Éditeur(s) : Public Library Science
Résumé : Studying the larval dispersal of bottom-dwelling species is necessary to understand their population dynamics and optimize their management. The black-lip pearl oyster (Pinctada margaritifera) is cultured extensively to produce black pearls, especially in French Polynesia's atoll lagoons. This aquaculture relies on spat collection, a process that can be optimized by understanding which factors influence larval dispersal. Here, we investigate the sensitivity of P. margaritifera larval dispersal kernel to both physical and biological factors in the lagoon of Ahe atoll. Specifically, using a validated 3D larval dispersal model, the variability of lagoon-scale connectivity is investigated against wind forcing, depth and location of larval release, destination location, vertical swimming behavior and pelagic larval duration (PLD) factors. The potential connectivity was spatially weighted according to both the natural and cultivated broodstock densities to provide a realistic view of connectivity. We found that the mean pattern of potential connectivity was driven by the southwest and northeast main barotropic circulation structures, with high retention levels in both. Destination locations, spawning sites and PLD were the main drivers of potential connectivity, explaining respectively 26%, 59% and 5% of the variance. Differences between potential and realistic connectivity showed the significant contribution of the pearl oyster broodstock location to its own dynamics. Realistic connectivity showed larger larval supply in the western destination locations, which are preferentially used by farmers for spat collection. In addition, larval supply in the same sectors was enhanced during summer wind conditions. These results provide new cues to understanding the dynamics of bottom-dwelling populations in atoll lagoons, and show how to take advantage of numerical models for pearl oyster management.
Plos One (1932-6203) (Public Library Science), 2014-04 , Vol. 9 , N. 4 , P. e95050

Droits : 2014 Thomas et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00197/30843/29210.pdf
DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0095050
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00197/30843/

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Laboratoire Arago
Résumé : International audience
The analysis of the C-O stable isotope composition of coral reef fish otoliths from Taiaro, a French Polynesian atoll normally isolated from the Pacific Ocean, has been performed to address two main questions. The first is to confirm previous results which suggest that a lagoonal coral reef fish population is able to achieve its ontogenetic cycle without any open ocean phase. If so, are O isotopic values of otoliths an indicator of temperature fluctuations in the tropical Pacific Ocean related to climate change and in particular temperature variations of water masses? δ18O and δ13C values on both lagoon and open ocean fish otoliths caught in 2006 indicated clearly that O-isotopes reached the isotopic equilibrium; in contrast, all δ13C values exhibited a strong isotopic disequilibrium related to metabolic activity. Stable isotope compositions revealed a clear differentiation between fish from lagoons and those from the open ocean (with a δ18O enrichment of 1 ‰ in favour of the lagoon). This confirmed a lack of connectivity between habitats and that fish from lagoon lived their entire life cycle in the lagoon. Both δ18O and δ13C data indicated differences between nucleus and edge signatures with changes in fish behavior from the larval life to adulthood (habitat, diet, etc.), and a clear adaptation of dietary behavior of lagoon fish. The comparison of the 2006 data set with those of 1994 showed that environmental conditions were stable in the lagoon, leading to a very narrow range of variations in the δ18O values. δ18O of fish otoliths of the open ocean exhibited a wider variation (+0.25 ‰) between 1994 and 2006, suggesting a decrease in temperature linked to a change of SST, which can be interpreted in terms of climate change associated with El Nino Southern Oscilation (ENENSO). These differences could also be due to a switch of habitats during the life cycle of fish from the open ocean.
ISSN: 0240-8759

hal-01162477
https://hal-univ-perp.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01162477

Éditeur(s) : Elsevier
Résumé : The gametogenic cycle and the reproductive effort of the blacklip pearl oyster, Pinctada margaritifera, cultivated in Takapoto lagoon were studied for a 1-year period (March 1997-April 1998) by bimonthly observations of gonadal sections, dry tissue weights and gonadal index in a population of pearl oyster composed of three age-groups. pearl oysters attained sexual maturity in the end of their first year (height approximate to 40 mm), implying that P. margaritifera is a late-maturing species in comparison with other Pteriidae. This species was also confirmed to be a marked protandrous successive hermaphrodite in culture, with 100 % of males at first maturity and 75 % in older pearl oyster (height > 120 mm). The general pattern of gametogenic activity, fairly synchronous in both sexes, was comparable with that of other tropical bivalves: reproduction occurs continuously throughout the year with a maximal activity during the warm season (November-May). No resting period was observed. Quantitative growth data showed that P. margaritifera exhibits an annual synchronised polymodal spawning pattern, with two spawning peaks in age-group I (height approximate to 70 mm) and five in age-groups II (height approximate to 100 mm) and III (height approximate to 120 mm). Spawning was sometimes incomplete, nevertheless a clear relationship between gamete production (P-R, g) and size (height H, mm) was obtained: P-R = 5.26 x 10(-7) H-2.91 (R-2 = 0.99, p < 0.05). Estimation of P-R was used to calculate the annual reproductive effort in P. margaritifera. Reproductive effort (%) was similar to those calculated for temperate species and showed a progressive increase with the age of pearl oyster, from 7 % in age-group I to 38 % in age-group III. This study showed that, in a fairly stable tropical environment such as the Takapoto lagoon, P. margaritifera is a multiple spawner, which uses an opportunistic reproductive strategy, allowing investment all year around, of any surplus energy into gamete production. Surplus energy is ensured by the high pumping rates developed by this non-symbiotic bivalve to succeed in low seston conditions. (C) 2000 Ifremer/Cnrs/Inra/Ird/Cemagref/Editions scientifiques et medicales Elsevier SAS.
Le cycle et l'effort de reproduction de l'huître perlière à lèvres noires, Pinctada margaritifera, cultivée dans le lagon de Takapoto, ont été étudiés sur une période annuelle (de mars 1997 à avril 1998), par un suivi bimensuel des stades de maturation et des indices gonadiques, sur une population en élevage composée de trois groupes d'âge (1, 2 et 3 ans). Cette étude a confirmé que P. margaritifera est une espèce qui se reproduit tardivement par rapport aux autres Ptériidés (elle atteint sa maturité sexuelle à la fin de sa première année, pour une hauteur approximative de 40 mm). Par ailleurs, elle présente, en élevage, une protandrie marquée (100 % de mâles à première maturité, 75 % pour des huîtres âgées de trois ans). Le schéma général de sa gamétogenèse, relativement synchrone dans les deux sexes, est comparable à celui des autres bivalves tropicaux : la reproduction est quasiment continue (aucune période de repos sexuel) avec une activité accrue en saison chaude (de novembre à mai). L'analyse des variations du poids de la gonade suggère l'existence de deux pics d'émission de gamètes chez les huîtres de un an et cinq pics chez les huîtres de 2 et 3 ans (cycle de reproduction de type polymodal). Bien que ces émissions de gamètes soient parfois incomplètes, une relation entre la production de gamètes (PR, en g) et la taille de l'huître perlière (hauteur, H, en mm) a été établie : PR = 5,26 x 10-7 H2,91 (R2 = 0,99, p < 0,05). Ces résultats ont permis de calculer l'effort de reproduction de P. margaritifera à Takapoto et sur un bilan annuel : il augmente avec l'âge de l'huître perlière de 7 % pour le groupe d'âge I à 38% pour le groupe d'âge III. Ces valeurs annuelles sont similaires à celles calculées chez les bivalves de milieux tempérés. Cette étude a donc montré que, dans un environnement tropical assez stable tel que celui du lagon de Takapoto, P. margaritifera présente une reproduction continue, avec plusieurs pics d'émission de gamètes par an. Cette stratégie « opportuniste » permet l'investissement, de tout surplus d'énergie en production de gamètes, tout au long de l'année. Malgré la faible concentration du milieu en nourriture, ces surplus d'énergie sont assurés par les fortes capacités de filtration développées par cette espèce tropicale non-symbiotique.
Aquatic Living Resources (0990-7440) (Elsevier), 2000 , Vol. 13 , N. 1 , P. 37-48

Droits : 2000 Ifremer/Cnrs/Inra/Ird/Cemagref/Éditions scientifiques et médicales Elsevier SAS
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/2000/publication-1391.pdf
DOI:10.1016/S0990-7440(00)00135-2
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00000/1391/

Éditeur(s) : Société Nationale de Protection de la Nature
Résumé : Monitoring of French Polynesia coral reefs and their recent development.-French Polynesia, consisting of 118 islands in the centre of the Pacific Ocean, has more than 15 000 km(2) of reefs and lagoons managed by the local government. Tourism and pearl culture are the two main economic resources of the country. Polynesian coral reefs are extremely diverse and are among those for which we have thorough knowledge. The exploitation of local resources has been recorded for multiple decades and includes : coral materials, fishing, harvest and export of mother-of-pearl molluscs, pearl production, and ornamental fish. All over the country, many monitoring programmes have been launched to measure the health of reefs and the natural and anthropogenic perturbations that they suffer : hurricanes and seismic events, water quality, health of benthic and fish communities, pearl oyster pathology and radiobiology. These data, collected over the last few decades, allowed to define the relative importance of natural and anthropogenic degradation on reefs and lagoons, and to explain the present status of reefs at different spatial scales. Devastating hurricanes are rare (1903-1906, 1982-1983 and occasionally at other times), but they may annihilate outer slope coral communities on some islands. Bleaching events with considerable coral mortality at different geographical scales occurred mainly in 1991, 1994 and 2003. Outbreaks of Acanthaster destroyed numerous reefs (lagoons and outer slopes) from 1978-1982 and a new demographic wave began in 2006 at many Society islands. Eutrophication events only occurred occasionally and only in some lagoons. Whereas natural catastrophic events degrade the coral reef ecosystem across many islands, at the archipelago or even regional scale, anthropogenic degradation is limited to a few Society Islands, occurring rarely on atolls and not at all on those (one third) which are uninhabited. The main causes of reef degradation in some areas of Tahiti and Moorea include the embankment of fringing zones, coral mining, overfishing, absence of urban sewage treatment and the development of leisure and tourism activities. Because of its large geographical extent, one may conclude that major reef degradation in French Polynesia is caused by catastrophic natural events. On the other hand, anthropogenic degradation is more localized. Unfortunately, the synergistic effects of these causes of degradation prevent reefs from recovering. Optimum coral cover on French Polynesian outer reef slopes is between 50-60%. After a major destructive impact (hurricane, bleaching, Acanthaster) a reef is reduced to less than 10% coral cover, however if no more major disturbance events occur a reef will recover in about 12 years. Most of the 15 000 km(2) of reefs and lagoons in French Polynesia are in good health, and along with their neighbouring reefs in East and Central Pacific they are considered as the least degraded reefs worldwide and at a low risk of becoming degraded in the few next decades. However, we are more and more anxious about the future of reefs in the world particularly because present simulations predict that major impacts of climate change would include : elevation of sea surface temperatures, increase in the strength of hurricanes and acidification of seawater which will affect the formation of coral structures.
La Polynésie française, 118 îles au coeur du Pacifique, possède une surface de plus de 15 000 km2 de récifs et lagons gérés par le gouvernement polynésien. Le tourisme et la perliculture représentent les deux ressources économiques majeures du Pays. Les formations récifales très diversifiées sont parmi les mieux connues. Plusieurs suivis d'exploitation des ressources sont opérationnels depuis des décennies : granulats coralliens, pêche pour l'alimentation, collecte et exportation de mollusques nacriers, production de perles, poissons d'ornement. À l'échelle du Pays de très nombreux programmes de surveillance de l'état des récifs et des perturbations qu'ils subissent, naturelles et anthropiques, ont été mis en place : perturbations cycloniques et sismiques, qualité des eaux, état de santé des peuplements benthiques et ichtyologiques, pathologie des nacres, radiobiologie. Toutes ces données recueillies au fi l des décennies ont permis d'établir l'importance relative des dégradations naturelles et anthropiques sur les récifs et lagons polynésiens et d'expliquer leur état de santé actuel en considérant différentes échelles spatiales. Les périodes cycloniques dévastatrices pour les récifs sont rares (1903-1906, 1982-1983 et épisodiquement) mais les cyclones ont parfois anéanti les communautés coralliennes de pentes externes dans certaines îles. Les blanchissements suivis de mortalités importantes à des échelles spatiales diverses, ont été surtout ceux de 1991, 1994 et 2003. Les explosions démographiques d'Acanthaster ont détruit de nombreux récifs (lagons et pentes externes) en 1978-1982 et une nouvelle pullulation s'amplifie depuis 2006 dans plusieurs îles de la Société. Les crises dystrophiques n'ont perturbé qu'épisodiquement certains lagons. [...]
Revue d'Ecologie de la Terre et de la Vie (0249-7395) (Société Nationale de Protection de la Nature), 2008 , Vol. 63 , N. 1-2 , P. 145-177

Droits : 2008 Société Nationale de Protection de la Nature
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/2008/publication-4558.pdf
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00000/4558/

Éditeur(s) : Pergamon-elsevier Science Ltd
Résumé : Metazooplankton abundance, biomass (<80 mu m, 200-500 mu m and >500 mu m) and community structure in the Ahe atoll were studied together with their relationships with environmental factors (temperature, salinity, wind) and trophic factors (phytoplankton, bacteria, heterotrophic nanoflagellates (HNF) and ciliates) during three periods in 2008-2009. Meroplankton, mainly bivalve and gastropod larvae, was dominant. Holoplankton was dominated by copepods, the main species being Oithona spp., Paracalanus parvus, Clausocalanus spp., Corycaeus spp., Acartia fossae and Undinula vulgaris. The results suggest a clear wind influence on the structure and horizontal distribution of the zooplankton communities. The metazooplankton appeared to be controlled mainly by food resources, suggesting a bottom-up control. The low nanophytoplankton biomass in contrast to the high abundance of picophytoplankton, HNF and nano-particle grazers (mainly Oithona spp., Paracalanus and bivalve larvae) highlighted the importance of the microbial loop in the food web. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Marine Pollution Bulletin (0025-326X) (Pergamon-elsevier Science Ltd), 2012 , Vol. 65 , N. 10-12 , P. 538-548

Droits : 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00101/21207/19419.pdf
DOI:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2012.01.025
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00101/21207/

Éditeur(s) : Actes de colloques Ifremer, Tahiti, French Polynesia, 20 Feb - 4 Mar 1989, n°9, chap. 7, pp.57-66
Résumé : The first attempt to obtain artificial pearls from the black-lip pearl oyster Pinctada margaritifera in French Polynesia dates back to 1963. The pearl oyster culture has grown quickly especially since the eighties. This industry is now the first exportation in value of French Polynesia. 19 atolls of the Tuamotus island have at this time one or more farms and this activity has more and more attractiveness. The rise of this industry has consequently a lot of socio-ecomic repercussions on these atolls. However, as a young industry, the technics and the development are not always controlled and a lot of problems appeared these last years.

Droits : info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/1989/acte-1494.pdf
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00000/1494/

Éditeur(s) : Pergamon-elsevier Science Ltd
Résumé : Pearl culture industry represents one of the dominant business sector of French Polynesia. However, it still entirely relies on unpredictable spat collection success. Our aim was to assess the influence of natural plankton concentration fluctuations on maturation and spawning of the black lip pearl oyster Pinctada margaritifera, during a 4 months survey conducted in Ahe atoll lagoon. Plankton concentration was assessed by chlorophyll a extraction and by microscope counts while gonadic index, gonado-visceral dry weights and histology were used to measure pearl oysters reproduction activity. We found that (i) plankton concentration fluctuations were mainly related to wind regime, (ii) gametogenesis rate was mainly related to plankton concentration, (iii) spawning occurred when maximal gonad storage was reached. (iv) plankton concentration was the main spawning synchronizing factor. These results contribute explaining P. margaritifera spat collection variability in French Polynesian atoll lagoon. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Marine Pollution Bulletin (0025-326X) (Pergamon-elsevier Science Ltd), 2012 , Vol. 65 , N. 10-12 , P. 463-470

Droits : 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00101/21201/19697.pdf
DOI:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2012.03.027
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00101/21201/

Éditeur(s) : Pergamon-elsevier Science Ltd
Résumé : In atoll lagoons of French Polynesia, growth and reproduction of pearl oysters are mainly driven by plankton concentration. However, the actual diet of black-lip pearl oysters P. margaritifera in these lagoons is poorly known. To fill this gap, we used the flow through chamber method to measure clearance rates of P. margaritifera in Ahe atoll lagoon (Tuamotu Archipelago, French Polynesia). We found : (i) that pearl oysters cleared plankton at a rate that was positively related to plankton biovolume, (ii) that nanoflagellates were the main source of carbon for the pearl oysters, (iii) that the quantity and origin of carbon filtrated by pearl oysters was highly dependent on the concentration and composition of plankton. These results provide essential elements for the comprehension of growth and reproduction variability of pearl oysters in atoll lagoons of French Polynesia.
Marine Pollution Bulletin (0025-326X) (Pergamon-elsevier Science Ltd), 2012 , Vol. 65 , N. 10-12 , P. 490-499

Droits : 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00078/18888/16599.pdf
DOI:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2012.03.026
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00078/18888/

Éditeur(s) : Pergamon-elsevier Science Ltd
Résumé : Bivalve larvae and hydrographic parameters were sampled over a range of spatio-temporal scales in a deep atoll lagoon. Bivalve larvae abundances were very high throughout the year: 18,550 m(-3) in average. Larvae were (i) concentrated at mid-depth with nocturnal ascent and diurnal descent, (ii) heterogeneously dispersed at the lagoon scale, (iii) subject to day-to-day variation in abundance and (iv) transferred between different parts of the lagoon providing evidence of intra-lagoonal connectivity. The primacy of physical factors was seen on large spatial scale with the diluting effect of water renewal and transfers by hydrodynamics. On smaller spatial scale, the primacy of biological processes was recognised, with larval swimming activity leading to dial vertical migration correlated with food concentration. Variations in larval abundance were driven by bivalve reproductive activity correlated with meteorological conditions (i.e. windy periods). Finally, relationship between bivalve larvae patterns and pearl oyster (Pinctada margaritifera) settlement structuring is discussed. (C) 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Marine Pollution Bulletin (0025-326X) (Pergamon-elsevier Science Ltd), 2012 , Vol. 65 , N. 10-12 , P. 453-462

Droits : 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00101/21200/20690.pdf
DOI:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2011.12.028
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00101/21200/

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD PeerJ
Résumé : International audience
Coral reefs are in decline across the globe as a result of overexploitation, pollution, disease and, more recently, climate change. The impacts of changes in coral cover on associated fish communities can be difficult to predict because of the uneven dependence of reef fish species on corals for food, shelter or the three-dimensional structure they provide. We compared live coral cover, reef fish community metrics, and their associations in two surveys of the lagoon of the remote atoll of Mataiva (French Polynesia) carried out 31 years apart. In contrast to the general pattern of decreasing coral cover reported for many parts of the Indo-Pacific region, live coral cover increased 6–7 fold at Mataiva between 1981 and 2012, and fish density nearly doubled. The stable overall reef fish species richness belied a significant shift in community structure. There was little overlap in community composition across years, and fish assemblages in 2012 were more homogeneous in composition than they were in 1981. Changes in species abundance were not clearly related to species-specific reliance on corals. The strong positive relationships between live coral cover and fish diversity and abundance noted in 1981, when coral cover rarely exceeded 10%, were no longer present in 2012, when coral cover rarely fell below this value. The most parsimonious explanation for these contrasting relationships is that, over the combined range of coral cover observed in the 1981 and 2012 snapshots, there is a rapidly asymptotic relationship between coral and fish. Our results, and other data from the south and west Pacific, suggest that fish diversity and abundance might accumulate rapidly up to a threshold of approximately 10% live coral cover. Such a relationship would have implications for our expectations of resistance and recovery of reef fish communities facing an increasingly severe regime of coral reef disturbances.
ISSN: 2167-8359

Droits : http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/
hal-01135589
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01135589
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01135589/document
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-01135589/file/2015_02_26_more_coral_more_fish.pdf
DOI : 10.7717/peerj.745

Éditeur(s) : Gauthier-Villars
Résumé : In order to estimate the losses of CaCO3 from bioerosion (grazing and boring), experimental coral substrates were laid in the lagoons of high islands and atolls in French Polynesia. After six months of exposure, the sites could be divided into those exhibiting net bioerosion and those exhibiting net accretion. Of the five sites exhibiting net bioerosion (grazing and macroboring greater than accretion), three were located off high islands and two in atoll lagoons. The average net rate of bioerosion was greatest at Faaa in Papeete Bay, Tahiti (10.45 kg.m(-2).yr(-1)). Of, the two sites exhibiting net accretion, the greatest rate of gain (0.81 kg.m(-2).yr(-1)) was recorded at the eastern site in Takapoto lagoon. Recorded differences in the composition and distribution of macroborers, microborers and the algal turf appeared to be related to the presence or absence of grazing sea urchins (Echino-metra mathaei). It is suggested that the high densities of algal turf recorded at Faaa are a result of elevated nutrients at this site, originating in the sewage discharge from nearby residential and industrial sites.
Oceanologica Acta (0399-1784) (Gauthier-Villars), 1995 , Vol. 18 , N. 5 , P. 531-541

Droits : info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00097/20795/18419.pdf
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00097/20795/