Assessment of coral reefs in the central Great Barrier Reef and the Coral Sea using the line transect technique
The benthic cover on reefs from the central Great Barrier Reef and the Coral Sea was surveyed between 1984 and 1985, using the line transect technique. The reefs surveyed were 2 inner-shelf reefs (Pandora and Phillips), 5 mid-shelf reefs (Davies, John Brewer, Lodestone, Rib and Wheeler), and 3 outer-shelf reefs (Bowl, Dip and Myrmidon) from the Great Barrier Reef and 2 Coral Sea reefs (Flinders Cay and South Flinders Reef).The sites for location of transects were chosen as follows for each reef, where the reef structure allowed:Front reef slope: (5 sites) 0, 5, 10, 15, 20 m depth, using the reef crest as datumReef flat: (2 sites) front and back reef flatLagoon: (2 sites) usually 1 site on bommies and the other off bommiesBack reef slope: (3 sites) 0, 5, 10 m depth on talus slope using the reef crest as datum.Transect lengths varied between 50m and 100m to accommodate available diving times and the beginning of each transect was marked with a starpicket and a buoy to facilitate location during future surveys. Data collected were benthic lifeform and substrate attributes (from a list of 32 biotic and abiotic attributes) and percentage cover. This study was designed to describe the patterns of major components of the Great Barrier Reef over ecologically significant spatial and temporal scales.
Data and resources
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Flinders reefs. Studies in the assessment of coral reef ecosystems: Daniel PA, DeVantier LM, Johnson DB and Barnes GR (1985) Flinders reefs. Studies in the…HTML Open
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Dip reef. Studies in the assessment of coral reef ecosystems: Johnson DB, Daniel PA, DeVantier LM and Barnes GR (1985) Dip reef. Studies in the assessment of…HTML Open
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Myrmidon reef. Studies in the assessment of coral reef ecosystems: DeVantier LM, Barnes GR, Daniel PA and Johnson DB (1985) Myrmidon reef. Studies in the…HTML Open
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Wheeler reef. Studies in the assessment of coral reef ecosystems: Daniel PA, Johnson DB, DeVantier LM and Barnes GR (1985) Wheeler reef. Studies in the…HTML Open
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Davies reef. Studies in the assessment of coral reef ecosystems: Daniel PA, Johnson DB, DeVantier LM and Barnes GR (1985) Davies reef. Studies in the assessment…HTML Open
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Lodestone reef. Studies in the assessment of coral reef ecosystems: Johnson DB, DeVantier LM, Daniel PA and Barnes GR (1985) Lodestone reef. Studies in the…HTML Open
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John Brewer reef. Studies in the assessment of coral reef ecosystems: Johnson DB, Daniel PA, DeVantier LM and Barnes GR (1985) John Brewer reef. Studies in the…HTML Open
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Rib reef. Studies in the assessment of coral reef ecosystems: DeVantier LM, Johnson DB, Daniel PA and Barnes GR (1984) Rib reef. Studies in the assessment of…HTML Open
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Phillips reef. Studies in the assessment of coral reef ecosystems: DeVantier LM, Barnes GR, Daniel PA and Johnson DB (1986) Phillips reef. Studies in the…HTML Open
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Pandora reef. Studies in the assessment of coral reef ecosystems: Johnson DB, Daniel PA, DeVantier LM and Barnes GR (1986) Pandora reef. Studies in the…HTML Open
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Assessment protocol. Studies in the assessment of coral reef ecosystems: DeVantier LM, Barnes GR, Daniel PA and Johnson DB (1985) Assessment protocol. Studies…HTML Open
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Bowl reef. Studies in the assessment of coral reef ecosystems: DeVantier LM, Daniel PA, Johnson DB and Barnes GR (1985) Bowl reef. Studies in the assessment of…HTML Open
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Additional information
| Date (revision) | 2026-10-25 |
|---|---|
| Status | completed |
| Update frequency | notPlanned |
| Metadata language | en |
| License | Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 |
| Source metadata | ISO 19115 XML |
| Last updated | 2026-11-05 |
| Created | 2026-11-05 |
| API | package_show |