National Coral Reef Monitoring Program: Assessment of coral reef benthic communities in the U.S. Virgin Islands

• Main Author: US DOC; NOAA; NOS; CRCP; National Coral Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP)
• Format: Dataset
• Language: unknown
• Published: NOAA NCEI Environmental Data Archive 2017
• Subjects: DOC/NOAA/NESDIS/NODC > National Oceanographic Data Center, NESDIS, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce; DOC/NOAA/NESDIS/NCEI > National Centers for Environmental Information, NESDIS, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce; DOC/NOAA/NMFS > National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce; DOC/NOAA/NOS/NCCOS > National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science, National Ocean Service, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce; 0151728; 0151730; BENTHIC SPECIES; BENTHIC SPECIES - TAXA COUNTS; CORAL; CORAL - CENSUS; CORAL - COLONY SIZE; CORAL - SPECIES IDENTIFICATION; REEF AND/OR BOTTOM REGIME - PERCENT COVER; swimmer/diver; visual observation; in situ; US DOC; NOAA; NOS; National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science; Center for Coastal Monitoring and Assessment; Coral Reef Conservation Program (CRCP); CORAL REEF STUDIES; National Coral Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP); Caribbean Sea; North Atlantic Ocean; oceanography; 743; National Coral Reef Monitoring Plan (NCRMP) Implementation; Numeric Data Sets > Benthic; EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Aquatic Habitat > Reef Habitat > Description; EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals; EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > ESA Listed Species; EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment > Coral Colony Size and Condition; EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef monitoring and assessment > Benthos analysis > Transect monitoring > Linear transect (point); EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Marine Biology > Marine Invertebrates > Macroinvertebrates; Research Data Types > Field Observation; Research Priorities > Long-term Monitoring; Research Topics > Ecological/Biological Characterization; Research Topics > Habitat Mapping; Research Topics > Monitoring; VISUAL OBSERVATIONS; COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > U. S. Virgin Islands > St. Croix > St. Croix (17N064W0003); COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > U. S. Virgin Islands > St. John > St. John (18N064W0011); OCEAN BASIN > Atlantic Ocean > Caribbean Sea > Virgin Islands > Virgin Islands > St. Croix (17N064W0003); OCEAN BASIN > Atlantic Ocean > Caribbean Sea > Virgin Islands > Virgin Islands > St. John (18N064W0011); OCEAN > ATLANTIC OCEAN > NORTH ATLANTIC OCEAN; OCEAN > ATLANTIC OCEAN > NORTH ATLANTIC OCEAN > CARIBBEAN SEA; USVI; Biennial; SEA FLOOR; North Atlantic
• Online Access: https://search.dataone.org/view/{E9062243-F2AF-4C65-B0BC-954158B10FE3}

Data provided in this data set were collected around the U.S. Virgin Islands (USVI) as part of NOAA National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS)-led missions in collaboration with partners at the NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) Southeast Fisheries Science Center, the National Park Service, USVI Department of Planning and Natural Resources, University of the Virgin Islands, University of Miami, Nova Southeastern University, The Nature Conservancy, and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Benthic data collection for the ongoing National Coral Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP) consists of two survey types: the Line Point-Intercept (LPI) method and the Coral Demographic method. The LPI method provides a measure of percent cover of biotic and abiotic components of the benthos in a stratified random sampling design in hardbottom and coral reef habitats. The coral demographics protocol provide more detailed and species-specific insight (‘signal magnitude’) for coral populations than is provided by percent cover.