Coral Reef Ecosystem Monitoring Report of the Mariana Archipelago: 2003–2007

The Coral Reef Ecosystem Monitoring Report of the Mariana Archipelago: 2003–2007 provides a comprehensive integrated ecosystem assessment of the coral reefs of the territory of Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. The data was collecting during three Mariana Archipelago Reef Assessment and Monitoring Program (MARAMP) surveys in 2003, 2005, and 2007—part of the NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program’s broad-scale Pacific Reef Assessment and Monitoring Program. Across the U.S. Pacific Islands, Pacific RAMP surveys incorporate benthic habitat mapping, ecological and environmental assessment and monitoring, and applied research to support improved ecosystem-based management and conservation.

Methodological descriptions and analyses of coral reef habitat, oceanographic, and biological data sets are presented within discipline-specific categories. Data and information is provided for corals, reef fishes, invertebrates, habitat mapping, and ocean conditions. In addition, the report includes socioeconomic data and information about human activities—history, demographics, land use and cover, economic statistics, and environmental issues—along with coverage of geography and geology.

The integrated ecosystem observations are consistent with and comparable to other Pacific RAMP observations in American Samoa, Hawaiian Archipelago, and Pacific Remote Island Areas. The monitoring report provides an opportunity to better understand the condition and health of the coral reefs of the Mariana Archipelago relative to other reefs across the U.S. Pacific region.

The Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center leads annual coral reef ecosystem surveys in different regions by working with key partners from other NOAA offices, federal, state, and territorial agencies, academia, and nongovernmental organizations.

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Brainard RE, Asher J, Blyth-Skyrme V, Coccagna EF, Dennis K, Donovan MK, Gove JM, Kenyon J, Looney EE, Miller JE, Timmers MA, Vargas-Angel B, Vroom PS, Vetter O, Zgliczynski B, Acoba T, DesRochers A, Dunlap MJ, Franklin EC, Fisher-Pool PI, Braun CL, Richards BL, Schopmeyer SA, Schroeder RE, Toperoff A, Weijerman M, Williams I, Withall RD. Coral Reef Ecosystem Monitoring Report of the Mariana Archipelago: 2003–2007, U.S. Dept. of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, National Marine Fisheries Service, Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, 1019 p. + appendices, 2012.