WEBVTT 00:00:14.562 --> 00:00:17.149 Coral reefs are some of the most spectacular ecosystems 00:00:17.173 --> 00:00:18.324 on the planet. 00:00:18.348 --> 00:00:20.317 They're also some of the most vulnerable. 00:00:20.341 --> 00:00:21.873 But how can we protect the reefs 00:00:21.897 --> 00:00:23.961 and the animals and plants who rely on them? 00:00:23.985 --> 00:00:25.415 And how can we make sure 00:00:25.439 --> 00:00:28.564 our protected areas aren't hurting those who use reefs to survive? 00:00:28.588 --> 00:00:30.255 These are some of the big questions 00:00:30.279 --> 00:00:32.348 facing marine conservation biologists today. 00:00:32.372 --> 00:00:33.769 Let's take Fiji, for example. 00:00:33.793 --> 00:00:36.445 Fiji is series of islands in the South Pacific Ocean. 00:00:36.469 --> 00:00:39.469 To help balance the need for conservation and making a living, 00:00:39.493 --> 00:00:42.161 scientists had suggested that instead of one big park 00:00:42.185 --> 00:00:44.797 which provides a lot of coverage for one reef system 00:00:44.821 --> 00:00:46.561 while leaving the rest unprotected, 00:00:46.585 --> 00:00:49.109 a better way is to create a system of protected areas 00:00:49.133 --> 00:00:51.607 nested together like pearls on a string. 00:00:51.631 --> 00:00:53.600 This idea is called connectivity. 00:00:53.624 --> 00:00:56.558 In this way, scientists can protect lots of different habitats 00:00:56.582 --> 00:00:59.691 while not excluding people from their traditional fishing grounds. 00:00:59.715 --> 00:01:03.493 Now, the only way this string-of-pearls kind of reserve network is going to work 00:01:03.517 --> 00:01:05.576 is if each park is connected to other parks. 00:01:05.600 --> 00:01:07.354 There are two main benefits to this. 00:01:07.378 --> 00:01:08.860 First of all, insurance. 00:01:08.884 --> 00:01:10.652 If something bad happens to one park, 00:01:10.676 --> 00:01:12.572 say, an oil spill or coral bleaching, 00:01:12.596 --> 00:01:14.691 then because that park is part of a system, 00:01:14.715 --> 00:01:17.874 it can be reseeded from other parks that escaped the event. 00:01:17.898 --> 00:01:19.827 The second benefit is representation. 00:01:19.851 --> 00:01:21.518 By conserving many different areas, 00:01:21.542 --> 00:01:24.691 scientists ensure that lots of different habitats get protected. 00:01:24.715 --> 00:01:28.112 This way, they can make sure all the different marine habitats in Fiji, 00:01:28.136 --> 00:01:31.127 such as coral reefs, mangroves, and sea-grass beds, 00:01:31.151 --> 00:01:32.437 are all represented. 00:01:32.461 --> 00:01:36.224 This way, we don't unduly settle any particular village or group of people 00:01:36.248 --> 00:01:39.481 with the economic burden of having their fishing grounds off-limits. 00:01:39.505 --> 00:01:41.602 By sharing the cost around the communities, 00:01:41.626 --> 00:01:44.091 they can also share the benefits. 00:01:44.115 --> 00:01:46.242 So if we agree that rather than one big park, 00:01:46.266 --> 00:01:47.613 we should have lots of parks 00:01:47.637 --> 00:01:50.058 of different sizes and covering different habitats, 00:01:50.082 --> 00:01:53.300 then scientists need to make sure those smaller parks are connected, 00:01:53.324 --> 00:01:56.329 because if they're not, they probably won't be self-sustaining. 00:01:56.353 --> 00:01:57.593 But how do we know that? 00:01:57.617 --> 00:01:59.634 That's where genetics and DNA come in. 00:02:00.316 --> 00:02:01.904 By looking at how closely related 00:02:01.928 --> 00:02:04.396 the fish in each one of these small reserves in Fiji 00:02:04.420 --> 00:02:05.570 are to each other, 00:02:05.594 --> 00:02:06.790 scientists can figure out 00:02:06.814 --> 00:02:10.029 how much migration is going on among the reserves within the system. 00:02:10.053 --> 00:02:12.875 Now it's important to look at a variety of different species 00:02:12.899 --> 00:02:15.966 because there's no guarantee that what's going on with these guys 00:02:15.990 --> 00:02:17.680 is what's going on with these guys. 00:02:17.704 --> 00:02:19.820 But if we look closely and at enough species, 00:02:19.844 --> 00:02:22.201 we can see whether or not the necklace is working. 00:02:22.225 --> 00:02:24.789 What scientists have found so far is that, in general, 00:02:24.813 --> 00:02:28.085 there's a fair amount of connectivity amongst the parks within Fiji. 00:02:28.109 --> 00:02:29.889 But it's not just a big free-for-all; 00:02:29.913 --> 00:02:32.086 rather, it seems that, for some species, 00:02:32.110 --> 00:02:34.715 babies born in the far west are having a hard time 00:02:34.739 --> 00:02:36.795 making it to the islands in the far east. 00:02:36.819 --> 00:02:39.733 To help deal with that, conservation biologists are suggesting 00:02:39.757 --> 00:02:42.393 that there be enough parks in both the east and the west 00:02:42.417 --> 00:02:43.956 to keep the populations healthy. 00:02:43.980 --> 00:02:45.512 This isn't just in Fiji, either. 00:02:45.536 --> 00:02:48.456 Lessons about reserve connectivity can help across the world. 00:02:48.480 --> 00:02:51.219 In places like Indonesia, Papua New Guinea 00:02:51.243 --> 00:02:52.405 and the Bahamas, 00:02:52.429 --> 00:02:55.161 scientists are using a variety of tools to help understand 00:02:55.185 --> 00:02:57.319 how individual parks can function together, 00:02:57.343 --> 00:02:59.815 so that their sum is greater than their whole. 00:02:59.839 --> 00:03:02.125 And this way, we can keep the beautiful necklace 00:03:02.149 --> 00:03:03.977 that is our coral reefs, intact.