CRED REA Line Point Intercept Surveys of Benthic Parameter Assessments at Palmyra Atoll, Pacific Remote Island Areas in 2010
Description
To support a long-term NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program (CRCP) for sustainable management and conservation of coral reef ecosystems, from 07-13 April 2010, line point intercept (LPI) surveys of benthic parameter assessments were conducted, as a part of Rapid Ecological Assessments (REA), during the Pacific Reef Assessment and Monitoring Program (RAMP) Cruise HI1001 in the Pacific Remote Island Areas at biennial intervals by the Coral Reef Ecosystem Division (CRED) at the NOAA Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (PIFSC). During the cruise, 19 REA sites were surveyed at Palmyra Atoll in the Pacific Remote Island Areas. Benthic biologists from NOAA's Coral Reef Ecosystem Division conducted Line Point Intercept surveys to quantitatively document the benthic cover at pre-determined long-term monitoring REA sites. Two linear 25M transects were surveyed with a 5M inter-transect region between the end of Transect 1 and the start of Transect 2. The LPI diver determines the benthic composition at 20cm intervals for a total of 125 data points per transect. All living benthic elements (e.g., coral, algae, and other invertebrates) were identified to the lowest taxonomic level possible, often substituting functional group categories for turf algae and crustose coralline algae when identification in the field was extremely difficult. In cases where the substrate is bare or covered with turf algae, the substrate composition is also noted as either sand, rock, rubble, carbonate pavement, or dead coral. These data allow for the assessment and monitoring of species composition and abundance and provide the basis for computing quantitative estimates of percent cover at higher taxonomic levels like functional group (live Coral, macroalgae, turf algae) or on a finer taxonomic resolution such as genus level.
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Tags
- coral reef ecosystem
- united states of america
- reef monitoring and assessment
- marine ecosystem
- corals
- biosphere
- palmyra atoll
- pacific remote island areas
- palmyra atoll (05n162w0001)
- oceans
- benthic cover
- pacific reef assessment and monitoring program (pacific ramp): biennial monitoring for the u.s. paci
- numeric data sets
- hi1001
- biology
- earth science
- line islands
- pria
- rapid ecological assessments (rea)
- central pacific ocean
- usa minor outlying islands
- coral reef ecology
- ocean basin
- reef assessment and monitoring program (ramp)
- coastal processes
- 1221
- zoology
- coral reefs
- coris_metadata
- pacific ocean
- rapid assessment studies
- country/territory