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    • National Coral Reef Monitoring Program: Bioerosion Monitoring Unit Data from BMUs deployed at coral reef sites in American Samoa from 2018-06-29 to 2023-08-15 (NCEI Accession 0300481)

    Metadata Updated: March 1, 2026

    Ocean Acidification (OA) is expected to reduce the calcification rates of marine organisms, yet we have little understanding of how OA will manifest within dynamic, real-world systems, nor how to accurately measure said manifestation. The term bioerosion refers to the biological destruction of hard structures, such as coral skeletons. On coral reefs, this process is the antithesis of coral calcification. If rates of bioerosion are higher than calcification, healthy reef habitats can erode into rubble and sand.

    The erosion rates provided in this data set were collected from bioerosion monitoring units (BMUs) retrieved at existing long-term monitoring sites during NOAA Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (PIFSC), Coral Reef Ecosystem Program (CREP) led NCRMP missions around American Samoa.

    This archive package contains BMU data from permanent long-term monitoring sites in American Samoa that were analyzed at NOAA’s Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML), as part of the NOAA National Coral Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP). BMUs are constructed from clean coral skeletons and left on the reef for a period of 3 years. BMUs are CT scanned for changes in density, volume and mass in which rates of bioerosion can be assessed using Amira analysis software (FEI). Annual erosion and accretion rates can be determined from these data in terms of loss of reef structure volume as well as mass in grams of calcium carbonate. Accretion rates given in this data set were determined by finding the volume of non-original carbonate material found on the external surface of the BMUs divided by the number of years the BMU was deployed on the reef. These rates can detect accretion signals when calcifying organisms, such as corals or algae, have grown on their exteriors. Rates of macroboring were determined by changes in the internal volume of the BMUs (e.g., that removed by bore holes) divided by the number of years the BMU was deployed on the reef. Macroboring can occur from eroders such as, clionaid sponges, annelids and other macroboring fauna. This field mission was cut short due to vessel issues so not all sites were visited from the Pacific remote island areas.

    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 2025-05-16T15:45:15Z
    Metadata Created Date February 1, 2025
    Metadata Updated Date March 1, 2026
    Reference Date(s) January 15, 2025 (publication), January 7, 2025 (creation)
    Frequency Of Update asNeeded

    Metadata Source

    Harvested from NOAA/NESDIS/ncei/accessions

    Other Data Resources

    Graphic Preview

    Preview graphic

    Additional Metadata

    Resource Type Dataset
    Metadata Date 2025-05-16T15:45:15Z
    Metadata Created Date February 1, 2025
    Metadata Updated Date March 1, 2026
    Reference Date(s) January 15, 2025 (publication), January 7, 2025 (creation)
    Responsible Party (Point of Contact)
    Contact Email
    Guid gov.noaa.nodc:0300481
    Access Constraints Cite as: Enochs, Ian; Besemer, Nicole; Chomitz, Benjamin; Barkley, Hannah (2025). National Coral Reef Monitoring Program: Bioerosion Monitoring Unit Data from BMUs deployed at coral reef sites in American Samoa from 2018-06-29 to 2023-08-15 (NCEI Accession 0300481). [indicate subset used]. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. Dataset. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/archive/accession/0300481. 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 -169.441015
    Bbox North Lat -14.18057
    Bbox South Lat -14.36355
    Bbox West Long -170.81197
    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:0300481
    Graphic Preview Type PNG
    Harvest Object Id ae3019a0-463c-415b-8286-025763f79bfe
    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": [[[-170.81197, -14.36355], [-169.441015, -14.36355], [-169.441015, -14.18057], [-170.81197, -14.18057], [-170.81197, -14.36355]]]}
    Progress completed
    Spatial Data Service Type
    Spatial Reference System
    Spatial Harvester True
    Temporal Extent Begin 2018-06-29
    Temporal Extent End 2023-08-01

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