Inventory of the marine life of Mnemba Atoll
One of the first step you need to carry out in order to protect an area is an inventory of all the benthic coverage, fauna & flora and the different actors and activities surrounding and in the area.
We will start by mapping the benthic coverage (i.e. rock, sand, coral, algae, seagrass…).Then, we will process the inventory of the fauna & flora (i.e coral, seagrass, fish, marine mammals, invertebrates…) around Mnemba Island. The last part of the inventory will be focus on the precise location of the different actors & activities in the area.
A complete inventory will help us understand the state of Mnemba atoll and evaluate the human impact on it.
Fauna & Flora Monitoring Programs
The next step of a conservation project is to conduct monitoring programs. It will allow us to understand the health of Mnemba atoll and anticipate its evolution in the future. All information collected will be shared with local communities to take proper actions for the restoration and protection of the reefs of Mnemba atoll.
A healthier marine ecosystem will benefit all the local actors exploiting the sea (fishermen & tourism actors).
Turtle Monitoring
A few years ago, the waters of Mnemba Island were the home of dozens of Green & Hawksbill turtles, however, now there are only a few remaining. Sea turtles have an important role in the marine ecosystem. They maintain marine habitat healthy and balanced the food web by controlling the abundance of other species.
Sea Turtle monitoring can help us determine the population of the different species around Mnemba atoll. Our turtle monitoring will be part of the database TORSOOI. TORSOII is a database created by KELONIA which aim to harmonize data on sea turtle in the Indian Ocean.
Coral Farming
Protecting the coral reef of Mnemba atoll is one of our main priorities as most of the coral located inside and outside of Mnemba Island Marine Conservation Area (MIMCA) are already damaged.
In order to restore the ecosystem around the conservation area, we want to increase the coral diversity and coverage by starting a coral farming.
After a certain time of growing the coral fragment will be relocate on the reef around MIMCA in order to increase the coral diversity and coverage.
Fish Monitoring
The fish community composition is impacted by any activities and damages done on the reef. Some species will disappear faster than over and the monitoring of the fish community composition will allow us to understand the health of the reef. We will be able to understand how the health of the reef is evolving and how it will be in the future.
We will share our data with the local communities. It will help them to take proper actions to restore and protect the reefs of the north-east of Zanzibar.
