Long Term Monitoring of the Coral Reef Organisms of Biscayne National Park; Final Report: 1989-1990 Field Seasons

Porter, James; Meier, Ouida

Deliverable: First and Second Year Line Transect Data and Analysis. In 1989 a coral reef monitoring project was established in Biscayne National Park in order to measure changes in coral reef community structure over time and to provide information about the natural resource to park management. Two reef sites in Biscayne National Park were chosen for intensive, ongoing study: Ball Buoy Reef, at the southern end of the Park, and Triumph Reef, towards the northern end. Methods employed at each site were: (1) a 1000 m2 visual swim survey to assess species richness and the species present in the area; (2) three permanent line transects, 25 m long each, (3) a permanent 13.5 m2 photostation, and (4) a 100m2 haphazard photographic survey to test the representativeness of the 13.5 m2 photostation. In 1990, we added to each station: {1) two additional permanent 25m long line transects; and (2) three permanent video transects, utilizing three of the five existing line transects. This volume of information contains the analysis of the line transects monitored during the 1989 and 1990 field seasons. The transects sampled by this method were permanently fixed by stainless steel eyepins, similar to those used for moorings, that were cemented into holes drilled into solid dead substrate at the endpoints of each transect. We expect that the transects can be reliably relocated for some years into the future. A full exposition of our transect counting and analysis methods are provided in Volume 7 of this Report.