Close Encounters: Partial Habituation Of A Coral Reef Fish To Chronic Recreational SCUBA Diving

Despite compelling evidence that recreational activities on land (e.g. hiking) can elicit anti-predator responses in prey species, and even trigger behaviorally mediated cascades via “fear effects”, analogous studies of the effects of recreational activities in marine systems (e.g. SCUBA diving) are rare. We measured the responses of a common herbivorous fish to diver presence and approaches across a gradient of chronic diver visitation to coral reefs surrounding Little Cayman Island, where spear fishing is prohibited and SCUBA diving is popular. April will present results comparing the anti-predator behavior, feeding rates, and time budgets of fish among reefs with different historical levels of diver visitation, and discuss the conditions and consequences of partial habituation of this species to divers.  She will also discuss the applicability of these results to the management of marine systems for multiple human uses, including the interaction between spear fishing and recreational diving effects on coral reefs worldwide.

Speaker: April Ridlon, PhD Candidate, Department of Ecology, Evolution & Marine Biology, UC Santa Barbara