Strengthening conservation across the Galapagos Marine Reserve and Cocos Island National Park

Blue Action Fund Galapagos

Funding from Blue Action Fund allows Island Conservation and our partners to expand the marine protected area (MPA), improve management strategies and support local economies.

The Galapagos Marine Reserve (or “GMR”, which is located roughly 1,000 kilometers from mainland Ecuador) and Cocos Island National Park (about 550 kilometers off the coast of Costa Rica) are among the most biodiverse and productive marine regions of the Eastern Pacific Ocean. The two regions are linked by the Cocos Ridge, which is an underwater seamount chain and swimway for marine species such as Hammerhead Sharks and marine turtles.

Both the GMR and Cocos Island National Park play a vital role in the protection of global ocean biodiversity, the health of island ecosystems, and the security of food and economic resources for local communities. They host a high proportion of native and endemic species, such as Galapagos Marine Iguanas, Galapagos Penguins, Galapagos Sea Lions, Blue-footed Boobies, Bottlenose Dolphins, and a high diversity of sharks.

island conservation blue action fund hammerhead sharks galapagos cocos island swimway

Island Conservation, our partners and stakeholders are working together to significantly enlarge the GMR and strengthen control, surveillance and biosecurity in the region. The project ensures that the protected areas are effectively conserved, stemming the loss of marine biodiversity, supporting local economies, and enhancing livelihoods for local communities.

To achieve this ambitious goal, Blue Action Fund is providing significant funding for a project implementation period of four years, and each partner is taking responsibility for their area of expertise:

  • Island Conservation will lead the management of the project
  • Jocotoco Foundation will work to establish and increase a new Galapagos MPA and, along with the Charles Darwin Foundation (CDF) improve livelihoods on Floreana Island
  • Universidad San Francisco de Quito will measure the project’s core indicators
  • WildAid will manage the improvement and upgrade of control and surveillance systems in cooperation with the Galapagos National Park

WildAid is also establishing a sustainable finance mechanism for the GMR and improving the livelihoods of local fisherman, leading to increased incomes, gender equality and certified sustainable fishing practices. In addition, CDF (in cooperation with the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center) will focus on reducing risk from marine invasive species and improving marine biosecurity measures.

This project contributes directly to healthy island-ocean connectivity in the Galapagos by directly supporting the Floreana project, which focuses on the removal of invasive alien species that are impacting nesting sea birds and the iconic marine iguanas. At the same time, the project enhances the protection of highly productive open sea areas that are the feeding grounds for the Great Frigatebird and the Red-Footed Booby.

The project is also key to the creation of a massive, interconnected patchwork of newly extended or created marine protected areas around islands that are feeding and breeding hotspots for an incredibly high diversity of marine species. Since the project began, the marine protected area around the Galapagos was increased from 138,000 to 198,000 square kilometers, the Cocos Island National Park from 2,000 to 55,000 square kilometers, and the Bicentenario protected area from approximately 10,000 to 106,000 square kilometers. This means that the swimway is now completely protected, which significantly increases the health of its terrestrial, coastal and marine ecosystems.

Over the course of 2022, the project progressed well beyond the creation of the new Galapagos MPA. WildAid upgraded the marine control and surveillance capacity of the Galapagos National Park with a new patrol vessel and next-generation satellite surveillance systems. In 2023, similar technology, knowledge and experience will be adapted for a control and surveillance system for the Cocos Island National Park. CDF and the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center are creating a baseline for marine invasive species in the Galapagos. Preliminary results of artificial settlement plates retrieved from Floreana have already shown the presence of non-native species.

For example, the ascidian Botrylloides niger is a common fouling organism that is considered non-native for the Eastern Tropical Pacific region. So far, a list of around 40 non-native species have been recorded, and more species are still to be identified. Results will be fed into the newly created Galapagos NEMESIS portal for marine invasive species. The same methodology will be applied for the creation of the Cocos Island marine invasive species baseline and the Cocos Island NEMESIS portal for marine invasive species.

Jocotoco Foundation is currently leading the development of a management plan for the newly created Galapagos open ocean marine protected area. CDF and Jocotoco Foundation initiated their collaboration to strengthen and improve Livelihoods on Floreana Island and are in the process of strengthening the administrative and operational capacity of the Floreana Verde farmers cooperative, which includes a gender-sensitive business plan as part of the preparation phase for the Floreana Restoration Project.

The GMR and Cocos Island National Park are among the most pristine regions on our planet. By preserving these ecosystems and fostering sustainable practices, we have an opportunity to showcase how marine conservation, ecosystem restoration and sustainable development can work hand-in-hand.

Blue Action Fund galapagos Island Conservation
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