NOAA Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, Ecosystem Science Division Coral Reef Ecosystem Program, Rapid Ecological Assessments of Fish Belt Transect Surveys (BLT) at Coral Reef Sites across the Pacific Ocean from 2000 to 2009
Citation
Coral Reef Ecosystem Program; Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (2017). Pacific Reef Assessment and Monitoring Program: Rapid Ecological Assessments of Fish Belt Transect Surveys (BLT) in the Pacific Ocean from 2000-09-09 to 2009-05-05 (NCEI Accession 0162462). NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. Dataset. https://accession.nodc.noaa.gov/0162462 https://doi.org/10.15468/tzr5bf accessed via GBIF.org on 2022-05-23.Description
Belt transects (BLT) are a non-invasive underwater-survey method that enumerates the diverse components of diurnally active shallow-water reef fish assemblages. At each Rapid Ecological Assessment survey site, BLT fish surveys are conducted along 3 consecutively-placed, 25m transect lines to quantify relatively small-bodied and abundant fishes. A pair of scuba diver-observers conducts parallel swims along the transect lines, recording size-class specific counts of all fishes encountered, to species-level where possible, within visually estimated but defined belt widths: 4 m wide for fishes > 20 cm TL (100 m2 area) on the initial swim-out, and 2 m wide for fishes < 20 cm TL (50 m2 area) on the subsequent swim back. Transect lines are typically set at depths of 10-15 m. Reef ledges and holes are visually searched. Stations are completed on all sides of the island/atoll, weather and sea conditions permitting. Raw survey data includes species level abundance estimates.Additional info
marine, harvested by OBISTaxonomic Coverages
Geographic Coverages
Bibliographic Citations
Contacts
Ivor Williamsoriginator
position: Research Fish Biologist
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
email: ivor.williams@noaa.gov
Annette DesRochers
metadata author
position: Data Steward
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
email: annette.desrochers@noaa.gov
Abby Benson
publisher
position: Biologist
U.S. Geological Survey
email: albenson@usgs.gov
userId: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-4391-107X
Sarah Bingo
processor
position: Data Manager
Pacific Islands Ocean Observing System
email: sarahr6@hawaii.edu
Tye Kindinger
administrative point of contact
position: Supervisory Coral Reef Ecosystems Researcher
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
email: tye.kindinger@noaa.gov
Jake Asher
administrative point of contact
position: Marine Ecosystems Research Specialist
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
email: jacob.asher@noaa.gov