| NEWS |
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| Monday, June 26,
2006 |
| Carp condos: Artificial
reefs provide more than just fun for sport divers.
They also provide a safe habitat for a variety of
underwater animals. (Submitted
photo) |
By
Jennifer Taplin
The Daily News
BEDFORD - To a fish swimming along on
its fishy business, a massive ship hitting the ocean
floor is nothing but an opportunity.
Artificial
reefs may be good for tourism, but they also make good
fish habitats.
Glyn Sharp, a marine biologist at
the Bedford Institute of Oceanography, said whether
artificial reefs are designed for fish or for scuba
divers, it helps out the local fish
population.
"You put in these habitats and it's
not a matter of new fish being born, (but) you very
quickly have it being utilized by existing fish
populations."
Artificial reefs provide a place
where the small fish can hide from the big
fish.
While it's difficult to prove if artificial
reefs translate to bigger fish populations overall,
Sharp said there are studies that show reefs enhance
production for many different species.
The only
bad news is for the organisms -- like clams and worms --
living in the sediment where the ship lands.
"The
footprint of the artificial reef will obliterate those
populations, but the positive thing usually is you now
have created a more complex
environment."
Scientists design artificial reefs
specifically for fish habitats. There are several
locations around Nova Scotia where "reef balls" are
used, such as near McNabs Island, Paddy's Head at St.
Margarets Bay and in the approach to Bras d'Or
Lakes.
Reef balls are hollow, spotted with holes,
and made of concrete. They're shaped like domes or
bells, and usually at most about four feet
high.
Bruce Young, with the Atlantic Coastal
Action Program based in Sydney, said they bought reef
ball molds and placed 12 balls near New Campbellton in
2004.
"The reef balls weren't originally designed
for lobster habitat, but we've put some edges on the
bottom of them so they can become a crevice for the
lobster to back his way in.
"
Within minutes of positioning the reef
balls, a lobster moved in, he said.
ACAP
installed the reef at the request of local groups, and
they still have the molds. Young said they're hoping to
generate more interest in the area to use the molds
again.
jtaplin@hfxnews.ca
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| Could
artificial reefs become a vital part of the Nova Scotia
tourism industry? On Assignment looks at the big
picture.
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