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2018 Flower Garden Banks-Stetson Bank Long-Term Monitoring of the Reef Crest and Mesophotic Benthic and Fish Communities (NCEI Accession 0239376)

Published by NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information | National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce | Metadata Last Checked: February 28, 2026 | Last Modified: 2021-11-09T00:00:00.000+00:00
This dataset contains raw and processed data from an annual long-term monitoring study that documents the benthic and fish community changes at Stetson Bank, in the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary. Stetson Bank is an uplifted claystone/siltstone feature, located 75 nautical miles from Galveston, TX in the northwestern Gulf of Mexico, that supports a well-developed benthic community of scleractinian coral and tropical marine sponges. Due to a wide range of temperatures and variable light availability, Stetson Bank has marginal environmental conditions for coral reef development and growth. The fish community is similar to other Caribbean reefs but has comparatively lower diversity. Monitoring has occurred on the bank crest (17-34 m) of the site since 1993. Bank crest monitoring includes random transect and repetitive photostation photographs of the benthos to estimate percent cover of major taxonomic groups (e.g., coral, sponge, algae). Benthic photographs are analyzed using Coral Point Count (CPCe) and output into Microsoft Excel worksheets. These data are analyzed for temporal community changes in Primer. Fish census surveys are conducted annually using a modified Bohnsack and Bannerot stationary method, both at random and repetitive sites. Fish data are recorded in Microsoft Excel worksheets. Primer software is used to identify any temporal shifts that occur in the fish community. Water quality parameters (e.g., temperature, salinity, turbidity, nutrients) are measured with moored conductivity temperature depth (CTD) instruments and quarterly profiles of the water column are performed. Temperature and salinity data are reduced to report daily averages. Monitoring efforts were expanded in 2015 (to present) to include the deeper mesophotic habitat (34-64 m) surrounding the bank crest using a remotely operated vehicle (ROV). Mesophotic monitoring includes random transect and repetitive photostation photographs of the benthos to estimate percent cover of major taxonomic groups (e.g., coral, sponge, algae). Repetitive photostation images are only assessed using qualitative summaries of key species identified in 2015 during installation. Random transect photographs are analyzed using Coral Point Count (CPCe) and output into Microsoft Excel worksheets. These data are analyzed for temporal community changes in Primer. Fish census surveys are conducted annually in conjunction with benthic transect surveys. Fish data are recorded in Microsoft Excel worksheets. Primer software is used to identify any temporal shifts that occur in the fish community. The bank crest benthic community at Stetson Bank has undergone several significant shifts, changing from a habitat predominated by hydrocoral and sponges to one of macroalgae and sponges. The fish community on the bank crest has varied annually. Exotic fish species are present at the bank, including lionfish (Pterois volitans/P. miles) and regal demoiselle (Neopomacentrus cyanomos). Fluctuations in oceanic conditions, macroalgae cover, and continued annual variation in fish communities were documented.

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0239376 BENTHIC SPECIES CONDUCTIVITY CORAL - CENSUS CORAL - SPECIES IDENTIFICATION DISSOLVED INORGANIC CARBON (DIC) DISSOLVED OXYGEN FISH - CORAL REEF FISH CENSUS HYDROSTATIC PRESSURE pH SALINITY SPONGE SPECIES IDENTIFICATION total alkalinity turbidity Video Transect Images water depth WATER TEMPERATURE CTD CTD - moored CTD photograph swimmer/diver video camera in situ Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary CORAL REEF STUDIES LONG TERM MONITORING EAST-WEST FLOWER GARDEN BANKS LONG-TERM MONITORING AT THE EAST AND WEST FLOWER GARDEN BANKS (FLOWER GARDENS) Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary Gulf of Mexico oceanography DOC/NOAA/NOS/NMS > National Marine Sanctuaries, National Ocean Service, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce Coral Reef Studies LONG TERM MONITORING EAST-WEST FLOWER GARDEN BANKS (DOI/MMS) LONG-TERM MONITORING AT THE EAST AND WEST FLOWER GARDEN BANKS (FLOWER GARDENS - DOI/MMS) Long Term Monitoring at Stetson Bank Flower Garden Banks EARTH SCIENCE > BIOLOGICAL CLASSIFICATION > ANIMALS/INVERTEBRATES > SPONGES EARTH SCIENCE > BIOSPHERE > ECOSYSTEMS > MARINE ECOSYSTEMS > BENTHIC EARTH SCIENCE > OCEANS > BATHYMETRY/SEAFLOOR TOPOGRAPHY > WATER DEPTH EARTH SCIENCE > OCEANS > OCEAN CHEMISTRY > ALKALINITY EARTH SCIENCE > OCEANS > OCEAN CHEMISTRY > INORGANIC CARBON EARTH SCIENCE > OCEANS > OCEAN CHEMISTRY > OXYGEN EARTH SCIENCE > OCEANS > OCEAN CHEMISTRY > PH EARTH SCIENCE > OCEANS > OCEAN OPTICS > TURBIDITY EARTH SCIENCE > OCEANS > OCEAN PRESSURE > WATER PRESSURE EARTH SCIENCE > OCEANS > OCEAN TEMPERATURE > WATER TEMPERATURE EARTH SCIENCE > OCEANS > SALINITY/DENSITY > CONDUCTIVITY EARTH SCIENCE > OCEANS > SALINITY/DENSITY > SALINITY EARTH SCIENCE > SOLID EARTH > GEOMORPHIC LANDFORMS/PROCESSES > COASTAL LANDFORMS > CORAL REEFS EARTH SCIENCE > SPECTRAL/ENGINEERING > VISIBLE WAVELENGTHS > VISIBLE IMAGERY ALTIMETER BENTHIC SPECIES (MESOPHOTIC) BENTHIC SPECIES (REEF CREST) CORAL Coral Reef Studies FISH CENSUS (MESOPHOTIC) FISH CENSUS (REEF CREST) VIDEO TRANSECT WATER QUALITY (MOORED) WATER QUALITY (PROFILES) WATER QUALITY (SAMPLES) algae - species identification coral - species identification sponge - species identification CTD > Conductivity, Temperature, Depth VIDEO CAMERA > VIDEO CAMERA CTD CTD - moored CTD photograph swimmer/diver video camera R/V Manta OCEAN > ATLANTIC OCEAN > NORTH ATLANTIC OCEAN > GULF OF AMERICA OCEAN > ATLANTIC OCEAN > NORTH ATLANTIC OCEAN > GULF OF MEXICO Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary Gulf of Mexico Stetson Bank YFCLXT

Complete Metadata
@type dcat:Dataset
accessLevel non-public
contactPoint 
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describedByType application/octet-steam
description This dataset contains raw and processed data from an annual long-term monitoring study that documents the benthic and fish community changes at Stetson Bank, in the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary. Stetson Bank is an uplifted claystone/siltstone feature, located 75 nautical miles from Galveston, TX in the northwestern Gulf of Mexico, that supports a well-developed benthic community of scleractinian coral and tropical marine sponges. Due to a wide range of temperatures and variable light availability, Stetson Bank has marginal environmental conditions for coral reef development and growth. The fish community is similar to other Caribbean reefs but has comparatively lower diversity. Monitoring has occurred on the bank crest (17-34 m) of the site since 1993. Bank crest monitoring includes random transect and repetitive photostation photographs of the benthos to estimate percent cover of major taxonomic groups (e.g., coral, sponge, algae). Benthic photographs are analyzed using Coral Point Count (CPCe) and output into Microsoft Excel worksheets. These data are analyzed for temporal community changes in Primer. Fish census surveys are conducted annually using a modified Bohnsack and Bannerot stationary method, both at random and repetitive sites. Fish data are recorded in Microsoft Excel worksheets. Primer software is used to identify any temporal shifts that occur in the fish community. Water quality parameters (e.g., temperature, salinity, turbidity, nutrients) are measured with moored conductivity temperature depth (CTD) instruments and quarterly profiles of the water column are performed. Temperature and salinity data are reduced to report daily averages. Monitoring efforts were expanded in 2015 (to present) to include the deeper mesophotic habitat (34-64 m) surrounding the bank crest using a remotely operated vehicle (ROV). Mesophotic monitoring includes random transect and repetitive photostation photographs of the benthos to estimate percent cover of major taxonomic groups (e.g., coral, sponge, algae). Repetitive photostation images are only assessed using qualitative summaries of key species identified in 2015 during installation. Random transect photographs are analyzed using Coral Point Count (CPCe) and output into Microsoft Excel worksheets. These data are analyzed for temporal community changes in Primer. Fish census surveys are conducted annually in conjunction with benthic transect surveys. Fish data are recorded in Microsoft Excel worksheets. Primer software is used to identify any temporal shifts that occur in the fish community. The bank crest benthic community at Stetson Bank has undergone several significant shifts, changing from a habitat predominated by hydrocoral and sponges to one of macroalgae and sponges. The fish community on the bank crest has varied annually. Exotic fish species are present at the bank, including lionfish (Pterois volitans/P. miles) and regal demoiselle (Neopomacentrus cyanomos). Fluctuations in oceanic conditions, macroalgae cover, and continued annual variation in fish communities were documented.
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identifier gov.noaa.nodc:0239376
issued 2021-07-20T00:00:00.000+00:00
keyword 
                                            [
  "0239376",
  "BENTHIC SPECIES",
  "CONDUCTIVITY",
  "CORAL - CENSUS",
  "CORAL - SPECIES IDENTIFICATION",
  "DISSOLVED INORGANIC CARBON (DIC)",
  "DISSOLVED OXYGEN",
  "FISH - CORAL REEF",
  "FISH CENSUS",
  "HYDROSTATIC PRESSURE",
  "pH",
  "SALINITY",
  "SPONGE SPECIES IDENTIFICATION",
  "total alkalinity",
  "turbidity",
  "Video Transect Images",
  "water depth",
  "WATER TEMPERATURE",
  "CTD",
  "CTD - moored CTD",
  "photograph",
  "swimmer/diver",
  "video camera",
  "in situ",
  "Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary",
  "Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary",
  "CORAL REEF STUDIES",
  "LONG TERM MONITORING EAST-WEST FLOWER GARDEN BANKS",
  "LONG-TERM MONITORING AT THE EAST AND WEST FLOWER GARDEN BANKS (FLOWER GARDENS)",
  "Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary",
  "Gulf of Mexico",
  "oceanography",
  "DOC/NOAA/NOS/NMS > National Marine Sanctuaries, National Ocean Service, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce",
  "Coral Reef Studies",
  "LONG TERM MONITORING EAST-WEST FLOWER GARDEN BANKS (DOI/MMS)",
  "LONG-TERM MONITORING AT THE EAST AND WEST FLOWER GARDEN BANKS (FLOWER GARDENS - DOI/MMS)",
  "Long Term Monitoring at Stetson Bank Flower Garden Banks",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > BIOLOGICAL CLASSIFICATION > ANIMALS/INVERTEBRATES > SPONGES",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > BIOSPHERE > ECOSYSTEMS > MARINE ECOSYSTEMS > BENTHIC",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > OCEANS > BATHYMETRY/SEAFLOOR TOPOGRAPHY > WATER DEPTH",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > OCEANS > OCEAN CHEMISTRY > ALKALINITY",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > OCEANS > OCEAN CHEMISTRY > INORGANIC CARBON",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > OCEANS > OCEAN CHEMISTRY > OXYGEN",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > OCEANS > OCEAN CHEMISTRY > PH",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > OCEANS > OCEAN OPTICS > TURBIDITY",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > OCEANS > OCEAN PRESSURE > WATER PRESSURE",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > OCEANS > OCEAN TEMPERATURE > WATER TEMPERATURE",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > OCEANS > SALINITY/DENSITY > CONDUCTIVITY",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > OCEANS > SALINITY/DENSITY > SALINITY",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > SOLID EARTH > GEOMORPHIC LANDFORMS/PROCESSES > COASTAL LANDFORMS > CORAL REEFS",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > SPECTRAL/ENGINEERING > VISIBLE WAVELENGTHS > VISIBLE IMAGERY",
  "ALTIMETER",
  "BENTHIC SPECIES (MESOPHOTIC)",
  "BENTHIC SPECIES (REEF CREST)",
  "CORAL",
  "Coral Reef Studies",
  "FISH CENSUS (MESOPHOTIC)",
  "FISH CENSUS (REEF CREST)",
  "VIDEO TRANSECT",
  "WATER QUALITY (MOORED)",
  "WATER QUALITY (PROFILES)",
  "WATER QUALITY (SAMPLES)",
  "algae - species identification",
  "coral - species identification",
  "sponge - species identification",
  "CTD > Conductivity, Temperature, Depth",
  "VIDEO CAMERA > VIDEO CAMERA",
  "CTD",
  "CTD - moored CTD",
  "photograph",
  "swimmer/diver",
  "video camera",
  "R/V Manta",
  "OCEAN > ATLANTIC OCEAN > NORTH ATLANTIC OCEAN > GULF OF AMERICA",
  "OCEAN > ATLANTIC OCEAN > NORTH ATLANTIC OCEAN > GULF OF MEXICO",
  "Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary",
  "Gulf of Mexico",
  "Stetson Bank",
  "YFCLXT"
]
landingPage https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/contact
language 
                                            []
license https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/
modified 2021-11-09T00:00:00.000+00:00
publisher 
                                            {
  "name": "NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information",
  "@type": "org:Organization"
}
references 
                                            [
  "https://sanctuaries.noaa.gov/science/conservation/2018-stetson-bank-long-term-monitoring.html"
]
rights otherRestrictions
spatial -94.28722273,28.15705383,-94.30811767,28.17522351
temporal 2017-10-31T00:00:00+00:00/2019-06-11T00:00:00+00:00
title 2018 Flower Garden Banks-Stetson Bank Long-Term Monitoring of the Reef Crest and Mesophotic Benthic and Fish Communities (NCEI Accession 0239376)

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