Study of existing biological communities in Hormuzgan province waters (Persian Gulf) for installation of artificial reefs

To determine the suitable locations for installation of artificial reefs we studied Persian Gulf waters (Hormuzgan province) from December 2006 to March 2007 seasonally. The area was stratified to 10 transects and each transect was divided to three layers and used random sampling method. Habitats of fauna and flora including: Communities of corals, seaweeds, sea cucumbers and sea grasses, and sedimentation depth using SCUBA diving method were studied in each transect and layer. Sea grass communities existed in some places with below 10m depth of Bandar Mesan, Bandar Kang, Kish Island and Bandar Chirooyeh transects. Also, seaweed habitats were seen in Bandar Mesan and some areas in Bandar Lengeh and Kish Island in 10-20m depth transect. The study of coral and sea cucumber communities indicated presence of Acropora sp. habitats in Bahman jetty, Bandar Mesan and Bandar Bostaneh transects, and Porites sp. habitats in Hengam island transect, Holothuria sp. habitats in Bandar masen and Bandar Lengeh transects and Stichopus sp. habitat in Hengam Island transect. All these species were found in shallow waters bellow 10 meters depth and showed a patchy distribution. Sedimentation depth results showed a statistically significant difference between layer <10m in Bandar Salakh and the same layers in other transects, also between layer 10-20m and 20-30m in other transects. Based on the sedimentation depth and habitats studies, we recommend layer 10-20m in Bandar Lengeh area and Bandar Lengeh to Hendurabi Island area as suitable for artificial reefs installation.