Chapter 5 Coral Reef, Destructive Fishing, and Fishery Sustainability
5.1 Status of Reefs
Corals are vital as spawning grounds for many species of fish and help prevent coastal erosion. Monitoring the status of reefs over time is an important
aspect for management. The living coral cover is a useful indication of the quality of reefs. The diversity of reef fishes is correlated with the condition of reefs as the
determined by the percentage cover of living coral Soekarno 1989. Different qualities of coral reef can be determined by simple criteria of the percentage
cover of living coral Table 29.
Table 29 Classification of quality of reef
Quality of reef Percentage cover of living coral
Very good 71 – 100
Good 51 – 70
Damaged 26 – 50
Badly damaged, critical 0 – 25
Source: Sukarno and Naamin 1986 in Sultan 2004.
The condition of resource system affects the pattern of resource use. Its variety and complexity causes diverging patterns of resource use. By the same
token, patterns of resource use influence the condition of resource system, its improvement or deterioration. In this way, resource system is an effect of human
activities. Likewise, the condition of coral reef for each area is shown below. This data is taken from secondary sources, from available ecological research results.
Taka Bonerate Atoll
Taka Bonerate atoll is the biggest atoll in Indonesia. It harbors nearly all types of habitats associated with coral reef, namely reef flats, lagoons outer reef
flats and sand cays, sea grass bed, algal bed and soft bottom communities which are the basis of all lagoons occurring between small islands and sand cays
Soekarno 1989. Previous investigation in 1982 and 1989 reported that much of the habitats were degraded, and much of the reef has undergone a certain
degree of damage, which is due primarily to direct human conduct e.g., fishing
using explosive, muroami and over fishing UNDPFAO Report 1982 in Soekarno 1989: 68.
Data in 1989 shows that the average percent cover of coral colonies along the upper reef slope of the islands of Rajuni Besar, Rajuni Kecil, Tinanja, Tarupa
Kecil, Latondu Kecil and Jinato ranged from 40 to 59 Table 30 Soekarno 1989. The latest investigation in 2000 showed that the average hard coral cover
is 50 Table 31. After four years of community assistance, the external assistance in these islands has not been certain if the ecological condition of
coral reefs was improved LP3M 2002b.
Table 30 Reef substrates cover and number of coral genera at Taka Bonerate
Atoll in 1989
Percent cover Substrate
Jinato Island
Latondu Timur
Island Latondu
Barat Island
Rajuni Kecil
Island Rajuni
Besar Island
Tinanja Island
Tarupa Island
Average Sand
9.5 12 19.5 11 15 8.5 22 13.9 Rubble 20
12 20.5
6 14.5
6 22.5 14.5
Turf algae 35 26.5 30 35 39.5
51.5 38 36.5
Coral 51.5
59 53 45 40
37.5 46 47.4