Shifts in coral reef fish populations linked to human pressure and tourism activities revealed by COVID-19 restrictions

Shifts in coral reef fish populations linked to human pressure and tourism activities revealed by COVID-19 restrictions | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Shifts in coral reef fish populations linked to human pressure and tourism activities revealed by COVID-19 restrictions Emma Gairin, Frédéric Bertucci, Natacha Roux, Lana Minier, Cécile Berthe, and 6 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-2675397/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted 4 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Throughout the world, anthropogenic pressure on natural ecosystems is intensifying notably through urbanisation, economic development, and tourism. Coral reef organisms worldwide have become exposed to stressors related to tourism activities. To reveal the impact of human activities, the COVID-19-related social restrictions put in place since 2020 can be used. In French Polynesia, from February to December 2021, there was a series of restrictions of local activities as well as bans of international tourism. These led to variations in the intensity of tourism activities. Here, we aim to determine the consequences of the rapidly changing activity restrictions on the species richness and density of juvenile and adult fish of all species and of harvested species in the lagoon of Bora-Bora (French Polynesia) across sites dedicated to tourism activities, affected by boat traffic, or with low traffic and tourism. Underwater visual surveys demonstrated that the density and species richness of juvenile and adult fish of all species and of harvested species were highest during total lockdowns and lowest when all activities were authorised. Adult and juvenile fish density and species richness increased the most during periods without tourism on sites usually visited by tourists. Fish density and diversity were lowest on sites affected by boat traffic regardless of restriction level, indicating a strong influence of human presence on fish sightings in the lagoon. Overall, COVID-19-related restrictions highlight that human activities are major drivers of fish abundance and species richness on Bora-Bora, calling for a sustainable planning of the lagoon usage. human impacts fish coral reef sound pollution COVID-19 Full Text Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted Reviewers agreed at journal 24 Apr, 2023 Reviewers invited by journal 20 Apr, 2023 Editor assigned by journal 13 Mar, 2023 First submitted to journal 10 Mar, 2023 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-2675397","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":193653866,"identity":"ae9f6a09-bafa-4dac-a020-5cbb1f06c3e1","order_by":0,"name":"Emma 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