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    • National Coral Reef Monitoring Program: Benthic Images Collected from Climate Stations across American Samoa since 2015

    Metadata Updated: May 24, 2025

    The data described here are benthic images (photographs) collected during photoquadrat surveys conducted by the NOAA Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (PIFSC), Ecosystem Sciences Division (ESD, formerly the Coral Reef Ecosystem Division) as part of NOAA's ongoing National Coral Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP). The photoquadrat surveys were conducted at coral reef sites according to protocols established by ESD and NCRMP during ESD-led NCRMP missions to American Samoa since 2015.

    SCUBA divers conducted benthic photoquadrat surveys at permanent sites established in coral reef habitats by ESD. A select number of these sites were chosen in hard-bottom habitat at ~15-m depths, and a subset of the permanent sites (climate stations) were established at north, south, east, and west points around each of the islands. The divers estimated and delineated each site's rectangular perimeter by temporarily placing measuring tapes with 1-m markers starting from a permanently installed reference stake on the reef. Along the nearshore 10-m side of the survey site and the downslope 5-m side, the measuring tapes marked every meter of the L-shaped 15-m transect used for photoquadrat documentation. The divers photographed the reef at 1-m intervals on both sides of the 15-m tape, generating 30 photographs per survey site.

    The benthic images in this dataset are later analyzed by ESD to produce estimates of relative abundance (percentage of benthic cover), frequency of occurrence, benthic community taxonomic composition, and relative generic richness (documented and archived separately at https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/inport/item/25383).

    Access & Use Information

    License: No license information was provided. If this work was prepared by an officer or employee of the United States government as part of that person's official duties it is considered a U.S. Government Work.

    Downloads & Resources

    Dates

    Metadata Date May 15, 2025
    Metadata Created Date October 19, 2024
    Metadata Updated Date May 24, 2025
    Reference Date(s) 2016-12 (creation), 2023-11 (revision), 2024-03 (publication)
    Frequency Of Update asNeeded

    Metadata Source

    Harvested from NMFS PIFSC

    Other Data Resources

    Additional Metadata

    Resource Type Dataset
    Metadata Date May 15, 2025
    Metadata Created Date October 19, 2024
    Metadata Updated Date May 24, 2025
    Reference Date(s) 2016-12 (creation), 2023-11 (revision), 2024-03 (publication)
    Responsible Party (Point of Contact, Custodian)
    Contact Email
    Guid gov.noaa.nmfs.inport:25380
    Access Constraints Cite As: Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, [Date of Access]: National Coral Reef Monitoring Program: Benthic Images Collected from Climate Stations across American Samoa since 2015 [Data Date Range], https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/inport/item/25380., Access Constraints: None, Use Constraints: Please cite PIFSC Ecosystem Sciences Division (ESD) when using the data. Suggested citation: Ecosystem Sciences Division; Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (2023). National Coral Reef Monitoring Program: Benthic Images Collected from Climate Stations across American Samoa since 2015. NOAA's National Centers for Environmental Information, https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/inport/item/25380, Distribution Liability: While every effort has been made to ensure that these data are accurate and reliable within the limits of the current state of the art, NOAA cannot assume liability for any damages caused by errors or omissions in the data, nor as a result of the failure of the data to function on a particular system. NOAA makes no warranty, expressed or implied, nor does the fact of distribution constitute such a warranty.
    Bbox East Long -168.13792
    Bbox North Lat -11.0457
    Bbox South Lat -14.55563
    Bbox West Long -171.09223
    Coupled Resource
    Frequency Of Update asNeeded
    Harvest Object Id d61ccc2b-0be6-40d0-8a78-318209611978
    Harvest Source Id c0beac72-5f43-4455-8c33-1b345fbc2dfe
    Harvest Source Title NMFS PIFSC
    Licence NOAA provides no warranty, nor accepts any liability occurring from any incomplete, incorrect, or misleading data, or from any incorrect, incomplete, or misleading use of the data. It is the responsibility of the user to determine whether or not the data is suitable for the intended purpose.
    Lineage Benthic photographs were collected for climate stations and permanent sites at pre-defined points along the transect. These photos are color-corrected (if necessary) prior to analysis. An optical validation script is used to re-name photos and enforce several validation checks.
    Metadata Language eng
    Metadata Type geospatial
    Old Spatial {"type": "Polygon", "coordinates": [[[-171.09223, -14.55563], [-168.13792, -14.55563], [-168.13792, -11.0457], [-171.09223, -11.0457], [-171.09223, -14.55563]]]}
    Progress onGoing
    Spatial Data Service Type
    Spatial Reference System
    Spatial Harvester True
    Temporal Extent Begin 2015-02-15
    Temporal Extent End 2015-03-26

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