Celebrating 25 Years of Action for Biodiversity

Vanuatu has several species of turtles, including loggerhead, green turtle, hawksbill and leatherback [ ] 234 Community-based assessment of crown of thorns on Emae Island Invasive species can have a negative impact on native ecosystems and the species they contain. These impacts may disrupt the ecosystem processes, degrade habitats, reduce biodiversity and introduce diseases to flora and fauna. Island ecosystems appear to be more vulnerable to invasions, as they tend to have fewer species present and are less complex with distance from the continent. The crown of thorns (COT) starfish (Acanthaster planci) is native to the Indo-Pacific Region of which Vanu- atu is a part. Although it is native, it is currently acting as an invasive species, and as such, Vanuatu’s Fish- eries Department has been working with some communities to control its spread. For example, in mid-2004 on Aore Island and the Million Dollar Point area on Santo, over 3,000 COTs were collected. In late 2013, the shal- low waters of Luganville yielded some 3.7 tons of COTs during nine days of community effort. These efforts are particularly im- portant because COTs are one of the natural threats to coral reefs. The pre- dation of corals by COTs has caused coral mortality that has contributed to habitat loss, resulting in the dis- placement of marine organisms in- habiting the coral reef ecosystems. As such, a research project to investigate potential effects of cheap, easy-to-find low pH solutions for control of the COTs was carried out in 2014. The assessment was implemented by the Institute for Research and the Fish- eries Department of Vanuatu, and was funded by French agency LABEX CORAIL. The project’s objectives were three- fold. Firstly, to assess the population density of COTs at the island scale using a participative, transect-based approach. Secondly, the project intended to pilot test the effectiveness of education and training materials and methods on participative COT surveys. The third objective was to pilot test the effectiveness of acid- ic injections on living COTs. The project was carried out on the coral reef directly by the Marae Village on Emae Island in March 2014. The assessment led to a number of observations and findings. Notably, the survey emphasized low to very low densities of COT populations around Emae Island. The highest number of COTs was observed in the Makatea area. Therefore, the mean densities of COTs were found to remain below the threshold usually considered for outbreaks. The second principal finding of the assessment was that an injection of an acidic solution, in this case lemon juice and vinegar, was found to efficiently and quickly cause death among the COT populations. V anuatu is an archipelago located in the Southwest Pacific Ocean which includes an array of 83 islands, of which about 65 are inhabited. The total land area covers 12,336 km² and the country’s coastline is 2,528 km long. Vanuatu’s island chains are mostly of volcanic origin and are mountainous. 74 per cent of land is covered with natural vegetation. Forested areas are the dominant landscape element, including tropical lowland evergreen rainforest, broad-leaved deciduous forest, closed conifer forest, montane rainforest, as well as mangrove forests. The country’s biodiversity is rich and includes, among others, 1,000 vascular plant species of which 150 are endemic, 121 bird species and 28 species of reptile. Lelepa, Vanuatu Stacie Lucas on Unsplash Vanuatu