Acanthaster planci population survey on the north coast of Moorea, French Polynesia
Krupa, John
,
Reeves Chris
2004
Recent increases in observations of Acanthaster planci in lagoons on the North Coast of Moorea, French Polynesia have prompted a population survey on both the outer reef slope and inside the lagoon. Nine transects were performed along the coast between (S 17°28.971, W 149°54.130; & S 17°28.65, W 149°50.75). A. planci population was found to be very patchy. Timed surveys using SCUBA showed the population of stars on the outer reef slope to be concentrated in a depth range between 15-30m, with a high concentration 40/Ha near one of our transects. Measured density transects were performed at this site and the density was shown to be 4,000/km2, higher than the 6/km2 baseline for the western Pacific. Transects inside the lagoon were between 120-220/km2 for three areas surveyed. The overall A. planci population appears slightly higher than normal when sampling difficulty, and error margins are factored in.