On May 9, 2006, NOAA's National Marine Fisheries Service (NOAA Fisheries Service) listed staghorn and elkhorn corals (Acropora cervicornis and A. palmata) as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). These two species qualified as ESA threatened species because there was evidence they have undergone substantial declines in abundance (from historic levels) throughout their ranges. NOAA Fisheries Service is now seeking to determine the extant spatial distribution of these two species throughout the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean to aid in the management and regulatory activities related to ESA listing. These data represent the potential locations of presence or absence for elkhorn coral (Acropora palmata) and staghorn coral (A. cervicornis).

Presence or absence of acroporid corals marked by handheld GPS during snorkel or tow surveys of shallow water (<5m) reef habitats in the Upper Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary (USA)

This data set contains data from visual surveys by snorkelers using handheld GPS units to map extant live colonies of the threatened corals Acropora palmata and A. cervicornis in the upper Florida Keys. Appropriate habitat strata were targeted and prioritized from habitat maps in 2005. An initial survey was conducted in 2005-2007 of these reef areas. Follow-up surveys are being conducted in 2013-2015 to assess potential substantial changes in distribution and/or abundance in the same reef areas.

These data were collected by the NOAA Southeast Fisheries Science Center to document the presence or absence of Acropora spp at shallow reef sites in the Upper Florida Keys (USA). The presence or absence of acroporid corals was marked by handheld GPS during snorkel or tow surveys of shallow water (<5m) reef habitats in the Upper Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. The data are in GIS shape and layer files with associated attribute files, metadata files, and additional .pdf file outputs of the GIS data layers.

To maximize long term (>10yr) survival of nursery raised Acropora cervicornis corals, a map based tool was created that ranks locations in the Florida Acropora Critical Habitat based on climate vulnerability. Climate vulnerability is defined both in terms of exposure to future heat stress and the coral's sensitivity as resilience. Suitable sites are determined by a number of factors, suitable sites must be within the Acropora critical habitat and within the depth range 5-15m, with either hard bottom or coral present. Those possible locations are ranked based on projected climate change impacts and a resilience metric based on seven different indicators: coral cover, macroalgae cover, bleaching resistance, coral diversity, coral disease, herbivore biomass, and temperature variability. The data is presented as a Google Earth tool (zipped), maps, gridded netCDF files and are accompanied by a guidance document and a .csv file ranking all locations. The Google Earth tool contains five major layers: depth, turbidity, resilience, year of annual severe bleaching, and outplanting score. Bleaching projections included here use climate model data from 2006-2099.

This record refers to ongoing population surveys of corallivorous snail, C. abbreviata, and two of its coral hosts, Acropora palmata, and Montastraea spp at six reef sites (three open and three in no-take zones) in the upper Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. Surveys are conducted annually in Apr-May. A set number of colonies of each host is searched for snails. Each colony is measured and condition is noted (percent live tissue cover as well as incidence of disease or other conditions). All snails are enumerated, measured, and then returned to the colony on which they were found.

This record refers to ongoing population surveys of corallivorous snail, C. abbreviata, and two of its coral hosts, Acropora palmata, and Montastraea spp at six reef sites (three open and three in no-take zones) in the upper Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary. Surveys are conducted annually in Apr-May. A set number of colonies of each host is searched for snails. Each colony is measured and condition is noted (percent live tissue cover as well as incidence of disease or other conditions). All snails are enumerated, measured, and then returned to the colony on which they were found.