Pemba Island is a Tanzanian island forming part of the Zanzibar Archipelago, lying within the Swahili Coast in the Indian Ocean.
Mafia Island or Chole Shamba is an island of The Mafia Archipelago located in Mafia District in the southern Pwani Region of Tanzania across the Mafia Channel. The island is the third largest in Tanzanian ocean territory, but is not administratively included within the semi-autonomous region of Zanzibar, which has been politically separate since 1890. Mafia Island forms the largest part of Mafia District, one of the six administrative districts in the Pwani Region. As the Mafia Archipelago's main island, it's sometimes called Chole Shamba, meaning Chole farmlands in Swahili. This is in opposition to the historic settlement of Chole Mjini on Chole Island inside Mafia Bay. The island's population is over 65,000. The economy is based on fishing, subsistence agriculture and the market in Kilindoni. The island attracts some tourists, mainly scuba divers, birdwatchers, game fishermen, and people seeking relaxation.
Kisite-Mpunguti Marine National Park is situated on the southern coast of Kenya near Shimoni and south of Wasini Island in Kwale County near the Tanzanian border. Kisite park covers 11 square kilometres (4.2 sq mi) while Mpunguti reserve covers 28 square kilometres (11 sq mi).
New Zealand has 44 marine reserves spread around the North, the South Island, and neighbouring islands, and on outlying island groups. They are governed by the Marine Reserves Act 1971 and administered by the Department of Conservation with assistance from the Ministry of Fisheries, New Zealand Customs and the New Zealand Defence Forces.
The Poor Knights Islands Marine Reserve is a protected area off the coast of the North Island of New Zealand. The reserve, established in 1981 and covering an area of 1,890 ha, is administered by the Department of Conservation. It surrounds the Poor Knights Islands and adjacent rock stacks Sugarloaf Rock and High Peak Rocks. It is one of the world's ten most popular sites for scuba diving. with dive trips regularly leaving from the town of Tutukaka.
Southeast Asian coral reefs have the highest levels of biodiversity for the world's marine ecosystems. They serve many functions, such as forming the livelihood for subsistence fishermen and even function as jewelry and construction materials. Corals inhabit coastal waters off of every continent except Antarctica, with an abundance of reefs residing along Southeast Asian coastline in several countries including Indonesia, the Philippines, and Thailand. Coral reefs are developed by the carbonate-based skeletons of a variety of animals and algae. Slowly and overtime, the reefs build up to the surface in oceans. Coral reefs are found in shallow, warm salt water. The sunlight filters through clear water and allows microscopic organisms to live and reproduce. Coral reefs are actually composed of tiny, fragile animals known as coral polyps. Coral reefs are significantly important because of the biodiversity. Although the number of fish are decreasing, the remaining coral reefs contain more unique sea creatures. The variety of species living on a coral reef is greater than anywhere else in the world. An estimation of 70-90% of fish caught are dependent on coral reefs in Southeast Asia and reefs support over 25% of all known marine species. However, those sensitive coral reefs are facing detrimental effects on them due to variety of factors: overfishing, sedimentation and pollution, bleaching, and even tourist-related damage.
Blast fishing, fish bombing, dynamite fishing or grenade fishing is a destructive fishing practice using explosives to stun or kill schools of fish for easy collection. This often illegal practice is extremely destructive to the surrounding ecosystem, as the explosion often destroys the underlying habitat that supports the fish. The frequently improvised nature of the explosives used, and undetonated charges, means danger for fishermen and divers as well, with accidents and injuries.
Chumbe Island is a private island in the Mjini Magharibi Region, Tanzania, off the coast of Mjini District. It is situated in the Zanzibar Channel. The island is known for its ecological innovation and exceptional coral reefs. The Chumbe Lighthouse is also located on the island.
Hol Chan Marine Reserve is a marine reserve close to Ambergris Caye and Caye Caulker, off the coast of Belize. It covers approximately 18 km² (4,448 acres) of coral reefs, seagrass beds, and mangrove forest. Hol Chan is Mayan for "little channel".
The Dar es Salaam Marine Reserve System or DMRS is a group of marine reserves in Tanzania, with the IUCN category II located within Dar es Salaam Region of Tanzania. The reserve system consists of nine uninhabited islands, four located north of Dar es Salaam's Kinondoni District; and four south of the city Makatumbi Islands, Kimbubu Island, Sinda Island and Kendwa Island in Kigamboni District. It provides protection for several important tropical ecosystems; coral reefs, mangroves and seagrass beds.
Pangavini Island is a protected, uninhabited island under the Dar es Salaam Marine Reserve with the IUCN category II located within Kinondoni District of Dar es Salaam Region in Tanzania. The island reserve measures around 2.13km2. Pangavini is the smallest island in the group, only about 250 m long; it has a rocky coastline without beaches. To the west of the island is Kunduchi ward and to the north is Mbudya Island. To the south of the island is Bongoyo Island.
The East African mangroves are a mangrove ecoregion consisting of swamps along the Indian Ocean coast of East Africa in Mozambique, Tanzania, Kenya and southern Somalia.
Wakatobi National Park is a marine national park in Southeast Sulawesi, Indonesia. The name of Wakatobi is a portmanteau of the four main Tukangbesi Islands: Wangi-wangi, Kaledupa, Tomia, and Binongko. Since 2005 the park is listed as a tentative World Heritage Site.
The wildlife of Zanzibar consists of terrestrial and marine flora and fauna in the archipelago of Zanzibar, an autonomous region of Tanzania. Its floral vegetation is categorized among the coastal forests of eastern Africa as the Southern Zanzibar-Inhambane coastal forest mosaic and the Northern Zanzibar-Inhambane coastal forest mosaic. Its faunal species are mostly small animals, birds, and butterflies.
The Menai Bay Conservation Area (MBCA) is located in Menai Bay, Zanzibar Tanzania. At 470 square kilometres (180 sq mi), it is Zanzibar's largest marine protected area. It was officially established as a conservation area in August 1997 in the traditional fishing area, known as Unguja Island, covering the tropical marine environment comprising extensive coral reefs, tropical fish, sea grasses, and mangrove forests. In addition to controlling illegal fishing, MBCA's alternative initiatives have included bee keeping, mangrove replanting, tree nurseries and tourism. The management of the MBCA falls upon the Fisheries Department and the bay's local villages. It is rated by the IUCN as Category VI Managed Resource Protected Area.
Mafia District Council is one of eight administrative districts of Pwani Region in Tanzania. It administers not only the main Mafia Island but the entire Mafia Archipelago. The District covers an area of 642.6 km2 (248.1 sq mi). The Sea of Zanj completely encircles the District. Rufiji District is located on the other side of the Mafia Channel to the west. The district is comparable in size to the land area of Saint Lucia. The town of Kilindoni serves as its administrative capital. The District is home to the largest concentration of Whale Sharks in Africa, Mafia Island Marine Park, Historic Chole Island Ruins, Kisimani Mafia and Kua Ruins; and Mlola Forest Reserve. According to the 2012 Tanzania National Census, the population of the District was 46,438.
The Marine Park and Reserves Unit of Tanzania was formed in 1994 under the Marine Parks and Reserve Act No 29, of 1994. The headquarters are located in Upanga West ward of Ilala District in Dar es Salaam Region. Previously all marine life and biodiversity was under the Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries. The population along the 1400 km Tanzanian coastline has reached to over 10 million and the increase in number of people whose livelihood depends on the marine resource has also increased. The increase in population has caused various threats to the marine life due to over fishing, coral mining and unplanned increase in settlements. To protect the marine biodiversity the Government of Tanzania established the Marine Park and Reserves unit in 1994 with Mafia Island Marine Park as the first marine park.
The East African coral coast is a marine ecoregion along the eastern coast of Africa. It extends along the coasts of Kenya, Tanzania, and northern Mozambique, from Lamu in Kenya to Angoche in Mozambique. It adjoins the Northern Monsoon Current Coast ecoregion to the north, and the Bight of Sofala/Swamp Coast ecoregion to the south.
Piti Bomb Holes Marine Preserve is a marine protected area comprising all of Piti Bay on the western coast of Guam, located off of the village of Piti in the Philippine Sea. The defining "bomb hole" features, named because they look like bomb craters in the reef flat, are actually natural percolation pits where fresh water filters into the shallow lagoon at a depth of 25 to 30 feet. The largest pit houses the commercial Fish Eye Marine Park tourist attraction, which includes a wooden pier to a underwater observatory and a Seawalker tour of the lagoon bottom. It is visited by more than 200,000 people annually. The Piti preserve is the most ecologically diverse of Guam's five marine preserves. The pit around Fish Eye is a popular snorkeling and recreational diving site.
Tutia Reef is a system of protected coral reefs inside the Mafia Island Marine Park (MIMP) with the IUCN category II designation. The reef is located on Tanzania's Mafia Archipelago of Mafia District in southern Pwani Region of Tanzania. Tutia Reef is rated as the country's top spot for sport fishing, however the reef is also the site some of the worst coral bleaching events in history in 1998. The reef is located south west of Jibondo Island inside the Mafia Channel.
