Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

This site is currently in beta, and your feedback is helping shape its ongoing development.

Benthic Surveys in Fagaʻalu, American Samoa: comprehensive assessment of coral demography (adult and juvenile corals) from belt transect surveys from 2020-01-15 to 2020-01-24 (NCEI Accession 0240418)

Published by NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information | National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce | Metadata Last Checked: January 26, 2026 | Last Modified: 2021-09-02T00:00:00.000+00:00
The data described here result from benthic coral demographic surveys within belt transects of specified length and width for two life stages (juveniles and adults) in Fagaʻalu, American Samoa in 2020. The data provide information on adult coral colony counts, morphology, size, partial mortality (old and recent dead), presence and causation of disease and other compromised health conditions, including bleaching. Juvenile colony surveys include morphology and size. Taxonomic identification of adult colonies is to the species level and genus level for juveniles. In 2020, the survey implemented a one-stage stratified random sampling (StRS) design to assess the Fagaʻalu coral reef community. The survey domain encompassed the majority of the mapped area of reef and hard bottom habitats in the 0–30 m depth range. The stratification scheme included cardinal position (i.e., north and south), reef zone (i.e., backreef and forereef) and depth (i.e., shallow: >0–6 m and mid-depth: >6–18 m). Sampling effort allocation was determined based on strata area and sites randomly located within strata. The StRS design effectively reduces estimate variance through stratification using environmental covariates and by sampling more sites rather than more transects per site. Therefore, site-to-site comparisons should proceed with caution.

Find Related Datasets

Click any tag below to search for similar datasets

0240418 biological data CORAL CORAL - BLEACHING CORAL - CENSUS CORAL - COLONY SIZE CORAL - SPECIES IDENTIFICATION HABITAT - BENTHIC swimmer/diver visual observation biological in situ survey - biological survey - coral reef survey - swimmer/diver NOAA Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center NOAA Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center Coral Reef Conservation Program (CRCP) CORAL REEF STUDIES South Pacific Ocean oceanography DOC/NOAA/NMFS > National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce 31259 Status and trends assessment for LBSP impacts on reef communities in Faga'alu Bay and Vatia Bay Numeric Data Sets > Biology EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Coral Diseases EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Coral Diseases > Bleaching EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Coral Mortality EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Damage Assessment > Pollution EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment > Baseline studies EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment > Benthos Analysis > Transect Monitoring > Belt Transect EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment > Coral Colony Size and Condition EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment > In Situ Biological EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment > Rapid Assessment Studies EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Coastal Processes > Coral Reefs EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Coastal Processes > Coral Reefs > Coral Reef Ecology EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Coastal Processes > Coral Reefs > Coral Reef Ecology > Benthic biology EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Marine Biology > Coral EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Marine Biology > Coral Communities EARTH SCIENCE > BIOLOGICAL CLASSIFICATION EARTH SCIENCE > BIOSPHERE > ECOSYSTEMS > MARINE ECOSYSTEMS > BENTHIC EARTH SCIENCE > BIOSPHERE > ECOSYSTEMS > MARINE ECOSYSTEMS > REEF > CORAL REEF EARTH SCIENCE > OCEANS > COASTAL PROCESSES > CORAL REEFS > CORAL BLEACHING EARTH SCIENCE > SOLID EARTH > GEOMORPHIC LANDFORMS/PROCESSES > COASTAL LANDFORMS > CORAL REEFS COLONY - RECENT MORTALITY CAUSE CORAL - CONDITION EXTENT CORAL - HEALTH CONDITION CORAL - MORPHOLOGY CORAL - MORTALITY VISUAL OBSERVATIONS > VISUAL OBSERVATIONS survey -swimmer/diver Shore based COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > American Samoa > Tutuila Island > Faga'alu (14S170W0005) OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > Pago Pago Harbor > Faga'alu (14S170W0005) OCEAN > PACIFIC OCEAN > SOUTH PACIFIC OCEAN Faga'alu Bay, Tutuila, American Samoa JNRDF5

Complete Metadata
@type dcat:Dataset
accessLevel non-public
contactPoint 
                                            {
  "fn": "NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information",
  "@type": "vcard:Contact",
  "hasEmail": "mailto:ncei.info@noaa.gov"
}
describedByType application/octet-steam
description The data described here result from benthic coral demographic surveys within belt transects of specified length and width for two life stages (juveniles and adults) in Fagaʻalu, American Samoa in 2020. The data provide information on adult coral colony counts, morphology, size, partial mortality (old and recent dead), presence and causation of disease and other compromised health conditions, including bleaching. Juvenile colony surveys include morphology and size. Taxonomic identification of adult colonies is to the species level and genus level for juveniles. In 2020, the survey implemented a one-stage stratified random sampling (StRS) design to assess the Fagaʻalu coral reef community. The survey domain encompassed the majority of the mapped area of reef and hard bottom habitats in the 0–30 m depth range. The stratification scheme included cardinal position (i.e., north and south), reef zone (i.e., backreef and forereef) and depth (i.e., shallow: >0–6 m and mid-depth: >6–18 m). Sampling effort allocation was determined based on strata area and sites randomly located within strata. The StRS design effectively reduces estimate variance through stratification using environmental covariates and by sampling more sites rather than more transects per site. Therefore, site-to-site comparisons should proceed with caution.
distribution 
                                            [
  {
    "@type": "dcat:Distribution",
    "title": "NCEI Dataset Landing Page",
    "mediaType": "placeholder/value",
    "description": "Navigate directly to the URL for a descriptive web page with download links.",
    "downloadURL": "https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/archive/accession/0240418",
    "describedByType": "application/octet-steam"
  },
  {
    "@type": "dcat:Distribution",
    "title": "Descriptive Information",
    "mediaType": "placeholder/value",
    "description": "Navigate directly to the URL for a descriptive web page with download links.",
    "downloadURL": "https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/archive/accession/oas/240418",
    "describedByType": "application/octet-steam"
  },
  {
    "@type": "dcat:Distribution",
    "title": "HTTPS",
    "mediaType": "placeholder/value",
    "description": "Navigate directly to the URL for data access and direct download.",
    "downloadURL": "https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/archive/accession/download/240418",
    "describedByType": "application/octet-steam"
  },
  {
    "@type": "dcat:Distribution",
    "title": "FTP",
    "mediaType": "placeholder/value",
    "description": "These data are available through the File Transfer Protocol (FTP). FTP is no longer supported by most internet browsers. You may copy and paste the FTP link to the data into an FTP client (e.g., FileZilla or WinSCP).",
    "downloadURL": "ftp://ftp-oceans.ncei.noaa.gov/nodc/archive/arc0186/0240418/",
    "describedByType": "application/octet-steam"
  },
  {
    "@type": "dcat:Distribution",
    "title": "https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/inport/item/25369",
    "mediaType": "placeholder/value",
    "description": "InPort Metadata Record",
    "downloadURL": "https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/inport/item/25369",
    "describedByType": "application/octet-steam"
  },
  {
    "@type": "dcat:Distribution",
    "title": "https://doi.org/10.7289/v5bk19c3",
    "mediaType": "placeholder/value",
    "description": "related journal article",
    "downloadURL": "https://doi.org/10.7289/v5bk19c3",
    "describedByType": "application/octet-steam"
  },
  {
    "@type": "dcat:Distribution",
    "title": "https://doi.org/10.7289/v5/sp-pifsc-18-002",
    "mediaType": "placeholder/value",
    "description": "related journal article",
    "downloadURL": "https://doi.org/10.7289/v5/sp-pifsc-18-002",
    "describedByType": "application/octet-steam"
  },
  {
    "@type": "dcat:Distribution",
    "title": "https://doi.org/10.25923/0gvj-zm69",
    "mediaType": "placeholder/value",
    "description": "related journal article",
    "downloadURL": "https://doi.org/10.25923/0gvj-zm69",
    "describedByType": "application/octet-steam"
  },
  {
    "@type": "dcat:Distribution",
    "title": "GCMD Keyword Forum Page",
    "mediaType": "placeholder/value",
    "description": "Global Change Master Directory (GCMD). 2025. GCMD Keywords, Version 21. Greenbelt, MD: Earth Science Data and Information System, Earth Science Projects Division, Goddard Space Flight Center (GSFC), National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). URL (GCMD Keyword Forum Page): https://forum.earthdata.nasa.gov/app.php/tag/GCMD+Keywords",
    "downloadURL": "https://forum.earthdata.nasa.gov/app.php/tag/GCMD%2BKeywords",
    "describedByType": "application/octet-steam"
  },
  {
    "@type": "dcat:Distribution",
    "title": "NCEI Contact Information",
    "mediaType": "placeholder/value",
    "description": "Information for contacts at NCEI.",
    "downloadURL": "https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/contact",
    "describedByType": "application/octet-steam"
  }
]
identifier gov.noaa.nodc:0240418
issued 2021-08-20T00:00:00.000+00:00
keyword 
                                            [
  "0240418",
  "biological data",
  "CORAL",
  "CORAL - BLEACHING",
  "CORAL - CENSUS",
  "CORAL - COLONY SIZE",
  "CORAL - SPECIES IDENTIFICATION",
  "HABITAT - BENTHIC",
  "swimmer/diver",
  "visual observation",
  "biological",
  "in situ",
  "survey - biological",
  "survey - coral reef",
  "survey - swimmer/diver",
  "NOAA Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center",
  "NOAA Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center",
  "Coral Reef Conservation Program (CRCP)",
  "CORAL REEF STUDIES",
  "South Pacific Ocean",
  "oceanography",
  "DOC/NOAA/NMFS > National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce",
  "31259",
  "Status and trends assessment for LBSP impacts on reef communities in Faga'alu Bay and Vatia Bay",
  "Numeric Data Sets > Biology",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Coral Diseases",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Coral Diseases > Bleaching",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Coral Mortality",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Damage Assessment > Pollution",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment > Baseline studies",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment > Benthos Analysis > Transect Monitoring > Belt Transect",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment > Coral Colony Size and Condition",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment > In Situ Biological",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment > Rapid Assessment Studies",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Coastal Processes > Coral Reefs",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Coastal Processes > Coral Reefs > Coral Reef Ecology",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Coastal Processes > Coral Reefs > Coral Reef Ecology > Benthic biology",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Marine Biology > Coral",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Marine Biology > Coral Communities",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > BIOLOGICAL CLASSIFICATION",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > BIOSPHERE > ECOSYSTEMS > MARINE ECOSYSTEMS > BENTHIC",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > BIOSPHERE > ECOSYSTEMS > MARINE ECOSYSTEMS > REEF > CORAL REEF",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > OCEANS > COASTAL PROCESSES > CORAL REEFS > CORAL BLEACHING",
  "EARTH SCIENCE > SOLID EARTH > GEOMORPHIC LANDFORMS/PROCESSES > COASTAL LANDFORMS > CORAL REEFS",
  "COLONY - RECENT MORTALITY CAUSE",
  "CORAL - CONDITION EXTENT",
  "CORAL - HEALTH CONDITION",
  "CORAL - MORPHOLOGY",
  "CORAL - MORTALITY",
  "VISUAL OBSERVATIONS > VISUAL OBSERVATIONS",
  "survey -swimmer/diver",
  "Shore based",
  "COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > American Samoa > Tutuila Island > Faga'alu (14S170W0005)",
  "OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > Pago Pago Harbor > Faga'alu (14S170W0005)",
  "OCEAN > PACIFIC OCEAN > SOUTH PACIFIC OCEAN",
  "Faga'alu Bay, Tutuila, American Samoa",
  "JNRDF5"
]
landingPage https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/contact
language 
                                            []
license https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/
modified 2021-09-02T00:00:00.000+00:00
publisher 
                                            {
  "name": "NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information",
  "@type": "org:Organization"
}
references 
                                            [
  "https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/inport/item/25369",
  "https://doi.org/10.7289/v5bk19c3",
  "https://doi.org/10.7289/v5/sp-pifsc-18-002",
  "https://doi.org/10.25923/0gvj-zm69"
]
rights otherRestrictions
spatial -170.67261,-14.29379,-170.68113,-14.28678
temporal 2020-01-15T00:00:00+00:00/2020-01-24T00:00:00+00:00
title Benthic Surveys in Fagaʻalu, American Samoa: comprehensive assessment of coral demography (adult and juvenile corals) from belt transect surveys from 2020-01-15 to 2020-01-24 (NCEI Accession 0240418)

data.gov

An official website of the GSA's Technology Transformation Services

Looking for U.S. government information and services?
Visit USA.gov