Abstract:
On May 9, 2006, NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA Fisheries Service) listed staghorn and elkhorn corals (Acropora cervicornis and A. palmata) as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). These two species qualified as ESA threatened species because there was evidence they have undergone substantial declines in abundance (from historic levels) throughout their ranges. NOAA Fisheries Service is now seeking to determine the extant spatial distribution of these two species throughout the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean to aid in the management and regulatory activities related to ESA listing. These data represent the potential locations of presence or absence for elkhorn coral (Acropora palmata) and staghorn coral (A. cervicornis).
Purpose:
The overarching goal is to provide NOAA Fisheries Service with information on the extant spatial distribution of acroporid corals throughout the Caribbean Sea to aid in management and regulatory activities related to their Endangered Species Act (ESA) listing. The purpose of these data is to visually represent the potential locations of presence or absence of Acropora spp. for GIS analysis and display.
Supplemental_Information:
Data submitted by investigators are converted into a series of flat files in dbf format with indices that show presence and true absence (where possible) of A. cervicornis and A. palmata for each U.S. State or Territory. True absence of an Acropora species means that an active search was made to locate the coral at the given GPS coordinates, but the species were not found there.
Theme:
Theme_Keyword_Thesaurus: NCEI Geoportal Filter
Theme_Keyword: CoRIS_Metadata
Theme:
Theme_Keyword_Thesaurus: CRCP Project
Theme_Keyword: Acropora Implementation Issues
Theme_Keyword: 2160
Theme:
Theme_Keyword_Thesaurus: ISO 19115 Topic Category
Theme_Keyword: biota
Theme_Keyword: 002
Theme_Keyword: environment
Theme_Keyword: 007
Theme:
Theme_Keyword_Thesaurus: CoRIS Discovery Thesaurus
Theme_Keyword: Geographic Information > Reef Locations
Theme:
Theme_Keyword_Thesaurus: CoRIS Theme Thesaurus
Theme_Keyword:
EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Coastal Processes > Coral Reefs > Coral Reef Ecology > Coral Cover
Theme_Keyword:
EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef Monitoring and Assessment
Theme:
Theme_Keyword_Thesaurus: None
Theme_Keyword: Acropora palmata
Theme_Keyword: Acropora cervicornis
Theme_Keyword: Endangered Species
Theme_Keyword: GIS
Theme_Keyword: staghorn coral
Theme_Keyword: elkhorn coral
Place:
Place_Keyword_Thesaurus: None
Place_Keyword: Caribbean
Place_Keyword: Puerto Rico
Place_Keyword: Virgin Islands
Place_Keyword: St. John
Place_Keyword: St. Thomas
Place_Keyword: St. Croix
Place_Keyword: Caribbean Sea
Place:
Place_Keyword_Thesaurus: CoRIS Place Thesaurus
Place_Keyword:
COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > Puerto Rico > Puerto Rico (18N066W0000)
Place_Keyword:
OCEAN BASIN > Atlantic Ocean > Caribbean Sea /North Atlantic Ocean > Puerto Rico > Puerto Rico (18N066W0000)
Place_Keyword:
OCEAN BASIN > Atlantic Ocean > Caribbean Sea > Virgin Islands > Virgin Islands > St. John (18N064W0011)
Place_Keyword:
COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > U. S. Virgin Islands > St. John > St. John (18N064W0011)
Place_Keyword:
COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > U. S. Virgin Islands > St. Thomas > St. Thomas (18N064W0033)
Place_Keyword:
OCEAN BASIN > Atlantic Ocean > Caribbean Sea > Virgin Islands > Leeward Islands > St. Thomas (18N064W0033)
Place_Keyword:
COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > U. S. Virgin Islands > St. Croix > St. Croix (17N064W0003)
Place_Keyword:
OCEAN BASIN > Atlantic Ocean > Caribbean Sea > Virgin Islands > Virgin Islands > St. Croix (17N064W0003)
Place:
Place_Keyword_Thesaurus: CoRIS Region
Place_Keyword: PR
Place_Keyword: USVI
Users be advised that the data identifies potential locations of presence of absence for Acropora spp. and does not definitively identify all locations of Acropora spp. To determine actual presence of Acropora spp., an in-water survey must be conducted.
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