National Coral Reef Monitoring Program: Assessment of coral reef fish communities in Puerto Rico from 2016-06-07 to 2017-09-01 (NCEI Accession 0174525)

Fish data collection for the National Coral Reef Ecosystem Monitoring Program (NCRMP) uses the stationary point count method (7.5m radius cylinder). This method collects and reports information on species composition, density, size structure, abundance and derived metrics (e.g., species richness, diversity). Data are collected using a 2-stage, stratified random survey design in hardbottom and coral reef habitats less than 30m in depth. Data provided in this dataset are from around Puerto Rico, including the islands of Vieques, Culebra, Mona and Desecheo. Lead agencies involved include the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) and NOAA Southeast Fisheries Science Center (SEFSC), in collaboration with partners HJR Reefscaping, Inc., CSS, the University of Puerto Rico, Puerto Rico Department of Natural and Environmental Resources, and the University of the Virgin Islands. Three datasets are provided under the stationary point count fish protocols and are distributed as one compiled package: (1) Analysis Ready dataset, (2) Boatlog/Station dataset, and (3) raw QAQC’d sample data file. The methodology used for this survey can be found in the point count fish protocols. All three datasets contain data fields on general station information (survey strata, depth, rugosity). Each of these data tables contain additional survey-specific data fields. For complete information and descriptions of attributes and data fields for all data tables, refer to the data dictionaries.