The Great Barrier Reef is monitored by the Australian Institute of Marine Science Long Term Monitoring Program from 1993 to 2010. Data includes percent cover of benthic categories, juvenile coral density, and sources of coral mortality like Crown-of-Thorns starfish and disease. Surveys cover 46 reefs across the continental shelf and six latitudinal sectors, with methods including underwater video, photography, and SCUBA searches.
Use Cases
- Modeling spatial and temporal changes in benthic community composition based on percent cover data.
- Assessing reef recovery potential by analyzing juvenile coral density and size data.
- Quantifying the impact of specific mortality sources like Crown-of-Thorns starfish and disease on coral cover.
- Evaluating the effects of marine park zoning by comparing data from no-take and open fishing reef pairs.
Strengths
- Long-term temporal coverage from 1993 to 2010, with ongoing surveys in odd years.
- Spatial coverage includes 46 reefs across three shelf positions and six latitudinal sectors.
- Multiple data collection methods are described, including permanent transects, underwater video, and SCUBA searches.
- Data unit definitions are provided for key metrics like percent cover, density, and counts.
Limitations
- Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
- Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
- Description metadata is limited; actual data quality requires manual inspection after download.
Provenance
- Source
- Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS) Long Term Monitoring Program (LTMP) and Representative Areas Program (RAP).
- Collection Method
- Data gathered via annual surveys along permanent transects using underwater video/digital photography and SCUBA search techniques.
- Time Range
- 1993 to 2010, with ongoing monitoring.
- Freshness
- Last updated 2026-07-14 07:19:03.419210; freshness should be verified.
- Geography
- Great Barrier Reef, Australia, across 46 reefs in six sectors.