Éditeur(s) : Université d'Angers
Résumé : In oyster farming areas, organic matter fluxes toward sediment is increased. Pacific oysters (Crassostrea gigas) reject organic-rich faeces and pseudofaeces as a result of filtration process. Organic matter can be consumed by benthic fauna, but in excess it can entails the reduction of benthic faunal species richness, abundance and biomass. Organic matter degradation also induces hypoxic (or anoxic) conditions in the sediment, and production of ammonia and sulfides in toxic concentrations. The main objective of this study is to assess the effects of oyster farming on benthic intertidal ecosystems in the Pertuis Charentais. Benthic macrofauna, living (stained) foraminifera, and physicochemical characteristics of the water column and sediment were used as indicators to evaluate these effects. A multidisciplinary approach was conducted across the Pertuis Charentais at 3 different spatial scales: an oyster trestle (micro-scale), an oyster culture area (meso-scale) and various sites across the Pertuis Charentais (macro-scale). The study was also realised at 4 different temporal scales: some months for the spatial micro-scale, every two weeks for 2 years at meso-scale and once per season during one year at macro-scale. In this study, I found that oyster farming enriches sediment in fine particles, organic matter (up to 12 %), particulate organic carbon (15-20 µg mg 1) and leads to high microphytobenthic biomass. Moreover, the association of seasonnal warming (during spring and summer), remineralisation of accumulated organic matter and short-term hypoxic conditions leads to sulfides and ammonium production. Consequently, the benthic biodiversity decreases and the population dynamic is disturbed. The population dynamic disturbance is characterised by fast abundance rises followed by high mortality rates. In these conditions, tolerant benthic macrofaunal (Cirratulidae, Spionidae and Capitellidae) and foraminiferal (Ammonia tepida and Cribroelphidium gunteri) species are promoted. AMBI index confirms "medium" ecological quality of oyster farming areas. On the contrary, across the control sites, sensible species are maintained (Amphipods, Rosalina cf. vilardeboana). Comparison of oyster farming techniques shows that on-bottom culture is less disturbing for benthic ecosystem than off-bottom culture. Axial tomodensitometry, an innovative method, was used to describe in 3D the sedimentary column organisation. I show that oyster farming modifies the sedimentary column functioning. Indeed, the macrofaunal diversity decrease leads to the modification of the functional diversity of assemblages. Thus, the vertical distribution of living foraminifera is limited in oyster farming areas, because their distribution is tightly related to macrofaunal bioturbating modes.
Dans les zones ostréicoles, les flux de matière organique sont importants, l'huître Crasssotrea gigas rejetant sous forme de pseudo-fécès et de fécès de grandes quantités de matière organique. De ce fait, bien que cette matière organique puisse être consommée par la faune benthique, sa surabondance peut provoquer une réduction de la richesse spécifique, de l'abondance et de la biomasse et provoquer sur le plan des processus biogéochimiques des déplétions en oxygène et l'apparition de substances comme l'ammonium et les sulfures dont les concentrations peuvent devenir toxiques. L'objectif principal de cette étude était donc de déterminer l'impact de l'ostréiculture, grâce à plusieurs indicateurs, sur le compartiment benthique d'un écosystème littoral comme les pertuis charentais. Pour évaluer ces effets, la macrofaune benthique et les foraminifères vivants benthiques ont été utilisés en association avec des mesures des paramètres physico-chimiques de la colonne d'eau et du sédiment. Une approche pluridisciplinaire a ainsi été menée dans les pertuis charentais à trois échelles spatiales différentes : à l'échelle d'une table ostréicole (micro-échelle), à l'échelle d'un site ostréicole (méso-échelle) et à l'échelle des pertuis charentais (macro-échelle). Dans les trois cas, un suivi dans le temps a été associé à une étude de distribution spatiale, quelques mois à micro-échelle, tous les quinze jours pendant deux années à méso-échelle et une fois par saison pendant une année à macro-échelle. Ces différentes approches ont permis d'avoir une vision pertinente de la dynamique et de la réponse fonctionnelle de la faune benthique aux changements induits par la présence de l'ostréiculture. La présence des cultures ostréicoles dans les pertuis charentais enrichit les sédiments en particules fines, en matière organique (12 %), en carbone organique particulaire (15-20 µg mg-1) et favorise une production microphytobenthique élevée. Pendant la période chaude de l'année printemps-été, la reminéralisation de la matière organique accumulée associée à des hypoxies temporaires a favorisé la production de sulfures et d'ammonium. Dans les stations soumises à l'ostréiculture, la diversité des assemblages diminue. La dynamique des espèces est caractérisée par des augmentations rapides des abondances suivies d'épisodes de mortalité. Les espèces tolérantes de la macrofaune benthique (Cirratulidae, Spionidae et Capitellidae) et des foraminifères vivants benthiques (Ammonia tepida et Cribroelphidium gunteri) sont favorisées. Le calcul de l'indice AMBI confirme la qualité écologique moyenne de ces sites. Au contraire, dans la station témoin, les espèces sensibles sont favorisées (Amphipodes, Rosalina cf. vilardeboana). La comparaison de la technique de culture sur table et de culture à plat a montré que la culture des huîtres à plat est moins perturbante pour le milieu. L'étude de la bioturbation a montré l'influence qui existe entre le mode de bioturbation des différents groupes de la macrofaune et la répartition verticale des foraminifères vivants dans la colonne sédimentaire. La diminution de la diversité des assemblages de la macrofaune dans les zones soumises à l'ostréiculture modifient la diversité fonctionnelle de ces assemblages et affectent le fonctionnement de la colonne sédimentaire, limitant la répartition verticale des foraminifères dans ces zones.

Droits : info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/2007/these-2582.pdf
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00000/2582/

Éditeur(s) : Elsevier
Résumé : We investigated the influence of bioturbation by macrofauna on the vertical distribution of living (stained) benthic foraminifera in marine intertidal sediments. We investigated the links between macrofaunal bioturbation and foraminiferal distribution, by sampling from stations situated on a gradient of perturbation by oyster-farming, which has a major effect on benthic faunal assemblages. Sediment cores were collected on the French Atlantic coast, from three intertidal stations: an oyster farm, an area without oysters but affected by oyster biodeposits, and a control station. Axial tomodensitometry (CT-scan) was used for three-dimensional visualization and two-dimensional analysis of the cores. Biogenic structure volumes were quantified and compared between cores. We collected the macrofauna, living foraminifera, shells and gravel from the cores after scanning, to validate image analysis. We did not investigate differences in the biogenic structure volume between cores. However, biogenic structure volume is not necessarily proportional to the extent of bioturbation in a core, given that many biodiffusive activities cannot be detected on CT-scans. Biodiffusors and larger gallery-diffusors were abundant in macrofaunal assemblage at the control station. By contrast, macrofaunal assemblages consisted principally of downward-conveyors at the two stations affected by oyster farming. At the control station, the vertical distribution of biogenic structures mainly built by the biodiffusor Scorbicularia plana and the large gallery-diffusor Hediste diversicolor was significantly correlated with the vertical profiles of living foraminifera in the sediment, whereas vertical distributions of foraminifera and downward-conveyors were not correlated at the station affected by oyster farming. This relationship was probably responsible for the collection of foraminifera in deep sediment layers (> 6 cm below the sediment surface) at the control station. As previously suggested for other species, oxygen diffusion may occur via the burrows built by S. plana and H. diversicolor, potentially increasing oxygen penetration and providing a favorable microhabitat for foraminifera in terms of oxygen levels. By contrast, the absence of living foraminifera below 6 cm at the stations affected by oyster farming was probably associated with a lack of biodiffusor and large gallery-diffusor bioturbation. Our findings suggest that the effect of macrofaunal bioturbation on the vertical distribution of foraminiferal assemblages in sediments depends on the effects of the macrofauna on bioirrigation and sediment oxidation, as deduced by Eh values, rather than on the biogenic structure volume produced by macrofauna. The loss of bioturbator functional diversity due to oyster farming may thus indirectly affect infaunal communities by suppressing favorable microhabitats produced by bioturbation.
Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology (0022-0981) (Elsevier), 2009-03 , Vol. 371 , N. 1 , P. 20-33

Droits : 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/2009/publication-6146.pdf
DOI:10.1016/j.jembe.2008.12.012
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00000/6146/

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Springer Verlag
Résumé : International audience
The importance of secondary tropical forests regarding the maintenance of soil fauna abundance and diversity is poorly known. The aims of this study were (1) to describe soil fauna abundance and diversity and (2) to assess the determinants of soil fauna abundance and diversity in two stands of a tropical semi-evergreen secondary forest. Soil macrofauna and microarthropod abundance and soil macrofauna diversity were described at two sites developed on different soils and with different site histories: (1) a natural secondary stand (natural forest) under two dominant tree species, Pisonia subcordata and Bursera simaruba, and (2) a planted secondary forest (planted forest) under three tree species, B. simaruba, Swietenia macrophylla, and Tabebuia heterophylla. The effects of both soil and main tree species' litter quality were assessed to explain soil fauna abundance and diversity. The abundance of soil macrofauna was significantly higher in the soil under the planted forest, and soil fauna communities were contrasted between the two sites. In the planted forest, a soil-dwelling macrofauna community developed (mainly consisting of the anecic earthworm Polypheretima elongata). In the natural forest, soil macrofauna and microarthropod communities were located at the soil surface. The effect of plant litter quality varied according to each dominant tree species and was superimposed to soil effect. The lowest macrofauna abundance was associated with B. simaruba in the natural forest. T. heterophylla supported a much greater macrofauna community than the two other tree species studied at the same soil, and it appears likely that this is due to the palatability of its leaves compared with the other trees (low lignin, tannins, soluble phenols).
ISSN: 0178-2762

hal-00495371
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00495371
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00495371/document
https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00495371/file/Loranger-Merciris_et_al._2007.pdf
DOI : 10.1007/s00374-007-0199-5

Résumé : Ifremer launched and coordinated the development of a strategy for the REBENT network (REseau BENThique) in 2000 to monitor the aftermath of the "Erika" oil spill in December 1999. Its aim is to provide consistent baseline knowledge about coastal benthic habitats and constitute a monitoring tool to detect changes at various scales over time and space. Sector-based seabed habitat mapping in shallow water (< 50 m deep), is currently being conducted throughout Brittany's coastal waters through a combination of geoacoustic marine systems and ground-truthing using biological grab sampling and seabed observations. Sedimentological and biological results on Glenan area emphasize a great diversity of subtidal habitats and marine species recognized. Sidescan imagery accentuates the complexity of the communities structure in a marine environment distinguished by strong and regulary roughness of the sea. Maerl biocenose is present at the nord-east of the archipelago. Progressively it gives way to mud sediment colonized by Amphiura filiformis and Haploops in the deeper channel. To the west and the south, substratum types are more coarse, occasionally mobiles, composed of essentially sand community with Nephtys and gravelly sand community with Branchiostoma lanceolatum.
Le Rebent (Réseau benthique), initié en 2000 à la suite de la catastrophe de l'Erika, a pour objectif de suivre les habitats benthiques côtiers et de détecter les changements à différentes échelles de temps et d'espace. L'approche sectorielle dans les petits fonds (< 50 m) des côtes bretonnes combine, des moyens de prospection acoustique, afin de délimiter les principaux types de substrats, avec des prélèvements et des observations biologiques pour caractériser les peuplements macrobenthiques. Les résultats des analyses sédimentologiques et faunistiques montrent autour de l'archipel des Glénan, une grande diversité d'habitats et d'espèces reconnues. L'imagerie acoustique fait ressortir la complexité de leur structuration dans un environnement marin soumis à de fortes et régulières périodes d'agitation. La biocénose de maërl occupe le nord-est de l'archipel. Elle laisse place progressivement aux sédiments envasés à Amphiura filiformis et aux vases à Haploops dans le fond du chenal. A l'ouest et au sud, les subtrats sont plus grossiers, essentiellement sableux à Nephtys et sablo-graveleux à Branchiostoma lanceolatum, épisodiquement mobiles.

Droits : info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/2006/rapport-2301.pdf
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/2006/sup-2301.pdf
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00000/2301/

Éditeur(s) : Public Library Science
Résumé : Observing spatial and temporal variations of marine biodiversity from non-destructive techniques is central for understanding ecosystem resilience, and for monitoring and assessing conservation strategies, e.g. Marine Protected Areas. Observations are generally obtained through Underwater Visual Censuses (UVC) conducted by divers. The problems inherent to the presence of divers have been discussed in several papers. Video techniques are increasingly used for observing underwater macrofauna and habitat. Most video techniques that do not need the presence of a diver use baited remote systems. In this paper, we present an original video technique which relies on a remote unbaited rotating remote system including a high definition camera. The system is set on the sea floor to record images. These are then analysed at the office to quantify biotic and abiotic sea bottom cover, and to identify and count fish species and other species like marine turtles. The technique was extensively tested in a highly diversified coral reef ecosystem in the South Lagoon of New Caledonia, based on a protocol covering both protected and unprotected areas in major lagoon habitats. The technique enabled to detect and identify a large number of species, and in particular fished species, which were not disturbed by the system. Habitat could easily be investigated through the images. A large number of observations could be carried out per day at sea. This study showed the strong potential of this non obtrusive technique for observing both macrofauna and habitat. It offers a unique spatial coverage and can be implemented at sea at a reasonable cost by non-expert staff. As such, this technique is particularly interesting for investigating and monitoring coastal biodiversity in the light of current conservation challenges and increasing monitoring needs.
Plos One (1932-6203) (Public Library Science), 2012-02 , Vol. 7 , N. 2 , P. -

Droits : 2012 Pelletier et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00078/18879/16453.pdf
DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0030536
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00078/18879/

Éditeur(s) : Elsevier
Résumé : The ecological quality status (EcoQ) of intertidal mudflats constrained by Pacific oyster farming was assessed by single (H', AMBI, BENTIX and BOPA) and multimetric (M-AMBI and average score) index approaches in the Pertuis Charentais (SW France). Fifteen sampling stations were monitored seasonally for sedimentological features and macrozoobenthos in 2004. Sediments affected by oyster biodeposits showed organic matter enrichment, and sediments from off-bottom culture sites had higher organic matter contents and lower redox potentials than sediments from on-bottom culture sites. Biotic indices consistently registered responses of macrozoobenthos to organic enrichment but there was only partial agreement between single index-derived EcoQs. The average score was better than M-AMBI and single indices for determining EcoQs. Accordingly, oyster farming alters intertidal macrozoobenthic assemblages moderately, and off-bottom cultures cause more disturbance than on-bottom cultures. Hydrodynamics and seasons may interact with culture practices in smothering/strengthening biodeposition-mediated effects through dispersal/accumulation of biodeposits.
Marine Pollution Bulletin (0025-326X) (Elsevier), 2008-11 , Vol. 56 , N. 11 , P. 1898-1912

Droits : 2008 Elsevier Ltd All rights reserved.
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/2008/publication-4650.pdf
DOI:10.1016/j.marpolbul.2008.07.010
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00000/4650/

Éditeur(s) : Gauthier-Villars
Résumé : The biogeological organization of Thau lagoon was investigated through the granulometric analysis of surficial sediments and study of the qualitative and the quantitative distribution of benthic macrofauna and meiofauna. These show clearly that the lagoonal system is organized according to confinement as conceived by Guelorget and Perthuisot (1983 a; 1992), which depends upon the rate of exchanges with the open sea and the hydrodynamic pattern of the basin. The latter appears to be composed of a pair of lagoonal subsystems separated by a hydrodynamically unstable barrier. The northern subsystem displays the classical concentric organization of Mediterranean lagoons with a clearly defined hydraulic umbilicus. The southern subsystem displays a transverse original organization due to a large zone of exchanges with the sea through the sand bar. The basin is globally subject to only slight confinement, but displays signs of organic matter accumulation due to the intensification of shellfish culture.
Oceanologica Acta (0399-1784) (Gauthier-Villars), 1994 , Vol. 17 , N. 1 , P. 105-114

Droits : info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00098/20880/18494.pdf
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00098/20880/

Éditeur(s) : EDP Sciences
Résumé : The necessity to move from a traditional fishery management to an ecosystem approach is now acknowledged. Indicators are required to support the development of this approach. For example, community indicators have been proposed to assess the impact of fishing. We tested here the applicability of one such community indicator, the abundance-biomass comparison (ABC method), as a measure of the impact of bottom trawling (years of sampling: 2001 and 2003) on the benthic invertebrates-typically starfishes, crabs, squat lobsters, shrimps and large hard-shelled molluscs-of "Grande Vasiere", a major French fishing zone, in the Bay of Biscay. The ABC method is generally used as an impact indicator for different types of physical, biological and anthropogenic disturbances on benthic communities. This method is based on the assumption that increasing disturbance shifts communities from dominance by large-bodied species with low turnover rates toward dominance by small-bodied species with high turnover rates. At less disturbed areas the average biomass of individuals is greater than at more heavily disturbed areas. The ABC method measures this effect by comparing the ranked distributions of abundance and biomass within a given community. We applied the ABC method and compared the size structure and the species diversity at two areas exposed to moderate and high bottom trawl effort. Species diversity was lower in the most exploited area. The highly trawled area was dominated by opportunistic organisms, mainly one species of swimming crab Liocarcinus depurator, one species of squat lobster Munida rugosa and Norway lobsters Nephrops norvegicus, which are large-bodied species. Consequently, the results of the ABC method were inconsistent with the theoretical expectation for these particular macrofaunal communities and the measured levels of fishing intensity.
La nécessité de passer d'une gestion monospécifique des pêches à une approche écosystémique est largement reconnue. Pour mettre en place une telle approche, des indicateurs ont été proposés afin d'estimer l'impact de la pêche sur les communautés. Nous avons testé l'efficacité de l'un de ces indicateurs, la comparaison abondance-biomasse (méthode ABC), pour mesurer l'impact du chalutage de fond (année d'échantillonnage : 2001 et 2003) sur les communautés de la macrofaune benthique de la Grande Vasière, golfe de Gascogne (typiquement des crabes, étoiles de mer, des galathées, de gros mollusques à coquille dure). La méthode ABC est généralement utilisée comme un indicateur d'impact de différents types de perturbations physiques, biologiques et anthropiques sur les communautés benthiques. Cette méthode est basée sur l'hypothèse qu'un régime de perturbation croissant entraîne une modification de la structure des communautés qui deviennent graduellement dominées par des espèces opportunistes de petite taille caractérisées par un renouvellement rapide. Dans une communauté modérément perturbée, la biomasse moyenne des individus est ainsi plus grande que dans une communauté fortement perturbée. La méthode ABC mesure cet effet en comparant les distributions en biomasse et densité dans chaque communauté. Nous avons appliqué la méthode ABC et étudié la structure en taille et la diversité spécifique des communautés benthiques en comparant deux zones, l'une soumise à un effort de pêche modéré et l'autre à un important effort de pêche. La diversité spécifique était plus faible sur les sites fortement chalutés. Ces sites étaient dominés par des organismes opportunistes de grande taille, principalement une espèce de crabe nageur Liocarcinus depurator, une espèce de galathée Munida rugosa et des langoustines Nephrops norvegicus. Dans ces conditions, les résultats de la méthode ABC n'étaient pas cohérents avec la théorie pour ces communautés de macro-invertébrés benthiques et les efforts de pêche mesurés.
Aquatic Living Resources (0990-7440) (EDP Sciences), 2006-07 , Vol. 19 , N. 3 , P. 219-228

Droits : 2006 EDP
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/2006/publication-2133.pdf
DOI:10.1051/alr:2006022
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00000/2133/

Éditeur(s) : HAL CCSD Station Biologique
Résumé : International audience
This study focuses on the diet of the eel Anguilla anguilla, sampled during one month of each of the four seasons from autumn 1998 to summer 1999 in the Languedocian Ingril Lagoon (Gulf ot Lion). The following feeding indices were calculated based on observations of 11 categories of prey found in the contents of full stomachs: coefficient of vacuity (CV), degree of fullness (DR), occurrence frequency (PP, in %), relative abundance (N, in %) and relative weight (P, in %). A parallel monitoring of the benthic macrofauna was conducted in autumn and spring. The interpretation of the results is based on the degree III of the scale of confinement established by Guélorget & Perthuisot (1983) and on the Costello et al. (1990) method, which combines PP and N. A. anguilla mainly feeds on benthic organisms, primarily amphipods crustaceans, polychaetes, insect larvae and small fish. The eel's feeding activity is very low in November and February and usually increases during May. The trophic quality available to the eel population in the Ingril Lagoon depends on its hydrodynamic variables, which are directly related to its close communication with the sea. Changes observed in the eel's diet over this year long study illustrate an opportunist type of feeding behaviour that reflects the typical composition of the macroinvertebrate species assemblage at a given point in time. Eels consume the type of benthic prey that is most available at a given moment without using a particular feeding strategy (e.g., specialisation or generalisation). The eels adapt by shifting their diet according to the energetic resources available in the ecosystem, which vary depending on hydrological regime. Thus, the facultative catadromous migrant species Anguilla anguilla could be used as a bioindicator of changes in the biological zonation and in the available food resources in the brackish ecosystem of Ingril Lagoon during its lagoon-resident ecophase.
ISSN: 0007-9723

hal-00753020
https://hal.univ-antilles.fr/hal-00753020

Résumé : La chlordécone est un insecticide organochloré qui a été utilisé aux Antilles de 1972 à 1993 afin de combattre un charançon s’attaquant aux racines des bananiers. Très persistant dans le milieu, la molécule est véhiculée des terres contaminées vers les systèmes aquatiques par le biais des matières particulaires fines, contaminant ainsi le milieu marin côtier. L’objectif de l'étude était de caractériser le devenir de la chlordécone dans les réseaux trophiques de la macrofaune côtière. Il s'agissait en particulier de tenter d’identifier ses voies d’entrée à partir des apports terrigènes et sa propagation au sein de ces réseaux. Le modèle d'étude est une baie de la Martinique, avec les herbiers à phanérogamme comme système de production primaire. Les résultats obtenus ont montré que les apports terrigènes ont une influence sur les niveaux de contamination de la faune marine, les individus d’une même espèce et aux caractéristiques comparables apparaissant plus contaminés lorsqu’ils sont proches des exutoires des rivières que lorsqu’ils en sont plus éloignés. Cette contamination présente une bioamplification le long des réseaux trophiques, depuis les producteurs primaires jusqu’aux espèces de rang trophique élevé tels que les carnivores de deuxième ordre (facteur de bioamplification trophique estimé entre 1,4 et 1,9). Le lieu de vie et le mode d’alimentation ont ainsi été identifiés comme jouant une rôle important sur les niveaux de contamination. Des phénomènes de bioaccumulation ont été avérés chez deux espèces pour lesquelles le niveau de contamination par la chlordécone est élevé, Chloroscombrus chrysurus et Callinectes danae. Mais cette caractéristique ne s’applique pas à toutes les espèces étudiées. Une diminution des niveaux de contamination a même été observée au cours de la vie de la langouste blanche Panulirus argus. Elle est principalement attribuée à une migration de l’espèce vers le large entre les phases juvéniles et adultes. Le présent rapport apporte ainsi des connaissances nouvelles sur les modalité de transfert de la chlordécone en milieu marin, en particulier sur la capacité de transfert de la molécule dans les réseaux trophiques, sur la capacité des organismes à la bioaccumuler ainsi que sur l'influence du mode de vie et de l’alimentation des espèces sur leurs niveaux de contamination. Il met en évidence le rôle de l’écologie des espèces dans les niveaux de contamination. Malgré les progrès accomplis, ces résultats restent encore fragmentaires.

Droits : 2011 Ifremer
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00036/14684/11986.pdf
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00036/14684/

Éditeur(s) : Elsevier Science Bv
Résumé : Monitoring fish and underwater habitats, particularly in and around marine protected areas (MPAs) requires non-destructive observation methods. This is generally achieved by divers conducting underwater visual censuses (UVC), but video-based techniques are now being used more often to observe underwater macrofauna and habitats. A comparison of these two techniques is relevant with the development of high-definition (HD) video, which constitutes a substantial improvement over previously available video resolutions at limited extra cost. We conducted a paired observation experiment involving both HD video and UVC in an MPA located in the New Caledonian lagoon, which is a highly diversified coral reef ecosystem. We compared three techniques for counting fish along 50 m x 4 m delineated strip transects: UVC and two video techniques in which the diver used either a straight trajectory (I-type transect) or a browsing one (S-type transect). The results showed that the proportion of fish that were not identified up to the species level did not exceed 3.3% in video observations versus 1.7% in UVC. The abundance and species richness were larger in UVC than in videos, and S-type transects detected more individuals and species than I-type transects. The average abundance and species richness observed by UVC were 1094 individuals and 69.7 species per transect respectively. In comparison with UVC. I-type and S-type video transects detected on average 56% and 61% of the abundance and 85% and 77% of the species richness seen by UVC respectively. Our results showed that, in comparison to UVC data recorded in situ, the post field analysis of HD video images provided representative observations of fish abundance and species diversity, although fewer species and individuals were detected. The advantages and shortcomings of each observation technique for monitoring fish assemblages, particularly in an MPA are discussed. HD video appears to be a cost-effective technique in terms of the human resources and time needed for field implementation. Overall, this study suggests that HD video-based techniques constitute an interesting complement to UVC, or an alternative when these cannot be implemented. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Fisheries Research (0165-7836) (Elsevier Science Bv), 2011-01 , Vol. 107 , N. 1-3 , P. 84-93

Droits : 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00031/14192/11470.pdf
DOI:10.1016/j.fishres.2010.10.011
http://archimer.ifremer.fr/doc/00031/14192/