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Coral reefs are some of the most
spectacular ecosystems

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on the planet.

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They're also some of the most vulnerable.

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But how can we protect the reefs

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and the animals and plants
who rely on them?

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And how can we make sure

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our protected areas aren't hurting those
who use reefs to survive?

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These are some of the big questions

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facing marine conservation
biologists today.

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Let's take Fiji, for example.

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Fiji is series of islands
in the South Pacific Ocean.

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To help balance the need
for conservation and making a living,

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scientists had suggested
that instead of one big park

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which provides a lot of coverage
for one reef system

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while leaving the rest unprotected,

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a better way is to create
a system of protected areas

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nested together like pearls on a string.

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This idea is called connectivity.

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In this way, scientists can protect
lots of different habitats

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while not excluding people
from their traditional fishing grounds.

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Now, the only way this string-of-pearls
kind of reserve network is going to work

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is if each park is connected
to other parks.

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There are two main benefits to this.

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First of all, insurance.

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If something bad happens to one park,

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say, an oil spill or coral bleaching,

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then because that park
is part of a system,

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it can be reseeded from other parks
that escaped the event.

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The second benefit is representation.

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By conserving many different areas,

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scientists ensure that lots
of different habitats get protected.

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This way, they can make sure
all the different marine habitats in Fiji,

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such as coral reefs,
mangroves, and sea-grass beds,

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are all represented.

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This way, we don't unduly settle
any particular village or group of people

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with the economic burden of having
their fishing grounds off-limits.

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By sharing the cost
around the communities,

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they can also share the benefits.

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So if we agree
that rather than one big park,

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we should have lots of parks

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of different sizes
and covering different habitats,

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then scientists need to make sure
those smaller parks are connected,

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because if they're not,
they probably won't be self-sustaining.

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But how do we know that?

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That's where genetics and DNA come in.

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By looking at how closely related

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the fish in each one
of these small reserves in Fiji

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are to each other,

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scientists can figure out

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how much migration is going on
among the reserves within the system.

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Now it's important to look
at a variety of different species

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because there's no guarantee
that what's going on with these guys

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is what's going on with these guys.

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But if we look closely
and at enough species,

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we can see whether or not
the necklace is working.

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What scientists have found
so far is that, in general,

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there's a fair amount of connectivity
amongst the parks within Fiji.

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But it's not just a big free-for-all;

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rather, it seems that, for some species,

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babies born in the far west
are having a hard time

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making it to the islands in the far east.

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To help deal with that,
conservation biologists are suggesting

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that there be enough parks
in both the east and the west

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to keep the populations healthy.

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This isn't just in Fiji, either.

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Lessons about reserve connectivity
can help across the world.

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In places like Indonesia, Papua New Guinea

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and the Bahamas,

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scientists are using a variety
of tools to help understand

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how individual parks
can function together,

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so that their sum is greater
than their whole.

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And this way, we can keep
the beautiful necklace

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that is our coral reefs, intact.