Event participants removingCrown-of-thorns starfish from the coral reefs

The MNPH said that yesterday’s examination of the coral reefs at the Sijiyu Isletregion found an average coverage rate of about 50%. The numbers and densitiesof invertebrate indicator organisms, such as the sea urchins, sea cucumbers andTridacna clams, matched the international standards of healthy coral reefs;only the indicator fish was lacking in numbers and species types. Yesterday’ssurvey also yielded a density of 280 Crown-of-thorns starfish per hectare atthe Sijiyu islet region. The Crown-of-thorn starfish is also known as the CoralReef Killer, and its high density is threatening the local coral reefpopulation. On June 26th, an operation was carried out to catch these starfish.142 starfish were removed in two separate dives, which have effectivelydecreased the population density of the Crown-of-thorns starfish at the SijiyuIslet surrounding regions.