BRUV surveys yield information on sharks and rays

Typically under-represented by scuba-led surveys, sharks and rays are a conservation priority given their simultaneous ecological and economic value as a living resource. During October 2016 the Environmental Research Institute Charlotteville (www.eric-tobago.org) conducted a series of baited remote underwater video surveys in northeast Tobago to gather data on species and relative abundance of sharks and rays.

Above: Caribbean reef shark recorded on a BRUV (c) ERIC

This data is intended to complement the data gathered by scuba-led underwater visual census of coral reef communities conducted by the University of the West Indies, in order to provide a holistic assessment of the coral reef resources of northeast Tobago and inform emerging conservation management measures under the national IFPAM project.

The Environmental Research Institute Charlotteville has collaborated with Global FinPrint (www.globalfinprint.org) since early 2016 to conduct BRUV surveys of shark and ray populations throughout Tobago, and to contribute to improved conservation management of these keystone species on local, regional and international scales. In order to maximise the awareness and outreach of this project in Tobago, surveys have at various times engaged as participants and observers, members of the ERIC community based field technician team as well as a number of Fisheries Officers.

Read more about the survey at this link.

Results of Survey on Protected Areas in Tobago

A knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP) survey was undertaken in communities surrounding two pilot protected area sites in Tobago in August 2016.  The survey polled residents on the protected status of the Main Ridge Forest Reserve and the proposed North East Tobago Marine pilot protected area (the latter site located around the north eastern tip of the island from the northern village of Castara to the village of Roxborough on the southern side of the island).

The survey revealed that most persons are aware of the Main Ridge Forest Reserve and its value as a watershed in replenishing the island’s supply of freshwater. While the North East Tobago Marine area is a proposed site, residents attached an important economic as well as environmental value to the site.  The survey also revealed that people in general are not aware of the boundaries of these sites, nor the flora and fauna found there; some are also uncertain of who are the managers of these sites.

The results of the survey contribute important information about people’s general knowledge about these two sites and will assist in the development of a targeted communication strategy that can address knowledge gaps and curb negative practices that impact on the management of these protected areas.  

The report on the knowledge, attitudes and practices survey can be found at this link.

Natural resource management project for implementation in North-East Tobago

The Environmental Research Institute Charlotteville (ERIC), a member of the Tobago Subcommittee for the “Improving Forest and Protected Area Management in Trinidad and Tobago” project, recently secured grant funding for an 18-month project in North-East Tobago from the UNDP GEF Small Grants Programme (SGP) Trinidad and Tobago.

Learn more about this project at this link.

Results of Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices survey in Tobago

During the month of August 2016, a team of survey enumerators visited the villages surrounding the two pilot protected areas in Tobago, in order to carry out a Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices

(KAP) survey.  The information was collected from over 400 respondents generally in the northeastern half of the island.

The results of the survey were presented to the stakeholders representing various organizations on the Tobago Subcommittee for the two pilot sites – the Main Ridge Forest and the proposed North East Tobago Marine pilot protected areas.

These stakeholders then took part in a facilitated discussion of the results, to propose strategies for public communication to improve on areas where knowledge is lacking, where positive attitudes and behaviours need to be stimulated and to support existing programmes where positive actions with successful impacts are already underway.

Please click here for a summary of the Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices survey results.