coral reef ecology exam 3

Question 0

What are some basic reef monitoring principles?

Answer 0

• obtain data on basic environmental parameters alongside abundance of major benthic groups. This helps to assess the extent of the cause of change
• Have both qualitative and quantitative records, e.g. Photographic records as well as transect/quadrat data
• sample enough to pick up changes, but not so often that sampling is destructive or inefficient

Question 1

What are two specific objectives might reef monitoring be carried out for?

Answer 1

Any of these acceptable:

• to determine the present status of the reef and natural rates of change
• to detect changes in the abundance of a particular group of organisms
• to measure the effects of stress
• to determine if a specific management action is working

Question 2

What are ways which you can locate your site of study again?

Answer 2

By using landmarks and or GPS. Remember guy in boat making a V shape w/palm tree and house*

Question 3

What device do you use to measure turbidity?

Answer 3

a Secchi disc

Question 4

How do you measure sedimentation rates?

Answer 4

With sediment traps

Question 5

How do you measure salinity?

Answer 5

With a refractometer

Question 6

What do pilot studies help identify?

Answer 6

Optimum sampling size

Question 7

What should you ALWAYS record during data collection?

Answer 7

Date, time, location, depth, water conditions, personnel, study site, species, and method.

Question 8

What can be used underwater for paper to record data?

Answer 8

Mylar sheets

Question 9

What do you use to write on and keep your data organized?

Answer 9

A clip board and or a writing cylinder.

Question 10

White type of writing utensil do you use while collecting underwater data?

Answer 10

A traditional or mechanical pencil, but mechanical is better, especially the ones made for kids that you can insert the broken/already used lead into the bottom and a new lead will come out the top.

Question 11

Why is the use of a lanyard important in collecting underwater data?

Answer 11

It helps keep all of your data recording utensils and tools together/prevents you from loosing your data, can attach to your scuba gear and is waterproof.

Question 12

What are some examples of important monitoring gear?

Answer 12

A tape measurer, a compass, a mallet and metal bars, nails, metal tags w/numbers.

Question 13

Can you glue things underwater? If so what type of glue do you use?

Answer 13

Yes you can and you use home-made cement and just add water or can buy a product called splash zone 2-part epoxy compound.

Question 14

What is a Manta tow survey, and what is it useful for?

Answer 14

A manta tow survey is when a diver is being pulled by a boat close to the surface and the diver is attached to/or holding onto a board where all the data utensils are attached.
It is useful for a specified distance or time and for estimating some variable over that distance or time such as % live coral, algae, gorgonians, disease, or bleaching

Question 15

What is single species monitoring?

Answer 15

Where you measure and record the size and certain damage to a single species (such as acropora palmata) colony over time. You set up a permanent plot by this colony and tag it, give it a number and or both and photograph it each time you collect data. Some damage/stressors overtime you may want to record are damselfish damage, snail predation, parrotfish bites, disease, mortality, fish fecal damage, and bleaching.

Question 16

How do you identify colonies in photos of a single species monitor? Describe this device.

Answer 16

You use a 3 1/4 inch by 12 inch PVC board painted grey to reduce glare in photos. Metric ruler is readable in close up photos. the board provides a 30cm scale in wide shots. You tack individual letters and numbers on the front to indicate colony or sample number in the photo. The letters/numbers you don’t use are stored on the back. A small fishing weight is added to the back to eliminate buoyancy and provide balance and stability.

Question 17

What is a belt transect?

Answer 17

A transect where there is a certain length of a line of measuring tape and from this tape on both sides you study the organisms that are 5m from the line on both sides from benthic to surface.

Question 18

What are point intercept transects?

Answer 18

A transect where a tape measurer is laid close to a reef contour and the cover of each reef category is recorded. Used predominately to measure coral cover.

Question 19

What are chains useful for measuring?

Answer 19

Percent coral cover and rugosity/architecture.

Question 20

How do you use point intercept transects for quadrat placement?

Answer 20

A snorkels or diver swims down the transect line and every five meters counts %cover of species.

Question 21

What is Bohnsack Bannerot’s RVC?

Answer 21

A Reef Visual Census. This is a type of fish survey where there is a 15 meter line and a diver records the fish species seen along that line and may even measure the length of the fish. This study area goes from the benthos all the way to the surface.

Question 22

What is the procedure for an RVC?

Answer 22

• first 5 minutes: list all species seen w/o recording data
• next 10 minutes:
  - count and measure the # of fish of each species
  - large schools: estimate # by 10’s 20’s 100’s
  - if <10 record individual fork lengths for all
  - if >10 record mean, min, and max

Question 23

What is a RVC APT? What is it used for?

Answer 23

An RVC APT (All Purpose Tool) is a reference device for measuring habitat vertical relief, estimating fish lengths and location of the center and outer edge of the sample cylinder. A 30cm ruler is on one side attached to a 1 meter PVC pipe with 10cm increments marked on it.

Question 24

What are the RVC target habitats?

Answer 24

• isolated reef structure
• contiguous reef, spur and groove
• contiguous reef, other
• reef rubble

Question 25

What are random swim surveys useful for? What are they not so useful for?

Answer 25

They are useful for measuring species richness and relative abundance. They are not so useful for easily calculating population density.

Question 26

How is recruitment monitoring carried out?

Answer 26

By drilling a terra cotta block with a large metal screw into a coral bed. Over time this terra cotta block will be used to determine recruitment patterns because live coral will start growing on it.

Question 27

What is Reef Check?

Answer 27

The largest international coral reef monitoring program involving recreational divers and marine scientists. Has over 1500 trained volunteer divers surveying over 250 sites.

Question 28

What are three major coral stressors?

Answer 28

Any acceptable

• climate change (temperature and ph)
• reduced herbivore
• disease
• runoff

Question 29

Local or global stressors are controlled more easily?

Answer 29

Local

Question 30

Which stressors must be addressed for long-term conservation of ecosystem?

Answer 30

Global stressors

Question 31

At what age do most corals reproduce?

Answer 31

5 years

Question 32

True or false

Corals do not have refuge from ocean warming at higher latitudes?

Answer 32

False

They do have refuge at higher latitudes