2018 is coming to an end, with the last mission being the island of Pitcairn where Gilles and Yannick were able to recover the probe left since 2017, which recorded the swell and temperature. Coral cover and fish populations were also monitored.
8 islands are on the Polynesia Mana 2019 program: Takapoto, Tetiaroa, Tubuai, Tonga, Samoa, Moorea, Tahiti and Mangareva!
The follow-ups will begin on January 5 with the mission to Takapoto, an island monitored since 1994, where our team will work with our on-site partner, the branch of the Direction des Ressources Marines et Minières (DRMM).
Tetiaroa will be held in collaboration with the 100 island challenge team. This challenge is a collaborative effort based at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography to describe the variation of coral reefs around the world. They combine traditional field studies with innovative imaging and data technologies to digitally archive reefs and observe population changes over time. They have been collaborating since 2017 with the SO CORAIL team through our Polynesia Mana monitoring.
The monitoring of the marine protected areas (MPAs set up as part of the Maritime Spatial Management Plan) on the island of Moorea will be carried out in March. At each of the stations (8 MPAs and 5 marine control areas), five "descriptors" are monitored: corals, algae, fish, molluscs and echinoderms.
The monitoring of the Temporal Layout of Populations and Communities (ATPP) will take place in May. The time interval between two ATPP follow-ups is one year, between March and May. Fish, algae, molluscs, echinoderms and corals are also the communities monitored by ATPP.