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Title: Benthic Image analysis classification scheme
Status: In Work
Abstract:

Classification Tiers, Categories, and Definitions

Notes:

Loaded by FGDC Metadata Uploader, batch 6156, 06-08-2015 16:28

Entity Information

Entity Type: Data File
Active Version?: Yes
Schema Name: GISDAT
Description:

Classification Tiers, Categories, and Definitions

Data Attributes

Note: Metadata requirements do not apply to attributes for non-tabular entities.

Attribute Summary

Rubric Score Primary Key? Name Type Description
N/A
Coral VARCHAR2 For the purposes of this image analysis, 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).
N/A
Soft Coral VARCHAR2 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).
N/A
Coralline Alga VARCHAR2 For the purpose of these image analyses, CCA is defined as any calcified, hard, non-segmented, encrusting or branched, red (or pink) alga.
N/A
Turf Alga VARCHAR2 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).
N/A
Macroalga VARCHAR2 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.
N/A
Sessile Invertebrate VARCHAR2 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.
N/A
Mobile Fauna VARCHAR2 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.
N/A
Sediment VARCHAR2 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.
N/A
Unclassified VARCHAR2 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).
N/A
Tape and Wand VARCHAR2 This category is appropriate when the point falls on the transect tape/line or tape hardware. Attribute Details

Attribute Details

Coral

CC ID: 375387
Seq. Order: 1
Data Storage Type: VARCHAR2
Required: No
Primary Key: No
Status: Active
Description:

For the purposes of this image analysis, 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).

Allowed Values: Massive (MASS), Tabulate (TAB), Encrusting (ENC), Branching (BR), Columnar (COL), Free-living (FREE), Foliose (FOL), Non-scleractinian hard coral (NS)

Soft Coral

CC ID: 375392
Seq. Order: 2
Data Storage Type: VARCHAR2
Required: No
Primary Key: No
Status: Active
Description:

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).

Allowed Values: Octocoral (OCT), Unclassified (USC)

Coralline Alga

CC ID: 375386
Seq. Order: 3
Data Storage Type: VARCHAR2
Required: No
Primary Key: No
Status: Active
Description:

For the purpose of these image analyses, CCA is defined as any calcified, hard, non-segmented, encrusting or branched, red (or pink) alga.

Allowed Values: CCA growing on rubble substrate (CCAR), CCA growing on hard[bottom] substrate (CCAH)

Turf Alga

CC ID: 375393
Seq. Order: 4
Data Storage Type: VARCHAR2
Required: No
Primary Key: No
Status: Active
Description:

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).

Allowed Values: 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)

Macroalga

CC ID: 375388
Seq. Order: 5
Data Storage Type: VARCHAR2
Required: No
Primary Key: No
Status: Active
Description:

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.

Allowed Values: Upright macroalga (UPMA), Encrusting macroalga (EMA), Blue-green macroalga (a.k.a. cyanobacteria) (BGMA), Halimeda sp. (HAL), Seagrass

Sessile Invertebrate

CC ID: 375391
Seq. Order: 6
Data Storage Type: VARCHAR2
Required: No
Primary Key: No
Status: Active
Description:

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.

Allowed Values: Giant clam (GC), Bivalve (BI), Sponge (SP), Tunicate (TUN), Bryozoan (BRY), Corallimorph (CMOR), Anemone (AMNE), Zoanthid (ZO), Unclassified (UI)

Mobile Fauna

CC ID: 375389
Seq. Order: 7
Data Storage Type: VARCHAR2
Required: No
Primary Key: No
Status: Active
Description:

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.

Allowed Values: Mobile fauna (MOBF)

Sediment

CC ID: 375390
Seq. Order: 8
Data Storage Type: VARCHAR2
Required: No
Primary Key: No
Status: Active
Description:

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.

Allowed Values: Sand (SAND), Fine sediment (FINE)

Unclassified

CC ID: 375394
Data Storage Type: VARCHAR2
Required: No
Primary Key: No
Status: Active
Description:

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).

Allowed Values: Tape, Wand, or Shadow (TAPE, WAND, SHAD), Unclassified (UNK)

Tape and Wand

CC ID: 1328889
Data Storage Type: VARCHAR2
Required: No
Primary Key: No
Status: Active
Description:

This category is appropriate when the point falls on the transect tape/line or tape hardware.

Attribute Details

Catalog Details

Catalog Item ID: 36380
GUID: gov.noaa.nmfs.inport:36380
Metadata Record Created By: Troy T Kanemura
Metadata Record Created: 2017-01-23 21:10+0000
Metadata Record Last Modified By: Lori H Luers
Metadata Record Last Modified: 2024-04-10 17:14+0000
Metadata Record Published: 2024-04-10
Owner Org: PIFSC
Metadata Publication Status: Published Externally
Do Not Publish?: N
Metadata Last Review Date: 2021-07-23
Metadata Review Frequency: 1 Year
Metadata Next Review Date: 2022-07-23