The USGS Coral Reef Ecosystems Studies project (https://coastal.er.usgs.gov/crest/) provides science that helps resource managers tasked with the stewardship of coral reef resources. This data release contains data on coral-growth rates for Orbicella sp. coral colonies grown at five sites on the Florida Keys reef tract from 2013 to 2015, survey data for census-based carbonate budgeting at Hen and Chickens Reef (Islamorada, Florida) collected in 2017, and time-series photographs taken of permanent markers used to measure reef erosion at Hen and Chickens Reef in 1998 and 2015. The time-series photographs document a loss in coral-reef elevation over 17 years at this site. The data will be used to inform resource managers of the capacity for future growth (or loss) of reefs dominated by genus Orbicella in the Florida Keys so that the reef ecosystem might be better understood and managed. The datasets included here were interpreted in Kuffner and others (2019). Kuffner, I.B., Toth, L.T., Hudson, J.H., Goodwin, W.B., Stathakopoulos, A., Bartlett, L.A. and Whitcher, E.M. (2019), Improving estimates of coral reef construction and erosion with in situ measurements. Limnol Oceanogr. doi:10.1002/lno.11184

The USGS Coral Reef Ecosystems Studies project (https://coastal.er.usgs.gov/crest/) provides science that helps resource managers tasked with the stewardship of coral reef resources. This data release contains data on coral-growth rates and time-series photographs taken of colonies of the elkhorn coral, Acropora palmata, grown at five sites on the Florida Keys reef tract from Spring 2018 to Autumn 2019. The data will be used to inform resource managers of the capacity for restoration and growth of this threatened species of coral along 350 kilometers of the Florida reef tract to aid species recovery throughout the western Atlantic. The datasets included here were interpreted in Kuffner and others (2020). Kuffner, I.B., Stathakopoulos, A., Toth, L.T., and Bartlett, L.A. In press. Reestablishing a stepping-stone population of the threatened coral, Acropora palmata, to aid regional recovery. Endangered Species Research.

The USGS Coral Reef Ecosystems Studies project (https://coastal.er.usgs.gov/crest/) provides science that helps resource managers tasked with the stewardship of coral reef resources. This data release contains data on coral-growth rates and time-series photographs taken of colonies of the elkhorn coral, Acropora palmata, grown at five sites on the Florida Keys reef tract from Spring 2018 to Autumn 2019. The data will be used to inform resource managers of the capacity for restoration and growth of this threatened species of coral along 350 kilometers of the Florida reef tract to aid species recovery throughout the western Atlantic. The datasets included here were interpreted in Kuffner and others (2020). Kuffner, I.B., Stathakopoulos, A., Toth, L.T., and Bartlett, L.A. In press. Reestablishing a stepping-stone population of the threatened coral, Acropora palmata, to aid regional recovery. Endangered Species Research.

This data release contains time-series photographs taken of corals and coral habitats in the Florida Keys between 1959 and 2015 at Carysfort Reef and Grecian Rocks (a total of six sites). The original intent was to show coral reef recovery after Hurricane Donna devastated the area in 1960. Corals, especially elkhorn and staghorn coral, grew prolifically after the storm until the late 1970s, then began to decline, with the maximum period of decline centered around 1983 and 1984. These time-series photographs, showing the same individual coral colonies year after year, document the decline in coral health observed at these locations, mirroring patterns seen region-wide across the western Atlantic. A selection of the photographs was previously published (in low resolution) in Lidz and others (2006), wherein findings and conclusions related to these data were discussed. Lidz, B. H., Reich, C. D., Peterson, R. L., and Shinn, E. A. (2006). New maps, new information: Coral reefs of the Florida Keys. Journal of Coastal Research, 22(2), 260-282, https://doi.org/10.2112/05A-0023.1

This data release contains time-series photographs taken of corals and coral habitats in the Florida Keys between 1959 and 2015 at Carysfort Reef and Grecian Rocks (a total of six sites). The original intent was to show coral reef recovery after Hurricane Donna devastated the area in 1960. Corals, especially elkhorn and staghorn coral, grew prolifically after the storm until the late 1970s, then began to decline, with the maximum period of decline centered around 1983 and 1984. These time-series photographs, showing the same individual coral colonies year after year, document the decline in coral health observed at these locations, mirroring patterns seen region-wide across the western Atlantic. A selection of the photographs was previously published (in low resolution) in Lidz and others (2006), wherein findings and conclusions related to these data were discussed. Lidz, B. H., Reich, C. D., Peterson, R. L., and Shinn, E. A. (2006). New maps, new information: Coral reefs of the Florida Keys. Journal of Coastal Research, 22(2), 260-282, https://doi.org/10.2112/05A-0023.1

This archive package contains long-term calcification data from coral cores extracted from Cheeca Rocks and Little Conch Reef in the Florida Keys as part of the NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program’s (CRCP’s) National Coral Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP). Corals annually form bands within their skeletons that manifest as high-density lines perpendicular to their growth axes. By precisely measuring the spacing and density of these bands, scientists can obtain a record of linear extension and skeletal density, respectively. Linear extension and skeletal density are, in turn, used to calculate annual calcification. Cores are collected by diver, underwater, using a pneumatic drill rig. Once removed, the small (~5 cm diameter) lesions are plugged with epoxy, and the resulting cores are analyzed using computed tomography (CT). Coral core data included herein were collected at long-term monitoring sites by the Acidification Calcification and Coral Reef Ecosystems Team (ACCRETE), based at NOAA’s Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML).

This archive package contains long-term calcification data from coral cores extracted from Cheeca Rocks and Little Conch Reef in the Florida Keys as part of the NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program’s (CRCP’s) National Coral Reef Monitoring Program (NCRMP). Corals annually form bands within their skeletons that manifest as high-density lines perpendicular to their growth axes. By precisely measuring the spacing and density of these bands, scientists can obtain a record of linear extension and skeletal density, respectively. Linear extension and skeletal density are, in turn, used to calculate annual calcification. Cores are collected by diver, underwater, using a pneumatic drill rig. Once removed, the small (~5 cm diameter) lesions are plugged with epoxy, and the resulting cores are analyzed using computed tomography (CT). Coral core data included herein were collected at long-term monitoring sites by the Acidification Calcification and Coral Reef Ecosystems Team (ACCRETE), based at NOAA’s Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML).

Six replicate fragments from each of twelve A. cervicornis genotypes from the University of Miami (UM) and twelve genotypes from the Nova Southeastern University (NSU) nurseries were collected and brought to the Experimental Reef Lab (ERL). At ERL, the growth rates of all the fragments were assessed using buoyant weight. For the UM genotypes, the maximum photosynthetic yield of the algal symbionts (Fv/Fm) was additionally measured.

This data release contains new subannual Strontium/Calcium (Sr/Ca) and annual linear extension records from a colony of the massive coral, Orbicella faveolata. The colony was collected live from the Marquesas Keys, Florida (FL) in August 1980 from core MK1. The coral Sr/Ca paleothermometer can provide a powerful proxy for centennial-scale sea-surface temperature (SST) variability in the Caribbean/Atlantic Ocean region.

This data release contains new subannual Strontium/Calcium (Sr/Ca) and annual linear extension records from a colony of the massive coral, Orbicella faveolata. The colony was collected live from the Marquesas Keys, Florida (FL) in August 1980 from core MK1. The coral Sr/Ca paleothermometer can provide a powerful proxy for centennial-scale sea-surface temperature (SST) variability in the Caribbean/Atlantic Ocean region.