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Summary

Diver counting coral reef fishes using the towed diver method.

Short Citation
Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, 2024: National Coral Reef Monitoring Program: Towed-diver Surveys of Large-bodied Fishes of American Samoa in 2015, https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/inport/item/35761.
Full Citation Examples

DOI: doi:10.7289/V5F769VR

Abstract

The towed-diver method is used to conduct surveys of large-bodied (> 50 cm) fishes in the Hawaiian and Mariana Archipelagos, American Samoa, and the Pacific Remote Island Areas as part of the NOAA National Coral Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP). A suitable method for assessing relatively large areas of reef habitat, the method involves towing a pair of SCUBA divers—one benthic and one fish—behind a small boat for approximately 50 min following the ~15-m depth contour and covering about 2–3 km of habitat. Each diver is equipped with a towboard and attempts to maintain a constant elevation above the surface of the reef (~1 m) for the duration of the survey. A complete towed-diver survey is divided into 10 5-min segments, with visual observations recorded by 5-min segment.

The visual estimate data provided in this dataset were collected during towed-diver surveys in which the number, size, and species of all large-bodied fishes observed within a visually estimated 5-m transect on either side of the fish diver and 10 m in front were recorded. The data were collected around the American Samoa as part of the NOAA Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (PIFSC), Coral Reef Ecosystem Program (CREP) led mission in 2015. These data can be accessed online via the NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) Ocean Archive.

Distribution Information

  • CSV - Comma Separated Values (Text)

    Observations from towed-diver surveys of coral reef fishes by the NOAA Coral Reef Ecosystem Program (CREP) conducted in American Samoa in 2015.

  • PDF - Adobe Portable Document Format

    Pacific Reef Assessment and Monitoring Program Data Report: Ecological monitoring 2015---reef fishes and benthic habitats of the main Hawaiian Islands, Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, Pacific Remote Island Areas, and American Samoa.

  • PDF - Adobe Portable Document Format

    Ecosystem Sciences Division standard operating procedures: data collection for towed-diver benthic and fish surveys. PIFSC Administrative Report H-18-02. https://doi.org/10.25923/59sb-sy51

Access Constraints:

None

Use Constraints:

Please cite NOAA Coral Reef Ecosystem Program (CREP) when using the data.

Suggested citation:

Coral Reef Ecosystem Program; Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (2016). National Coral Reef Monitoring Program: Towed-diver Surveys of Large-bodied Fishes of American Samoa in 2016. NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information, https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/inport/item/35761.

Controlled Theme Keywords

biota

Child Items

Type Title
Entity View: VS_FISH_TDS

Contact Information

Point of Contact
Ivor D Williams
ivor.williams@noaa.gov
(808)725-5427

Metadata Contact
Annette M DesRochers
annette.desrochers@noaa.gov
(808)725-5461

Extents

Geographic Area 1

-171.092526° W, -168.137397° E, -11.04523805° N, -14.56062599° S

American Samoa including Tutuila, Manu'a (Ofo, Olosega, and Ta'u), Rose Atoll, and Swains.

Time Frame 1
2015-02-15 - 2015-04-04

ASRAMP 2015, Legs I through III

Item Identification

Title: National Coral Reef Monitoring Program: Towed-diver Surveys of Large-bodied Fishes of American Samoa in 2015
Short Name: NCRMP: Fish Towed-diver Surveys American Samoa
Status: Completed
Publication Date: 2016
Abstract:

The towed-diver method is used to conduct surveys of large-bodied (> 50 cm) fishes in the Hawaiian and Mariana Archipelagos, American Samoa, and the Pacific Remote Island Areas as part of the NOAA National Coral Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP). A suitable method for assessing relatively large areas of reef habitat, the method involves towing a pair of SCUBA divers—one benthic and one fish—behind a small boat for approximately 50 min following the ~15-m depth contour and covering about 2–3 km of habitat. Each diver is equipped with a towboard and attempts to maintain a constant elevation above the surface of the reef (~1 m) for the duration of the survey. A complete towed-diver survey is divided into 10 5-min segments, with visual observations recorded by 5-min segment.

The visual estimate data provided in this dataset were collected during towed-diver surveys in which the number, size, and species of all large-bodied fishes observed within a visually estimated 5-m transect on either side of the fish diver and 10 m in front were recorded. The data were collected around the American Samoa as part of the NOAA Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (PIFSC), Coral Reef Ecosystem Program (CREP) led mission in 2015. These data can be accessed online via the NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) Ocean Archive.

Purpose:

The NOAA National Coral Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP) details a long term approach to provide an ecosystem perspective via monitoring climate, fish, benthic, and socioeconomic variables in a consistent and integrated manner. The NCRMP is intended to coordinate various NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program (CRCP) biological, physical, and human dimensions activities into a cohesive NOAA-wide effort. Through the implementation of the NCRMP, NOAA will be able to clearly and concisely communicate results of national-scale monitoring to national, state, and territorial policy makers, resource managers, and the public on a periodic basis.

Other Citation Details:

Lino K, Asher J, Ferguson M, Gray A, McCoy K, Timmers M, Vargas-Ángel B (2018) Ecosystem Sciences Division standard operating procedures: data collection for towed-diver benthic and fish surveys. Pacific Islands Fish. Sci. Cent., Natl. Mar. Fish. Serv., NOAA, Honolulu, HI 96818-5007. Pacific Islands Fish. Sci. Cent. Admin. Rep. H-18-02, 76 p.

Supplemental Information:

The National Coral Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP) is a framework for conducting sustained observations of biological, climate, and socioeconomic indicators at 10 priority coral reefs across the U.S. and its territories. This integrated approach will consolidate monitoring of coral reefs under a uniform method in the Pacific, Atlantic, Caribbean, and the Gulf of Mexico for the first time. NCRMP is funded by the CRCP and supported by NOAA Fisheries, NOAA National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS), and many other partners. The Coral Reef Ecosystem Program (CREP) at NOAA Fisheries is leading biological monitoring in the U.S. Pacific Islands Region.

The biological component of NCRMP in the Pacific provides a triennial ecological characterization at a broad spatial scale of general reef condition for reef fishes, corals and benthic habitat (i.e., fish species composition/density/size, benthic cover, and coral density/size/condition). Each year, CREP scientists work closely with CRCP and local partners to collect biological data on fish populations and coral reef communities from strategically selected sites during Reef Assessment and Monitoring Program (RAMP) missions. Innovative analysis techniques are then used to develop products that give fellow scientists, managers, decision makers and the public a better understanding of a region’s resources and how they are changing over time.

DOI (Digital Object Identifier): doi:10.7289/V5F769VR
DOI Registration Authority: NOAA

Keywords

Theme Keywords

Thesaurus Keyword
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 > Zoology > Corals > Reef monitoring and assessment
CoRIS Theme Thesaurus EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment > In Situ Biological
CoRIS Theme Thesaurus EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment > Reef Fish Census > Linear Transect
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 > Marine Biology > Fish
CoRIS Theme Thesaurus EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Marine Biology > Fish > Fish Assemblages
CRCP Project 743
CRCP Project National Coral Reef Monitoring Program
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 tows
NODC OBSERVATION TYPES THESAURUS visual estimate
NODC PLATFORM NAMES THESAURUS HI'IALAKAI
NODC PROJECT NAMES THESAURUS Coral Reef Conservation Program
NODC PROJECT NAMES THESAURUS CORAL REEF STUDIES
NODC PROJECT NAMES THESAURUS National Coral Reef Monitoring Program
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 Fish
None Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center
None PIFSC
None TDS
None towboard
None towed diver
None Towed-Diver Surveys

Temporal Keywords

Thesaurus Keyword
UNCONTROLLED
None Triennial

Spatial Keywords

Thesaurus Keyword
UNCONTROLLED
CoRIS Place Thesaurus COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > American Samoa > American Samoa > American Samoa (14S170W0000)
CoRIS Place Thesaurus COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > American Samoa > American Samoa > Ofu Island (14S169W0013)
CoRIS Place Thesaurus COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > American Samoa > American Samoa > Olosega Island (14S169W0014)
CoRIS Place Thesaurus COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > American Samoa > American Samoa > Rose Island (Rose Atoll) (14S168W0001)
CoRIS Place Thesaurus COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > American Samoa > American Samoa > Swains Atoll (11S171W0001)
CoRIS Place Thesaurus COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > American Samoa > American Samoa > Ta'u Island (14S169W0012)
CoRIS Place Thesaurus COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > American Samoa > American Samoa > Tutuila Island (14S170W0016)
CoRIS Place Thesaurus OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > American Samoa > American Samoa (14S170W0000)
CoRIS Place Thesaurus OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > American Samoa > Swains Atoll (11S171W0001)
CoRIS Place Thesaurus OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > American Samoa > Tutuila Island (14S170W0016)
CoRIS Place Thesaurus OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > Manu'a Group > Ofu Island (14S169W0013)
CoRIS Place Thesaurus OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > Manu'a Group > Olosega Island (14S169W0014)
CoRIS Place Thesaurus OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > Manu'a Group > Ta'u Island (14S169W0012)
CoRIS Place Thesaurus OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > Rose Island > Rose Island (Rose Atoll) (14S168W0001)
NODC SEA AREA NAMES THESAURUS South Pacific Ocean

Physical Location

Organization: Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center
City: Honolulu
State/Province: HI
Country: USA

Data Set Information

Data Set Scope Code: Data Set
Data Set Type: CSV Files
Maintenance Frequency: As Needed
Data Presentation Form: Table (digital)
Entity Attribute Overview:

Raw survey data includes metadata for each survey (where, when, who, length, duration, depth, reef type, temperature); individual reef fish observations identified to the lowest taxonomic level possible (usually species) including size (cm) and count; and parameters needed to calculate biomass and density.

Entity Attribute Detail URL: https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/inport/item/35765
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 NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program

Support Roles

Data Set Credit

CC ID: 359448
Date Effective From: 2015
Date Effective To:
Contact (Organization): NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program (CRCP)
Address: 1305 East West Highway 10th Floor
Silver Spring, MD 20910-3281
Phone: (301) 713-3155
URL: https://coralreef.noaa.gov

Data Steward

CC ID: 825661
Date Effective From: 2018
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

Distributor

CC ID: 359449
Date Effective From: 2016
Date Effective To:
Contact (Organization): NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI)
Email Address: ncei.info@noaa.gov
URL: NCEI Contact Information

Metadata Contact

CC ID: 359446
Date Effective From: 2015
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

CC ID: 359445
Date Effective From: 2015
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

CC ID: 359444
Date Effective From: 2015
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:

Email preferred

View Historical Support Roles

Extents

Currentness Reference: Ground Condition

Extent Group 1

Extent Description:

American Samoa

Extent Group 1 / Geographic Area 1

CC ID: 360483
W° Bound: -171.092526
E° Bound: -168.137397
N° Bound: -11.04523805
S° Bound: -14.56062599
Description

American Samoa including Tutuila, Manu'a (Ofo, Olosega, and Ta'u), Rose Atoll, and Swains.

Extent Group 1 / Time Frame 1

CC ID: 360484
Time Frame Type: Range
Start: 2015-02-15
End: 2015-04-04
Alternate Start As Of Info: HA1501
Description:

ASRAMP 2015, Legs I through III

Access Information

Security Class: Unclassified
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 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 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) when using the data.

Suggested citation:

Coral Reef Ecosystem Program; Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (2016). National Coral Reef Monitoring Program: Towed-diver Surveys of Large-bodied Fishes of American Samoa in 2016. NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information, https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/inport/item/35761.

Metadata Access Constraints:

None

Metadata Use Constraints:

None

Distribution Information

Distribution 1

CC ID: 359478
Download URL: https://accession.nodc.noaa.gov/0157551
Distributor: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) (2016 - Present)
File Name: VS_FISH_TDS SAMOA 2015.csv
Description:

Observations from towed-diver surveys of coral reef fishes by the NOAA Coral Reef Ecosystem Program (CREP) conducted in American Samoa in 2015.

File Date/Time: 2016-12-12 00:00:00
File Type (Deprecated): csv (comma-separated values)
Distribution Format: CSV - Comma Separated Values (Text)

Distribution 2

CC ID: 359480
Download URL: https://accession.nodc.noaa.gov/0157633
Distributor: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) (2016 - Present)
File Name: DR-16-002.pdf
Description:

Pacific Reef Assessment and Monitoring Program Data Report: Ecological monitoring 2015---reef fishes and benthic habitats of the main Hawaiian Islands, Northwestern Hawaiian Islands, Pacific Remote Island Areas, and American Samoa.

File Date/Time: 2016-03-04 00:00:00
File Type (Deprecated): PDF
Distribution Format: PDF - Adobe Portable Document Format

Distribution 3

CC ID: 825650
Download URL: https://accession.nodc.noaa.gov/0157633
Distributor: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) (2016 - Present)
File Name: PIFSC_H-18-02_2018_SOP_towed-diver.pdf
Description:

Ecosystem Sciences Division standard operating procedures: data collection for towed-diver benthic and fish surveys. PIFSC Administrative Report H-18-02. https://doi.org/10.25923/59sb-sy51

File Date/Time: 2018-06-01 00:00:00
File Type (Deprecated): PDF
Distribution Format: PDF - Adobe Portable Document Format

URLs

URL 1

CC ID: 359468
URL: http://www.pifsc.noaa.gov/cred/fish.php
URL Type:
Online Resource
File Resource Format: PHP
Description:

Coral Reef Ecosystem Program website, Fish Ecology and Monitoring

URL 2

CC ID: 359469
URL: http://www.coris.noaa.gov/monitoring/
URL Type:
Online Resource
File Resource Format: HTML
Description:

Information about the NOAA National Coral Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP) on the NOAA Coral Reef Information System website.

URL 3

CC ID: 359470
URL: https://pifsc-www.irc.noaa.gov/cred/img/diver_using_towboard_sm.jpg
URL Type:
Browse Graphic
Diver counting coral reef fishes using the towed diver method.
File Resource Format: JPG
Description:

Diver counting coral reef fishes using the towed diver method.

URL 4

CC ID: 359471
URL: http://www.pifsc.noaa.gov/cred/survey_methods.php
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 fish towed-diver survey method used since 2000 to survey large-bodied fishes.

URL 5

CC ID: 359472
URL: https://pifsc-www.irc.noaa.gov/cred/monitoring_status_reports.php
URL Type:
Online Resource
File Resource Format: PHP
Description:

NOAA PIFSC Coral Reef Ecosystem Program (CREP) website, Monitoring Status Reports page. Monitoring status reports provide a periodic review of the coral reef monitoring surveys and research conducted by CREP each year in the U.S.-affiliated Pacific Islands region.

Technical Environment

Description:

PIFSC Oracle database view: VS_FISH_TDS

The latitude and longitude coordinates of the survey track are recorded using a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver on-board the tow boat. The survey track is georeferenced and a layback model is applied (python script in ESRI ArcGIS for Desktop) that more accurately maps the positions of the recorded observations.

Data Quality

Representativeness:

The towed-diver surveys are completed in forereef, backreef, and lagoon habitats.

Accuracy:

Observations during each tow 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. The visual variation throughout the tow may change drastically as well as current and surface conditions for the support vessel impacting the preferred depth contour and accompanying track lines.

Quantitation Limits:

These data can be used to see large differences but can not be processed to a fine scale.

Completeness Report:

There are a few scenarios that will affect the completeness of the data:

-If the GPS points are not collected, associated diver's positions and survey tracks are not generated

-If the estimation of the divers' positions are erroneous and it is impossible to make corrections, the tow tracks/points are flagged and removed from further analyses

-If SEABIRD sensor (SB 39) is not operational during surveys, temperature and depth data are not available

Conceptual Consistency:

The same methods of data collection are used during each tow. Regular examination and comparisons of the data are conducted throughout each mission to check for diver bias or other discrepancies.

Quality Control Procedures Employed:

The data is recorded by the diver on a physical data sheet, then transferred to a MS Access database on-board the ship. After the data is entered in the MS Access database, the diver verifies the data against the physical data sheet to ensure accuracy. Following the conclusion of a mission, the data is migrated to an Oracle database by NOAA CREP data management. There are several queries in both the MS Access and Oracle database to flag errors based on pre-defined criteria.

Data Management

Have Resources for Management of these Data Been Identified?: Yes
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?:

The data is captured in several locations: physical data sheets, MS Access cruise database, and PIFSC Oracle database. The physical data sheets are housed at PIFSC. The MS Access cruise database is regularly backed up by the cruise data manager while at sea. The PIFSC Oracle database is regularly backed up by PIFSC ITS.

Lineage

Lineage Statement:

Fish towed-diver survey method of large-bodied (>50 cm) reef fishes

Sources

Lino K, Asher J, Ferguson M, Gray A, McCoy K, Timmers M, Vargas-Ángel B (2018) Ecosystem Sciences Division standard operating procedures: data collection for towed-diver benthic and fish surveys. Pacific Islands Fish. Sci. Cent., Natl. Mar. Fish. Serv., NOAA, Honolulu, HI 96818-5007. Pacific Islands Fish. Sci. Cent. Admin. Rep. H-18-02, 76 p.

CC ID: 825657
Contact Role Type: Originator
Contact Type: Organization
Contact Name: Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center
Publish Date: 2018-06-01
Citation URL: https://doi.org/10.25923/59sb-sy51
Citation URL Name: NOAA Institutional Repository
Citation URL Description:

Ecosystem Sciences Division Standard Operating Procedures: Data Collection for Towed-diver Benthic and Fish Surveys

Source Contribution:

Survey protocol

Richards BL, Williams ID, Nadon MO, Zgliczynski BJ 2011. A towed-diver survey method for mesoscale fishery-independent assessment of large-bodied reef fishes. Bulletin of Marine Science 87(1): 000-000. doi:10.5343/bms.2010.1019.

CC ID: 359476
Contact Role Type: Originator
Contact Type: Organization
Contact Name: Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center
Publish Date: 2011-01-01
Citation URL: https://doi.org/10.5343/bms.2010.1019
Citation URL Name: Ingenta Connect: Bulletin of Marine Science
Citation URL Description:

A towed-diver survey method for mesoscale fishery-independent assessment of large-bodied reef fishes.

Source Contribution:

Survey protocol

Process Steps

Process Step 1

CC ID: 359477
Description:

A pair of scuba divers is towed about 1 m above the reef roughly 60 m behind a small boat at a constant speed of about 1.5 knots. One diver quantifies fish populations, and the other diver quantifies the benthos. Each diver maneuvers their own towboard. Towboards are connected to the small boat by a bridle and towline and outfitted with various survey equipment, including a video camera on the fish towboard. The fish diver records the number, size, and species of all large fishes (>50 cm TL) observed within a belt that is 10 m wide and centered on the diver. Observations and species tallies are recorded on preprinted data sheets attached to each towboard. The digital video camera on the fish towboard faces forward and takes a permanent record of fishes encountered in a standard field of view.

A towed survey is typically 50 min long and covers about 2 km of habitat. Each survey is divided into 5-min segments, with data recorded separately per segment to allow for georeferencing of observations within the ~200 m covered during each segment. Throughout a survey, the latitude and longitude of its survey track are recorded at 5-s intervals on the small boat with a global positioning system (GPS). Following a survey, diver tracks are generated using this GPS data and a layback algorithm to account for position of the diver relative to the small boat.

Process Contact: Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (PIFSC)
Phone (Voice): 808-725-5360
Email Address: pifsc.info@noaa.gov
Source: Lino K, Asher J, Ferguson M, Gray A, McCoy K, Timmers M, Vargas-Ángel B (2018) Ecosystem Sciences Division standard operating procedures: data collection for towed-diver benthic and fish surveys. Pacific Islands Fish. Sci. Cent., Natl. Mar. Fish. Serv., NOAA, Honolulu, HI 96818-5007. Pacific Islands Fish. Sci. Cent. Admin. Rep. H-18-02, 76 p.

Child Items

Rubric scores updated every 15m

Rubric Score Type Title
Entity View: VS_FISH_TDS

Catalog Details

Catalog Item ID: 35761
GUID: gov.noaa.nmfs.inport:35761
Metadata Record Created By: Nicole P Kamalu
Metadata Record Created: 2016-11-21 18:07+0000
Metadata Record Last Modified By: SysAdmin InPortAdmin
Metadata Record Last Modified: 2024-10-03 18:16+0000
Metadata Record Published: 2017-01-24
Owner Org: PIFSC
Metadata Publication Status: Published Externally
Do Not Publish?: N
Metadata Last Review Date: 2017-01-24
Metadata Review Frequency: 1 Year
Metadata Next Review Date: 2018-01-24