Search the SPREP Catalogue

Fiji is one of the wealthiest countries in the South Pacific, partly because of its extensive marine resources, which provide important services such as protein from fishing and income from tourism. The country is made up of approximately 844 volcanic islands and is dominated by the Viti Levu and Vanua Levu platforms which account for 87% of the total land area (Vuki et al., 2000). Fiji has a moderate tropical climate and hence reefs are well developed around all of the islands.

The shallow coastal zone of Fiji is comprised of three major, interrelated habitat types: marine algae and seagrass; large areas of mangroves; and extensive coral reefs. The marine resources include approximately 1000 coral reefs with representatives of all major reef types (Vuki et al.y 2000). Although marine biodiversity is lower than the 'coral triangle' of Indonesia, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea and north-eastern Australia, Fiji does support approximately 200 species of coral (Veron, 2000). Furthermore it has been estimated that Fiji has approximately 1200 marine fish species (Vuki et ai, 2000). Since taxonomic research in the country has been limited, further research will extend the known biodiversity of all marine taxa considerably.