Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are areas of marine ecosystems that have some level of protection to support one or more conservation objectives. One characteristic of MPA networks is that MPAs are spatially configured such that they provide the greatest protection possible for multiple species. Yet, it can be difficult to determine optimal MPA network arrangement due to insufficient information on multi-species habitat use and their dispersal abilities as larvae and adults. Here, we propose a modelling approach that involves determining the optimal MPA network configuration for multiple species assemblages, located at different depths and having differing dispersal abilities. As a case study, we applied this methodology in Pacific Canada where we identified optimal MPA configurations to protect 40 species having different pelagic larval duration (proxy for dispersal) at 3 different depth class groupings (proxy for habitat use). Taken together, we found dispersal ability had a larger impact on optimal MPA network configuration for species spending a long time as larvae compared to species spending a short time as larvae. We identify which 10% of this area is most important to conserve to maintain connectivity for a multi-species MPA network and show that half of these sites remain important to conserve in the future as climate change alters connectivity patterns. This model for MPA network design is feasible with limited data which is beneficial for application to other regions and ecosystems.

海洋保护区（MPA）是海洋生态系统区域，具有一定程度的保护以支持一个或多个保护目标。MPA网络的一个特点是，MPA在空间上配置为使得它们为多种物种提供最大的保护。然而，由于缺乏有关多物种栖息地使用及其作为幼虫和成虫的扩散能力的信息，可能难以确定最佳的MPA网络安排。在这里，我们提出了一种建模方法，该方法涉及确定位于不同深度且具有不同分散能力的多种物种组合的最佳MPA网络配置。作为案例研究 我们在加拿大太平洋地区采用了该方法，在此过程中，我们确定了最佳的MPA配置，以保护3种不同深度类组（栖息地使用的代用）的具有不同上层幼体持续时间（传播用的代用）的40种物种。两者合计，我们发现散布能力对幼虫时间长的物种比幼虫时间短的最优MPA网络配置影响更大。我们确定了该区域中哪10％的区域对于维护多物种MPA网络的连接性而言最重要，并且表明随着气候变化改变连通性模式，这些站点中的一半仍将在未来保持重要地位。这种用于MPA网络设计的模型在数据有限的情况下是可行的，这有利于应用于其他地区和生态系统。