Environmental Projects
Part of the Blue Mango Inn’s commitment in preserving the marine environment is its involvement in several projects aimed at saving the marine resources of Boracay Island.
World’s first artificial reef using clay!
In its efforts to promote marine conservation, the Rotary Club of Boracay in partnership with Rotarian Finn Ronne from Campbell River Daybreak Rotary Club (Canada), the Boracay Association of Scuba Diving Schools (BASS) and the Blue Mango Dive Center take part in the deployment of Artificial Reef Pots around Boracay Island. Dustin Pratt, the dive center’s general manager and dive master documents the deployment of the clay reef pots.
These reef pots have a neutral composition, unlike those found in cars tires and cements used as artificial reefs. This allows organisms to adhere to the reef pots more readily, eventually providing them a better environment in which to grow. The design was chosen because it has a high surface area which means the out side surface is not smooth so it slows the water down this is better for small algae, sponge and coral larvae to settle on. The oceans water are full of Larvae (or eggs) of all kinds on organisms. One gallon of seawater can contain thousands of young larvas.
Fifty (50) reef pots were deployed February 2006.
Reef Pots Sinking
36 reef pots arrived at Caticlan today at 11am Feb 6 due to weather only 18 could be brought to the staging area on balinghi beach in front of the army station out post they are scheduled for deployment into the ocan next week. The Reef pot will be placed by The B.A.S.S. near the existing bahay isda cement reef structures.
First the 18 pots were unloaded from a truck at catical jetty port to a cargo banca, then the banca brought them to Balinghi beach.
Crown of Thorns Collection
We are collecting the invasive and destructive species Crown-of-Thorns (Acanthaster planci) from Boracays dive sites.
This species of starfish eats the living tissue of the outside of hard coral reefs. They are believed to out break in numbers due to the lack of their natural predator the triton trumpet which is a highly valuable shell species. Also nutrient runoff from land due to human activity is also believed by scientist to somehow affect their annual population explosions.
Population control
Population numbers for the Crown-of-Thorns have been increasing since the 1970s.However, historic records distribution patterns and numbers are hard to come by, as SCUBA technology, necessary to conduct population censuses, had only been developed in the previous few decades.
To prevent overpopulation of Crown-of-Thorns causing widespread destruction to coral reef habitats, humans have implemented a variety of control measures.
Injecting sodium bisulphate into the starfish is the most efficient measure in practice. Sodium bisulphate is deadly to Crown-of-Thorns, but it does not harm the surrounding reef and oceanic ecosystems.
When under stress The Crown-Of-Thorns releases spores which can create outbreaks, and if it is dismembered the crown-of-thorns can re-generate from each body part, creating more sea stars. Thus controlling the Crown-Of-Thorns is difficult and much care is required.
Behavior
The Crown-of-Thorns is a corallivore, a carnivorous predator that preys on reef coral polyps. They climb onto reef structures, and then extrude their stomach onto the coral. This releases digestive enzymes that allow the starfish to absorb nutrients from the liquefied coral tissue. The Crown-of-Thorns also preys on brittle stars in a similar fashion.
They are voracious predators. An individual starfish can consume up to 6 square metres (65 sq ft) of living coral reef per year.
During times of food shortage the Crown-of-Thorns can survive on energy reserves for over six months.
30 Crown of thorns per hectare is considered an outbreak. Boracays white beach on average may have population numbers which would be considered an outbreak in certain areas near the Angol beach front area.
Are crown-of-thorns starfish eaten by other animals?
A number of animals have been observed to attack and eat crown-of-thorns starfish. These records of predation are not limited solely to adults but also eggs, larvae and juveniles. The predators most commonly observed to feed on crown-of-thorns starfish are: the giant triton shell (Charonia tritonis), a puffer fish (Arothron hispidus), two species of trigger fish (Balistoides viridescens, Pseudobalistes flavimarginatus), a shrimp (Hymenocera picta) and a worm (Pherecardia striata). Each has been recorded to feed on juveniles and small adults.
At present there is no evidence to indicate that these or any other predators are capable of limiting the population density of crown-of-thorns starfish. Consequently, it is not known whether changes in the level of predation are responsible for causing outbreaks of this starfish. Whilst predation has been observed mostly on adults it is likely that it is also responsible for high mortality amongst the early life history stages when the starfish is most vulnerable. Unfortunately research into this particular aspect in the field is fraught with technical and logistic problems (e.g. how does one go about finding these minute individuals when the distances involved are so vast and there are so many hiding places on a reef?).
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