Bounty In A Marine Reserve

The creation of a marine reserve off the English coast five years ago has led to a major resurgence of lobster populations, a success conservationists say should lead to more protected areas in U.K. waters. The marine protected area, in which fishing and lobstering is prohibited, was created by Natural England and the Devon Sea Fisheries Committee in the waters off the Devon coast. Large lobsters in the protected zone are now six times as abundant as large lobsters in areas where commercial harvesting is permitted, according to scientists. Those increased populations will soon spill out of the protected areas, replenishing depleted stocks in nearby waters, scientists say. The Lundy “no-take” zone is the country’s only true marine protected area. Conservationists from Natural England say they will use the success of the Lundy experiment to lobby for the creation of a far more extensive network of marine protected areas.