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National Coral Reef Monitoring Program: Assessing and Monitoring Cryptic Reef Diversity of Colonizing Marine Invertebrates using Autonomous Reef Monitoring Structure (ARMS) Deployed at Coral Reef Sites across American Samoa from 2012-04-03 to 2015-03-26 (NCEI Accession 0162468)

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Autonomous Reef Monitoring Structures (ARMS) are used to assess and monitor cryptic reef diversity of colonizing marine invertebrates in the Hawaiian and Mariana Archipelagos, American Samoa, and the Pacific Remote Island Areas. ARMS have been deployed and/or recovered on National Coral Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP) missions in American Samoa conducted in three year intervals by the Coral Reef Ecosystem Program (CREP) at the NOAA Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (PIFSC).

CREP has collaborated with other scientists from the Census of Marine Life (CoML) Census of Coral Reef Ecosystems (CReefs) to develop Autonomous Reef Monitoring Structures (ARMS). ARMS mimic the complexity of coral reefs to attract/collect colonizing invertebrates and provide a systematic, consistent, and comparable method to monitor cryptic reef diversity.

The key innovation of this method is that ARMS sample biodiversity over precisely the same surface area in the exact same manner. Thus, the use of ARMS is a systematic, consistent, and comparable method for monitoring the cryptobiota community over time.

At specific reef sites, divers enter the water and deploy and/or recover the ARMS unit. Each unit consists of 23 cm x 23 cm gray, type 1 PVC plates stacked in alternating series of 4 open and 4 obstructed layers and attached to a base plate of 35 cm x 45 cm which is affixed to the reef. They are designed to mimic the structural complexity of a reef and attract colonizing invertebrates.

Upon recovery, the ARMS unit is encapsulated, brought to the surface, and disassembled and processed on-board the research ship. Disassembled plates are photographed to document recruited sessile organisms and scraped clean and preserved in 95% ethanol for future DNA processing. Recruited motile organisms are sieved into 3 size fractions: 2 mm, 500 um, and 100 um. The 500 um and 100 um fraction is bulked and preserved in 95% ethanol for future DNA processing. The 2 mm fraction is sorted into morphospecies.
  • Cite as: Coral Reef Ecosystem Program; Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (2017). National Coral Reef Monitoring Program: Assessing and Monitoring Cryptic Reef Diversity of Colonizing Marine Invertebrates using Autonomous Reef Monitoring Structure (ARMS) Deployed at Coral Reef Sites across American Samoa from 2012-04-03 to 2015-03-26 (NCEI Accession 0162468). [indicate subset used]. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. Dataset. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/archive/accession/0162468. Accessed [date].
gov.noaa.nodc:0162468
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  • CRCP ARMS Cryptic Reef Diversity Pacific (download)
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Distribution Formats
  • Originator data format
Ordering Instructions Contact NCEI for other distribution options and instructions.
Distributor NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
+1-301-713-3277
NCEI.Info@noaa.gov
Dataset Point of Contact NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
ncei.info@noaa.gov
Time Period 2012-04-03 to 2015-03-26
Spatial Bounding Box Coordinates
West: -170.763
East: -168.138
South: -14.5593
North: -14.1774
Spatial Coverage Map
General Documentation
Associated Resources
  • National Coral Reef Monitoring Program: Assessing and monitoring cryptic reef diversity of colonizing marine invertebrates using autonomous reef monitoring structures (ARMS) deployed at coral reef sites across American Samoa
    • NCEI Collection
      Navigate directly to the URL for data access and direct download.
  • Coral Reef Conservation Program (2016). Documentation for NOAA's Coral Reef Conservation Program (CRCP) National Coral Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP) data archived at NCEI (NCEI Accession 0157633). NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. Dataset. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/archive/accession/0157633.
  • Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, 2020: National Coral Reef Monitoring Program: Assessing and Monitoring Cryptic Reef Diversity of Colonizing Marine Invertebrates using Autonomous Reef Monitoring Structure (ARMS) Deployed at Coral Reef Sites across American Samoa from 2012 to 2018, https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/inport/item/37505.
  • Parent ID (indicates this dataset is related to other data):
    • gov.noaa.nodc:NCRMP-ARMS-AmSam
Publication Dates
  • publication: 2017-05-19
Data Presentation Form Digital table - digital representation of facts or figures systematically displayed, especially in columns
Dataset Progress Status Complete - production of the data has been completed
Historical archive - data has been stored in an offline storage facility
Data Update Frequency As needed
Supplemental Information
Submission Package ID: LMJB9X

The DNA sequencing data described in the abstract were not submitted as part of this archival package.
Purpose The NOAA National Coral Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP) details a long term approach to provide an ecosystem perspective via monitoring climate, fish, benthic, and socioeconomic variables in a consistent and integrated manner. The NCRMP is intended to coordinate various NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program (CRCP) biological, physical, and human dimensions activities into a cohesive NOAA-wide effort. Through the implementation of the NCRMP, NOAA will be able to clearly and concisely communicate results of national-scale monitoring to national, state, and territorial policy makers, resource managers, and the public on a periodic basis.
Use Limitations
  • accessLevel: Public
  • Distribution liability: NOAA and NCEI make no warranty, expressed or implied, regarding these data, nor does the fact of distribution constitute such a warranty. NOAA and NCEI cannot assume liability for any damages caused by any errors or omissions in these data. If appropriate, NCEI can only certify that the data it distributes are an authentic copy of the records that were accepted for inclusion in the NCEI archives.
Dataset Citation
  • Cite as: Coral Reef Ecosystem Program; Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (2017). National Coral Reef Monitoring Program: Assessing and Monitoring Cryptic Reef Diversity of Colonizing Marine Invertebrates using Autonomous Reef Monitoring Structure (ARMS) Deployed at Coral Reef Sites across American Samoa from 2012-04-03 to 2015-03-26 (NCEI Accession 0162468). [indicate subset used]. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. Dataset. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/archive/accession/0162468. Accessed [date].
Cited Authors
Collaborators
Contributors
Resource Providers
Points of Contact
Publishers
Acknowledgments
  • Related Funding Agency: NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program
Theme keywords NODC DATA TYPES THESAURUS NODC OBSERVATION TYPES THESAURUS WMO_CategoryCode
  • oceanography
CoRIS Discovery Thesaurus
  • Numeric Data Sets > Biology
CoRIS Theme Thesaurus
  • EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment
  • EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment > Autonomous Reef Monitoring Structure (ARMS)
  • EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment > In Situ Biological
  • EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Coastal Processes > Coral Reefs > Coral Reef Ecology
  • EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Marine Biology > Brachyura
  • EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Marine Biology > Cryptobiota
  • EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Marine Biology > Marine Invertebrates
  • EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Marine Biology > Marine Invertebrates > Biodiversity
  • EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Marine Biology > Marine Invertebrates > Census
  • EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Marine Biology > Marine Invertebrates > Macroinvertebrates
Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Science Keywords
Data Center keywords NODC COLLECTING INSTITUTION NAMES THESAURUS NODC SUBMITTING INSTITUTION NAMES THESAURUS Contributing Data Centers
  • CRED
  • CREP
  • Coral Reef Ecosystem Division
  • Coral Reef Ecosystem Program
  • PIFSC
  • Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center
Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Data Center Keywords
Platform keywords NODC PLATFORM NAMES THESAURUS Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Platform Keywords ICES/SeaDataNet Ship Codes
Instrument keywords NODC INSTRUMENT TYPES THESAURUS Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Instrument Keywords
Place keywords NODC SEA AREA NAMES THESAURUS CoRIS Place Thesaurus
  • COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > American Samoa > American Samoa > American Samoa (14S170W0000)
  • COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > American Samoa > American Samoa > Ofu Island (14S169W0013)
  • COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > American Samoa > American Samoa > Olosega Island (14S169W0014)
  • COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > American Samoa > American Samoa > Rose Atoll (14S168W0001)
  • COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > American Samoa > American Samoa > Tutuila Island (14S170W0016)
  • OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > American Samoa > American Samoa (14S170W0000)
  • OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > American Samoa > Rose Atoll (14S168W0001)
  • OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > American Samoa > Tutuila Island (14S170W0016)
  • OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > Manu'a Group > Ofu Island (14S169W0013)
  • OCEAN BASIN > Pacific Ocean > Manu'a Group > Olosega Island (14S169W0014)
Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Location Keywords
Project keywords NODC PROJECT NAMES THESAURUS CRCP Project
  • 743
  • National Coral Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP)
Keywords NCEI ACCESSION NUMBER
Use Constraints
  • Cite as: Coral Reef Ecosystem Program; Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center (2017). National Coral Reef Monitoring Program: Assessing and Monitoring Cryptic Reef Diversity of Colonizing Marine Invertebrates using Autonomous Reef Monitoring Structure (ARMS) Deployed at Coral Reef Sites across American Samoa from 2012-04-03 to 2015-03-26 (NCEI Accession 0162468). [indicate subset used]. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. Dataset. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/archive/accession/0162468. Accessed [date].
Access Constraints
  • Use liability: NOAA and NCEI cannot provide any warranty as to the accuracy, reliability, or completeness of furnished data. Users assume responsibility to determine the usability of these data. The user is responsible for the results of any application of this data for other than its intended purpose.
Fees
  • In most cases, electronic downloads of the data are free. However, fees may apply for custom orders, data certifications, copies of analog materials, and data distribution on physical media.
Lineage information for: dataset
Processing Steps
  • 2017-05-19T00:15:04Z - NCEI Accession 0162468 v1.1 was published.
Output Datasets
Lineage information for: dataset
Processing Steps
  • Data Type: INVERTEBRATE SPECIES (measured); Units: count; Observation Type: laboratory analysis; Sampling Instrument: visual observation.
  • Data Type: SPECIES IDENTIFICATION (measured); Units: count; Observation Type: laboratory analysis; Sampling Instrument: visual observation.
  • Data Type: SPECIES IDENTIFICATION - COUNT (measured); Units: count; Observation Type: laboratory analysis; Sampling Instrument: visual observation.
Acquisition Information (collection)
Instrument
  • visual observation
Platform
  • NOAA Ship Hi'ialakai
Last Modified: 2024-02-21T13:40:56Z
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