South Atlantic

Background information

The South Atlantic Fishery Management Council (SAFMC) is considering the implementation of nine Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) between Cape Hatteras, NC, and the Florida Keys to protect seven species of the deepwater snapper-grouper complex. These consist of five species of grouper including snowy grouper (Epinephelus niveatus), yellowedge grouper (E. flavolimbatus), warsaw grouper (E. nigritus), speckled hind (E. drummonhayi), and misty grouper (E. mystacinus) and two species of tilefish including tielfish (Lopholatilus chamaeleonticeps) and blueline tilefish (Caulolatilus microps). These species are considered to be overfished based on recent stock assessments. In addition, most of the grouper species are protogynous hermaphrodites attracted to high-relief sites where they aggregate to spawn and are thus susceptible to targeted fishing operations which may selectively remove males. The proposed areas are known to contain habitat which supports populations of economically valuable reef fish including the seven targeted species and other reef fish. The NOAA Fisheries Laboratory in Panama City volunteered to conduct preliminary investigations of the proposed MPAs and then to evaluate the efficacy of the closures once they have been made. Our goal is to conduct preliminary examinations of five of the proposed MPAs including Snowy Wreck, NC, two sites in south Carolina (Edisto and Northern South Carolina), Georgia and North Florida, each containing two or more options.

Objectives

The objectives of the pre-closure study include:

• Establish baseline estimates of reef fish density and species composition associated with bottom features within and outside the MPAs.
• Map and describe habitat features
• Document the relationship between habitat and species assemblages