Tasmanian Rocky Reef Fish Abundance Surveys from 1992 to 2007

Fish abundance data derived from underwater visual census transects at rocky reef sites around Tasmania. The dataset includes initial surveys from 1992-1995 and repeat surveys at the same sites in 2006-2007, allowing decadal-scale change analysis. Data was aggregated by the Australian Ocean Data Network as part of a larger study on reef communities.

Use Cases

• Analyzing decadal-scale changes in reef fish communities based on repeated surveys at the same sites.
• Modeling the impact of fishing pressure based on proximity to boat ramp data for 133 sites.
• Studying changes in species richness and introduced species populations over time.
• Investigating potential ecosystem effects of ocean warming on shallow reef assemblages.

Strengths

• Includes repeated surveys at the same sites over a decadal scale (1992-1995 and 2006-2007).
• Covers 133 shallow rocky reef sites with distances from boat ramps ranging 0.6-131 km.
• Methodology designed to detect population changes, size-structure, and cascading ecosystem effects.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• The 133-site subset for boat ramp analysis omitted sites with atypical algal assemblages.

Provenance

Source

Australian Ocean Data Network

Collection Method

Underwater visual census (UVC) using transect counts at 5 m and/or 10 m depth.

Time Range

1992-1995 and 2006-2007

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-19 23:18:14.431589; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Rocky reef sites around Tasmania