Table 4.5 Ecological Value of Marine Mammal Habitat

Criteria	Marine Mammal Habitats
Naturalness	Disturbed to some extent by pollution. Protected from over-fishing/disruptive maritime traffic by marine conservation park status
Size	The area of the Marine Park affected by the project is relatively small.
Diversity	Habitat does not support a diverse community
Rarity	Important habitat for the rare and protected marine mammal: S.chinensis
Re-creatability	A small area of habitat will be lost permanently to the jetty.
Fragmentation	The habitat is not fragmented
Ecological linkage	Marine mammal habitats extend in all directions around the coastal waters of Lung Kwu Chau
Potential value	High because of recent assigning of Marine Park status, and the establishment of artificial reefs within the Marine Park
Nursery ground	Possible breeding ground of S. chinensis
Age	n/a
Abundance/Richness of Wildlife	Habitat supports high densities of S. chinensis throughout the year
Ecological value	Habitat of high value to S. chinensis