Coral reef fish biomass and benthic cover data from Timor-Leste in June 2013
Data Set (DS) | Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (PIFSC)GUID: gov.noaa.nmfs.inport:32998 | Updated: October 3, 2024 | Published / External
Item Identification
Title: | Coral reef fish biomass and benthic cover data from Timor-Leste in June 2013 |
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Short Name: | Timor: Fish |
Status: | Completed |
Publication Date: | 2015 |
Abstract: |
Coral reef fish and benthos were surveyed at 150 shallow-water coral reef sites across the north coast of Timor-Leste and around Atauro Island in June 2013 during a 21-day survey mission. This project was conducted by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center's Coral Reef Ecosystem Program (CREP) using consistent methods, survey design, and personnel. Fish biomass and benthic cover were estimated at all survey sites using the stationary point count (SPC) method. The SPC method catalogs the diversity (species richness), abundance (numeric density) and biomass (fish mass per unit area) of diurnally active reef fish assemblages in shallow-water (less than 30 m) hard-bottom habitats. Visual estimates of benthic cover and topographic complexity are also recorded, with benthic organisms grouped into broad functional categories (e.g., 'Hard Coral', 'Macroalgae'). A stratified random sampling (StRS) design was employed, similar to surveys conducted by NOAA CREP of the coral reef ecosystems throughout the U.S.-Pacific regions. The goal of the survey work was to generate baseline data on the nearshore coral reef fish assemblages and associated benthic communities around Timor-Leste's north coast and Atauro Island. Surveys were concentrated around these areas due to (1) limited time and resources, but also (2) low water visibility and safety concerns for potential dive survey operations along the south shore. In addition to the visual observations of reef fish and the associated benthos, photographs of the seafloor were taken using a photoquadrat method and were later analyzed for benthic cover. These two additional datasets are documented separately. The reef fish and benthic estimate data collected during the 2013 mission in Timor-Leste can be accessed online via the NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) Ocean Archive. |
Purpose: |
In 2011, NOAA and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Timor-Leste Mission formed a 5-year bi-lateral partnership agreement from 2012 to 2016, in support of the Government of Timor-Leste—particularly the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries (MAF)—by addressing significant information gaps in their nearshore marine ecosystems. Specifically, MAF asked NOAA to address the following questions: 1. Where are the nearshore marine resources? 2. What are the nearshore marine resources? 3. How are they changing over time and what threats are potentially causing these changes? 4. What approaches are needed to manage and conserve the nearshore marine resources? With financial support from USAID and in-kind support from the NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program (CRCP), the NOAA Coral Reef Ecosystem Program (NOAA-CREP) conducted baseline ecosystem assessment surveys to inform ecosystem-based management planning in Timor-Leste. The primary activities conducted by NOAA to answer these questions included: 1. satellite mapping of nearshore habitats, 2. conducting coral reef ecosystem assessments, 3. establishing ecological baselines for climate change, and 4. building management capacity by developing a spatial data framework The reef fish survey data described herein resulted from the second activity to conduct coral reef ecosystem assessments. |
Other Citation Details: |
McCoy K, Ayotte P, Gray A, Lino K, Schumacher B, Sudnovsky M. 2015. Coral reef fish biomass and benthic cover along the north coast of Timor-Leste based on underwater visual surveys in June 2013. Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, PIFSC Data Report, DR-15-004, 18 p. + Appendices. doi:10.7289/v5k0728f. and Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center. 2017. Interdisciplinary baseline ecosystem assessment surveys to inform ecosystem-based management planning in Timor-Leste: Final Report. Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, PIFSC Special Publication, SP-17-002, 234 p. https://doi.org/10.7289/V5/SP-PIFSC-17-002. |
Supplemental Information: |
As the survey methods described and used herein are also implemented as part of the NOAA Pacific Reef Assessment and Monitoring Program (Pacific RAMP)—an ecosystem-scale interdisciplinary coral reef monitoring program—the data from Timor-Leste are directly comparable to and informed by data collected by NOAA-CREP throughout the U.S. Pacific Islands and Territories. Furthermore, the methods used for establishing ecological baselines for climate change in Timor-Leste (Chapter 4) are being adopted and implemented at 21 sites across eight member states of the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission within the Western Pacific (WESTPAC) region. These data provide a foundation for comparing the ecological baselines under current and future stresses associated with climate change in the Coral Triangle region. |
Keywords
Theme Keywords
Thesaurus | Keyword |
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ISO 19115 Topic Category |
biota
|
UNCONTROLLED | |
CoRIS Discovery Thesaurus | Numeric Data Sets > Fish Census |
CoRIS Theme Thesaurus | EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Aquatic Habitat > Reef Habitat |
CoRIS Theme Thesaurus | EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Ecological Dynamics > Species Richness |
CoRIS Theme Thesaurus | EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment |
CoRIS Theme Thesaurus | EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef monitoring and assessment > Rapid assessment studies |
CoRIS Theme Thesaurus | EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef monitoring and assessment > Reef fish census |
CoRIS Theme Thesaurus | EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment > Reef Fish Census > Stationary |
CoRIS Theme Thesaurus | EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Coastal Processes > Coral Reefs |
CoRIS Theme Thesaurus | EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Coastal Processes > Coral Reefs > Coral reef ecology |
CoRIS Theme Thesaurus | EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Coastal Processes > Coral Reefs > Coral Reef Ecology > Coral Cover |
CoRIS Theme Thesaurus | EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Marine Biology > Fish |
CoRIS Theme Thesaurus | EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Marine Biology > Fish > Fish Assemblages |
CoRIS Theme Thesaurus | EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Marine Biology > Macroinvertebrates |
CoRIS Theme Thesaurus | EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Marine Biology > Marine Invertebrates |
CoRIS Theme Thesaurus | EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Marine Biology > Marine Invertebrates > Macroinvertebrates |
NODC DATA TYPES THESAURUS | FISH - CORAL REEF |
NODC DATA TYPES THESAURUS | FISH BIOMASS |
NODC DATA TYPES THESAURUS | FISH SPECIES |
NODC DATA TYPES THESAURUS | SPECIES IDENTIFICATION |
NODC DATA TYPES THESAURUS | SPECIES IDENTIFICATION - COUNT |
NODC DATA TYPES THESAURUS | SPECIES IDENTIFICATION - ORGANISM LENGTH |
NODC OBSERVATION TYPES THESAURUS | survey |
NODC OBSERVATION TYPES THESAURUS | survey - biological |
NODC OBSERVATION TYPES THESAURUS | survey - swimmer/diver |
NODC OBSERVATION TYPES THESAURUS | visual estimate |
NODC PROJECT NAMES THESAURUS | CORAL REEF STUDIES |
NODC PROJECT NAMES THESAURUS | Coral Triangle Initiative |
NODC SUBMITTING INSTITUTION NAMES THESAURUS | US DOC; NOAA; NMFS; Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center; Ecosystem Sciences Division; Coral Reef Ecosystem Program |
None | Coral Reef Ecosystem Division |
None | Coral Reef Ecosystem Program |
None | CRED |
None | CREP |
None | Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center |
None | PIFSC |
None | Rapid Ecological Assessment |
None | REA |
None | Reef Fish |
None | SPC |
None | Stationary Point Count |
None | United States Agency for International Development |
None | USAID |
Spatial Keywords
Thesaurus | Keyword |
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UNCONTROLLED | |
CoRIS Place Thesaurus | COUNTRY/TERRITORY > Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste (East Timor) (09S126E0001) |
CoRIS Place Thesaurus | OCEAN BASIN > Indian Ocean > Timor Sea > Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste (East Timor) (09S126E0001) |
NODC SEA AREA NAMES THESAURUS | Indian Ocean |
NODC SEA AREA NAMES THESAURUS | Timor Sea |
None | Atauro |
None | Baucau |
None | Bobonaro |
None | Dili |
None | Lautem |
None | Liquica |
None | Manatuto |
None | Oecusse |
None | Timor-Leste |
None | Vila MPA |
Physical Location
Organization: | Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center |
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City: | Honolulu |
State/Province: | HI |
Country: | USA |
Data Set Information
Data Set Scope Code: | Data Set |
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Data Set Type: | CSV Files |
Maintenance Frequency: | None Planned |
Data Presentation Form: | Table (digital) |
Entity Attribute Overview: |
Raw survey data includes metadata for each survey (where, when, who, area); site characteristics (depth, reef type, habitat, benthic cover); individual reef fish observations identified to the lowest taxonomic level possible (usually species) including size, count, and observation type; and parameters needed to calculate biomass and density, which are also included. For the benthic estimate data: Habitat types are AGR (aggregate reef); MIX (mixed habitats); PAV (pavement); ROB (rock/boulder); RRB (reef rubble); and SCR (sand with scattered coral/rock). Slope and substrate height were also recorded. Observed functional groups are as follows: hard (scleractinian) corals, macroalgae, crustose coralline algae, turf algae, sand, tunicate, zoanthic, corallimorph, clam, cyanobacteria, sponge, and upright soft coral. The percent cover of each of these groups was visually estimated, and the sum of the values for each record in the dataset is 100%. Urchins were recorded using the DACOR method, an abundance code based on visual estimation (dominant, abundant, common, occasional, and rare). |
Entity Attribute Detail URL: | https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/inport/item/35550 |
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. |
Data Set Credit: | PIFSC Coral Reef Ecosystem Program and funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Timor-Leste |
Support Roles
Data Steward
Date Effective From: | 2013 |
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Date Effective To: | |
Contact (Person): | McCoy, Kaylyn S |
Address: |
1845 Wasp Blvd. Honolulu, HI 96818 USA |
Email Address: | kaylyn.mccoy@noaa.gov |
Phone: | (808)725-5471 |
Contact Instructions: |
Email preferred |
Distributor
Date Effective From: | 2017 |
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Date Effective To: | |
Contact (Organization): | NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) |
Email Address: | ncei.info@noaa.gov |
URL: | NCEI Contact Information |
Metadata Contact
Date Effective From: | 2013 |
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Date Effective To: | |
Contact (Person): | DesRochers, Annette M |
Address: |
1845 Wasp Blvd. Honolulu, HI 96818 USA |
Email Address: | annette.desrochers@noaa.gov |
Phone: | (808)725-5461 |
Business Hours: | 8 am - 5 pm |
Contact Instructions: |
Email preferred |
Originator
Date Effective From: | 2013 |
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Date Effective To: | |
Contact (Organization): | Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (PIFSC) |
Address: |
1845 Wasp Blvd. Honolulu, HI 96818 USA |
Email Address: | pifsc.info@noaa.gov |
Phone: | 808-725-5360 |
URL: | https://www.pifsc.noaa.gov |
Business Hours: | 8:00 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. |
Point of Contact
Date Effective From: | 2013 |
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Date Effective To: | |
Contact (Person): | Williams, Ivor D |
Address: |
1845 Wasp Blvd. Honolulu, HI 96818 USA |
Email Address: | ivor.williams@noaa.gov |
Phone: | (808)725-5427 |
Contact Instructions: |
Contact via email |
Extents
Currentness Reference: | Ground Condition |
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Extent Group 1
Extent Description: |
Extent of reef fish surveys conducted by NOAA CREP at Timor-Leste in June 2013. |
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Extent Group 1 / Geographic Area 1
W° Bound: | 124 | |
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E° Bound: | 127.5 | |
N° Bound: | -8.1 | |
S° Bound: | -9.4 | |
Description |
Extent of reef fish surveys conducted by NOAA CREP at Timor-Leste in June 2013. |
Extent Group 1 / Time Frame 1
Time Frame Type: | Range |
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Start: | 2013-06-04 |
End: | 2013-06-27 |
Alternate Start As Of Info: | SB1310 |
Description: |
Time frame of reef fish surveys conducted by NOAA CREP at Timor-Leste in June 2013. |
Access Information
Security Class: | Unclassified |
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Security Classification System: |
Not applicable |
Security Handling Description: |
Not applicable |
Data Access Policy: |
NOAA 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 acknowledgment: "This publication makes use of data products gathered 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 U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Timor-Leste. The analysis and interpretations presented here are solely that of the current authors.” |
Data Access Procedure: |
Data can be accessed online via the NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) Ocean Archive. |
Data Access Constraints: |
None |
Data Use Constraints: |
Please cite NOAA Coral Reef Ecosystem Program (CREP) and acknowledge the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Timor-Leste when using the data. Suggested citation: Coral Reef Ecosystem Program; Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (2017). Coral reef fish biomass and benthic cover data from Timor-Leste in June 2013. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/inport/item/32998. |
Metadata Access Constraints: |
None |
Metadata Use Constraints: |
None |
Distribution Information
Distribution 1
Download URL: | https://accession.nodc.noaa.gov/0165354 |
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Distributor: | NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) (2017 - Present) |
File Name: | DR-15-004.pdf |
Description: |
Coral Reef Fish Biomass and Benthic Cover Along the North Coast of Timor-Leste Based on Underwater Visual Surveys in June 2013 |
File Date/Time: | 2015-03-20 00:00:00 |
File Type (Deprecated): | |
Distribution Format: | PDF - Adobe Portable Document Format |
Distribution 2
Download URL: | https://accession.nodc.noaa.gov/0165354 |
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Distributor: | NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) (2017 - Present) |
File Name: | PIFSC_Admin_Rep_11-08.pdf |
Description: |
Coral Reef Ecosystem Division Standard Operating Procedures: Data Collection for Rapid Ecological Assessment Fish Surveys |
File Date/Time: | 2011-12-01 00:00:00 |
File Type (Deprecated): | |
Distribution Format: | PDF - Adobe Portable Document Format |
Distribution 3
Download URL: | https://accession.nodc.noaa.gov/0165354 |
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Distributor: | NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) (2017 - Present) |
File Name: | Timor-Leste_Fish_Data.csv |
Description: |
Observations from reef fish surveys in Timor-Leste in June 2013. |
File Date/Time: | 2016-10-12 00:00:00 |
File Type (Deprecated): | csv (comma-separated values) |
Distribution Format: | CSV - Comma Separated Values (Text) |
URLs
URL 1
URL: | https://pifscblog.wordpress.com/2013/08/13/final-count-timor-leste-2/ |
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URL Type: |
Online Resource
|
File Resource Format: | HTML |
Description: |
PIFSC CREP blog post: The final count: summary of mission to assess reef fish assemblages, build capacity in Timor-Leste, 13 Aug. 2013. |
URL 2
URL: | https://pifscblog.wordpress.com/2013/06/19/update-timor-leste-first-week/ |
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URL Type: |
Online Resource
|
File Resource Format: | HTML |
Description: |
PIFSC CREP blog post: Update from Timor-Leste: team completes 50 surveys of reef fish and benthic communities in first week, 19 Jun. 2013. |
URL 3
URL: | https://pifscblog.wordpress.com/2013/06/18/coral-triangle-day-timor-leste/ |
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URL Type: |
Online Resource
|
File Resource Format: | HTML |
Description: |
PIFSC CREP blog post: NOAA scientists, local partners mark Coral Triangle Day in Timor-Leste with capacity-building activities, 18 Jun. 2013. |
URL 4
URL: | https://pifscblog.wordpress.com/2013/06/03/fish-acidification-timor-leste/ |
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URL Type: |
Online Resource
|
File Resource Format: | HTML |
Description: |
PIFSC CREP blog post: Scientists assess reef fish and benthic communities, monitor effects of ocean acidification off Timor-Leste, 03 Jun. 2013. |
URL 5
URL: | https://pifscblog.wordpress.com/2013/07/08/timor-leste-live-aboard/ |
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URL Type: |
Online Resource
|
File Resource Format: | HTML |
Description: |
PIFSC CREP blog post: Update from Timor-Leste: scientists complete live-aboard mission to survey reef fishes and benthos, assess ocean acidification, 08 Jul. 2013. |
URL 6
URL: | http://www.pifsc.noaa.gov/cred/survey_methods.php |
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URL Type: |
Online Resource
|
File Resource Format: | PHP |
Description: |
NOAA Coral Reef Ecosystem Program website, survey methods page, which includes a brief description of the Stationary Point Count (nSPC) Method used to survey coral reef fishes (2007-present). |
URL 7
URL: | http://www.pifsc.noaa.gov/cred/img/diver_counting_fish_using_spc_sm.jpg |
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URL Type: |
Browse Graphic
|
File Resource Format: | JPG |
Description: |
Diver counting coral reef fishes using the SPC method. |
URL 8
URL: | http://www.pifsc.noaa.gov/cred/fish.php |
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URL Type: |
Online Resource
|
File Resource Format: | PHP |
Description: |
PIFSC CREP website: Fish Ecology and Monitoring |
URL 9
URL: | https://www.coris.noaa.gov/activities/projects/timor-leste/ |
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URL Type: |
Online Resource
|
File Resource Format: | HTML |
Description: |
Timor-Leste project portal on the NOAA Coral Reef Information Service website |
URL 10
URL: | https://www.pifsc.noaa.gov/cred/coral_triangle_initiative.php |
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URL Type: |
Online Resource
|
File Resource Format: | PHP |
Description: |
Information about the NOAA Coral Reef Ecosystem Program's activities in the Coral Triangle. |
Technical Environment
Description: |
PIFSC Oracle database view: V0_FISH_REA |
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Data Quality
Representativeness: |
Data are from haphazardly located surveys and are believed to be highly representative |
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Accuracy: |
Observations at each site were made by divers who have been trained, and met minimum standards in identifying species present at the survey locations and in estimating size of fishes in survey counts. However, all species identifications are made visually, sometimes in situations where a fish is only briefly seen. Visual estimates of benthic cover are useful as broad indication of the reef benthic assemblages present at each survey site, but there is considerable scope for error in rapid diver estimates of this kind. |
Completeness Report: |
For most NOAA CREP reef fish assessments, survey allocation is determined by area of hard-bottom reef habitat within 3 depth ranges; shallow (0–6 m), mid (6–18 m), and deep (18–30 m). The deep area of reef habitat was not surveyed as a result of safety restrictions set by the NOAA dive program. Also, surveys were not conducted along the south shore of Timor-Leste due to (1) limited time and resources, and also (2) low water visibility and safety concerns. |
Conceptual Consistency: |
The same methods of data collection were used at each of the sites surveyed at this location, and were conducted by the same scientists. The same methods of data collection are used at each surveyed site. |
Quality Control Procedures Employed: |
Observations, including species identification and sizing, were periodically checked during the expedition for consistency between divers, such as diver bias or other discrepancies, and little discrepancy was noted. Size estimates were checked against known size ranges per species. Data entry was conducted using a data entry interface with several data controls employed, and were quality controlled by the divers using a two-person system. Following the mission, the data was then run through rigorous quality control checks by the data management team before the data were migrated to the Oracle database, but there remains some possibility of typographical or other errors.
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Data Management
Have Resources for Management of these Data Been Identified?: | Yes |
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Approximate Percentage of Budget for these Data Devoted to Data Management: | Unknown |
Do these Data Comply with the Data Access Directive?: | Yes |
Is Access to the Data Limited Based on an Approved Waiver?: | No |
Approximate Delay Between Data Collection and Dissemination: | Unknown |
Actual or Planned Long-Term Data Archive Location: | NCEI-MD |
Approximate Delay Between Data Collection and Archiving: | Unknown |
How Will the Data Be Protected from Accidental or Malicious Modification or Deletion Prior to Receipt by the Archive?: |
NOAA IRC and NOAA Fisheries ITS resources and assets. |
Lineage
Lineage Statement: |
All sites were surveyed using CREP's standard coral reef fish assemblage survey method, stationary point counts (SPC). The current SPC protocol involves pairs of divers recording the number, size, and species of all fishes observed within visually estimated cylinders 15 m in diameter. At the start of a survey dive, a pair of divers first lay down a 30-m transect line along a predetermined depth contour, and then the two divers move to the 7.5- and 22.5-m marks on that line; these marks serve as the centers of two adjacent SPC cylinders. During the first 5 min of a survey, the divers create a list of the fish species observed in or passing through their cylinder. After the first 5 min, divers systematically proceed down their species lists, counting and estimating the size (TL) of each fish present to the nearest centimeter. Species seen after the 5 min or outside of the survey area are recorded as present. |
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Sources
Coral Reef Ecosystem Division Standard Operating Procedures: Data Collection for Rapid Ecological Assessment Fish Surveys
Contact Type: | Organization |
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Contact Name: | Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, PIFSC |
Publish Date: | 2011-12-01 |
Citation URL: | https://pifsc-www.irc.noaa.gov/library/pubs/admin/PIFSC_Admin_Rep_11-08.pdf |
Coral Reef Fish Biomass and Benthic Cover Along the North Coast of Timor-Leste Based on Underwater Visual Surveys in June 2013
Contact Type: | Organization |
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Contact Name: | Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, PIFSC |
Publish Date: | 2015-03-20 |
Citation URL: | https://pifsc-www.irc.noaa.gov/library/pubs/DR-15-004.pdf |
Process Steps
Process Step 1
Description: |
Step 1: Survey Design The surveys were based on a common stratified random survey design, with site locations selected randomly. As a result of the large area of coastline and time and personnel constraints, survey efforts were focused on 8 sections of coastline within 7 districts hereafter referred to as sectors. Each sector was treated as an independent survey area, and was separated by at least 18 km of coastline from adjacent sectors (with the exception of East and West Atauro, which are separated by 2 km). The target survey area was hard-bottom reef habitat in either a shallow (0–6 m) or mid-depth (6–18 m) range. Bathymetry and hard-bottom reef habitat maps were not available at the time of the mission planning, so sites were randomly selected within a rough 30-m depth contour. Once the divers arrived at the randomly located survey site, they assessed the benthos to determine whether habitat and visibility were suitable and moved to the target depth range. |
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Source: | Coral Reef Fish Biomass and Benthic Cover Along the North Coast of Timor-Leste Based on Underwater Visual Surveys in June 2013 |
Process Step 2
Description: |
Step 2: Field Method, fish surveys All sites were surveyed using NOAA CREP’s standard coral reef fish assemblage survey method; stationary point counts (SPC). The SPC protocol involves a pair of divers conducting simultaneous counts in adjacent, visually estimated 15-meter-diameter cylindrical plots extending from the substrate to the limits of vertical visibility.
Each count consisted of two components. The first of these was a 5-min species enumeration period in which the diver recorded the taxa of all species observed within their cylinder. At the end of the 5-min period, divers began the tallying portion of the count, in which they systematically worked through their species listing for each species and recorded the number of fish and size (total length, TL, to nearest centimeter) of each individual fish. The tallying portion was conducted as a series of rapid visual sweeps of the plot, with one species-grouping counted per sweep. In cases where a species was observed during the enumeration period but was not present in the cylinder during the tallying period, divers recorded their best estimates of size and number observed in the first encounter during the enumeration period and marked the data record as ‘non-instantaneous.’ For more detailed information, see Ayotte et al. (2011) for the complete fish survey standard operating procedure. |
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Source: | Coral Reef Ecosystem Division Standard Operating Procedures: Data Collection for Rapid Ecological Assessment Fish Surveys |
Process Step 3
Description: |
Step 3: Field Method, benthic images Upon completion of the fish survey, one diver photographed the benthos at 1-m intervals along the transect line (30 photographs per site). A 1-m PVC stick was used to position a digital camera directly above the substrate to frame a photograph approximately 0.7 m2 in area. |
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Source: | Coral Reef Ecosystem Division Standard Operating Procedures: Data Collection for Rapid Ecological Assessment Fish Surveys |
Process Step 4
Description: |
Step 4: Analysis: Estimation of Biomass by Fish Groupings Fish biomass was calculated using the following allometric equation to estimate weight (w) from length (L) measurements: w = a × Lb
The parameter a is a scaling coefficient for the weight at length of the fish species, and the parameter b is a shape parameter for the body form of the fish species. Biomass was calculated for each species at each site by averaging the two divers’ estimates.
In estimating fish biomass, species data were pooled into “all fishes,” and into a number of trophic, taxonomic, and size groupings. The four trophic groupings used were: “primary consumers” (herbivores and detritivores); “secondary consumers” (omnivores and benthic invertivores); “planktivores”; and “piscivores”. Family-level data on emperors, snappers, breams, parrotfish, and groupers was also presented because of their general importance as fishery targets. Biomass was also pooled into size classes: small (0–20 cm), medium (21–50 cm), and large- bodied reef fish (greater than 50 cm).
Results were compared to averages of reef fish biomass at populated and remote areas across the Pacific where NOAA CREP has conducted reef fish surveys at approximately 40 islands and atolls since 2009 using the same survey methods and largely the same personnel. Total biomass and each of the fish groupings from Timor-Leste were compared to Pacific-wide averages of remote and populated islands and atolls. Mean reference values are extensively used from NOAA CREP’s other surveys of those ‘remote’ and ‘populated’ islands to provide context to fish biomass values from Timor-Leste. While there are important other sources of natural variability among reefs, including biogeographic differences, the reference values serve as useful baselines for Pacific coral reefs—for example, reefs with significant human impacts including fishing are expected to be more similar to the Pacific ‘populated’ average than to the ‘remote’ average. |
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Source: | Coral Reef Fish Biomass and Benthic Cover Along the North Coast of Timor-Leste Based on Underwater Visual Surveys in June 2013 |
Catalog Details
Catalog Item ID: | 32998 |
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GUID: | gov.noaa.nmfs.inport:32998 |
Metadata Record Created By: | Nicole P Kamalu |
Metadata Record Created: | 2016-06-23 21:10+0000 |
Metadata Record Last Modified By: | SysAdmin InPortAdmin |
Metadata Record Last Modified: | 2024-10-03 18:16+0000 |
Metadata Record Published: | 2017-08-29 |
Owner Org: | PIFSC |
Metadata Publication Status: | Published Externally |
Do Not Publish?: | N |
Metadata Last Review Date: | 2017-08-29 |
Metadata Review Frequency: | 1 Year |
Metadata Next Review Date: | 2018-08-29 |