Kalaupapa National Historical Park marine fish monitoring program trend report for 2006–2010: Pacific Island Network
Brown E, Lee SJ, Tice K. 2015. Kalaupapa National Historical Park marine fish monitoring program trend report for 2006–2010: Pacific Island Network. Natural Resource Report. NPS/KALA/NRR—2015/1026. National Park Service. Fort Collins, Colorado
Kalaupapa National Historical Park (NHP) is located on the north shore of the island of Moloka'i and encompasses a wide variety of habitats from submerged marine resources to lowland coastal, mesic, and rainforest habitats as well as three offshore islands. The marine boundary of the park extends a quarter mile offshore around the park shoreline and encompasses approximately 2,000 acres. Kalaupapa NHP is one of four parks within the Inventory and Monitoring (I&M) Program of the Pacific Islands Network (PACN) where marine Vital Signs (i.e. an indicator of physical, chemical, biological elements or ecosystem processes selected to represent the overall health or condition of natural resources within parks) for the fish and benthic communities are monitored by peer-reviewed standardized protocols. The objective of I&M PACN Marine Fish Monitoring Protocol at Kalaupapa NHP is to annually determine the density and size of reef fishes at sites randomly selected on hard substrata between the 10 and 20 m depths (Brown et al. 2011b). From 2006-2010, a total of 150 transects (the sampling unit), each 25 m in length, were sampled. A split panel sampling design was used with 30 transects sampled annually. Fifteen transects were randomly established in 2006 as permanent transects and subsequently surveyed on an annual basis. The remaining 15 temporary transects were randomly selected each year and surveyed only in that year. Data collection consisted of a visual count and size estimation of all fishes within 25 x 5 m underwater belt transects. Scientific divers were used to conduct these surveys and focused on all diurnal or day-active fish species. This report includes the status and trends of the fish populations observed at all 150 transects at Kalaupapa NHP from 2006-2010 as determined by implementation of the I&M PACN Benthic Marine Community Monitoring Protocol (Brown et al. 2011b).
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Brown, Eric; Lee, Sylvester; Tice, Kimberly
- Date of Issue
- 2015-09
- Publisher
- National Park Service
- Units
- KALA , NRSS , PACN
- Keywords
- Biomass, Density, Diversity, Fish Monitoring, Fish Populations, Marine Fish, Marine Fish Monitoring Report, Species Richness, Trend Analysis
- Subjects
- Ecological Framework: Biological Integrity | Focal Species or Communities | Marine Communities , Ecological Framework: Biological Integrity | Focal Species or Communities | Fishes