Community structure and tagging data as tools for parrotfishes management in subtropical reefs of Brazil

Parrotfishes are iconic component in tropical reefs, influencing distribution, diversity and biomass algae. Integrity of parrotfish populations had get status of conservation strategies in many tropical reefs around the... [ view full abstract ]

Parrotfishes are iconic component in tropical reefs, influencing distribution, diversity and biomass algae. Integrity of parrotfish populations had get status of conservation strategies in many tropical reefs around the world. In Brazilian tropical and subtropical reefs, parrotfishes have been captured by spearfishers in the last two decades. The biggest species, endemic to the Brazilian Province, the blue parrotfish Scarus trispinosus, was considered nowadays functional extinct in some of the subtropical habitats. We worked in the marine sustainable reserve of Arraial do Cabo, southeastern Brazilian coast, where rich subtropical reefs predominated. We collected data on abundance and distribution, tagging the most abundant species (Sparisoma frondosum and Sparisoma axillare), and analyzing fidelity of sleeping sites, in order to help specific management goals for these fishes. Parrotfishes are restricted to warm, sheltered rocky reefs, with S. axillare (0.15 Kg/100m²) and S. frondosum (0.12 kg/100m²) as the most abundant, large parrotfishes in this area. Tagging effort identified an average home range for these two species of 150 square meters. Despite S. frondosum and S. axillare presented high fidelity for sleeping sites, no specific substrate was selected while resting on the reefs. Data generated indicated that a few sheltered reefs are important for parrotfish to forage and sleep. While most of these reefs are quickly accessible by boat, there still no full enforcement to banning parrotfish fishing species in the region. Conservation of parrotfish functional role in the region needs more than ecological and biological data, but strong awareness of local environmental agencies and users.