Abstract:Addressing the global decline of coral reefs requires effective actions from managers, policymakers and society as a whole. Coral reef scientists are therefore challenged with the task of providing prompt and relevant inputs for science-based decision-making. Here, we provide a baseline dataset, covering 1300 km of tropical coral reef habitats globally, and comprised of over one million geo-referenced, high-resolution photo-quadrats analysed using artificial intelligence to automatically estimate the proportio… Show more
“…This absence from the research literature is notable considering that South-East Asia encompasses 34% of the world’s total coral. Rodriguez-Ramirez et al (2020) noted that 88% are damaged compared with the least threatened coral reef situated in the Australian region (Burke et al, 2011; Rodriguez-Ramirez et al, 2020; Todd et al, 2010). Figure 2.Global distribution of peer-reviewed journal publications on SCUBA diving impacts included in this review.…”
Global demand for SCUBA diving activities in coastal areas continues to grow. Academic research has acknowledged that SCUBA diving can have ecological impacts. To understand the current state of knowledge this study applied the systematic quantitative literature review method (SQLR) to determine what evidence is available on ecological impacts from recreational SCUBA diving. In total 69 research articles about ecological impacts of SCUBA diving were analysed. This paper explored research trends, geographical distribution of research articles, nature of impact and management recommendations for future practice. The research found that SCUBA diving impacted through diver contact with coral reefs caused breakage, fragmentation and led to disease. 10 coral varieties were identified as impacted including some listed as (critically) endangered or vulnerable by the IUCN. Impacts can be minimized using non-regulatory and regulatory management strategies. We present a novel framework that connects diver characteristics with coral reef impacts and discuss how to apply this framework and guide future studies in this area of SCUBA diving research.
“…This absence from the research literature is notable considering that South-East Asia encompasses 34% of the world’s total coral. Rodriguez-Ramirez et al (2020) noted that 88% are damaged compared with the least threatened coral reef situated in the Australian region (Burke et al, 2011; Rodriguez-Ramirez et al, 2020; Todd et al, 2010). Figure 2.Global distribution of peer-reviewed journal publications on SCUBA diving impacts included in this review.…”
Global demand for SCUBA diving activities in coastal areas continues to grow. Academic research has acknowledged that SCUBA diving can have ecological impacts. To understand the current state of knowledge this study applied the systematic quantitative literature review method (SQLR) to determine what evidence is available on ecological impacts from recreational SCUBA diving. In total 69 research articles about ecological impacts of SCUBA diving were analysed. This paper explored research trends, geographical distribution of research articles, nature of impact and management recommendations for future practice. The research found that SCUBA diving impacted through diver contact with coral reefs caused breakage, fragmentation and led to disease. 10 coral varieties were identified as impacted including some listed as (critically) endangered or vulnerable by the IUCN. Impacts can be minimized using non-regulatory and regulatory management strategies. We present a novel framework that connects diver characteristics with coral reef impacts and discuss how to apply this framework and guide future studies in this area of SCUBA diving research.
“…The validation dataset represented in-situ field surveys collected via SCUBA, snorkel, and low-tide visual methods. The sources included data collated and shared from the Allen Coral Atlas project 20 , Seaview surveys 68 , monitoring by local NGOs, and fieldwork conducted by the authors. In total, 1019 validation points were used at a minimum spacing of 10 m (n = 557 seagrass, n = 462 non-seagrass), sourced from field surveys between 2017 and 2023 (Fig.…”
The areal extent of seagrass meadows is in rapid global decline, yet they provide highly valuable societal benefits. However, their conservation is hindered by data gaps on current and historic spatial extents. Here, we outline an approach for national-scale seagrass mapping and monitoring using an open-source platform (Google Earth Engine) and freely available satellite data (Landsat, Sentinel-2) that can be readily applied in other countries globally. Specifically, we map contemporary (2021) and historical (2000–2021; n = 10 maps) shallow water seagrass extent across the Maldives. We found contemporary Maldivian seagrass extent was ~ 105 km2 (overall accuracy = 82.04%) and, notably, that seagrass area increased threefold between 2000 and 2021 (linear model, + 4.6 km2 year−1, r2 = 0.93, p < 0.001). There was a strongly significant association between seagrass and anthropogenic activity (p < 0.001) that we hypothesize to be driven by nutrient loading and/or altered sediment dynamics (from large scale land reclamation), which would represent a beneficial anthropogenic influence on Maldivian seagrass meadows. National-scale tropical seagrass expansion is unique against the backdrop of global seagrass decline and we therefore highlight the Maldives as a rare global seagrass ‘bright spot’ highly worthy of increased attention across scientific, commercial, and conservation policy contexts.
“…Imagery from the ocean has long been used to survey marine environments, quantify physical conditions, and monitor the inhabitants of marine ecosystems (Longley and Martin, 1927;Drew, 1977;Beijbom et al, 2015;Lombard et al, 2019;Marochov et al, 2021). This reliance on imagery as a means of extracting data from marine systems has only grown with the increasing accessibility of satellite imagery and the decreasing cost and increasing quality of imaging systems that can be deployed directly in the field (Durden et al, 2016;Williams et al, 2019;Bamford et al, 2020;Rodriguez-Ramirez et al, 2020). Yet visual data bring with them some unique challenges.…”
Image-based machine learning methods are becoming among the most widely-used forms of data analysis across science, technology, engineering, and industry. These methods are powerful because they can rapidly and automatically extract rich contextual and spatial information from images, a process that has historically required a large amount of human labor. A wide range of recent scientific applications have demonstrated the potential of these methods to change how researchers study the ocean. However, despite their promise, machine learning tools are still under-exploited in many domains including species and environmental monitoring, biodiversity surveys, fisheries abundance and size estimation, rare event and species detection, the study of animal behavior, and citizen science. Our objective in this article is to provide an approachable, end-to-end guide to help researchers apply image-based machine learning methods effectively to their own research problems. Using a case study, we describe how to prepare data, train and deploy models, and overcome common issues that can cause models to underperform. Importantly, we discuss how to diagnose problems that can cause poor model performance on new imagery to build robust tools that can vastly accelerate data acquisition in the marine realm. Code to perform analyses is provided at https://github.com/heinsense2/AIO_CaseStudy.
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