The Caribbean Coastal Marine Productivity (CARICOMP) Program is a Caribbean-wide research and monitoring network of 27 marine laboratories, parks, and reserves in 17 countries. This data set includes data collected from 42 stations at 29 sites in the Caribbean from 1993 to 1998. Line transects were used to determine the abundance of hard and soft corals, algae, sponges, urchins, and abiotic material such as substrate type.
CARICOMP is a unified, long-term, Caribbean-wide initiative to identify the factors responsible for sustaining mangrove wetland, seagrass meadow, and coral reef productivity, to examine the interaction between these systems, and to determine the role of terrestrial and oceanic influences on them. The principal goals of the program are to determine the dominant influences on coastal productivity, to monitor for ecosystem change, and ultimately to discriminate human disturbance from long-term natural variation in coastal systems over the range of their distribution.
The sites and stations contributing to this data set are: Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands - Andes Reef; Bonaire, N.A. - Barcadera Reef 1 and 2; Barbados - Bellairs North and South Reef; Parque Nacional del Este, Dominican Republic - Boca Chica; Turneffe Islands Atoll, Belize - Calabash Cay 1 and 2; Carrie Bow Cay, Belize - Carrie Bow Cay 1 and 2; Sabana-Camaguey Archipelago, Cuba - Cayo Coco A and B; Parque Nacional, Morrocoy, Venezuela - Cayo Sombrero 1 and 2; Bahia de Chengue, Parque Nacional Tayrona, Colombia - Chengue Bay C1 and C2; Discovery Bay, Jamaica - Discovery Bay Fore Reef 1 and 2; Tobago - Eastern Buccoo Reef 1 and 2; Parque Nacional del Este, Dominican Republic - El Penon; San Salvador, Bahamas - Fernandez Bay 1 and 2; Great Corn Island, Nicaragua; Bermuda - Hog Breaker Reef; Isla de Providencia Y San Andres, Colombia - La Iguana 2B; Saba, N.A. - Ladder Labyrinth 1 and 2; Tobago - Lighthouse Reef; La Parguera, Puerto Rico - Media Luna Reef; Tobago - Outer Buccoo Reef; Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands - Pinnacle Reef; Parque Nacional, Morrocoy, Venezuela - Playa Caiman 1 and 2; Puerto Morelos, Mexico - Puerto Morelos Reef; Isla de Margarita, Venezuela - Punta Ballena 1 and 2; Curacao, N.A. - Spaanse Water Reef 1 and 2; La Parguera, Puerto Rico - Turrumote Reef; Bermuda - Twin Breaker Reef; Isla de Providencia Y San Andres, Colombia - Wild Life 1B Note on this metadata record: Higher level taxonomy of species was completed, and species synonyms were noted, FOR THIS METADATA RECORD ONLY at the NODC using the Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) available at http://www.itis.usda.gov/index.html, in conjunction with additional taxonomic and museum references as required. No originator data has been altered at the NODC; higher level taxonomy is added at the NODC to selected biological metadata records as an aid to search engines which utilize metadata. Resource Description: NODC Accession #0000501
ground condition
A species list is provided in the original data files, but not all species were observed during the study. Only those species identified during the surveys are included in this metadata record. Higher level taxonomy of species was completed, and species synonyms were noted, FOR THIS METADATA RECORD ONLY at the NODC using the Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) in conjunction with additional taxonomic and museum references as required. No originator data has been altered at the NODC; higher level taxonomy is added at the NODC to selected biological metadata records as an aid to search engines which utilize metadata.
Unknown
Author recorded specimens to genus and species; higher level taxonomy was completed at the NODC as an aid to search engines.
Use of data is subject to the acknowledgement of CARICOMP as the source.
P.O. BOX 12
CARICOMP Network Institutions
See methods in orginator data files
Data collected under the CARICOMP program were collated with accompanying documentation and are available online at both the CARICOMP website (http://isis.uwimona.edu.jm/centres/cms/caricomp/caricomp_main.html) and through the archives of the National Oceanographic Data Center (http://www.nodc.noaa.gov) A companion report is: Kjerfve, Bjorn (Editor). CARICOMP - Caribbean coral reef, seagrass and mangrove sites. Coastal region and small island papers 3. United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, Paris, France, December 31, 1998. Available through the World Wide Web at: http://www.unesco.org/csi/pub/papers/kjerfve.htm
1315 East-West Highway, SSMC3, 4th Floor
Phone/e-mail/FAX/voice mail message
NOAA makes no warranty regarding these data, expressed or implied, nor does the fact of distribution constitute such a warranty. NOAA and NODC cannot assume liability for any damages caused by any errors or omissions in these data, nor as a result of the failure of these data to function on a particular system.
Microsoft Access 97 or compatible
Descriptions of studies, species lists, and data tables from participating CARICOMP institutions.
Download through via NODC's "Data Direct" system at the NODC homepage at www.nodc.noaa.gov or contact NODC for custom order. (When requesting data from the NODC, the desired data set may be referred to by the 7-digit number given in the RESOURCE DESCRIPTION field of this metadata record)
Contact the NODC User Services Group via phone/FAX/E-mail: nodc.services@noaa.gov
NOAA/NODC E/OC1, SSMC3 4th Floor, 1315 East-West Highway
Phone/FAX attention to:/e-mail/write
