http://lod.bco-dmo.org/id/dataset/956712
eng; USA
utf8
dataset
Highest level of data collection, from a common set of sensors or instrumentation, usually within the same research project
Biological and Chemical Oceanography Data Management Office (BCO-DMO)
Unavailable
508-289-2009
WHOI MS#36
Woods Hole
MA
02543
USA
info@bco-dmo.org
http://www.bco-dmo.org
Monday - Friday 8:00am - 5:00pm
For questions regarding this resource, please contact BCO-DMO via the email address provided.
pointOfContact
2025-03-21
ISO 19115-2 Geographic Information - Metadata - Part 2: Extensions for Imagery and Gridded Data
ISO 19115-2:2009(E)
Octocoral colony heights measured during transect surveys at six sites on the south shore of St. John, US Virgin Islands during July and August of 2024
2025-09-29
publication
2025-09-29
revision
BCO-DMO Linked Data URI
2025-09-29
creation
http://lod.bco-dmo.org/id/dataset/956712
Howard Lasker
State University of New York at Buffalo
principalInvestigator
Peter J. Edmunds
California State University Northridge
principalInvestigator
Christopher Wells
Bowdoin College
principalInvestigator
Biological and Chemical Oceanography Data Management Office (BCO-DMO)
Unavailable
508-289-2009
WHOI MS#36
Woods Hole
MA
02543
USA
info@bco-dmo.org
http://www.bco-dmo.org
Monday - Friday 8:00am - 5:00pm
For questions regarding this resource, please contact BCO-DMO via the email address provided.
publisher
Cite this dataset as: Lasker, H., Edmunds, P. J., Wells, C. (2025) Octocoral colony heights measured during transect surveys at six sites on the south shore of St. John, US Virgin Islands during July and August of 2024. Biological and Chemical Oceanography Data Management Office (BCO-DMO). (Version 1) Version Date 2025-09-29 [if applicable, indicate subset used]. http://lod.bco-dmo.org/id/dataset/956712 [access date]
Methods and Sampling: <p><strong>Survey design:</strong><br />
All sites were located at 6 to 9 meters depth.</p>
<p>Censuses at East Cabritte, Europa, and Tektite were based on 50x10m areas that were arbitrarily selected and permanently marked with stainless steel eyebolts at the corners of the sites. A total of six transect lines, also marked with eyebolts, were laid out at 10 m intervals. All octocorals present in 1 x 1 m quadrats along the 10-meter long transects were scored. The transect identifier "transect_pos" has values 0, 10, 20, 30, 40 or 50 which represent position in meters within the 50x10 survey area corresponding to each of the 6 transects (e.g. 20 = 20m).</p>
<p>The census at Booby Rock was conducted using transects that were randomly placed along a 50 m line that was arbitrarily placed on a constant depth contour. The transect identifier (Transect_Position) for transects at Booby Rock refers to position along the 50 m line.</p>
<p>Yawzi and Deep Tektite surveys consist of 20 quadrats on each of 3 transects placed approximately 10 m apart.&nbsp;Yawzi transects were censused over two field trips, July/August and September.</p>
<p><strong>Sampling methods:</strong><br />
Identifications were based on traits visible in the field, and samples of representative colonies were collected for further analysis in cases in which field identification was uncertain (Field_Species_Code). Sclerites from those samples were examined for species identification.</p>
<p>Two height measures are present: height of living tissue, which only includes that part of the axis with living tissue and total height which is the distance from the base to the tip of the farthest branch from the base (i.e. not necessarily perpendicular to the substrate), regardless of whether the tips or base had living tissue. (Only colonies with some living tissue were measured). All measures were rounded to the nearest cm with the exception of 5 cm which only includes colonies &gt;= 5 cm. Starting in 2016, measures less than 5 cm reflect colonies with thick branches which could only have &lt;5 cm heights due to partial mortality.<br />
<br />
Revised species codes were used for colonies whose identification was subsequently changed or for species which were pooled with morphologically similar species that could not reliably be differentiated in the field.&nbsp; &nbsp;See Parameters and supplemental file "species_codes.csv" for more information about Field_Species_Code and Revised_Species_Code.<br />
<br />
<strong>Notes about identifications/codes:&nbsp;</strong><br />
<br />
Octocoral adults are defined as individuals &gt;= 5 cm height.&nbsp; With height determined to the nearest cm</p>
<p>LINES WITH NO SPECIES ENTRY IDENTIFY QUADRATS IN WHICH NO OCTOCORALS WERE PRESENT-&nbsp; This is also noted in the comment columns&nbsp;as "No colonies present."<br />
<br />
Field identifications of&nbsp;Eunicea mammosa, E. laxispica and E. succinea&nbsp; are sometimes difficult, thus, for analysis purposes, these species are lumped as a single group (Revised_Species_Code "ems").<br />
<br />
Field identifications of&nbsp; Pseudoplexaura flagellosa and P. wagenaari&nbsp;are difficult, thus, for analysis purposes these species are lumped as a single group (Revised_Species_Code "pfpw").<br />
<br />
Field_Species_Code aa2 is an undescribed Antillogorgia sp. that is very similar to A. americana and is lumped with A. americana for analysis purposes.<br />
<br />
Field identifications of&nbsp;Muricea muricata and M. atlantica&nbsp;are difficult. Thus, for analysis purposes, these species are lumped as a single group (Revised_Species_Code "mma").<br />
<br />
<strong>Notes about&nbsp;Comments columns in this dataset:</strong><br />
&nbsp;&nbsp;<br />
Millepora present: Indicates millepora overgrowing naked axis<br />
Cyanobacteria present: Indicates Cyanobacteria growing on the colony.<br />
Spo or Sponge indicates sponge growing on the colony, most commonly on bare axis<br />
"pale" or "bleached" indicates partial or complete bleaching of some branches on the colony<br />
"ophio" or "Ophiothela" indicates the presence of Ophiothela mirabilis on the colony&nbsp;<br />
oyster indicates the presence of oyster(s) growing on the axis of the colony<br />
"fallen" indicates the colony has fallen over but there is living tissue. Heights are based on the length of the living tissue on the substrate measured as if the colony were erect.<br />
"Ophiothrix" indicates the presence&nbsp;of an "Ophiothrix sp." on the colony<br />
"damselfish" indicates the colony was in a damselfish territory and some branches were being "farmed" by the damselfish<br />
<br />
See "Parameters" section for more information about each column in this dataset.</p>
Funding provided by NSF Division of Ocean Sciences (NSF OCE) Award Number: OCE-1756381 Award URL: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/show-award?AWD_ID=1756381
onGoing
Howard Lasker
State University of New York at Buffalo
716-645-4870
Department of Geology 126 Cooke Hall
Buffalo
NY
14260-1350
USA
hlasker@buffalo.edu
pointOfContact
Peter J. Edmunds
California State University Northridge
818-677-2502
Department of Biology 18111 Nordhoff Street
Northridge
CA
91330-8303
USA
peter.edmunds@csun.edu
pointOfContact
Christopher Wells
Bowdoin College
christopher.wells.23@gmail.com
pointOfContact
asNeeded
Dataset Version: 1
Unknown
line
Census_Year
Date
Site
latitude
longitude
Transect_Position
Meter_on_transect
Side_of_transect
Meter_Side
Quadrat
Genus
Field_Species_Code
Revised_Species_Code
Revised_species
Maximum_height_from_base
Height_of_living_tissue
Basal_damage
Colony_damage_score
Number_of_Cyphoma
Comments_1
Comments_2_sample_tag_num
Lowest_Taxon_for_Revised_Species
Lowest_Taxon_LSID_for_Revised_Species
Genus_LSID
theme
None, User defined
No BCO-DMO term
year
date
site
latitude
longitude
site description
sample description
genus
taxon_code
verbatim identification
height
abundance
comments
taxon
Life Science Identifier (LSID)
featureType
BCO-DMO Standard Parameters
otherRestrictions
otherRestrictions
Access Constraints: none. Use Constraints: Please follow guidelines at: http://www.bco-dmo.org/terms-use Distribution liability: Under no circumstances shall BCO-DMO be liable for any direct, incidental, special, consequential, indirect, or punitive damages that result from the use of, or the inability to use, the materials in this data submission. If you are dissatisfied with any materials in this data submission your sole and exclusive remedy is to discontinue use.
Collaborative Research: Pattern and process in the abundance and recruitment of Caribbean octocorals
https://osprey.bco-dmo.org/project/752508
Collaborative Research: Pattern and process in the abundance and recruitment of Caribbean octocorals
<p><em>NSF Award Abstract:</em><br />
Coral reefs are exposed to a diversity of natural and anthropogenic disturbances, and the consequences for ecosystem degradation have been widely publicized. However, the reported changes have been biased towards fishes and stony corals, and for Caribbean reefs, the most notable example of this bias are octocorals ("soft corals"). Although they are abundant and dominate many Caribbean reefs, they are rarely included in studies due to the difficulty of both identifying them and in quantifying their abundances. In some places there is compelling evidence that soft corals have increased in abundance, even while stony corals have become less common. This suggests that soft corals are more resilient than stony corals to the wide diversity of disturbances that have been impacting coral corals. The best coral reefs on which to study these changes are those that have been studied for decades and can provide a decadal context to more recent events, and in this regard the reefs of St. John, US Virgin Islands are unique. Stony corals on the reefs have been studied since 1987, and the soft corals from 2014. This provides unrivalled platform to evaluate patterns of octocoral abundance and recruitment; identify the patterns of change that are occurring on these reefs, and identify the processes responsible for the resilience of octocoral populations. The project will extend soft coral monitoring from 4 years to 8 years, and within this framework will examine the roles of baby corals, and their response to seafloor roughness, seawater flow, and seaweed, in determining the success of soft corals. The work will also assess whether the destructive effects of Hurricanes Irma and Maria have modified the pattern of change. In concert with these efforts the project will be closely integrated with local high schools at which the investigators will host marine biology clubs and provide independent study opportunities for their students and teachers. Unique training opportunities will be provided to undergraduate and graduate students, as well as a postdoctoral researcher, all of whom will study and work in St. John, and the investigators will train coral reef researchers to identify the species of soft corals through a hands-on workshop to be conducted in the Florida Keys.</p>
<p>Understanding how changing environmental conditions will affect the community structure of major biomes is the ecological objective defining the 21st century. The holistic effects of these conditions on coral reefs will be studied on shallow reefs within the Virgin Islands National Park in St. John, US Virgin Islands, which is the site of one of the longest-running, long-term studies of coral reef community dynamics in the region. With NSF-LTREB support, the investigators have been studying long-term changes in stony coral communities in this location since 1987, and in 2014 NSF-OCE support was used to build an octocoral "overlay" to this decadal perspective. The present project extends from this unique history, which has been punctuated by the effects of Hurricanes Irma and Maria, to place octocoral synecology in a decadal context, and the investigators exploit a rich suite of legacy data to better understand the present and immediate future of Caribbean coral reefs. This four-year project will advance on two concurrent fronts: first, to extend time-series analyses of octocoral communities from four to eight years to characterize the pattern and pace of change in community structure, and second, to conduct a program of hypothesis-driven experiments focused on octocoral settlement that will uncover the mechanisms allowing octocorals to more effectively colonize substrata than scleractinian corals on present day reefs. Specifically, the investigators will conduct mensurative and manipulative experiments addressing four hypotheses focusing on the roles of: (1) habitat complexity in distinguishing between octocoral and scleractinian recruitment niches, (2) the recruitment niche in mediating post-settlement success, (3) competition in algal turf and macroalgae in determining the success of octocoral and scleractian recruits, and (4) role of octocoral canopies in modulating the flux of particles and larvae to the seafloor beneath. The results of this study will be integrated to evaluate the factors driving higher ecological resilience of octocorals versus scleractinians on present-day Caribbean reefs.</p>
<p>This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.</p>
Octocoral Community Dynamics
largerWorkCitation
project
eng; USA
oceans
-64.7299
-64.7103
18.3028
18.3167
2024-07-17
2024-08-06
St. John, US Virgin Islands
0
BCO-DMO catalogue of parameters from Octocoral colony heights measured during transect surveys at six sites on the south shore of St. John, US Virgin Islands during July and August of 2024
Biological and Chemical Oceanography Data Management Office (BCO-DMO)
Unavailable
508-289-2009
WHOI MS#36
Woods Hole
MA
02543
USA
info@bco-dmo.org
http://www.bco-dmo.org
Monday - Friday 8:00am - 5:00pm
For questions regarding this resource, please contact BCO-DMO via the email address provided.
pointOfContact
http://lod.bco-dmo.org/id/dataset-parameter/956737.rdf
Name: line
Units: unitless
Description: <p>line number used to restore list to original order if it is sorted</p>
http://lod.bco-dmo.org/id/dataset-parameter/956738.rdf
Name: Census_Year
Units: unitless
Description: <p>year in which the data were collected</p>
http://lod.bco-dmo.org/id/dataset-parameter/956739.rdf
Name: Date
Units: unitless
Description: <p>Date on which data were collected</p>
http://lod.bco-dmo.org/id/dataset-parameter/956740.rdf
Name: Site
Units: unitless
Description: <p>Site name (Census location name)</p>
http://lod.bco-dmo.org/id/dataset-parameter/956741.rdf
Name: latitude
Units: decimal degrees
Description: <p>Site latitude</p>
http://lod.bco-dmo.org/id/dataset-parameter/956742.rdf
Name: longitude
Units: decimal degrees
Description: <p>Site longitude</p>
http://lod.bco-dmo.org/id/dataset-parameter/956743.rdf
Name: Transect_Position
Units: unitless
Description: <p>Transect position. At Grootpan Bay, Europa, and Tektite transects positioned in a marked 50x10m area, with stainless steel eye bolts marking each corner, and each of the 6 transect. Transects were 10m long across the 50x10m area, with transect positions at 0m; 10m; 20m; 30m; 40m; 50m. - Transect position at Booby Rock corresponds to the randomly selected meter mark along a transect line laid parallel to the 7 m depth contour. Transect positions at Deep Tektite and Yawzi are numbered 1 to 3, corresponding to parallel transects that had been set up approximately 10 m from each other.</p>
http://lod.bco-dmo.org/id/dataset-parameter/956744.rdf
Name: Meter_on_transect
Units: unitless
Description: <p>From 0m to 9m. 1x1m quadrats were positioned randomly along the 10 m transect. The values refer to the position of the "shoreward" edge of the quadrat. Thus "0" refers to the quadrat placed between the 0 and 1 meter marks</p>
http://lod.bco-dmo.org/id/dataset-parameter/956745.rdf
Name: Side_of_transect
Units: unitless
Description: <p>Side of the transect tape (Left or Right), orientation looking towards open ocean, with the nearest shore to the back.</p>
http://lod.bco-dmo.org/id/dataset-parameter/956746.rdf
Name: Meter_Side
Units: unitless
Description: <p>Concatenated Meter-on-transect and Side-of-transect values.</p>
http://lod.bco-dmo.org/id/dataset-parameter/956747.rdf
Name: Quadrat
Units: unitless
Description: <p>Quadrat identifier</p>
http://lod.bco-dmo.org/id/dataset-parameter/956748.rdf
Name: Genus
Units: unitless
Description: <p>Genus of the category provided in column Revised_species.</p>
http://lod.bco-dmo.org/id/dataset-parameter/956749.rdf
Name: Field_Species_Code
Units: unitless
Description: <p>Code used for initial species designation in the field. See more information in supplemental species_codes.csv</p>
<p> </p>
http://lod.bco-dmo.org/id/dataset-parameter/956750.rdf
Name: Revised_Species_Code
Units: unitless
Description: <p>Octocorals species acronyms (revised).</p>
http://lod.bco-dmo.org/id/dataset-parameter/956751.rdf
Name: Revised_species
Units: unitless
Description: <p>Identification category associated with the Revised_Species_Code, includes taxonomic name and may also include category description such as "Briareum asbestinum (encrusting)". Species that could not be reliably distinguished in the field are lumped into groups composed of 2 or 3 species.</p>
<p> </p>
http://lod.bco-dmo.org/id/dataset-parameter/956752.rdf
Name: Maximum_height_from_base
Units: centimeters (cm)
Description: <p>Total height. Maximum distance from the base of the octocoral colony until the farthest tips of the longest branch regardless of whether there was living tissue on the branch. The measurement was not necessarily perpendicular to the substrate. All measures rounded to the nearest cm.</p>
http://lod.bco-dmo.org/id/dataset-parameter/956753.rdf
Name: Height_of_living_tissue
Units: centimeters (cm)
Description: <p>Height of Living Tissue (cm): Maximum distance from the base of the octocoral colony to the farthest tips of the longest branch with living tissue (i.e. not necessarily perpendicular to the substrate). All measures rounded to the nearest cm with the exception of 5 cm which only includes colonies >= 5 cm. Measures less than 5 cm reflect colonies with thick branches which could only have <5 cm heights due to partial mortality.</p>
http://lod.bco-dmo.org/id/dataset-parameter/956754.rdf
Name: Basal_damage
Units: centimeters (cm)
Description: <p>Basal damage. height (cm) from the base of the colony to living tissue. This value is 0.0 for colonies that have no damage to their base.</p>
http://lod.bco-dmo.org/id/dataset-parameter/956755.rdf
Name: Colony_damage_score
Units: unitless
Description: <p>Damage score. Damage = 1 when < 25% of the colony have injuries, Damage = 2 when injuries are in > 25% but < 50% of the colony , Damage = 3 when injuries are > 50% of the colony but < 75%, and Damage = 4 when a colony has injuries in > 75% of the colony.</p>
http://lod.bco-dmo.org/id/dataset-parameter/956756.rdf
Name: Number_of_Cyphoma
Units: unitless
Description: <p>Number of Cyphoma spp. present on the colony. Unless noted in Comments individuals are C. gibbosum per colony</p>
http://lod.bco-dmo.org/id/dataset-parameter/956757.rdf
Name: Comments_1
Units: unitless
Description: <p>Comments (See Methods & Sampling section for more information)</p>
http://lod.bco-dmo.org/id/dataset-parameter/956758.rdf
Name: Comments_2_sample_tag_num
Units: unitless
Description: <p>Sample number for colonies from which a 2-4 cm fragment was excised for sclerite-based identification.</p>
http://lod.bco-dmo.org/id/dataset-parameter/956759.rdf
Name: Lowest_Taxon_for_Revised_Species
Units: unitless
Description: <p>Lowest identifiable taxon for the category provided in "Revised_species" column. For example, revised species code "mma" with Revised_species label "Muricea muricata/atlantica" has the lowest taxon as "Muricea." The Lowest_Taxon_for_Revised_Species for "Briareum asbestinum (encrusting)" is "Briareum asbestinum."</p>
http://lod.bco-dmo.org/id/dataset-parameter/956760.rdf
Name: Lowest_Taxon_LSID_for_Revised_Species
Units: unitless
Description: <p>Life Science Identifier (LSID) for Lowest_Taxon_for_Revised_Species</p>
http://lod.bco-dmo.org/id/dataset-parameter/956761.rdf
Name: Genus_LSID
Units: unitless
Description: <p>Life Science Identifier (LSID) for the name in the Genus column</p>
GB/NERC/BODC > British Oceanographic Data Centre, Natural Environment Research Council, United Kingdom
Biological and Chemical Oceanography Data Management Office (BCO-DMO)
Unavailable
508-289-2009
WHOI MS#36
Woods Hole
MA
02543
USA
info@bco-dmo.org
http://www.bco-dmo.org
Monday - Friday 8:00am - 5:00pm
For questions regarding this resource, please contact BCO-DMO via the email address provided.
pointOfContact
https://osprey.bco-dmo.org/dataset/956712/data/download
download
onLine
dataset
<p><strong>Survey design:</strong><br />
All sites were located at 6 to 9 meters depth.</p>
<p>Censuses at East Cabritte, Europa, and Tektite were based on 50x10m areas that were arbitrarily selected and permanently marked with stainless steel eyebolts at the corners of the sites. A total of six transect lines, also marked with eyebolts, were laid out at 10 m intervals. All octocorals present in 1 x 1 m quadrats along the 10-meter long transects were scored. The transect identifier "transect_pos" has values 0, 10, 20, 30, 40 or 50 which represent position in meters within the 50x10 survey area corresponding to each of the 6 transects (e.g. 20 = 20m).</p>
<p>The census at Booby Rock was conducted using transects that were randomly placed along a 50 m line that was arbitrarily placed on a constant depth contour. The transect identifier (Transect_Position) for transects at Booby Rock refers to position along the 50 m line.</p>
<p>Yawzi and Deep Tektite surveys consist of 20 quadrats on each of 3 transects placed approximately 10 m apart.&nbsp;Yawzi transects were censused over two field trips, July/August and September.</p>
<p><strong>Sampling methods:</strong><br />
Identifications were based on traits visible in the field, and samples of representative colonies were collected for further analysis in cases in which field identification was uncertain (Field_Species_Code). Sclerites from those samples were examined for species identification.</p>
<p>Two height measures are present: height of living tissue, which only includes that part of the axis with living tissue and total height which is the distance from the base to the tip of the farthest branch from the base (i.e. not necessarily perpendicular to the substrate), regardless of whether the tips or base had living tissue. (Only colonies with some living tissue were measured). All measures were rounded to the nearest cm with the exception of 5 cm which only includes colonies &gt;= 5 cm. Starting in 2016, measures less than 5 cm reflect colonies with thick branches which could only have &lt;5 cm heights due to partial mortality.<br />
<br />
Revised species codes were used for colonies whose identification was subsequently changed or for species which were pooled with morphologically similar species that could not reliably be differentiated in the field.&nbsp; &nbsp;See Parameters and supplemental file "species_codes.csv" for more information about Field_Species_Code and Revised_Species_Code.<br />
<br />
<strong>Notes about identifications/codes:&nbsp;</strong><br />
<br />
Octocoral adults are defined as individuals &gt;= 5 cm height.&nbsp; With height determined to the nearest cm</p>
<p>LINES WITH NO SPECIES ENTRY IDENTIFY QUADRATS IN WHICH NO OCTOCORALS WERE PRESENT-&nbsp; This is also noted in the comment columns&nbsp;as "No colonies present."<br />
<br />
Field identifications of&nbsp;Eunicea mammosa, E. laxispica and E. succinea&nbsp; are sometimes difficult, thus, for analysis purposes, these species are lumped as a single group (Revised_Species_Code "ems").<br />
<br />
Field identifications of&nbsp; Pseudoplexaura flagellosa and P. wagenaari&nbsp;are difficult, thus, for analysis purposes these species are lumped as a single group (Revised_Species_Code "pfpw").<br />
<br />
Field_Species_Code aa2 is an undescribed Antillogorgia sp. that is very similar to A. americana and is lumped with A. americana for analysis purposes.<br />
<br />
Field identifications of&nbsp;Muricea muricata and M. atlantica&nbsp;are difficult. Thus, for analysis purposes, these species are lumped as a single group (Revised_Species_Code "mma").<br />
<br />
<strong>Notes about&nbsp;Comments columns in this dataset:</strong><br />
&nbsp;&nbsp;<br />
Millepora present: Indicates millepora overgrowing naked axis<br />
Cyanobacteria present: Indicates Cyanobacteria growing on the colony.<br />
Spo or Sponge indicates sponge growing on the colony, most commonly on bare axis<br />
"pale" or "bleached" indicates partial or complete bleaching of some branches on the colony<br />
"ophio" or "Ophiothela" indicates the presence of Ophiothela mirabilis on the colony&nbsp;<br />
oyster indicates the presence of oyster(s) growing on the axis of the colony<br />
"fallen" indicates the colony has fallen over but there is living tissue. Heights are based on the length of the living tissue on the substrate measured as if the colony were erect.<br />
"Ophiothrix" indicates the presence&nbsp;of an "Ophiothrix sp." on the colony<br />
"damselfish" indicates the colony was in a damselfish territory and some branches were being "farmed" by the damselfish<br />
<br />
See "Parameters" section for more information about each column in this dataset.</p>
Specified by the Principal Investigator(s)
* Sheet 1 "Adult_Surveys" of submitted file "2024_St John_adult_censuses for BCO-DMO.xlsx" was imported into the BCO-DMO data system as the main table for this dataset. Table will appear as Data File: 956712_v1_st-john-octocoral-height-2024.csv (along with other download format options).
* Column names adjusted to conform to BCO-DMO naming conventions designed to support broad re-use by a variety of research tools and scripting languages. [Only numbers, letters, and underscores. Can not start with a number]
* Date converted to ISO 8601 format
* Site name in the data table was revised from "Yawzi" to "Yawzi Point" as described in the provided site list and for consistency with other datasets. Latitude and Longitude joined into the octocoral height data table using this site list (joined on site name).
* World Register of Marine Species taxa match tool used (on 2025-03-21) to verify the correct spelling of species names were used and to match them to a Life Science Identifier (LSID). Not all matched the currently accepted name which may change over time. However all names were matched to identifiers for curation purposes. Incorrect spellings of species names were brought to the attention of the data submitter and were corrected in the octocoral height data:
The BCO-DMO data manager made two changes in the octocoral height data table 956712_v1_st-john-octocoral-height-2024.csv which was reviewed and confirmed by the data submitter.
Spelling of name: "Plexaura kukenthali"
corrected to: "Plexaura kuekenthali" (urn:lsid:marinespecies.org:taxname:290798) which is the currently accepted name of the junior synonym "Plexaura homomalla f. kuekenthali Moser, 1921" (see more at World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) https://www.marinespecies.org/aphia.php?p=taxdetails&id=290798
Category: "Eunicea lacinata"
corrected to: "Eunicea laciniata" (urn:lsid:marinespecies.org:taxname:283250)
Since some species categories are pooled species groups, additional columns added for lowest taxon in the revised species code categories were added. The LSID for that taxon were added to the data table. LSIDs for the Genus column were also added.
Supplemental tables:
species_codes.csv
* The species code table was provided to BCO-DMO with name "HRL_revised--species_codes_table2.csv" (on 2025-09-26). It was renamed for clarity and brevity.
* Column names with spaces were replaced with underscores.
* Names were matched at the World Register of Marine species and the corresponding Life Science Identifier (LSID) were added (additional columns added: Lowest_taxon_for_category,Lowest_taxon_for_category_LSID).
site_list.csv
* This site list was provided to BCO-DMO on 2025-09-26.
* Longitude for Booby Rock changed from 64.7103 to -64.7103.
QA check:
All names presented in the BCO-DMO dataset are exact matches to names registered at the World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS). Some names are currently unaccepted synonyms (as of 2025-09-29). Accepted names change over time so please consult WoRMS and other authoritative sources which provides information for the name including current status and any synonyms.
Specified by BCO-DMO Data Managers
asNeeded
7.x-1.1
Biological and Chemical Oceanography Data Management Office (BCO-DMO)
Unavailable
508-289-2009
WHOI MS#36
Woods Hole
MA
02543
USA
info@bco-dmo.org
http://www.bco-dmo.org
Monday - Friday 8:00am - 5:00pm
For questions regarding this resource, please contact BCO-DMO via the email address provided.
pointOfContact