From Australian Oceans Data Network
JSON format icon JSON RDF format icon RDF ISO19115-3 XML

AIMS Long-term Monitoring Program: Visual Census Fish Data (Great Barrier Reef)

Created 23/06/2025

Updated 23/06/2025

JSON format icon JSON RDF format icon RDF ISO19115-3 XML

70 selected reefs throughout the Great Barrier Reef (GBR) are sampled in the AIMS Long-term Monitoring Project (LTMP). Underwater visual census is used to survey reef fishes on fixed transects (3 sites per reef, 5 x 50 m transects per site). The abundance and length of all diurnally active, non-cryptic fishes are recorded. A full list of species observed each year can be obtained on request. The overarching goal of LTMP fish surveys are to detect changes in reef fish communities over time at a regional scale, but also to examine the effectiveness of Marine Protected Areas. All fish species counted are largely non-cryptic, easily identified underwater and include both commercial and non-commercial taxa. Because surveys span the annual recruitment season, 0+ individuals are excluded from counts: these are distinguished from adults by their small size and often distinctive colouration. Abundance data for each fish species is subsequently summed over the five transects at each site on each reef to provide reasonable sample sizes for analysis and interpretation. Updated results of surveys can be found at: https://apps.aims.gov.au/reef-monitoring/reefs A subset of the data has been provided to the Ocean Biogeographic Information System (OBIS, http://www.iobis.org/explore/#/dataset/3936). Data have been used for the e-Atlas: http://eatlas.org.au/data/uuid/05bde62a-70ec-407b-b999-30cf369498af

Files and APIs

Additional Info

Field Value
Title AIMS Long-term Monitoring Program: Visual Census Fish Data (Great Barrier Reef)
Language eng
Licence Not Specified
Landing Page https://data.gov.au/data/dataset/a3dab6ab-906c-4d61-8c67-d9a52185331c
Contact Point
Australian Ocean Data Network
reception@aims.gov.au
Reference Period 28/02/2024
Geospatial Coverage
Map data © OpenStreetMap contributors
{
  "coordinates": [
    151.7789,
    -23.49845
  ],
  "type": "Point"
}
Data Portal Australian Oceans Data Network

Data Source

This dataset was originally found on Australian Oceans Data Network "AIMS Long-term Monitoring Program: Visual Census Fish Data (Great Barrier Reef)". Please visit the source to access the original metadata of the dataset:
https://catalogue.aodn.org.au/geonetwork/srv/eng/csw/dataset/aims-long-term-monitoring-program-visual-census-fish-data-great-barrier-reef