Protecting marine top predators through adaptive and dynamic management

Anthropogenic disturbances are altering the functioning and provisioning of marine ecosystem services, and as such, affect marine wildlife profoundly. A major problem in this context is resource competition between marine predators and fisheries. Marine protected areas (MPAs) can be a powerful tool to provide protection to predators and their prey; however, effective management strategies are required. A case study of African penguin conservation in South Africa was used to illustrate the benefits of embracing adaptive and dynamic management in the marine environment. The South African government plans to implement 22 new MPAs, which will maximise socio-economic benefits, while ensuring adequate ocean environmental protection. In Algoa Bay, the main purpose of the proposed MPA is to increase populations of the endangered African penguin Spheniscus demersus. We used the results of a seven-year experiment, in which purse-seine fisheries were closed around penguin colonies in that area, and concluded that the new MPA would provide a legal improvement to the current situation, but would not be sufficient to increase numbers of African penguin populations. For this, larger no-take zones are necessary when prey availability is low. At the moment, ongoing acoustic surveys could provide recommendations on prey availability to design flexible MPA boundaries. More advanced surveys will be necessary in the future to allow for the MPA's criteria to be adapted, and fully benefit penguins and the coastal community. As such, this study illustrates the usefulness of an adaptive and dynamic management approach for the conservation of marine resources and endangered top predators.