Xiaoliuqiu's Marine Ecology on the Brink of Collapse — Tourism Resources Sound the Alarm

The Editor says: Xiaoliuqiu is less than a 30-minute boat ride from the Taiwanese mainland and draws enormous tourist crowds — yet the latest survey finds that fish density around Xiaoliuqiu is extremely low, with 2023 research data showing an individual count per unit area of just 0.6 fish, less than one. Coral cover at Vase Rock has even been rated "dysfunctional." What other key findings did the survey reveal? Follow the Editor for a look at what Greenpeace has to say! Full article reprinted from Greenpeace Survey: Xiaoliuqiu Marine Ecology on the Brink of Collapse

Xiaoliuqiu in Pingtung has become a top travel destination thanks to its exceptional natural scenery and marine life. Although the tourism boom has brought millions of visitors to the island, the absence of a Marine Conservation Act has left the tourism industry facing an ecological crisis. To assess the true state of Xiaoliuqiu's marine ecology, the Greenpeace team visited Xiaoliuqiu in August this year and conducted marine ecological surveys at 6 recreational sites along the coast. Two major problems were found: fish resources along the Xiaoliuqiu coastline are nearly depleted, and coral ecosystems have deteriorated dramatically — clear signs that marine resources are on the verge of collapse and a warning signal for the tourism industry.

Greenpeace Ocean Project Director Chung Meng-Hsun stated: "The results of this survey show that Xiaoliuqiu's marine resources are on the brink of exhaustion. If the current situation continues, the island's precious tourism assets may disappear entirely, and the tourism industry chain that has been carefully built up could become unsustainable. The Executive Yuan should immediately submit a draft Marine Conservation Act to rescue the depleted marine ecology and an already alarming tourism industry."

The Survey on Xiaoliuqiu

The survey conducted by Greenpeace on Xiaoliuqiu employed the "transect" method commonly used in basic ecological surveys, carrying out quantitative observation and substrate monitoring at a depth of 10 m. The survey covered 6 recreational sites: Shanzhugou, Shanfu, Duzaiping, Vase Rock, Longxia Cave, and Geban Bay [Figure 1].

Results showed that fish density along the Xiaoliuqiu coast is extremely low. At most recreational sites, there is less than one fish per square metre, and fish body lengths are also small (averaging only 5 to 7 cm). For example, Longxia Cave and Geban Bay recorded just 0.5 and 0.4 fish per square metre respectively, and even Duzaiping — which had the highest density — recorded only 1.1 fish per square metre [Figure 2].

Compared to coral reef ecosystems elsewhere in Taiwan's waters — such as the Kenting entry point (5 to 8 fish per square metre) or Green Island (3 to 6 fish per square metre) — Xiaoliuqiu's fish community density (averaging only 0.5 to 1 fish per square metre) is markedly low, and its appeal to visitors may continue to decline.

To better understand changes in Xiaoliuqiu's marine ecology over time, Greenpeace also compared the current survey results with historical data from the same sites. The results show a downward trend in the individual count per unit area of fish at recreational sites including Shanfu, Vase Rock, and Longxia Cave. Vase Rock saw the greatest change, with fish individual count per unit area dropping from 2.5 in 2010 to 0.6 in 2023 [Figure 3], demonstrating that Xiaoliuqiu's fish resources continue to decline.

Beyond the troubling depletion of fish resources, the health of coral along Xiaoliuqiu's coast is also far from ideal. Among the 6 recreational sites surveyed by Greenpeace, most sites had coral cover below 30% and a coral-to-algae ratio of less than 0.5, placing them in the "declining" category. Vase Rock had both the lowest coral cover and the lowest coral-to-algae ratio, placing it in the "dysfunctional" category [Figure 4].

In addition, coral reef systems at all of Xiaoliuqiu's survey sites show a tendency toward "dominant species homogenization" [Figure 5], indicating that coral reef ecosystems are becoming increasingly imbalanced. Indicator species that reflect the health of coral reefs — butterflyfish, parrotfish, and surgeonfish — are also declining rapidly. For example, the number of indicator species at both Shanfu and Vase Rock has dropped significantly compared to 2011 [Figure 6].

Sustainable Development of Marine Tourism Resources

In fact, beyond Xiaoliuqiu, several of Taiwan's important outlying islands and coastlines — Penghu, Green Island, Keelung Chaojing, the North Coast, and others — are unable to effectively protect marine tourism resources in the absence of a Marine Conservation Act. Chung Meng-Hsun emphasised that the tiered management framework within the Marine Conservation Act was originally designed to systematically protect marine ecosystems while supporting tourism, recreation, and fishery activities. Regrettably, the Executive Yuan's passive delays have steadily eroded the precious assets of the marine tourism industry. Greenpeace calls on Pingtung and local governments across the country to "save your own tourism assets," urging them not only to establish conservation fees but also to integrate the efforts of industry, government, academia, and civil society to carry out comprehensive ecological surveys and tiered management — implementing marine protected area (MPA) governance from the bottom up and setting a model for the sustainable development of marine tourism resources.

Survey results website: https://maps.greenpeace.org/maps/gpea/LiuqiuUnderWater/

Media contacts:

• Greenpeace Ocean Project Director Chung Meng-Hsun 0910-639-818 tchung@greenpeace.org

• Greenpeace Media & Outreach Director Liu Tsung-Chi 0928-228-851 hliu@greenpeace.org

Further reading:

• Xiaoliuqiu Coral and Fish Species Near Depletion — Scholars Call for Marine Protected Area

• Worried About Lights Misleading Sea Turtles, Heron Island in Australia Adopts a "Lights Off" Culture — What About Xiaoliuqiu?

• "Dive Into Taiwan" — Xiaoliuqiu Promises a Swim with sea turtles: Quality Ecotourism Even on a Short Trip

• 2023 Xiaoliuqiu Marine Citizen Science Biodiversity Database

Full article reprinted from Greenpeace Survey: Xiaoliuqiu Marine Ecology on the Brink of Collapse.