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    • National Coral Reef Monitoring Program: Benthic Complexity and Urchin Abundance at Climate Stations in American Samoa from 2015 to 2018

    Metadata Updated: March 16, 2024

    Benthic complexity and urchin abundance data were collected as part of NOAA's ongoing National Coral Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP). These data were gathered around American Samoa as a part of the NOAA Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (PIFSC), Ecosystem Sciences Division (formerly the Coral Reef Ecosystem Division) led missions from 2015 to 2018.

    During these missions, the variables of benthic complexity and urchin abundance were recorded by SCUBA divers during visual surveys at NCRMP climate stations. A select number of climate sites were chosen per island in hard-bottom habitat at 15-m depths in a stratified random fashion.

    To record benthic complexity, the divers ran a 15-m transect from the reference stake for the site and estimated two maximum vertical relief measurements per meter along the 15-m transect (based on an area of 0.5 m x 1 m to the left and 0.5 m x 1 m to the right of each meter on the transect) for a total of 30 measurements. The measurements were tallied into five substrate height bins, including 0-20 cm, 20-50 cm, 50-100 cm, 100-150 cm, and >150 cm. The total frequency for the five substrate height bins is 30 units for a 15-m transect. Maximum depth, minimum depth, and maximum vertical relief were also recorded for the climate station.

    Free and boring urchin abundance was estimated within the climate station and recorded using DACOR, an abundance code based on visual estimation; dominant (D), abundant (A), common (C), occasional (O), and rare (R).

    Access & Use Information

    License: No license information was provided. If this work was prepared by an officer or employee of the United States government as part of that person's official duties it is considered a U.S. Government Work.

    Downloads & Resources

    Dates

    Metadata Date February 29, 2024
    Metadata Created Date November 12, 2020
    Metadata Updated Date March 16, 2024
    Reference Date(s) 2016-12 (creation), 2019-03 (revision), 2019 (publication)
    Frequency Of Update asNeeded

    Metadata Source

    Harvested from NMFS PIFSC

    Other Data Resources

    Additional Metadata

    Resource Type Dataset
    Metadata Date February 29, 2024
    Metadata Created Date November 12, 2020
    Metadata Updated Date March 16, 2024
    Reference Date(s) 2016-12 (creation), 2019-03 (revision), 2019 (publication)
    Responsible Party (Point of Contact, Custodian)
    Contact Email
    Guid gov.noaa.nmfs.inport:36099
    Access Constraints Cite As: Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, [Date of Access]: National Coral Reef Monitoring Program: Benthic Complexity and Urchin Abundance at Climate Stations in American Samoa from 2015 to 2018 [Data Date Range], https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/inport/item/36099., Access Constraints: None, Use Constraints: Please cite PIFSC Ecosystem Sciences Division (ESD) when using the data. Suggested citation: Ecosystem Sciences Division; Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (2019). National Coral Reef Monitoring Program: Benthic Complexity and Urchin Abundance at Climate Stations in American Samoa from 2015 to 2018. NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information, https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/inport/item/36099., Distribution Liability: While every effort has been made to ensure that these data are accurate and reliable within the limits of the current state of the art, NOAA cannot assume liability for any damages caused by errors or omissions in the data, nor as a result of the failure of the data to function on a particular system. NOAA makes no warranty, expressed or implied, nor does the fact of distribution constitute such a warranty.
    Bbox East Long -168.13792
    Bbox North Lat -11.04568868
    Bbox South Lat -14.559317
    Bbox West Long -171.09223299
    Coupled Resource
    Frequency Of Update asNeeded
    Harvest Object Id 81ade98f-118e-4539-9351-8c1b89457922
    Harvest Source Id c0beac72-5f43-4455-8c33-1b345fbc2dfe
    Harvest Source Title NMFS PIFSC
    Licence NOAA provides no warranty, nor accepts any liability occurring from any incomplete, incorrect, or misleading data, or from any incorrect, incomplete, or misleading use of the data. It is the responsibility of the user to determine whether or not the data is suitable for the intended purpose.
    Lineage Benthic complexity (i.e., substrate height) and urchin abundance survey method employed by the PIFSC Ecosystem Sciences Division (ESD) since 2013. ESD's use of the 5-category method for benthic complexity was adapted from the University on North Carolina at Wilmington’s Protocol for Measuring Topographic Complexity. The category delineations for benthic complexity and urchin abundance are the same as those employed by ESD's fish team.
    Metadata Language eng
    Metadata Type geospatial
    Old Spatial {"type": "Polygon", "coordinates": [[[-171.09223299, -14.559317], [-168.13792, -14.559317], [-168.13792, -11.04568868], [-171.09223299, -11.04568868], [-171.09223299, -14.559317]]]}
    Progress completed
    Spatial Data Service Type
    Spatial Reference System
    Spatial Harvester True
    Temporal Extent Begin 2015-02-15
    Temporal Extent End 2015-03-26

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