Danajon Bank, Bohol: Marine protected area gives biodiversity a boost

anajon Bank, Bohol, 18 Jan 2008 (B. Cabrera, A Sia/FISH Project) – Surveys conducted last year in the marine protected area (MPA) of Bilangbilangan East, an island barangay 15km from Bien Unido in northern Bohol raises hope for the recovery of once abundant marine resources in the now critically degraded Danajon Bank reefs.

Assessments of the MPA revealed new coral recruits and a marked increase in the overall proportion of live coral to dead coral. Fish abundance and diversity were found to have increased, and the presence of big fishes was evident in the vicinity of the MPA. In addition, an abundance of invertebrates, particularly sea cucumbers, was noted. Correspondingly, there was a decrease in abundance of the macro algae Sargassum sp., most likely because of the presence of a greater number of big fishes that eat the algae.

The MPA is in Danajon Bank, which harbors a unique double barrier reef composed of numerous but dispersed islets and reef patches joining together into an inner reef and several outer reefs. Located off northern Bohol, it is the only double barrier reef in the Philippines and one of only three such structures in the Indo-Pacific region.

Given its varied habitats of coral reefs, mangroves and seagrass beds, Danajon Bank is a natural habitat for various species of finfish, shellfish, crustacean and invertebrates, including reef fishes such as grouper and snapper and small pelagics such as scads, roundscads and bullet tunas; invertebrates like blue crabs, shrimps, squids and sea cucumbers; and seagrass-associated fish such as siganids, anchovies and garfish.

But the area has been subjected to extremely high environmental stresses, largely from illegal and destructive fishing. Fisheries outside of the shallow reef areas are also heavily exploited by a combination of small-scale locally based fishers and commercial fishing boats that fish illegally inside municipal waters.

Indeed, Bilangbilangan East had a tradition of blast fishing. In the past, villagers designated a reef area called “sona”, where fishing was prohibited except during the week of the fiesta, when it was opened to blast fishing for a fee of Php12,000. The practice was stopped in 1998, when the community organized a fishers’ organization. In 2002, the area was officially declared an MPA. By then the reef was so degraded with extremely high percentage of dead coral and rubble. High value fish species all but disappeared, and fish caught were mostly small-size and low trophic level species.

In 2004, the Fisheries Improved for Sustainable Harvest (FISH) Project began to assist the local government and community, focusing on strengthening MPA enforcement and management. As a result, illegal fishing was significantly controlled, and eventually stopped.

Fishers, many of whom also participate in reef monitoring, have observed significant improvements in their fish catch, in both quantity and quality. They say they now catch “new” species, in addition to their usual target species, and they do not have to go too far to fish.

MPA management council chair Ben Dabatos (front) joins patrol operation at Bilangbilangan East MPA

Ben Dabatos, the chairman of the local MPA management council, relates: “Early last year, a big school of sardines ‘invaded’ our shores, and for a whole week, people simply waded in with their scoop nets and pails to catch the fish. They caught about 200 kilos.”

“We also noticed that birds began perching on every buoy marking the MPA boundary. Sometimes they crowded each other, competing for space on the buoy, waiting to catch fish. We decided to install bamboo poles near the guardhouse for the birds to roost. Barely had we finished installing the bamboo poles when the birds came to claim their space. There are even more birds now, so we plan to put up more poles for them to roost.”

Such stories are echoed in other MPAs across Danajon Bank. Here, fishing communities have come to regard MPAs as a most effective tool to bring back the productivity of the fisheries, and heighten hopes for better protection – and the ultimate recovery – of the area’s rare double barrier reef and its economically vital resources.