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National Coral Reef Monitoring Program: Benthic cover derived from analysis of images collected during stratified random surveys (StRS) across American Samoa

Metadata Updated: December 1, 2023

The benthic cover data in this collection result from the analysis of images produced by benthic photo-quadrat surveys. These surveys were conducted along transects at stratified random sites across American Samoa as a part of the ongoing National Coral Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP). Benthic cover data derived from this imagery are also included in this collection.

A stratified random sampling (StRS) design was employed to survey the coral reef ecosystems throughout the region. The survey domain encompassed the majority of the mapped area of reef and hard bottom habitats in the 0-30 m depth range. The stratification scheme included island, reef zone, and depth. Sampling effort was allocated based on strata area and sites were randomly located within strata. Sites were surveyed using photo-quadrats along transects. The imagery were then analyzed to produce estimates of relative abundance (percent cover), frequency of occurrence, benthic community taxonomic composition, and relative generic richness.

Benthic habitat imagery were quantitatively analyzed using a web-based annotation tool called CoralNet (Beijbom et al. 2015). In general, images are analyzed to produce three functional group levels of benthic cover: Tier 1 (e.g., hard coral, soft coral, macroalgae, turf algae, etc.), Tier 2 (e.g., Hard Coral = massive, branching, foliose, encrusting, etc.; Macroalgae = upright macroalgae, encrusting macroalgae, bluegreen macroalgae, and Halimeda, etc.), and Tier 3 (e.g., Hard Coral = Astreopora sp, Favia sp, Pocillopora, etc.; Macroalgae = Caulerpa sp, Dictyosphaeria sp, Padina sp, etc.).

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.

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Dates

Metadata Date 2023-08-01T12:34:15Z
Metadata Created Date December 4, 2020
Metadata Updated Date December 1, 2023
Reference Date(s) March 7, 2018 (publication), September 14, 2021 (revision)
Frequency Of Update asNeeded

Metadata Source

Harvested from NOAA/NESDIS/ncei/accessions

Graphic Preview

Preview graphic

Additional Metadata

Resource Type Series
Metadata Date 2023-08-01T12:34:15Z
Metadata Created Date December 4, 2020
Metadata Updated Date December 1, 2023
Reference Date(s) March 7, 2018 (publication), September 14, 2021 (revision)
Responsible Party (Point of Contact)
Contact Email
Guid gov.noaa.nodc:NCRMP-StRS-Images-AmSam
Access Constraints Cite as: NOAA Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, Ecosystem Sciences Division (2018). National Coral Reef Monitoring Program: Benthic cover derived from analysis of images collected during stratified random surveys (StRS) across American Samoa. [indicate subset used]. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. Dataset. https://doi.org/10.7289/v52v2dfw. Accessed [date]., Use liability: NOAA and NCEI cannot provide any warranty as to the accuracy, reliability, or completeness of furnished data. Users assume responsibility to determine the usability of these data. The user is responsible for the results of any application of this data for other than its intended purpose.
Bbox East Long -168.1373351
Bbox North Lat -11.04525081
Bbox South Lat -14.56050273
Bbox West Long -171.0925737
Coupled Resource
Frequency Of Update asNeeded
Graphic Preview Description Preview graphic
Graphic Preview File https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/metadata/landing-page/bin/gfx?id=gov.noaa.nodc:NCRMP-StRS-Images-AmSam
Graphic Preview Type PNG
Harvest Object Id f64e6a41-5704-45f7-bd64-d776e25060c1
Harvest Source Id c084a438-6f6b-470d-93e0-16aeddb9f513
Harvest Source Title NOAA/NESDIS/ncei/accessions
Licence accessLevel: Public
Lineage
Metadata Language eng
Metadata Type geospatial
Old Spatial {"type": "Polygon", "coordinates": [[[-171.0925737, -14.56050273], [-168.1373351, -14.56050273], [-168.1373351, -11.04525081], [-171.0925737, -11.04525081], [-171.0925737, -14.56050273]]]}
Progress onGoing
Spatial Data Service Type
Spatial Reference System
Spatial Harvester True
Temporal Extent Begin 2015-02-15

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