Fish assemblages of three common artificial reef designs during early colonization

Alwin Hylkema; Adolphe O. Debrot; Ronald Osinga; Patrick S. Bron; Daniel B. Heesink; Ayumi Kuramae Izioka; Callum B. Reid; Jorien C. Rippen; Tali Treibitz; Matan Yuval; Albertinka J. Murk

doi:10.1016/j.ecoleng.2020.105994

Fish assemblages of three common artificial reef designs during early colonization

Alwin Hylkema, Adolphe O. Debrot, Ronald Osinga, Patrick S. Bron, Daniel B. Heesink, Ayumi Kuramae Izioka, Callum B. Reid, Jorien C. Rippen, Tali Treibitz, Matan Yuval, Albertinka J. Murk

Department of Marine Technologies

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

Abstract

In this study, we compared the early fish colonization of three types of artificial reefs deployed in the coastal waters of Saba and St Eustatius in the Caribbean: reef balls®, layered cakes and piles of locally obtained basaltic rock. As an indicator of performance, three fish assemblage parameters (abundance, biomass, species richness) were measured using underwater visual censuses at 11 months post-deployment and 4 months after restoration from hurricane damage. All artificial reef plots showed higher values for fish abundance, biomass and species richness than control plots covered by bare sand, which shows that artificial reefs can locally enhance the fish assemblage. However, the effect differed among artificial reef plots. Fish abundance was 3.8 times higher on the layered cake plots compared to the reef ball plots, while fish biomass was 4.6 times higher. Rock pile plots had intermediate values. Species richness did not differ significantly among different artificial reef plots. Three-dimensional modelling revealed that layered cakes had a smaller gross volume, shelter volume and total surface area than reef balls. The availability of multiple small shelters in the layered cake design appeared to be more relevant than other physical parameters, as the layered cake plots had higher fish abundance than the reef balls plots. We concluded that on Saba and St. Eustatius, layered cake plots performed better than reef ball plots after one year of colonization. Rock pile plots, made of local volcanic rock, showed an intermediate performance, and were 4–10 times cheaper to construct. If observed differences are consistent with other locations and persist during further colonization, current efforts to deploy reef balls could better be allocated to deploy artificial reef structures with a higher shelter density.

Original language	English
Article number	105994
Journal	Ecological Engineering
Volume	157
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecoleng.2020.105994
State	Published - 1 Oct 2020

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
This research is conducted in the context of the AROSSTA (Artificial reefs on Saba and Statia) project (project# RAAK.PUB03.048), which was partly funded by SIA, part of the Dutch Research Council (NWO). The authors want to thank Kevin de Jong, Esmee van de Griend, Marit Pistor and Marijn van der Laan for their help with building the artificial reefs and restoring them after the hurricanes. We are grateful to Jelle van der Velde, Kai Wulf, Jens Odinga and Odin Delgado from the Saba Conservation Foundation, to Jessica Berkel and Erik Houtepen from STENAPA, to Masru Spanner and Johan Stapel from CNSI and to David and Sarah Hellevang from Golden Rock Dive Centre for their assistance. We also want to thank Gary Johnson for providing the basaltic rocks, Nicholas Johnson for towing the reefs to the right location, Henry Kuiper and Gerrit Gort for their assistance with the statistical analysis and Matt Needle for making the map. The Netherlands Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality (LNV) supported this work by cofinancing for the contributions by Debrot under the WMR project “R&D Wetenschap” (project# 4311500013). M.Y. would like to thank A. Avni & M. Doherty for fieldwork assistance. M.Y. has received funding from the Assemble + European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (project # 730984-216), and the Murray Foundation for student research.

Funding Information:
This research is conducted in the context of the AROSSTA (Artificial reefs on Saba and Statia) project (project# RAAK.PUB03.048 ), which was partly funded by SIA, part of the Dutch Research Council (NWO). The authors want to thank Kevin de Jong, Esmee van de Griend, Marit Pistor and Marijn van der Laan for their help with building the artificial reefs and restoring them after the hurricanes. We are grateful to Jelle van der Velde, Kai Wulf, Jens Odinga and Odin Delgado from the Saba Conservation Foundation, to Jessica Berkel and Erik Houtepen from STENAPA, to Masru Spanner and Johan Stapel from CNSI and to David and Sarah Hellevang from Golden Rock Dive Centre for their assistance. We also want to thank Gary Johnson for providing the basaltic rocks, Nicholas Johnson for towing the reefs to the right location, Henry Kuiper and Gerrit Gort for their assistance with the statistical analysis and Matt Needle for making the map. The Netherlands Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality (LNV) supported this work by cofinancing for the contributions by Debrot under the WMR project “ R&D Wetenschap ” (project# 4311500013 ). M.Y. would like to thank A. Avni & M. Doherty for fieldwork assistance. M.Y. has received funding from the Assemble + European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (project # 730984-216 ), and the Murray Foundation for student research.

Publisher Copyright:
© 2020 Elsevier B.V.

Keywords

Artificial reef
Fish abundance
Habitat restoration
Layered cake
Reef ball®
Shelter availability

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Environmental Engineering
Nature and Landscape Conservation
Management, Monitoring, Policy and Law

UN SDGs

This output contributes to the following UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

Access to Document

10.1016/j.ecoleng.2020.105994

Cite this

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title = "Fish assemblages of three common artificial reef designs during early colonization",

abstract = "In this study, we compared the early fish colonization of three types of artificial reefs deployed in the coastal waters of Saba and St Eustatius in the Caribbean: reef balls{\textregistered}, layered cakes and piles of locally obtained basaltic rock. As an indicator of performance, three fish assemblage parameters (abundance, biomass, species richness) were measured using underwater visual censuses at 11 months post-deployment and 4 months after restoration from hurricane damage. All artificial reef plots showed higher values for fish abundance, biomass and species richness than control plots covered by bare sand, which shows that artificial reefs can locally enhance the fish assemblage. However, the effect differed among artificial reef plots. Fish abundance was 3.8 times higher on the layered cake plots compared to the reef ball plots, while fish biomass was 4.6 times higher. Rock pile plots had intermediate values. Species richness did not differ significantly among different artificial reef plots. Three-dimensional modelling revealed that layered cakes had a smaller gross volume, shelter volume and total surface area than reef balls. The availability of multiple small shelters in the layered cake design appeared to be more relevant than other physical parameters, as the layered cake plots had higher fish abundance than the reef balls plots. We concluded that on Saba and St. Eustatius, layered cake plots performed better than reef ball plots after one year of colonization. Rock pile plots, made of local volcanic rock, showed an intermediate performance, and were 4–10 times cheaper to construct. If observed differences are consistent with other locations and persist during further colonization, current efforts to deploy reef balls could better be allocated to deploy artificial reef structures with a higher shelter density.",

keywords = "Artificial reef, Fish abundance, Habitat restoration, Layered cake, Reef ball{\textregistered}, Shelter availability",

author = "Alwin Hylkema and Debrot, {Adolphe O.} and Ronald Osinga and Bron, {Patrick S.} and Heesink, {Daniel B.} and Izioka, {Ayumi Kuramae} and Reid, {Callum B.} and Rippen, {Jorien C.} and Tali Treibitz and Matan Yuval and Murk, {Albertinka J.}",

note = "Funding Information: This research is conducted in the context of the AROSSTA (Artificial reefs on Saba and Statia) project (project# RAAK.PUB03.048), which was partly funded by SIA, part of the Dutch Research Council (NWO). The authors want to thank Kevin de Jong, Esmee van de Griend, Marit Pistor and Marijn van der Laan for their help with building the artificial reefs and restoring them after the hurricanes. We are grateful to Jelle van der Velde, Kai Wulf, Jens Odinga and Odin Delgado from the Saba Conservation Foundation, to Jessica Berkel and Erik Houtepen from STENAPA, to Masru Spanner and Johan Stapel from CNSI and to David and Sarah Hellevang from Golden Rock Dive Centre for their assistance. We also want to thank Gary Johnson for providing the basaltic rocks, Nicholas Johnson for towing the reefs to the right location, Henry Kuiper and Gerrit Gort for their assistance with the statistical analysis and Matt Needle for making the map. The Netherlands Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality (LNV) supported this work by cofinancing for the contributions by Debrot under the WMR project “R&D Wetenschap” (project# 4311500013). M.Y. would like to thank A. Avni & M. Doherty for fieldwork assistance. M.Y. has received funding from the Assemble + European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (project # 730984-216), and the Murray Foundation for student research. Funding Information: This research is conducted in the context of the AROSSTA (Artificial reefs on Saba and Statia) project (project# RAAK.PUB03.048 ), which was partly funded by SIA, part of the Dutch Research Council (NWO). The authors want to thank Kevin de Jong, Esmee van de Griend, Marit Pistor and Marijn van der Laan for their help with building the artificial reefs and restoring them after the hurricanes. We are grateful to Jelle van der Velde, Kai Wulf, Jens Odinga and Odin Delgado from the Saba Conservation Foundation, to Jessica Berkel and Erik Houtepen from STENAPA, to Masru Spanner and Johan Stapel from CNSI and to David and Sarah Hellevang from Golden Rock Dive Centre for their assistance. We also want to thank Gary Johnson for providing the basaltic rocks, Nicholas Johnson for towing the reefs to the right location, Henry Kuiper and Gerrit Gort for their assistance with the statistical analysis and Matt Needle for making the map. The Netherlands Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality (LNV) supported this work by cofinancing for the contributions by Debrot under the WMR project “ R&D Wetenschap ” (project# 4311500013 ). M.Y. would like to thank A. Avni & M. Doherty for fieldwork assistance. M.Y. has received funding from the Assemble + European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (project # 730984-216 ), and the Murray Foundation for student research. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2020 Elsevier B.V.",

year = "2020",

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doi = "10.1016/j.ecoleng.2020.105994",

language = "English",

volume = "157",

journal = "Ecological Engineering",

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T1 - Fish assemblages of three common artificial reef designs during early colonization

AU - Hylkema, Alwin

AU - Debrot, Adolphe O.

AU - Osinga, Ronald

AU - Bron, Patrick S.

AU - Heesink, Daniel B.

AU - Izioka, Ayumi Kuramae

AU - Reid, Callum B.

AU - Rippen, Jorien C.

AU - Treibitz, Tali

AU - Yuval, Matan

AU - Murk, Albertinka J.

N1 - Funding Information: This research is conducted in the context of the AROSSTA (Artificial reefs on Saba and Statia) project (project# RAAK.PUB03.048), which was partly funded by SIA, part of the Dutch Research Council (NWO). The authors want to thank Kevin de Jong, Esmee van de Griend, Marit Pistor and Marijn van der Laan for their help with building the artificial reefs and restoring them after the hurricanes. We are grateful to Jelle van der Velde, Kai Wulf, Jens Odinga and Odin Delgado from the Saba Conservation Foundation, to Jessica Berkel and Erik Houtepen from STENAPA, to Masru Spanner and Johan Stapel from CNSI and to David and Sarah Hellevang from Golden Rock Dive Centre for their assistance. We also want to thank Gary Johnson for providing the basaltic rocks, Nicholas Johnson for towing the reefs to the right location, Henry Kuiper and Gerrit Gort for their assistance with the statistical analysis and Matt Needle for making the map. The Netherlands Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality (LNV) supported this work by cofinancing for the contributions by Debrot under the WMR project “R&D Wetenschap” (project# 4311500013). M.Y. would like to thank A. Avni & M. Doherty for fieldwork assistance. M.Y. has received funding from the Assemble + European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (project # 730984-216), and the Murray Foundation for student research. Funding Information: This research is conducted in the context of the AROSSTA (Artificial reefs on Saba and Statia) project (project# RAAK.PUB03.048 ), which was partly funded by SIA, part of the Dutch Research Council (NWO). The authors want to thank Kevin de Jong, Esmee van de Griend, Marit Pistor and Marijn van der Laan for their help with building the artificial reefs and restoring them after the hurricanes. We are grateful to Jelle van der Velde, Kai Wulf, Jens Odinga and Odin Delgado from the Saba Conservation Foundation, to Jessica Berkel and Erik Houtepen from STENAPA, to Masru Spanner and Johan Stapel from CNSI and to David and Sarah Hellevang from Golden Rock Dive Centre for their assistance. We also want to thank Gary Johnson for providing the basaltic rocks, Nicholas Johnson for towing the reefs to the right location, Henry Kuiper and Gerrit Gort for their assistance with the statistical analysis and Matt Needle for making the map. The Netherlands Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality (LNV) supported this work by cofinancing for the contributions by Debrot under the WMR project “ R&D Wetenschap ” (project# 4311500013 ). M.Y. would like to thank A. Avni & M. Doherty for fieldwork assistance. M.Y. has received funding from the Assemble + European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme (project # 730984-216 ), and the Murray Foundation for student research. Publisher Copyright: © 2020 Elsevier B.V.

PY - 2020/10/1

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N2 - In this study, we compared the early fish colonization of three types of artificial reefs deployed in the coastal waters of Saba and St Eustatius in the Caribbean: reef balls®, layered cakes and piles of locally obtained basaltic rock. As an indicator of performance, three fish assemblage parameters (abundance, biomass, species richness) were measured using underwater visual censuses at 11 months post-deployment and 4 months after restoration from hurricane damage. All artificial reef plots showed higher values for fish abundance, biomass and species richness than control plots covered by bare sand, which shows that artificial reefs can locally enhance the fish assemblage. However, the effect differed among artificial reef plots. Fish abundance was 3.8 times higher on the layered cake plots compared to the reef ball plots, while fish biomass was 4.6 times higher. Rock pile plots had intermediate values. Species richness did not differ significantly among different artificial reef plots. Three-dimensional modelling revealed that layered cakes had a smaller gross volume, shelter volume and total surface area than reef balls. The availability of multiple small shelters in the layered cake design appeared to be more relevant than other physical parameters, as the layered cake plots had higher fish abundance than the reef balls plots. We concluded that on Saba and St. Eustatius, layered cake plots performed better than reef ball plots after one year of colonization. Rock pile plots, made of local volcanic rock, showed an intermediate performance, and were 4–10 times cheaper to construct. If observed differences are consistent with other locations and persist during further colonization, current efforts to deploy reef balls could better be allocated to deploy artificial reef structures with a higher shelter density.

AB - In this study, we compared the early fish colonization of three types of artificial reefs deployed in the coastal waters of Saba and St Eustatius in the Caribbean: reef balls®, layered cakes and piles of locally obtained basaltic rock. As an indicator of performance, three fish assemblage parameters (abundance, biomass, species richness) were measured using underwater visual censuses at 11 months post-deployment and 4 months after restoration from hurricane damage. All artificial reef plots showed higher values for fish abundance, biomass and species richness than control plots covered by bare sand, which shows that artificial reefs can locally enhance the fish assemblage. However, the effect differed among artificial reef plots. Fish abundance was 3.8 times higher on the layered cake plots compared to the reef ball plots, while fish biomass was 4.6 times higher. Rock pile plots had intermediate values. Species richness did not differ significantly among different artificial reef plots. Three-dimensional modelling revealed that layered cakes had a smaller gross volume, shelter volume and total surface area than reef balls. The availability of multiple small shelters in the layered cake design appeared to be more relevant than other physical parameters, as the layered cake plots had higher fish abundance than the reef balls plots. We concluded that on Saba and St. Eustatius, layered cake plots performed better than reef ball plots after one year of colonization. Rock pile plots, made of local volcanic rock, showed an intermediate performance, and were 4–10 times cheaper to construct. If observed differences are consistent with other locations and persist during further colonization, current efforts to deploy reef balls could better be allocated to deploy artificial reef structures with a higher shelter density.

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KW - Fish abundance

KW - Habitat restoration

KW - Layered cake

KW - Reef ball®

KW - Shelter availability

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Fish assemblages of three common artificial reef designs during early colonization

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Keywords

ASJC Scopus subject areas

UN SDGs

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