Heron Island Fish and Benthic Survey with 5097 Individuals from 202 Species

BRUVS (TM) data from the Australian Ocean Data Network comprises 5097 individuals from 202 species of fishes, sharks, rays, and sea snakes observed around Heron Island. The data was collected from 56 baited remote underwater video stations between 2014-06-23 and 2014-07-02, with 311 images captured. A custom Microsoft Access interface was developed by AIMS staff for reading and analysis.

Use Cases

• Classifying benthic habitat based on topography, sediments, and benthos descriptions
• Analyzing fish arrival times and behavior patterns, including feeding on bait
• Modeling relative fish abundance using MaxN counts recorded over time
• Studying species maturity distributions (adult vs. juvenile) across observations

Strengths

• 5097 individual observations provide a substantial sample for analysis
• Covers 202 distinct species of fishes, sharks, rays, and sea snakes
• Includes 311 reference images from the survey for visual verification
• Data records multiple behavioral categories and maturity states

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment
• Data may reflect geographic and temporal bias inherent to the specific 10-day survey period

Provenance

Source

Australian Ocean Data Network

Collection Method

Baited remote underwater video stations (BRUVS)

Time Range

2014-06-23 to 2014-07-02

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-22 06:04:27.169898; freshness should be verified

Geography

Heron Island, Australia