Seagrass Surveys for Dugong and Turtle Habitats in North-West Torres Strait, 2015-2016
Updated 10d ago
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Description
853 survey sites and 34 individual meadows describe seagrass species, biomass, and diversity in the North-West Torres Strait. The dataset was created by the TropWATER Seagrass Group at James Cook University using visual estimation techniques from video transects, grabs, free divers, and helicopter surveys. Data collection occurred during two field campaigns in November 2015 and January 2016.
Use Cases
Modeling seagrass biomass distribution based on visual estimates and species composition data.
Mapping critical dugong and turtle foraging habitats based on seagrass meadow locations and characteristics.
Analyzing the relationship between seagrass diversity, percent cover, and benthic macroinvertebrate/algae presence.
Assessing seasonal changes in seagrass habitats by comparing November 2015 and January 2016 survey data.
Strengths
Includes data from 853 distinct survey sites and 34 individual seagrass meadows.
Provides multiple seagrass metrics including species composition, above-ground biomass, diversity, and percent cover of BMI and algae.
Data collection methods are documented and reference peer-reviewed publications from the TropWATER Seagrass Group.
Available in multiple formats including shapefiles, GIS layer packages, and CSV for different analytical needs.
Limitations
Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment for large-scale statistical modeling.
Data may reflect geographic and temporal bias inherent to the two specific survey periods in 2015-2016.
Provenance
Source
TropWATER Seagrass Group, James Cook University, via the Australian Ocean Data Network.
Collection Method
Surveys used visual estimates of biomass technique via video transects, grabs, free divers, and helicopter observations, with GPS-recorded locations.
Time Range
November 2015 and January 2016
Freshness
Last updated 2026-07-10 20:07:23.404076; freshness should be verified.
Geography
North-West Torres Strait
License is unknown; terms of use should be verified before application.