Status of Coral Reefs of the World 2000

Status of Coral Reefs of Australasia
MONITORINGOFTHEGBR
As a federal government research institute adjacent to the Great Barrier Reef, the
Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS) is concerned with studying many aspects
of coral reefs, but one specific task is the continued assessment of the health of the
reefs: the AIMS Long-term Monitoring Program on the GBR. The objective is to monitor
regional status and trends of selected organisms on the reefs with the results
contributing significantly to fulfilling the reporting requirements associated with World
Heritage listing of the GBR. Each year, 48 ‘core’ reefs are visited, selected on their
position across the continental shelf (there are very clear differences in reef
communities on the coast – ocean gradient) and by latitude. Marked permanent
transects are placed in one habitat, the NE slopes of the reefs. These are surveyed for
benthic organisms using underwater video and 191 species of reef fishes are counted
on the transects. The perimeters of the core reefs and of about 50 other reefs are
surveyed by manta tow to record densities of COTS and to estimate reef-wide coral
cover. Extensive quality control procedures are in place, and outlined in Standard
Operating Procedure documents (SOPs) that are reviewed regularly. Observers are
cross-calibrated at frequent intervals, and specialised data-entry programmes are used
to help extract information from the video records and to check the data as they are
entered. These include statistical data checking for unlikely values. Methodological
studies are also an important part of the program. Much emphasis is given to reporting
via the Internet [www.aims.gov.au/reef-monitoring]. Preliminary reports emphasising
COTS are posted within a few days of each survey, and interactive data summaries are
available, which include the most up to date information. There are pages dealing
with particular issues such as COTS and coral bleaching. The program produces
annual Status Reports, which are also available via the Internet along with SOPs and
other documentation. Many aspects of reporting, particularly statistical analyses and
graphs, are generated automatically, and the program produces scientific papers
describing the large scale patterns revealed in the monitoring data. The monitoring
team have also been involved in considerable training of people in many countries for
the GCRMN. Staff of the program includes 6 graduate biologists in the field team, a
database administrator, a biostatistician and a coral reef biologist; all this costs more
than US$1.5 million per year.
large area and there is a project linking real-time records from automatic weather stations
run by AIMS with NOAA-NESDIS satellite SST data as part of the ‘Bleaching Hotspots’
program to identify locations at risk of coral bleaching.
There are also monitoring programmes at Ningaloo Reef, Scott Reef and the Rowley Shoals,
Lord Howe and the Solitary Is. There is a wide gap across much of far northern Australia
from the northern quarter of the GBR to the Pilbarra in Western Australia where there is no
monitoring and little baseline information. Australian government funding policies favour
community-based monitoring programmes in both terrestrial and marine environments.
While this approach has a number of potential benefits, it remains untested as a method of
producing reliable long-term data on reef ecosystems.
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