Dataset: Acanthaster movement distance and direction
Deployment: Fiji_2011

To test whether Acanthaster selectively migrated into the MPAs versus the fished areas, 120 adults of 36 ± 2 cm diameter (from the tips of opposite arms) were collected from the MPAs and adjacent fished areas of reefs flats near Votua, Vatu-o-lalai, and Namada villages, with 20 individuals collected from within and 20 from outside the MPAs at each village site (40 individuals village-1 site-1). Each individual was tagged with five plastic tag fasteners between the base of individual arms, and labeled flagging tape was attached to the end of each tag fastener to aid in location and identification. Individuals were then enclosed within cages located along the MPA border perpendicular to the coastline at each site (20 individuals border-1 location-1) for 48 h to allow for tag acclimation. Upon release, individuals’ movements were monitored at 24 h intervals for four to eight days by physically locating each individual and recording its location via GPS (Garmin GPS 76CSX). GPS coordinates of individual Acanthaster positions were imported into ArcMAP (Version 10.3.1), and the Geospatial Modeling Environment extension (Version 0.7.4.0) was used to calculate individuals’ initial and final directions of movement relative to their release point along their respective MPA border, as well as each individual’s net displacement between consecutive days.