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As a low-lying coastal nation, the Republic of the Marshall Islands is at the forefront of exposure to climate change impacts. The Republic of the Marshall Islands has a strong dependence on natural resources and biodiversity not only for food and income but also for culture and livelihood. However, these resources are threatened by rising sea levels and associated coastal hazards (storm surges, saltwater intrusion, erosion, etc.). High-quality data for atoll ‘ridge to reef’ (land and ocean) areas are needed to provide remote communities with the tools and strategies to make adaptation efforts before disasters occur. Although the Republic of the Marshall Islands’ National Strategic Plans recognize the need to...
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ArcGIS layer package of relative classifications (low to high) for six resilience indicators and two anthropogenic stressors and a map of final relative resilience scores for 78 sites in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands. The six resilience indicators are: bleaching resistance, coral diversity, coral recruitment, herbivore biomass, macroalgae cover and temperature variability. The two anthropogenic stressors are fishing access and nutrients and sediments. The resilience score map compares sites across all four of the surveyed islands: Saipan, Tinian, Aguijan, and Rota.
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In 2007, a phase shift from corals to corallimorpharians (CM) was documented at Palmyra Atoll, Line Islands, centered around a shipwreck. Subsequent surveys revealed CM to be overgrowing the reef benthos, including corals and coralline algae, potentially placing coral ecosystems in the atoll at risk. This prompted the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the lead management agency of the atoll, to remove the shipwreck. Subsequent surveys showed reversal of spread of CM around the ship impact site. We explain patterns of spread of the CM in terms of life history and local currents and show with a pilot study that pulverized bleach may be an effective tool to eradicate CM on a local scale. If applied strategically, particularly...
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Spatial surveys of water column physical properties were acquired with a conductivity-temperature-depth (CTD) profiler for four days in February 2015 and one day in July 2015 off the north coast of the island of Tutuila, American Samoa in support of a study on the coastal circulation patterns within and in the vicinity of the National Park of American Samoa.
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Projected wave climate trends from WAVEWATCH3 model output were used as input for nearshore wave models (for example, SWAN) for the main Hawaiian Islands to derive data and statistical measures (mean and top 5 percent values) of wave height, wave period, and wave direction for the recent past (1996-2005) and future projections (2026-2045 and 2085-2100). Three-hourly global climate model (GCM) wind speed and wind direction output from four different GCMs provided by the Coupled Model Inter-Comparison Project, phase 5 (CMIP5), were used as boundary conditions to the physics-based WAVEWATCH3 numerical wave model for the area encompassing the main Hawaiian islands. Two climate change scenarios for each of the four GCMs...
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This project was designed to use climate models to produce projections of changes in sea temperatures and ocean chemistry for coastal marine areas in Micronesia as well as reports that describe the outlook of culturally important marine sites in Guam and CNMI. The projections and maps were expected show what the current state of climate science suggests the future holds for marine areas in Micronesia if we continue to use fossil fuels aggressively. These projections of sea conditions will become the foundation of outlook reports for Tumon Bay in Guam, Lao Lao Bay and Saipan Lagoon in Saipan, and northern Tinian Island. The selected areas are among the most important sites for recreation in Guam and CNMI and, as...
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Coral reefs are some of the most biologically rich and economically valuable ecosystems in the world. They provide food, fishing, and recreation opportunities for millions of people, protect coastlines from storms, and shelter thousands of plant and animal species. However, climate change is contributing to the degradation of coral reefs in two significant ways: warming temperature and increasing acidification of ocean waters. Scientists are actively working to gather more specific information about how these factors will impact coral reef ecosystems. The purpose of this study was to identify differences in climate vulnerability among three important reef-building coral species in the Florida Keys. Researchers...
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Coral reefs provide numerous ecosystem goods and services critical to human well-being (e.g., protection from storms and floods, food, income, recreation, and cultural practices), but they are threatened by growing human pressures and climate change. Resource managers must make complex decisions when developing adaptation plans that are cost-effective and maintain coral reef functions while still allowing for human use and development. Through this project, scientists developed a decision-support tool for managers to (1) identify the areas that provide the most critical coral reef services (i.e., supply the most value to humans) as well as the areas of reef most threatened, and (2) compare the effects of reef management...
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The St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center is one of three science centers that conduct research within the USGS Coastal and Marine Hazards Research Program. The USGS St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center has a primary focus of investigating processes related to coastal and marine environments and their societal implications related to natural hazards, resource sustainability, and environmental change.
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Pacific Island societies value, depend on, and actively manage terrestrial and marine ecosystems for the multiple benefits they provide, including those associated with plant and animal abundance, resilience to natural disasters, and the flow of water, soil, and nutrients. New ecosystem service models developed for Pacific Island landscapes now integrate land-to-sea connections, allowing us to assess how land-based management actions and threats (e.g. changes to climate and land cover) affect ecosystem benefits, from ridge to reef. Affecting actual change on the ground, however, depends on how scientific information is accessed and used by managers and other decision makers who have the capacity to influence ecosystem...
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Episodic runoff carries suspended sediment to the nearshore environment, where it blocks light used for photosynthesis, smothers corals, inhibits coral recruitment, and triggers increases in macroalgae. Even small rainfalls create visible plumes over a few hours. Sediment affects coastal user enjoyment by deteriorating both ecosystem quality and visibility. Sources of erosion include unimproved roads, fallow and active agricultural fields, disturbed forests, local development, and streambanks. This is the primary output dataset from this project, which mapped bank erosion hotspots, constructed a reconnaissance sediment budget for the West Maui watersheds, and constructed a calibrated decision-support model capable...
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Coral reefs are sometimes called “rainforests of the sea” because of their immense biological diversity and economic value. While coral reefs are sensitive to changes in their environment such as altered temperature or pollution, some reefs are more resilient, or able to recover from disturbance more quickly, than others. The overarching objective of this project was to gather information on coral reef resilience and vulnerability to climate change that could inform coastal management decision-making in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). Scientists collaborated with local managers to survey reefs at 78 locations throughout the CMNI and evaluate indicators of resilience, such as numbers of juvenile...
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Coral reefs are threatened by climate change because warming ocean temperatures are causing corals to bleach (i.e. lose the algae that provides them with the majority of their energy) which can lead to coral starvation and death. Local environmental conditions can contribute to either the resilience or susceptibility of corals to the global stress of climate change. One such factor is the local nutrient input from terrestrial sources. Corals near remote islands with abundant seabird populations have been found to have increased growth rates and are more resilient to bleaching events than corals near islands without seabirds. Seabirds supply the reef with ample nutrients via their guano (seabird excreted waste) and...
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Assessments that incorporate areas from land-to-ocean, or “ridge-to-reef", are critical to examine how land-use practices are altering stream discharge and nearshore marine health and productivity. Stream systems in both Alaska and Hawaiʻi are expected to experience changes in water quality associated with changing environmental conditions and increased human-use. Watershed systems throughout the Hawaiian Islands are currently experiencing impacts from climate change that affect groundwater recharge and surface runoff, erosion, and total streamflow, and cause degradation of nearshore marine habitats. This study can provide useful insight for both Alaska and Hawaiʻi by providing resources on how patterns in stream...
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Underwater video was collected in March 2014 in the nearshore waters of Faga`alu Bay on the island of Tutuila, American Samoa, as part of the U.S. Geological Survey Coastal and Marine Geology Program's Pacific Coral Reefs Project. This dataset includes 2,119 still images extracted from the video footage every 10 seconds and an Environmental Systems Research Institute (ESRI) shapefile of individual still-image locations with benthic habitat interpretations for each image.
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Coral reefs are declining worldwide due to a combination of stressors, but climate induced ocean warming is the biggest threat. Warming oceans lead to ‘coral bleaching’ and frequent death, compromising the structure and function of reefs. The increasing frequency and severity of bleaching means that human intervention is needed to support the adaptive capacity of reefs. Most proposed interventions involve the movement of corals, but the outcomes of these strategies are almost completely unknown. To bridge this knowledge gap, this project aims to assess how restoration to enhance resilience within coral reefs can effectively reduce climate change threats while also gaining a better understanding of socio-cultural...
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Coral reef ecosystems serve as natural coastal defenses, support local island economies, and are important sources of food for coastal communities. However, an increase in coral bleaching events, and the associated declines of coral cover and diversity, are highly likely as sea surface temperatures continue to rise. Multiple coral bleaching events between 2013 and 2017 have already impacted the reefs of Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, resulting in the loss of more than a third of shallow living-coral cover, with some species groups experiencing greater than 90% mortality. This devastating series of bleaching events strengthened existing partnerships between federal and local agencies and...
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Coral reefs are critical providers of food, economic opportunity, and cultural value in the Pacific Islands. Coral bleaching events, driven by extreme water temperatures, jeopardize reefs’ ability to continue providing these services. Climate change is increasing the frequency and intensity of marine heat waves leading to bleaching events, reducing the amount of time for full recovery, and increasing the chances of permanent damage to reefs. Reef managers urgently need strategies that will improve reef resilience, increasing the reefs’ ability to withstand harsh conditions or recover quickly after damage. Example strategies include restoring coral in areas with good conditions for coral survival, protecting naturally...
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The Republic of Palau, a Freely Associated State of the U.S. and a global leader in ocean conservation, recently implemented the Palau National Marine Sanctuary, which closed 80% of its ocean to fishing. As offshore fish become scarcer in the domestic market, managers have begun to worry about increased harvesting pressure on already overfished nearshore environments. This pressure, in addition to stressors from land-use change, sea-level rise, and warming oceans, could threaten the food and economic security of many Palauans. However, adaptively managing stressors in an integrated way can mitigate declines and even promote recovery, while still being cost-effective, resulting in direct benefits to coastal communities....
map background search result map search result map Impact of Ocean Warming and Acidification on Growth of Reef-Building Corals Coral Reef Resilience to Climate Change in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands Valuing Climate Change Impacts on Coral Reef Ecosystem Services Relative sediment delivery at the mouth of rivers in the Gulf of Mexico Coral Reef Resilience to Climate Change in CNMI results Assessing the Sustainability of Culturally Important Marine Sites in Guam and CNMI Still-image frame grabs and benthic habitat interpretation of underwater video footage, March 2014, Faga`alu Bay, American Samoa Data for Mapping and Environmental Science to Support Clean Reefs of West Maui, Hawai'i Conductivity-Temperature-Depth (CTD) profile data in the National Park of American Samoa, Tutuila, American Samoa, 2015 Dynamically downscaled future wave projections from SWAN model results for the main Hawaiian Islands Corallimorph Invasion Palmyra: Data Enhancing Stakeholder Capacity for Coastal Inundation Assessments in the Marshall Islands Using Cutting-Edge Technology to Assess Coral Reef Bleaching Events and Recovery Rates in Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands Examining How Ridge-to-Reef Governance in Palau Can Enhance Coastal Food Security in a Changing Climate Linking Models to Outcomes – How do Hawaiʻi Stakeholders Use and Contribute to Land-to-Sea Ecosystem Service Analyses Ecological and Socio-Cultural Responses to Transplanting Corals to Enhance Reef Resilience Near Oʻahu USGS St. Petersburg Coastal and Marine Science Center Identifying Locations for Coral Reef Climate Resilience Coral Response to Land-to-Ocean Freshwater Flux: A Ridge-to-Reef Perspective Unlocking Resilience Drivers to Inform Pacific Coral Reef Management Still-image frame grabs and benthic habitat interpretation of underwater video footage, March 2014, Faga`alu Bay, American Samoa Conductivity-Temperature-Depth (CTD) profile data in the National Park of American Samoa, Tutuila, American Samoa, 2015 Examining How Ridge-to-Reef Governance in Palau Can Enhance Coastal Food Security in a Changing Climate Corallimorph Invasion Palmyra: Data Ecological and Socio-Cultural Responses to Transplanting Corals to Enhance Reef Resilience Near Oʻahu Coral Reef Resilience to Climate Change in CNMI results Assessing the Sustainability of Culturally Important Marine Sites in Guam and CNMI Using Cutting-Edge Technology to Assess Coral Reef Bleaching Events and Recovery Rates in Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands Dynamically downscaled future wave projections from SWAN model results for the main Hawaiian Islands Coral Response to Land-to-Ocean Freshwater Flux: A Ridge-to-Reef Perspective Enhancing Stakeholder Capacity for Coastal Inundation Assessments in the Marshall Islands Impact of Ocean Warming and Acidification on Growth of Reef-Building Corals Linking Models to Outcomes – How do Hawaiʻi Stakeholders Use and Contribute to Land-to-Sea Ecosystem Service Analyses Unlocking Resilience Drivers to Inform Pacific Coral Reef Management Relative sediment delivery at the mouth of rivers in the Gulf of Mexico Identifying Locations for Coral Reef Climate Resilience