Hope this works. Interesting article.

http://www.floridatoday.com/!NEWSROOM/sportstoryS1205FISH.htm

Ten-year study refutes no-fishing zone theory

Replenishing fish population at question in Florida

BY By Bill Sargent
FLORIDA TODAY

We've all heard the claims that no fishing zones can be a boon to fisheries because they replenish fish populations in adjacent areas.

Well, that may not be true according to a 10-year study in security waters around the Kennedy Space Center by researchers with Florida's Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. Instead, such zones are pulling fish out of public areas.

The study report grabbed the attention of the Coastal Conservation Association of Florida, which continues to be a leader in the fight against no fishing zones (NFZs), in some cases known as marine protected areas (MPAs) because of their unproven biological need.

"The claims of replenishment and other fisheries management benefits made by no-fishing zone advocates are clearly undermined by this research," said Ted Forsgren, the executive director for the Florida CCA group.

"The results refute the theory that NFZs are viable fisheries management tools," said Forsgren, adding that it is significant that the FWC research was conducted in the same closed security zones around the KSC where a study conducted years ago is the basis for the no-fishing zone argument. Using the old study as a premise, no fishing zone proponents have claimed that replenishment in outside areas does occur.

During the FWC study between 1990 and 1999, more than 5,600 fish of six different species were tagged throughout the Indian River Lagoon system, of which 2,300 were tagged inside the no-take zone. Then their movements were plotted through recapture data between the no-take zone and surrounding waters. The species used in the study were redfish, spotted seatrout, snook, sheepshead, bull shark and jack crevalle.

According to the recapture findings more individual fish moved into the protected habitats than moved out resulting in a so-called "sink."

In part, the report said, "Reserve areas that attract and retain exploitable individuals from surrounding habitats at higher rates than they replenish those habitats could be considered to be sinks in terms of their ability to directly supplement adjacent fisheries through spillover from exploitable sized individuals."

It went on to say, "These data demonstrated that although this estuarine no-take reserve can protect species from fishing, it may also serve to extract exploitable individuals from surrounding fisheries."

The FWC researchers further summarized the key issue of immigration versus replenishment for two important species, black drum and redfish by stating that "in the vicinity of the estuarine no-take zone at Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, the relative rate of immigration into the reserve by sportfish species was higher than the rate of emigration out of the reserve for both black drum and red drum."

The researchers found that 90 percent of the tagged black drum recovered moved into the zone and only 25 percent of those recovered moved out of the zone. For red drum, also known as the redfish, 27 percent moved in and 3 percent moved out.

The CCA points out that the MPA and no-fishing zone debate is a huge issue in Florida. To date, 29 such areas, ranging in size from hundreds of acres to several thousand square miles, have been established.

Additional MPAs are proposed. For example, in 2001 the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council, a federal arm, released a so-called "shopping list" of 42 new MPA-no fishing zones from North Carolina to Florida. Of those zones, 19 were targeted for Florida's East Coast.

Because of concerns by the CCA, other organizations and individuals, Forsgren said the list has been reduced to four MPAs off Florida's coast.

The CCA contends there are far better management measures available to restore and manage saltwater fisheries. Such measures include closed seasons, especially during spawning periods, plus daily and season catch limits and size limits.