Benthic Surveys in Vatia, American Samoa since 2015: benthic images collected during belt transect surveys in 2015 and 2020

Description

Jurisdictional managers have expressed concerns that nutrients from the village of Vatia, Tutuila, American Samoa, are having an adverse effect on the adjacent coral reef ecosystem. Excess nutrient loads promote increases in algal growth that can have deleterious effects on corals, such as benthic algae outcompeting and overgrowing corals. Nitrogen and phosphorus can also directly impact corals by lowering fertilization success, and reducing both photosynthesis and calcification rates. Land-based contributions of nutrients come from a variety of sources; in Vatia the most likely sources are poor wastewater management from piggeries and septic systems. NOAA scientists conducted benthic surveys to establish a baseline against which to compare changes in the algal and coral assemblages in response to land-based sources of pollution, including nutrient fluxes. Photoquadrat benthic images were collected in 2015 and 2020 only, via belt transect surveys of coral demography according to protocols established by NOAA National Coral Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP) in 2015. In 2015, the survey implemented a two-stage stratified random sampling (StRS) design to assess the Vatia benthic coral reef community, and a one-stage StRS design in 2020. The survey domain encompassed the majority of the mapped area of reef and hard bottom habitats in the 0–30 m depth range. The stratification scheme included cardinal position (i.e., north and south) and depth (i.e., shallow: >0–6 m and mid-depth: >6–18 m). Sampling effort allocation was determined based on strata area and sites randomly located within strata. The StRS design effectively reduces estimate variance through stratification using environmental covariates and by sampling more sites rather than more transects per site. Therefore, site-to-site comparisons should proceed with caution.

Resources

Name Format Description Link
0 List of survey sites, including site id, location (latitude/longitude), and survey date, where photoquadrat benthic images collected in 2020 at 24 stratified randomly selected sites (30 photos per site). http://accession.nodc.noaa.gov/0259494
0 Photoquadrat benthic images collected in 2020 at 24 stratified randomly selected sites (30 photos per site) in Vatia Bay, Tutuila, American Samoa via belt transect surveys of coral demography by the Ecosystem Sciences Division (ESD) of the NOAA Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (PIFSC). http://accession.nodc.noaa.gov/0259494
0 View the complete metadata record on InPort for more information about this dataset. https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/inport/item/31196
0 Link to the NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program website https://coralreef.noaa.gov
0 Pacific Island Fisheries Science Center homepage https://www.pifsc.noaa.gov
0 Informative flyer illustrating impacts of land-based sources of pollution in Vatia Bay by the NOAA Coral Reef Ecosystem Program. https://repository.library.noaa.gov/view/noaa/10399
0 NCCOS Project Details: Nutrient Dynamics and Changes to Benthic Communities in Vatia, American Samoa https://coastalscience.noaa.gov/projects/detail?key=245
0 Overview of NOAA Coral Reef Ecosystem Program's methods to assess corals. http://www.pifsc.noaa.gov/cred/corals.php
0 The information provided on this page seeks to define how the GCMD Keywords are structured, used and accessed. It also provides information on how users can participate in the further development of the keywords. https://www.earthdata.nasa.gov/learn/find-data/idn/gcmd-keywords
33 NOAA Data Management Plan for this record on InPort. https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/inportserve/waf/noaa/nmfs/pifsc/dmp/pdf/31196.pdf
0 Photoquadrat benthic images collected in 2015 at 18 stratified randomly selected sites (30 photos per site) in Vatia Bay, Tutuila, American Samoa via belt transect surveys of coral demography by the NOAA Coral Reef Ecosystem Program (CREP). http://accession.nodc.noaa.gov/0146680
0 List of survey sites, including site id, location (latitude/longitude), and survey date, where photoquads were collected. http://accession.nodc.noaa.gov/0146680

Tags

  • benthic missions
  • crep
  • doc/noaa/nmfs/pifsc
  • united states of america
  • reef monitoring and assessment
  • corals
  • coral reef ecosystem division
  • pifsc
  • in situ biological
  • biosphere
  • oceans
  • vatia
  • coral reef conservation program
  • american samoa
  • 31259
  • noaa
  • nmfs
  • baseline studies
  • imagery
  • status and trends assessment for lbsp impacts on reef communities in faga'alu bay and vatia bay
  • us doc
  • habitats
  • pacific islands fisheries science center
  • u.s. department of commerce
  • earth science
  • benthic biology
  • national marine fisheries service
  • eutrophication impacts on coral ecosystem health in vatia
  • marine biology
  • coral communities
  • cred
  • visual images
  • coral reef ecology
  • ocean basin
  • photoquadrat images
  • ecosystem sciences division
  • coral
  • vatia bay (14s170w0028)
  • coastal processes
  • tutuila island
  • zoology
  • coral reefs
  • 31090
  • pacific ocean
  • country/territory
  • south pacific ocean
  • coral reef ecosystem program

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