Things really started to get interesting when the South Africans came on board. Among them were Arthur and Alwin from Quiksilver, arms loaded with Quiksilver and Roxy apparel for everyone aboard---thanks guys, I am enjoying them very much. The TV crew from Carte Blanche certainly added a celebrity flavor to the whole experience. I was very grateful that another scientist, Camilla Floros, could join us, and one with such a good sense of humor. Her one-liners won't be forgotten. On board, I developed quite a taste for Bin Tang (Indonesian Budweiser) and the cook's fantastic meals of fresh fish, fresh fish, and more fresh fish. The only tragedy to report took place one evening in the kitchen of the Crossing when Camilla and I assisted Jeff Hornbaker in making chocolate-chip cookies from scratch. The world would certainly be a better place if there were more gentle souls like that of Jeff Hornbaker around, but be warned, Mr. Hornbaker is no cookie baker.

The coverage of the substrate by healthy corals ranged from 10 to 70%. Although we observed lots of healthy corals, diversity was, in general, low. All of the reefs surveyed showed some degree of coral bleaching and one in particular was devastated by the 1997-1998 El Nino event and showed little sign of recovery. Due to their distance from urban centers, most of the reefs surveyed showed little sign of damage from pollution (i.e., there were little or no algae or sponge outbreaks). Anchor damage was observed on three of the seven reefs.

In an attempt to further assess human impacts on coral reefs, Reef Check (RC) has identified certain fish and invertebrates that are an indication of reef health. Typically, these RC indicator species are those targeted by fishermen, 1) as a food source (e.g., snappers and groupers), 2) for aquarium collection (e.g., banded coral shrimp and butterfly fish) or, 3) as a curio (e.g., the triton trumpet shell). Reef Check focuses on the human impacts to coral reefs because these are the things that we can do something about.

Bad news first. Barramundi cod, humphead wrasse, triton shells and banded coral shrimp were absent from the seven reefs we surveyed. The removal of triton shells from a coral reef results in a double-whammy of sorts. The triton trumpet is one of the few predators of the crown-of-thorn sea stars. These kinds of sea stars feed on live corals. In the absence of their main predators (triton shells and bumphead parrotfish), the crown-of-thorns are allowed to thrive and can decimate a coral reef. Fortunately, we did not see any outbreaks of crown-of-thorn sea stars. We saw three during the entire trip and they were all located on the same reef.

The most abundant (50+ individuals) of the RC indicator species were the butterfly fish and snappers. Groupers, parrotfish, long-spined black sea urchins and giant clams were moderately abundant at 20-50 individuals, while sweetlips, pencil urchins and lobsters were in the 5-20 category. Only a few (<5 individuals) bumphead parrotfish, edible sea cucumbers and moray eels were spotted. Aside from the long-spined black sea urchins and giant clams, RC invertebrates were surprisingly scarce. Another observation I found quite surprising was the lack of moray eels---we saw a total of four. The coral reefs of Oahu are far less pristine than those in the Bazaruto Archipelago, yet moray eels are fairly abundant in our waters.

Most of the human impacts observed were in the form of overfishing and anchor damage. In the Bazaruto Archipelago, subsistence fishing appears to be the main threat to reef health. The local fishermen (who are actually young boys between the ages of 8 and 16) use nets as long as 300 ft with mesh sizes as small as ¼ inch. Nets like these are not very discriminating. They capture everything in their path leaving nothing behind. This is particularly devastating to fish populations as the juveniles, which are the seeds for future growth, are captured and removed from the fish communities. That is not to say that subsistence fishing should be prohibited but certainly restrictions on gear should be in place and enforced.

Simply placing restrictions on gear however, is not going to solve the problem. It is really important to educate local communities about the consequences of their actions and that the ocean is not a limitless resource. As it stands, places like the Bazaruto Archipelago provide a valuable food source and support a lucrative tourism industry. If local communities can be taught to combine ecotourism with sustainable fishing practices they could reap the benefits of both instead of damaging the environment to the point neither enterprise is viable. Educating the public remains one of Reef Check's biggest challenges but with the help of the Crossing we have been able to reach far more people than previously possible.