Burgos, D.C., Lira, S.M.A. et al. The Impact of Trampling on Reef Macrobenthos in Northeastern Brazil: How Effective are Current Conservation Strategies?. Environmental Management 56, 847–858 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-015-0552-7

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