159 intertidal and 130 subtidal sites were surveyed for seagrass metrics at Dungeness Reef in the Torres Strait during 2016 and 2017. The dataset, produced by TropWATER at James Cook University, provides baseline information for dugong and turtle habitat management. It includes GIS shapefiles describing sites, meadows, and interpolated biomass variation.
Use Cases
- Mapping seagrass meadow distribution based on surveyed site locations and percent cover estimates.
- Modeling dugong foraging habitat quality based on interpolated seagrass biomass data.
- Establishing a baseline for monitoring seagrass change over time using the 2016-2017 survey data.
- Informing government and Traditional Owner management plans with site-specific seagrass species composition data.
Strengths
- Surveys cover 289 distinct sites (159 intertidal, 130 subtidal) across Dungeness Reef.
- Data collection methods are documented and tailored to the location, with separate protocols for helicopter and boat surveys.
- The project directly addresses an information gap for key species management identified by the TSRA and government bodies.
Limitations
- Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
- Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
- Last updated 2026-06-04 05:44:25.103002; freshness should be verified.
Provenance
- Source
- TropWATER Seagrass Group, James Cook University
- Collection Method
- Field surveys conducted via helicopter and TSRA LSMU ranger vessel, using GPS, visual quadrat assessment, underwater CCTV video transects, and grab samples.
- Time Range
- 2016-2017
- Geography
- Dungeness Reef, Torres Strait