32707 Faga'alu: benthic cover 2015 and 2020 Data Set Published / External 58564 Benthic Missions Project On Going 2022 The benthic cover data described herein were generated by the NOAA Ecosystem Sciences Division (former Coral Reef Ecosystem Program, CREP) from the quantitative analysis of photoquadrat benthic images using the image analysis software CoralNet, whereby random points are projected on each image and the benthic elements falling directly underneath each point are identified. The images were collected at sites in Faga'alu Bay in 2015 and 2020 during belt transect surveys of coral demography. The data can be accessed online via the NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) Ocean Archive. The benthic images and coral demography data are described and archived separately. These data are part of a NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program (CRCP) funded project aimed at establishing baseline data for benthic cover and composition via Rapid Ecological Assessment (REA) surveys conducted by the NOAA Ecosystem Sciences Division (ESD) (formerly Coral Reef Ecosystem Program -CREP) at Faga'alu Bay, Tutuila, American Samoa between 2012 and 2020. In August 2012 Faga'alu watershed in American Samoa was adopted by the U.S. Coral Reef Task Force Watershed Partnership Initiative as a priority site, with the objective to reduce inputs of land-based sources of pollution to nearby coastal areas and coral reefs within the watershed. The Samoa Maritime rock quarry was found to be a major contributor to the periodic flux of excessive sediments onto the adjacent reef in Faga'alu. In September of December 2014, mitigation actions were implemented at the Samoa Maritime Quarry, including the installation of drainage systems, alternative ground cover, and retention ponds. Data were collected to assess the effectiveness of management actions to reduce land-based sources of pollution impacts undertaken at the Samoa Maritime rock quarry. Pre-intervention baseline data were collected in 2013 and subsequent post-intervention monitoring in 2015 and 2020. Funding provided by the NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program (CRCP) through two internal projects entitled. 1) Comprehensive Baseline Assessment and Pilot Test of Outcome Performance Measures in Faga'alu Bay, American Samoa, awarded to Suzie Holst. 2) Status and Trends Assessment for Land-based Sources of Pollution Impacts on Benthic Reef Communities in Faga'alu Bay and Vatia Bay, American Samoa, awarded to the NOAA Ecosystem Sciences Division. Vargas-Angel B, Schumacher BD. 2018. Baseline surveys for coral reef community structure and demographics in Vatia Bay and Faga'alu Bay, American Samoa. Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, PIFSC Special Publication, SP-18-002, 38 p. https://doi.org/10.7289/V5/SP-PIFSC-18-002. and Vargas-Angel B, Huntington B. 2020. Status and trends assessments for land-based sources of pollution impacts on benthic reef communities in Faga'alu Bay, American Samoa. U.S. Dept. of Commerce, NOAA Technical Memorandum NOAA-TM-NMFS-PIFSC-109, 38 p. doi:10.25923/0gvj-zm69. An Erosion and Sediment Control Plan was implemented at Samoa Maritime quarry to reduce excess sedimentation from quarry operations, and mitigation actions from the Plan took place in 2014 to install retention basins designed to stem the input of excess sediments into Faga'alu Stream below the quarry. REA surveys conducted by ESD in 2012 and 2013 serve as the pre-mitigation baseline, and surveys conducted in 2015 and 2020 document the downstream effects (e.g., changes to the coral community) in Faga'alu Bay from the mitigation efforts to reduce the sediment loads upstream. Theme ISO 19115 Topic Category biota Theme CRCP Project 31090 Theme CRCP Project 31259 Theme CRCP Project Comprehensive baseline assessment and pilot test of outcome performance measures in Faga'alu Bay Theme CRCP Project Status and trends assessment for LBSP impacts on reef communities in Faga'alu Bay and Vatia Bay Theme CoRIS Discovery Thesaurus Numeric Data Sets > Benthic Theme CoRIS Theme Thesaurus EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Aquatic Habitat > Benthic Habitat Theme CoRIS Theme Thesaurus EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Aquatic Habitat > Reef Habitat Theme CoRIS Theme Thesaurus EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Aquatic Habitat > Reef Habitat > Coral cover Theme CoRIS Theme Thesaurus EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Vegetation > Algae > Algal Cover Theme CoRIS Theme Thesaurus EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Vegetation > Algae > Crustose Coralline Algae Theme CoRIS Theme Thesaurus EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Vegetation > Algae > Encrusting Macroalgae Theme CoRIS Theme Thesaurus EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Vegetation > Algae > Fleshy Macroalgae Theme CoRIS Theme Thesaurus EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Vegetation > Algae > Turf Algae Theme CoRIS Theme Thesaurus EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment Theme CoRIS Theme Thesaurus EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment > Baseline studies Theme CoRIS Theme Thesaurus EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment > Benthos Analysis Theme CoRIS Theme Thesaurus EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment > Benthos Analysis > Transect Monitoring Theme CoRIS Theme Thesaurus EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment > Benthos Analysis > Transect Monitoring > Belt Transect Theme CoRIS Theme Thesaurus EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment > Photographic Analysis Theme CoRIS Theme Thesaurus EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Coastal Processes > Coral Reefs Theme CoRIS Theme Thesaurus EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Coastal Processes > Coral Reefs > Coral Reef Ecology Theme CoRIS Theme Thesaurus EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Coastal Processes > Coral Reefs > Coral Reef Ecology > Benthic biology Theme CoRIS Theme Thesaurus EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Coastal Processes > Coral Reefs > Coral Reef Ecology > Coral Cover Theme CoRIS Theme Thesaurus EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Coastal Processes > Coral Reefs > Coral Reef Ecology > Hard Coral Cover Theme CoRIS Theme Thesaurus EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Coastal Processes > Coral Reefs > Coral Reef Ecology > Octocoral Cover Theme NODC DATA TYPES THESAURUS REEF AND/OR BOTTOM REGIME - PERCENT COVER Theme NODC OBSERVATION TYPES THESAURUS survey - biological Theme NODC OBSERVATION TYPES THESAURUS survey - coral reef Theme NODC OBSERVATION TYPES THESAURUS survey - diver Theme NODC OBSERVATION TYPES THESAURUS survey - photographs Theme NODC PROJECT NAMES THESAURUS CORAL REEF STUDIES Theme NODC PROJECT NAMES THESAURUS Coral Reef Conservation Program Theme NODC SUBMITTING INSTITUTION NAMES THESAURUS US DOC; NOAA; NMFS; Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center; Ecosystem Sciences Division; Coral Reef Ecosystem Program Theme CRED Theme CREP Theme Coral Reef Ecosystem Division Theme Coral Reef Ecosystem Program Theme ESD Theme Ecosystem Sciences Division Theme PIFSC Theme Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center Spatial CoRIS Place Thesaurus COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > American Samoa > Tutuila Island > Faga'alu (14S170W0005) Spatial CoRIS Place Thesaurus OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > Pago Pago Harbor > Faga'alu (14S170W0005) Spatial NODC SEA AREA NAMES THESAURUS South Pacific Ocean Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center Honolulu HI USA Data Set CSV Files None Planned Table (digital) Raw survey data includes metadata for each survey; site characteristics; unique image name and individual point observations identified at three functional group levels of benthic cover: Tier 1 (e.g., hard coral, macroalgae, etc.), Tier 2 (e.g., massive, branching, foliose, encrusting, etc.), and Tier 3 (e.g., Astreopora sp, Favia sp, etc.). https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/inport/item/51072 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. PIFSC Coral Reef Ecosystem Program and funded by the NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program Not applicable Not applicable Not applicable 51072 BIA CNET Data Dictionary Published / External Completed Data Table Yes GISDAT A definition of the columns present in the benthic cover dataset 1 ROUNDID NUMERIC 22 Yes No 28 0 Active Unique Identifier for ROUND record. 2 MISSIONID TEXT 30 Yes No Active Mission Identifier 3 REGION_NAME TEXT 30 No No Active One of the five Pacific Island regions CRED surveys (American Samoa) 4 ISLAND TEXT 150 No No Active Island or Atoll surveyed (Tutuila) 5 SITE TEXT 150 No No Active The character code for the site surveyed. Combines a 3-letter island code with a site number 5 SITEVISITID NUMERIC No No Active The unique numeric identifier/code for the site surveyed. 6 LATITUDE NUMERIC 22 No No 38 8 Active Site latitude 7 LONGITUDE NUMERIC 22 No No 28 8 Active Site longitude 8 REEF_ZONE TEXT 150 No No Active The reef zone for the given site (Forereef, Backreef or Lagoon) 9 DEPTH_BIN TEXT 60 No No Active Classification of depth (shallow, mid, deep) based on midpoint between minimum and maximum depths of replicates at this site 10 PERM_SITE NUMERIC 22 No No 5 0 Active Permanent site flag 11 CLIMATE_STATION_YN NUMERIC 22 No No Active Climate station flag 12 MIN_DEPTH NUMERIC 22 No No 38 8 Active Minimum depth (measured in feet) 13 MAX_DEPTH NUMERIC 22 No No 28 8 Active Maximum depth (measured in feet) 14 DATE_ DATE 7 Yes No Active Date the survey was conducted 15 IMAGE_NAME TEXT 4000 No No Active Image name (SITE_YEAR_REP_PHOTOID) 16 OBS_YEAR TEXT 16 No No Active Year the survey was conducted 17 REP TEXT 4 No No Active Letter associated to replicate (A, B, C, or D) 17 REPLICATE TEXT No No Active Letter associated to replicate (A, B) starting in 2018 (REP column in previous years). 18 PHOTOID TEXT 4000 No No Active Image number along transect 19 ANALYST TEXT 20 No No Active Initials of the image analyst 20 TIER_1 TEXT 5 No No Active Category classification code of the point on the analyzed image 21 CATEGORY_NAME TEXT 20 No No Active Category classification name of the point on the analyzed image 22 TIER_2 TEXT 5 No No Active Subcategory classification code of the point on the analyzed image 23 SUBCATEGORY_NAME TEXT 50 No No Active Subcategory classification name of the point on the analyzed image 24 TIER_3 TEXT 5 No No Active Genera classification code of the point on the analyzed image 25 GENERA_NAME TEXT 50 No No Active Genera classification name of the point on the analyzed image 26 X_POS NUMERIC 22 No No 38 Active X position of the analyzed point 27 Y_POS NUMERIC 22 No No Active Y position of the analyzed point 51073 Published / External Completed Classification tiers, categories, and definitions Data File Yes GISDAT Classification tiers, categories, and definitions. Coralline Alga (CCA) VARCHAR2 No No Active For the purpose of these image analyses, CCA is defined as any calcified, hard, non-segmented, encrusting or branched, red (or pink) alga Hard Coral VARCHAR2 No No Active For the purposes of this image analysis, hard corals are defined as those that are responsible for the persistent, hard, three-dimensional structure of a coral reef. In general, this classification will include all members of Order Scleractinia, as well as some other small groups of non-scleractinian corals with hard skeletons, including fire corals (Family Milleporidea), blue coral (Order Helioporacea), and Stylasterid hydrocorals (Family Stylasteridae) Massive (MASS), Tabulate (TAB), Encrusting (ENC), Branching (BR), Columnar (COL), Free-living (FREE), Foliose (FOL), Non-scleractinian hard coral (NS) Macroalga VARCHAR2 No No Active Any alga whose structure can be seen in the photograph should be labeled as a macroalga rather than turf. Macroalgae possess numerous different types of morphologies that resemble leaves, blades, umbrellas, ferns, grapes, balls, feathers, branched shrubs, etc. Some macroalgae do possess calcification; however, for the purpose of image analyses here, calcified and fleshy representatives (with the exception of Halimeda sp., below) will be lumped together. Mobile Fauna VARCHAR2 No No Active Photographs capture a solitary instant in time. As a result, creatures that are not permanently affixed to a single location on the sea floor (e.g. sea cucumbers, sea stars, sea urchins, fish) sometimes also appear in photographs intended for benthic analysis. While every effort should be made to discern what the benthic classification is underneath the mobile fauna, if that is not possible, this classification category should be used. This is both a Tier 1 and Tier 2 classification category. Mobile fauna (MOBF) Sediment VARCHAR2 No No Active Sediment describes a "soft" benthos smaller than rubble (i.e., < 5 mm) which due to it's unsettled nature generally, but not always, is devoid of organisms growing on the individual gains comprising the sediment. However, sea grasses, macroalgae including Halimeda spp., and blue-green algae (a.k.a. cyanobacteria) can be found in soft sediment areas. If a classification point falls on an identifiable organism growing in sediment, that's what should be used for the point classification. The sediment classification should only be used if point falls on the sediment itself. Sand (SAND), Fine sediment (FINE) Sessile Invertebrate VARCHAR2 No No Active Many organisms besides corals and algae are found in coral reef ecosystems. This Tier 1 classification is to be used for animals that are permanently affixed to the substrate. Animals with ability to move about the substrate or swim are classified as Mobile Fauna. Giant clam (GC), Bivalve (BI), Sponge (SP), Tunicate (TUN), Bryozoan (BRY), Corallimorph (CMOR), Anemone (AMNE), Zoanthid (ZO), Unclassified (UI) Soft Coral VARCHAR2 No No Active For the purposes of this image analysis, this category groups a collection of fairly related organisms that do not produce a substantial, rigid calcium carbonate skeleton and therefore are neither reef-builders nor do they lay new foundations for future corals. This classification will include members of Subclass Alcyonaria (octocorals), except blue coral and the organ pipe coral, which includes true soft corals, sea fans, sea whips, sea pens, and also members of the Order Antipatheria (black corals). Octocoral (OCT), Unclassified (USC) Turf Alga VARCHAR2 No No Active Turf algae is a category that includes numerous species from multiple evolutionary groups (red algae, green algae, brown algae, and cyanobacteria). These types of mixed algal assemblages are typically short in stature (< 2 cm in height), and often contain filamentous algae (hair-like morphologies) as opposed to fleshy algae (thick branched or sheet-like morphologies). Visible turf on rubble substrate (TURFR), Visible turf on hard[bottom] substrate (TURFH), [Invisible turf on] Rubble substrate (RUB), [Invisible turf on] Hard[bottom] substrate (HARD) Unclassified VARCHAR2 No No Active A particular analysis point may be unclassified because image quality was poor, because not enough of the surrounding area is visible to definitively classify the organism underneath the point, because the benthos is obstructed by something other than mobile fauna, tape, wand, or shadow (e.g. bubble or smear on the camera lens, high turbidity in the water column). Tape, Wand, or Shadow (TAPE, WAND, SHAD), Unclassified (UNK) Data Set Credit 2015 Organization NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program CRCP 1305 East West Highway 10th Floor Silver Spring MD 20910-3281 (301) 713-3155 https://coralreef.noaa.gov Link to the NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program website Online Resource Funders Data Steward 2015 Person Vargas-Angel, Bernardo bernardo.vargasangel@noaa.gov https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2001-463X 1845 Wasp Blvd. Honolulu HI 96818 USA (808)725-5423 Email preferred Distributor 2018 Organization NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information NCEI ncei.info@noaa.gov https://ror.org/04r0wrp59 https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/contact NCEI Contact Information Information for contacts at NCEI. Online Resource Distributor 2015 2017 Person Kanemura, Troy T troy.kanemura@noaa.gov 1845 Wasp Blvd. Honolulu HI 96818 USA (808)725-5422 Email preferred Metadata Contact 2021 Person Luers, Lori H lori.luers@noaa.gov 1845 Wasp Blvd. Honolulu HI 96818 USA 808-725-5593 Email preferred Metadata Contact 2015 2020 Person DesRochers, Annette M annette.desrochers@noaa.gov 1845 Wasp Blvd. Honolulu HI 96818 USA (808)725-5461 8 am - 5 pm Email preferred Originator 2015 Organization Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center PIFSC pifsc.info@noaa.gov https://ror.org/02apffz65 1845 Wasp Blvd. Honolulu HI 96818 USA 808-725-5360 https://www.pifsc.noaa.gov Pacific Island Fisheries Science Center homepage Online Resource 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Point of Contact 2015 Person Vargas-Angel, Bernardo bernardo.vargasangel@noaa.gov https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2001-463X 1845 Wasp Blvd. Honolulu HI 96818 USA (808)725-5423 Email preferred Ground Condition Faga'alu Bay, Tutuila, American Samoa -170.68277777778 -170.67413972 -14.28695194 -14.295 Location of Rapid Ecological Assessment (REA) surveys in Faga'alu Bay in 2015 and 2020 Range 2015-10-29 2015-11-11 Location of Rapid Ecological Assessment (REA) surveys in Faga'alu Bay in 2015 Range 2020-01-15 2020-01-24 Location of Rapid Ecological Assessment (REA) surveys in Faga'alu Bay in 2020 during fly-in mission. Unclassified Not applicable Not applicable NOAA Ecosystem Sciences Division (ESD; Former Coral Reef Ecosystem Program -CREP) Data Sharing Recommendations, version 9.0 updated August 12, 2015: CREP welcomes the opportunity to collaborate on research issues contributing to the scientific basis for better management of marine ecosystems. CREP has a very diverse set of field activities that generates large volumes of data using an array of data collection protocols. The following recommendations are for your consideration as you use this data: 1) Data analyses should take all field exigencies into account. The most effective way to do this would be active collaboration with CREP principal investigators. 2) In all presentations, product releases, or publications using data generated by CREP, proper acknowledgement of both CREP and the individuals responsible for data collection is expected. Citing the DOI (if available) is preferred, a non-DOI example is listed below. 3) If you collect or generate data for the same study areas, CREP requests that you share relevant information on complimentary data collections. 4) Those receiving data are strongly urged to inform the CREP Data Management Team of any errors and discrepancies that are discovered during the course of using these data. They are further urged to bring to the attention of the Team all problems and difficulties encountered in using these data. This information is necessary in order to improve the collections and to facilitate more efficient and economical data processing and retrieval. The users are asked to supply copies of any missing data that may be located, and to provide information as to significant subsets and special aggregations of data that are developed in using the material provided. Example citation: "This publication makes use of data products provided by the Coral Reef Ecosystem Program (CREP), Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (PIFSC), National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), with funding support from the NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program (CRCP). The analysis and interpretations presented here are solely that of the current authors. Data can be accessed online via the NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) Ocean Archive. None Please cite NOAA Coral Reef Ecosystem Program (CREP) when using the data. Example Cite as: Vargas-Angel, Bernardo; Ecosystem Sciences Division; Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (2022). Benthic Surveys in Faga'alu, American Samoa: benthic percent cover derived from analysis of benthic images collected during belt transect surveys of coral demography in 2015 and 2020. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/inport/item/32707 None None https://accession.nodc.noaa.gov/0169725 2018 Organization NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information https://ror.org/04r0wrp59 MV_BIA_CNET_ANALYSIS_DATA_FAGAALU_2015.csv Benthic cover data derived from analysis of benthic images collected during belt transect surveys conducted by the NOAA Coral Reef Ecosystem Program (CREP) in Faga'alu, Tutuila, American Samoa in 2015. 2017-12-21T00:00:00 csv (comma-separated values) CSV - Comma Separated Values (Text) https://accession.nodc.noaa.gov/0259709 2018 Organization NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information https://ror.org/04r0wrp59 BENTHIC_COVER_FAGAALU_MP2006_2020.csv Benthic cover from benthic image analysis with CoralNet for fly-in Mission to Faga'alu, American Samoa in 2020. csv (comma-separated values) CSV - Comma Separated Values (Text) http://coralnet.ucsd.edu/ CoralNet Browse Graphic The online tool used to analyze the benthic images for benthic cover. https://data.nodc.noaa.gov/coris/library/NOAA/CRCP/project/917/Fagaalu_TM_CRCP_23_DOI_Cover_200.jpg Baseline Assessment of Faga'alu Watershed Browse Graphic JPG NOAA Technical Memorandum CRCP 23 https://doi.org/10.7289/V5/SP-PIFSC-18-002 Baseline surveys for coral reef community structure and demographics in Vatia Bay and Faga'alu Bay, American Samoa Browse Graphic PDF PIFSC Special Publication, SP-18-002, 38 p. https://www.coris.noaa.gov/activities/fagaaluWatershed/ Baseline Assessment of Faga'alu Watershed: A Ridge to Reef Assessment in Support of Sediment Reduction Activities and Future Evaluation of their Success Browse Graphic NOAA Technical Memorandum CRCP 23 https://repository.library.noaa.gov/view/noaa/27088 Status and Trends Assessment for Land-based Sources of Pollution Impacts on Benthic Reef Communities in Faga'alu Bay, American Samoa. Online Resource NOAA Technical Memorandum NMFS-PIFSC-109, 38 p PIFSC Oracle database view for benthic cover as calculated by annotations using CoralNet: MV_BIA_CNET_ANALYSIS_DATA Data sets derived from image analysis are highly reliable within the stipulated taxonomic context. Each time a production run is performed for a region a calibration exercise is conducted by all staff that will participate in that round of image analysis classification. Usually 100-150 photos are selected from the photos being processed as part of the production run series, or other region-relevant photo streams. Then, image analysis software assigns 10 random fixed points per photo. Each photo analyst is asked to classify the same set of points in each of the photos used as part of the calibration exercise. The goal of the calibration exercise is to assess inter-observer variability. Inter-observer variability rates are available upon request for each production run. The data set derived from the image analysis is as good as the images themselves; poor images with low contrast, inappropriate white balance, or out of focus may have to be discarded. Therefore, percent cover estimates for some sites may derive from differing number of images (points) between sites. Although the analysis process is statistically robust to allow for differing n (points) between sites, users should be aware of this limitation. Classification is completed to the functional group/genus level (Tier 3). Benthic images were collected during coral demographic surveys in 2012, 2015, and 2020 in Faga'alu; however, only the images collected during the most recent surveys in 2015 and 2020 were analyzed. The same method of image analysis was used at each surveyed site. Quality control is enforced by means of point-to-point, inter-observer calibration exercises that are conducted before each image analysis production series. Training modules and standard operating procedures have also been developed and documented to ensure improved performance and consistent imagery analysis results produced by multiple analysts. Yes Unknown Yes No Unknown NCEI-MD Unknown NOAA IRC and NOAA Fisheries ITS resources and assets. The data described here were derived from the analysis of benthic images collected along photo-quadrat surveys by the NOAA Ecosystem Sciences Division (ESD): In 2015 photo quadrat images were taken every meter from the 1-m to the 15-m mark along TWO, 18-m transects per site (n = 30 images). In 2020 photo quadrat images were taken every meter from the 1-m to the 30-m mark along one 30-m transect line (n = 30 images). Baseline surveys for coral reef community structure and demographics in Vatia Bay and Faga'alu Bay, American Samoa. Organization Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, PIFSC Originator https://doi.org/10.7289/V5/SP-PIFSC-18-002 OAA Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, PIFSC Special Publication, SP-18-002 Vargas-Angel B, Schumacher BD. 2018. Baseline surveys for coral reef community structure and demographics in Vatia Bay and Faga'alu Bay, American Samoa. Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, PIFSC Special Publication, SP-18-002, 38 p. Lozada-Misa P, Schumacher BD, Vargas-Angel B. 2017. Analysis of benthic survey images via CoralNet : a summary of standard operating procedures and guidelines. Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, PIFSC Administrative Report, H-17-02, 169 p. https://doi.org/10.7289/V5/AR-PIFSC-H-17-02. Organization Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, PIFSC https://repository.library.noaa.gov/view/noaa/14205 The published benthic image analysis SOP using CoralNet. Status and trends assessments for land-based sources of pollution impacts on benthic reef communities in Faga'alu Bay, American Samoa (2020) Organization Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center Originator https://repository.library.noaa.gov/view/noaa/27088 NOAA technical memorandum NMFS-PIFSC ; 109 Vargas-Angel B, Huntington B. 2020. Status and trends assessments for land-based sources of pollution impacts on benthic reef communities in Faga'alu Bay, American Samoa. U.S. Dept. of Commerce, NOAA Technical Memorandum NOAA-TM-NMFS-PIFSC-109, 38 p. doi:10.25923/0gvj-zm69. 1 Still photographs were collected during belt transect surveys of coral demography to record the benthic community composition at predetermined points along the transect lines with a high-resolution digital camera mounted on a pole. 30 photoquadrat images were collected at each site. In 2015 the photoquadrat surveys were conducted along two, independent 18 meter transects per site. Photos of the benthic substrate were taken at one meter intervals starting at meter 1, along the left hand side of each 18 meter transect (15 images/transect; 30 images total) In 2020 the photoquadrat surveys were conducted along one, 30 meter transect per site. Photos of the benthic substrate were taken at one meter intervals starting at meter 1, along the left hand side of the transect (30 images/transect; 30 images total) The benthic photoquadrat images were analyzed by using the web-based annotation tool CoralNet (Beijbom et al. 2016). CoralNet assigns 10 random points per photo and the benthic elements falling directly underneath each point is identified to three functional group levels: Tier 1 (e.g. hard coral, macroalgae, etc.), Tier 2 (e.g. Hard coral by morphology = massive, branching, etc.), and Tier 3 (e.g. Hard coral by genus and morphology). The detailed list of each functional group level or tier is included in the benthic image analysis classification scheme. See the published standard operating procedures for further details. Lozada-Misa P, Schumacher BD, Vargas-Angel B. 2017. Analysis of benthic survey images via CoralNet : a summary of standard operating procedures and guidelines. Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, PIFSC Administrative Report, H-17-02, 169 p. https://doi.org/10.7289/V5/AR-PIFSC-H-17-02. 51073 Entity 51072 Entity 25371 Data Set Cross Reference 25283 Data Set Cross Reference 25370 Data Set Cross Reference 25369 Data Set Cross Reference gov.noaa.nmfs.inport:32707 Annette DesRochers 2016-05-10T16:08:39 SysAdmin InPortAdmin 2026-08-28T22:22:34 2022-09-19 Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center PIFSC 1845 Wasp Blvd. Honolulu HI 96818 USA 808-725-5300 https://www.pifsc.noaa.gov 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. 1001 Public No No 2022-08-30 1 Year 2023-08-30