How the Global Push for Protected Areas Can Benefit the Oceans’ Most Endangered Species

By Jonathan Booth and Luke Warwick | December 4, 2023

Papua New Guinea. Photo: ©Elodie Van Lierde.

With global marine conservation efforts focusing on turning the promise of “30x30” — protecting 30 percent of both marine and terrestrial areas by 2030 — into reality, how do we ensure that new area-based protections work for the species that are closest to extinction?

A recently launched programme, known as the Shark Biodiversity Initiative, looks to fill that gap and ensure that as marine protected areas (MPAs) are established or refined around the world to meet these new global targets, they don’t repeat the mistakes of the past. Specifically, a priority is to ensure that the world’s most threatened group of marine animals — sharks and rays — fully benefits from these new protected areas. For that to happen, the areas need to be designed with these ancient predators in mind.

The first example of this approach has now been established in Papua New Guinea. That effort resulted from the combined efforts of the Wildlife Conservation Society; over 100 coastal communities; government partners that include the Conservation and Environment Protection Authority, National Oceans Officer, and New Ireland Provincial Government; and two local non-governmental organisations — Ailan Awareness Inc. and the Lolieng Sustainable Programme.

This work started by looking at which species found in PNG’s waters were of greatest concern in terms of global extinction. Sawfish and their relatives, the wedgefishes and guitarfishes — cousins to sharks that are collectively known as rhino rays — are some of the most threatened species on earth due to their slow growth rate, vulnerability to capture in fisheries, and high value in international trade.

Papua New Guinea occupies the western half of New Guinea and is the largest of the South Pacific Island nations. The uplifted reefs, limestone terrain and adjacent islands that form New Ireland Province comprise the north-easterly region of Papua New Guinea. From January 2019 to March 2020, fisher key informant surveys were conducted in coastal communities in western New Ireland Province to determine whether sawfish and rhino rays were observed within the customary waters of each community. A total of 144 sightings were made, including 85 wedgefish (blue), 36 guitarfish and giant guitarfish (green) and 23 sawfish (red) sightings. Source: WCS.

Scientists and conservationists around the world have identified these species as top priorities for conservation action at both national and local levels even though, globally, very few dedicated measures have been designated to protect them. That is until now.

Recent studies indicate that Papua New Guinea (PNG) — along with northern Australia, the Sundarbans in Bangladesh, and the southeastern United States — is one of the last few strongholds for sawfish populations, making the country a global priority for shark and ray conservation. Human pressure, including population growth, could threaten potential sawfish and rhino ray populations unless sufficient management is in place. Local cooperation is key to such action.

Sawfish and their relatives, the wedgefishes and guitarfishes, are some of the most threatened species on earth due to their slow growth rate, vulnerability to capture in fisheries, and high value in international trade.

Despite the vulnerability of sawfish and rhino rays (with five of the ten documented species in PNG now classified as critically endangered), historically there have been no protections in place for the species in the country.

However, since 2017, WCS has worked with over 100 communities in New Ireland Province, PNG, to establish the country’s largest network of marine protected areas (MPAs), and part of that effort involved developing measures within the MPA designation that are designed specifically to protect these species that teeter on the edge of extinction.

Wedgefish in New Ireland Province: documented by BRUVS during the FinPrint project (left) and by scuba divers (Dorian Borcherds, Scuba Ventures) (right)

In Lovongai LLG, several largetooth sawfish (Pristis pristis) rostra, or beaks, were located in community homes. Subsequent key informant surveys with local fishers in Lovongai and Murat LLGs indicated over 140 rhino rays sightings in the region in early 2019.

Following a local awareness campaign, villagers began taking photographs of captured Critically Endangered bottlenose wedgefish (Rhynchobatus australiae) and shark rays (Rhina ancylostoma), several of which were live released as a result of the awareness programme. And the first documented, and potentially endemic, Papuan guitarfish (Rhinobatos mania) was caught close to Lovongai LLG in 2016.

Since 2017, WCS has worked with over 100 communities in New Ireland Province, PNG, to establish the country’s largest network of marine protected areas (MPAs).

Beginning in 2017, when coastal residents reached out for support in managing their marine resources, community outreach began in 168 communities in western New Ireland Province. A provincial Technical Working Group was established, enabling government, the private sector, non-governmental organisations and communities to steer marine management within the province.

Based on the community interest and stakeholder recommendations, two community-focused MPAs started to be established in Lovongai and Murat Local Level Government (LLG) jurisdictions.

Large-tooth sawfish (Pristis pristis) rostrum, beside a ruler, which was harvested by local community fishers from the Tigak Islands that lie to the west of mainland New Ireland. This rostrum measured nearly 30 inches in length. Photo: Elizah Nagombi/WCS.

Through the free, prior, and informed consent (FPIC) process, three phases of extensive community consultations took place in 100 communities from 2018 to 2022, enabling residents to decide on the marine management rules, penalties, and boundaries of each MPA. Following awareness on sawfish and rhino rays at the community level, residents choose to protect the species; and in Murat LLG, residents decided to protect all sharks and rays in five of the six wards.

Once agreed upon, the outcomes from the community consultations were listed in MPA management plans. In November 2023 those plans were formalised with LLG laws, recognised by the PNG Constitution.

The two new MPAs, located in Lovongai and Murat LLG, collectively cover over 1.5 million hectares — more than 16,000 km2 — of key habitat for these species.

The two new MPAs, located in Lovongai and Murat LLG, collectively cover over 1.5 million hectares — more than 16,000 km2 — of key habitat for these species. The MPAs developed the country’s first-ever rules protecting sawfish and their relatives, the Critically Endangered rhino rays, making them also the first MPAs in the world with specific measures designed to protect the most threatened group of sharks and rays.

Example of education and outreach materials produced by the WCS team. This poster presents management methods that can be used by community residents to help manage sawfish and rhino ray populations in their customary waters.

It is this type of species-specific action that is needed if MPAs are going to work for the most vulnerable ocean species.

The Murat MPA also includes full protection for marine turtles, dugongs, whales, dolphins, and (in five of the six wards) all other shark and ray species, the rules and details for which were agreed on across dozens of communities, languages, and cultures.

This is, of course, just the first step in a long process. The work continues to implement these MPA’s and to secure national-level protections for these species and associated changes to fishing gear types and practices, while also scoping out other hotspots throughout PNG where the species may need MPA level protection.

Jonathan Booth is Marine Conservation Advisor with the Papua New Guinea Program at the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS). Luke Warwick is Director of the Sharks & Rays Program at WCS.