National Coral Reef Monitoring Program: Stratified Random Surveys (StRS) of Coral Demography (Adult and Juvenile Corals) across the Hawaiian Archipelago since 2013

Published by Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center | National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce | Metadata Last Checked: December 19, 2025 | Last Modified: 2020-01-01T00:00:00.000+00:00

NCRMP CORAL DEMOGRAPHIC DATA HAS NOW BEEN MERGED INTO A PACIFIC-WIDE METADATA RECORD -- PLEASE REFER TO https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/inport/item/71550 FOR MOST UPDATED DATA. 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) across the Hawaiian archipelago since 2013. 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. A two-stage stratified random sampling (StRS) design was employed to survey the coral reef ecosystems of the Hawaiian archipelago in 2013, 2016, and 2017 and starting in 2019 a one-stage StRS design was employed. The survey domain encompassed the majority of the mapped area of reef and hard bottom habitats in the 0Ã¢ÂÂ30 m depth range. The stratification scheme included island, reef zone, and depth (i.e., shallow: >0Ã¢ÂÂ6 m; mid-depth: >6Ã¢ÂÂ18 m; and deep: >18Ã¢ÂÂ30 m), habitat structure type, as well as reef zone (i.e., forereef, backreef, lagoon, and protected slope; the latter three only in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands). 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-level estimates and site-to-site comparisons should proceed with caution. The data were collected as part of the NOAA Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (PIFSC) and Ecosystem Sciences Division (ESD; formerly the Coral Reef Ecosystem Division) led National Coral Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP) missions around the Main Hawaiian Islands in 2013, 2016 and 2019, and the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands in 2016. Data collected as part of the 2014 and 2015 PapahÃÂnaumokuÃÂkea Marine National Monument funded research cruises in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands are also included. The latter are funded separately but are complementary to the ESD NCRMP-funded data.

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@type	dcat:Dataset
accessLevel	non-public
contactPoint	{ "fn": "Couch, Courtney S", "@type": "vcard:Contact", "hasEmail": "mailto:courtney.s.couch@noaa.gov" }
describedByType	application/octet-steam
description	NCRMP CORAL DEMOGRAPHIC DATA HAS NOW BEEN MERGED INTO A PACIFIC-WIDE METADATA RECORD -- PLEASE REFER TO https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/inport/item/71550 FOR MOST UPDATED DATA. 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) across the Hawaiian archipelago since 2013. 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. A two-stage stratified random sampling (StRS) design was employed to survey the coral reef ecosystems of the Hawaiian archipelago in 2013, 2016, and 2017 and starting in 2019 a one-stage StRS design was employed. The survey domain encompassed the majority of the mapped area of reef and hard bottom habitats in the 0Ã¢ÂÂ30 m depth range. The stratification scheme included island, reef zone, and depth (i.e., shallow: >0Ã¢ÂÂ6 m; mid-depth: >6Ã¢ÂÂ18 m; and deep: >18Ã¢ÂÂ30 m), habitat structure type, as well as reef zone (i.e., forereef, backreef, lagoon, and protected slope; the latter three only in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands). 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-level estimates and site-to-site comparisons should proceed with caution. The data were collected as part of the NOAA Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (PIFSC) and Ecosystem Sciences Division (ESD; formerly the Coral Reef Ecosystem Division) led National Coral Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP) missions around the Main Hawaiian Islands in 2013, 2016 and 2019, and the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands in 2016. Data collected as part of the 2014 and 2015 PapahÃÂnaumokuÃÂkea Marine National Monument funded research cruises in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands are also included. The latter are funded separately but are complementary to the ESD NCRMP-funded data.
distribution	[ { "@type": "dcat:Distribution", "title": "HAWAII2013_coralgenera.csv", "mediaType": "placeholder/value", "description": "List of coral genera surveyed in the Hawaiian archipelago in 2013", "downloadURL": "https://accession.nodc.noaa.gov/0159147", "describedByType": "application/octet-steam" }, { "@type": "dcat:Distribution", "title": "V0_CORAL_OBS_E_PRESENCE HAWAII 2016.csv", "mediaType": "placeholder/value", "description": "Presence / absence from coral demographic surveys of stratified random sites by the NOAA Coral Reef Ecosystem Program (CREP) conducted across the Hawaiian archipelago in 2016 (HA1606).", "downloadURL": "https://accession.nodc.noaa.gov/0159163", "describedByType": "application/octet-steam" }, { "@type": "dcat:Distribution", "title": "PIFSC_NTM-PIFSC-92_2018_SOP_Benthic.pdf", "mediaType": "placeholder/value", "description": "Winston M, Couch C, Ferguson M, Huntington B, Swanson D, Vargas-Ángel B. 2019. 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ERDDAP offers an easy-to-use, consistent way to request data: via the OPeNDAP standard. Many datasets can also be accessed via ERDDAP's Web Map Service (WMS). ERDDAP returns data in the common file format of your choice. ERDDAP offers all data as .html table, ESRI .asc and .csv, Google Earth .kml, OPeNDAP binary, .mat, .nc, ODV .txt, .csv, .tsv, .json, and .xhtml. ERDDAP can also return a .png or .pdf image with a customized graph or map. 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ERDDAP returns data in the common file format of your choice. ERDDAP offers all data as .html table, ESRI .asc and .csv, Google Earth .kml, OPeNDAP binary, .mat, .nc, ODV .txt, .csv, .tsv, .json, and .xhtml. ERDDAP can also return a .png or .pdf image with a customized graph or map. 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identifier	gov.noaa.nmfs.inport:36164
issued	2016-12-01T00:00:00.000+00:00
keyword	[ "743", "National Coral Reef Monitoring Program", "Numeric Data Sets > Biology", "EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Ecological Dynamics > Species Richness", "EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment", "EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment > Coral Colony Size and Condition", "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 > BioDiversity", "EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Marine Biology > Coral", "EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Marine Biology > Coral Communities", "CORAL", "CORAL - COLONY SIZE", "CORAL - SPECIES IDENTIFICATION", "survey", "survey - biological", "survey - swimmer/diver", "HI'IALAKAI", "Oscar Elton Sette", "CORAL REEF STUDIES", "Coral Reef Conservation Program", "National Coral Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP)", "US DOC; NOAA; NMFS; Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center; Ecosystem Sciences Division", "COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > Hawaii > Hawaii > Hawaii (21N160W0000)", "COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > Hawaii > Hawaii > Hawaii Island (19N155W0003)", "COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > Hawaii > Hawaii > Kauai Island (22N159W0001)", "COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > Hawaii > Hawaii > Molokai Island (21N157W0001)", "COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > Hawaii > Honolulu > French Frigate Shoals (24N166W0001)", "COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > Hawaii > Honolulu > Kure Atoll (28N178W0001)", "COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > Hawaii > Honolulu > Laysan Island (25N171W0001)", "COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > Hawaii > Honolulu > Lisianski Island (25N173W0001)", "COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > Hawaii > Honolulu > Maro Reef (25N170W0001)", "COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > Hawaii > Honolulu > Midway Atoll (28N177W0001)", "COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > Hawaii > Honolulu > Oahu (21N157W0003)", "COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > Hawaii > Honolulu > Pearl and Hermes Reef (27N176W0001)", "COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > Hawaii > Kauai > Niihau Island (21N160W0001)", "COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > Hawaii > Maui > Lanai Island (20N156W0002)", "COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > Hawaii > Maui > Maui Island (20N156W0004)", "COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > Hawaiian Islands (21N157W0027)", "OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > Central Pacific Ocean > Hawaiian Islands (21N157W0027)", "OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > Central Pacific Ocean > Hawaiian Islands > Hawaii > Hawaii (21N160W0000)", "OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > Central Pacific Ocean > Hawaiian Islands > Hawaii Island > Hawaii Island (19N155W0003)", "OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > Central Pacific Ocean > Hawaiian Islands > Kauai Island > Kauai Island (22N159W0001)", "OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > Central Pacific Ocean > Hawaiian Islands > Lanai Island > Lanai Island (20N156W0002)", "OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > Central Pacific Ocean > Hawaiian Islands > Maui Island > Maui Island (20N156W0004)", "OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > Central Pacific Ocean > Hawaiian Islands > Molokai Island > Molokai Island (21N157W0001)", "OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > Central Pacific Ocean > Hawaiian Islands > Niihau Island > Niihau Island (21N160W0001)", "OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > Central Pacific Ocean > Hawaiian Islands > Oahu Island > Oahu (21N157W0003)", "OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > Central Pacific Ocean > Northwestern Hawaiian Islands > French Frigate Shoals (24N166W0001)", "OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > Central Pacific Ocean > Northwestern Hawaiian Islands > Kure Atoll (28N178W0001)", "OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > Central Pacific Ocean > Northwestern Hawaiian Islands > Laysan Island (25N171W0001)", "OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > Central Pacific Ocean > Northwestern Hawaiian Islands > Lisianski Island (25N173W0001)", "OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > Central Pacific Ocean > Northwestern Hawaiian Islands > Maro Reef (25N170W0001)", "OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > Central Pacific Ocean > Northwestern Hawaiian Islands > Midway Atoll (28N177W0001)", "OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > Central Pacific Ocean > Northwestern Hawaiian Islands > Pearl and Hermes Reef (27N176W0001)", "Central Pacific Ocean", "North Pacific Ocean", "Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument", "CRED", "CREP", "Coral Belt Survey", "Coral Disease", "Coral Reef Ecosystem Division", "Coral Reef Ecosystem Program", "ESD", "Ecosystem Sciences Division", "PIFSC", "Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center", "RAMP", "REA", "Rapid Ecological Assessment", "Reef Assessment and Monitoring Program", "belt transect", "MHI", "Main Hawaiian Islands", "NWHI", "Northwestern Hawaiian Islands", "PMNM", "DOC/NOAA/NMFS/PIFSC > Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA, U.S. Department of Commerce", "Hawaiian Archipelago" ]
landingPage	https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/inport/item/36164
language	[]
license	https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/
modified	2020-01-01T00:00:00.000+00:00
publisher	{ "name": "Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center", "@type": "org:Organization" }
references	[ "https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/inportserve/waf/noaa/nmfs/pifsc/dmp/pdf/36164.pdf" ]
rights	otherRestrictions, unclassified
spatial	-154.8042,18.92598792,-160.2518,22.207664
temporal	2016-08-31T00:00:00+00:00/2016-09-27T00:00:00+00:00
title	National Coral Reef Monitoring Program: Stratified Random Surveys (StRS) of Coral Demography (Adult and Juvenile Corals) across the Hawaiian Archipelago since 2013