CNMI Long-Term Marine Monitoring: Benthic and Fish Survey Data

52 long-term monitoring sites across Saipan, Tinian, and Rota are surveyed biennially across three habitat types: fore reef, reef flat, and seagrass beds. The protocol includes photo quadrat analysis for benthic cover, stationary point counts for fish assemblages, and coral colony surveys, providing data on species composition, size distribution, and biomass. Sites were selected based on association with management concerns and actions, including both impacted and reference locations.

Use Cases

• Tracking changes in coral genus and species composition based on photo quadrat and colony survey data.
• Assessing fish community biomass and size class distribution from stationary point count records.
• Comparing benthic cover and ecological metrics between impacted sites and reference sites.
• Evaluating the effectiveness of watershed restoration or marine protected areas over time.

Strengths

• Standardized protocol uses multiple survey types per site, including 250 photo quadrats and 12 fish point counts, providing ecological depth.
• Long-term design with 52 sites surveyed on a rotating biennial basis supports trend analysis.
• Explicit site selection includes both impacted and non-impacted reference sites for comparative analysis.

Limitations

• Specific column names, row counts, and file formats are not provided in the available metadata.
• Conflicting 'last updated' dates (2018-09-30 and 2026-03-05) create uncertainty about data currency.
• License and author information is not specified across the platforms.

Provenance

Source

NOAA_NCEI, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands Division of Environmental Quality

Collection Method

Field surveys using transect lines, photo quadrats, stationary point counts, and haphazard quadrat sampling.

Time Range

2014-10-01 to 2018-09-30

Freshness

2026-03-05 22:56:21.138726 (conflict with 2018-09-30 noted)

Geography

Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan, Tinian, Rota)