CAPTAIN Cook Cruises Fiji has vowed to continue its Crowns of Thorns Removal program to control the population outbreak of the starfish and keep the coral reefs healthy. The program has been running for seven years and is about controlling the population of Crown of Thorns Starfish so that they...
CAPTAIN Cook Cruises Fiji has vowed to
continue its Crowns of Thorns Removal
program to control the population outbreak of
the starfish and keep the coral reefs healthy.
The program has been running for seven
years and is about controlling the population
of Crown of Thorns Starfish so that they don’t
eat all the living coral tissue and destroy the reef.
The Captain Cook program monitors and
helps control population outbreaks.
“Our in house Marine Biologist monitors the
outbreaks of Crown of Thorns starfish via a
sustainable catch per unit effort,” said Jackie
Charlton, CEO, Captain Cook Cruises Fiji.
“The coral growth which will keep up with
the rate of Crown of Thorns is 0.1 and the
CPUE obtained by our Marine Biologist during
one month of diving off Tivua Island was 0.23,
well above the sustainable value.
“We run a similar program at Sacred Islands
in the Mamanuca and at other reefs in the
Yasawas that we visit,” she added.
