Biogeographic characterization of fish and benthic communities, Jobos Bay, Puerto Rico 2009-06-08 to 2009-06-13 (NODC Accession 0125200)

Resource Abstract:

The project originated from an ongoing collaboration between USDA (U.S. Department of Agriculture) and NOAA on the U.S. Coral Reef Task Force. The Conservation Effects Assessment Project (CEAP) was developed in 2003 by the USDA as a multi-agency effort to quantify the environmental benefits of conservation practices applied by private landowners. Ten Special Emphasis Watersheds (SEW) were identified throughout the U.S. to address specific resource concerns such as animal feeding operations, water use, drainage management and wildlife habitat restoration. The Jobos Bay watershed was selected by CEAP partners as the first tropical CEAP SEW with the goal of identifying innovative conservation practices that will enhance the health of coral reef ecosystems. The projects general approach includes describing the baseline conditions in Jobos Bay, implementing agricultural conservation practices on the watershed and measuring the response in Jobos Bays water quality, biogeochemistry, benthic habitats and marine biota. It is anticipated that relatively short term changes will be measured in water quality and marine sediments; while long-term changes in higher trophic levels, such as fishes, may be detected in out-years. The baseline biological monitoring was conducted in June 2009 by the Center for Coastal Monitoring and Assessment's Biogeography Branch. Biogeography Branch staff used monitoring protocols developed under NOAAs Caribbean Coral Reef Ecosystem Monitoring Project, which have been used since 2001 to monitor fish and benthic habitats in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. These protocols are standardized throughout the US Caribbean to enable quantification and comparison of reef fish abundance and distribution trends between locations. Specific objectives were: (1) to spatially characterize and monitor the distribution, abundance, and size of both reef fishes and macro-invertebrates (conch, lobster and sea urchin), (2) to relate this information to in situ data collected on associated benthic composition parameters, (3) to use this information to establish the knowledge base necessary for enacting management decisions in a spatial setting, and (4) to establish the efficacy of those management decisions. Using ArcView GIS software, nearshore benthic habitat maps created by NOAAs BB in 2001 were stratified to select sampling stations. Sites were randomly selected within these strata to ensure coverage of the entire study region and not just a particular reef or seagrass area. At each site, fish, macro-invertebrates, and benthic composition information were then quantified following standardized protocols. By relating the data collected in the field back to the habitat maps and bathymetric models, BB is able to model and map species level and community level information.

Citation

Title Biogeographic characterization of fish and benthic communities, Jobos Bay, Puerto Rico 2009-06-08 to 2009-06-13 (NODC Accession 0125200)

publication  Date   2015-01-13

Edition 1.1

presentationForm  tableDigital

cited responsible party - publisher

organisation Name  NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information

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Voice 301-713-3277

Fax 301-713-3300

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Federal Building 151 Patton Avenue, Asheville, NC, 28801-5001 Country USA

electronic Mail Address NODC.DataOfficer@noaa.gov

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name NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information website

URL: https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/

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Description Main NCEI website providing links to access data and data services.

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organisation Name  DOC/NOAA/NESDIS/NODC > National Oceanographic Data Center, NESDIS, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce

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Voice 301-713-3277

Fax 301-713-3302

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1315 East-West Highway, SSMC3, 4th floor, Silver Spring, MD, 20910-3282 Country USA

electronic Mail Address NODC.DataOfficer@noaa.gov

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name NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information website

URL: https://www.nodc.noaa.gov/

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Description Website providing links to access data and data services.

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cited responsible party - resourceProvider

individual Name Sarah Hile

organisation Name  US DOC; NOAA; NOS; National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science; Center for Coastal Monitoring and Assessment (NCCOS/CCMA)

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Voice 240-533-0370

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1305 East West Highway, Rm. 8419, Silver Spring, Maryland, 20910 Country USA

electronic Mail Address sarah.hile@noaa.gov

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name US DOC; NOAA; NOS; National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science; Center for Coastal Monitoring and Assessment (NCCOS/CCMA) website

URL: http://ccma.nos.noaa.gov/

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cited responsible party - resourceProvider

organisation Name  US DOC; NOAA; NOS; National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS)

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Voice 240-533-0300

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1305 EAST WEST HIGHWAY, ROOM 8110, SILVER SPRING, MD, 20910 Country USA

electronic Mail Address NCCOS.data@noaa.gov

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name US DOC; NOAA; NOS; National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) website

URL: http://coastalscience.noaa.gov/

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cited responsible party - author

individual Name Zitello, A.

cited responsible party - author

individual Name McGrath, T.

cited responsible party - author

individual Name Hile, S.

cited responsible party - contributor

organisation Name  US DOC; NOAA; NOS; National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS)

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Telephone

Voice 240-533-0300

Address

1305 EAST WEST HIGHWAY, ROOM 8110, SILVER SPRING, MD, 20910 Country USA

electronic Mail Address NCCOS.data@noaa.gov

Linkage for online resource

name US DOC; NOAA; NOS; National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) website

URL: http://coastalscience.noaa.gov/

protocol HTTP

link function information

Description Institution web page

target application profile  Web browser

Topic Category:  environment,oceans,biota

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