AIMS Long-term Monitoring Program: Crown-of-thorns starfish and benthos Manta Tow Data (Great Barrier Reef)
64 'key' reefs in 11 sectors of the Great Barrier Reef (Cape Grenville, Princess Charlotte Bay, Cooktown/Lizard Island, Cairns, Innisfail, Townsville, Cape Upstart, Whitsunday, Pompey Complex, Swain and Capricorn Bunker) are annually surveyed for crown-of-thorns starfish using the manta tow technique. An additional 117 reefs from the sectors (excluding the Whitsunday, Swain and Capricorn-Bunker sectors) are scheduled for survey every third year ('cycle' reefs). The cycle manta tow reefs take second priority if surveys are unable to be completed because of bad weather and limited ship time.
Results of manta tow surveys around the perimeter of reefs assessing populations of Crown-of-Thorns Starfish (COTS), Acanthaster cf. solaris. Historical data are held from a number of projects - P. Moran's post-doctoral work, CCEP scheme, COTSAC, COTSREC, LTMP. All data are stored in the Oracle database table RM_MANTA, and data from all but the first listed program are generally consistent and systematic. In the latest and ongoing program - the Long Term Monitoring Program (LTMP) - about 50 reefs throughout the Great Barrier Reef and NW Australia have been sampled.
Observations started in January 1982 and are ongoing.
For each two-minute manta tow the variables recorded are: Number and size of COTS; Percentage cover of live coral, dead coral, and soft coral; Visibility; Any other observations of note.
The ambient variables recorded include, information about the survey (reef name, time, date, data collectors), and the weather conditions:(Wind strength; Cloud cover; Sea state; and Tide).
Information is also recorded about the reef environment of each survey (e.g. reef slope, substratum at reef base) and its benthic community (dominant benthic group, dominant hard coral, and dominant coral life form).
To assess populations of Crown-of-Thorns Starfish (COTS), Acanthaster cf. solaris, on reefs.
Coral Reef - Feeding Scar, Crown of Thorns Starfish - Diameter, Crown of Thorns Starfish - Outbreak Status, Percentage Cover, Count - Individuals, Turbidity
Number and size of COTS. Size is recorded as follows: J = less than or equal to 5cm, early juvenile, <1 yr; A = 6-15cm Juvenile, 1-2 yrs; B = 15-25cm Sub-Adult, 2-3 yrs; C = >25cm Adult, >3 yrs). If no COTS are seen, then the column is left blank. When several size categories are seen, the category with the most numerous counts is recorded, and a note is made of the other size categories in the 'other' column. Percentage cover of live coral, dead coral, and soft coral. Categories are: 0 = 0%, 1- = 1-5%, 1+ = 5-10%, 2 = 10-30%, 3 = 30-50%, 4 = 50-75%, 5 = 75-100%. Presence of COTS feeding scars: absent (A: 0), present (P: 1-10) or common (C >10).
The ambient variables recorded include, information about the survey (reef name, time, date, data collectors), and the weather conditions: Wind strength categories: 1 = 0-5 knots; 2 = 6-10 knots; 3 = 11-15 knots; 4 = 16-20 knots; 5 = 21-25 knots Cloud cover unit of measure is the okta. One okta = one eigth of the sky. Sea State. A modified Beaufort scale describes sea state: Calm = Mirror-like to small ripples; Slight = Small waves, some whitecaps; Moderate = Moderate waves, many whitecaps; Rough = Large waves 2-3 m, whitecaps everywhere, some spray Tide is recorded as low (1.5 hrs either side of Low water), high (1.5 hrs either side of High water), falling (between High and Low water) or rising (between Low and High water), determined from a Tide Table.
Data have been used for the e-Atlas: http://e-atlas.org.au/content/large-scale-manta-tow-surveys-densities-crown-thorns-starfish-and-benthic-cover-aims-ltmp
Data and resources
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Outbreaks of the Crown-of-thorns starfish (Acanthaster planci) on the Great Barrier Reef: results of surveys 1986-1988: Johnson DB, Bass DK, Miller-Smith BA,…HTML Open
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Broadscale surveys of Crown-of-thorns starfish on the Great Barrier Reef, 1987 to 1988. Long term monitoring of the Great Barrier Reef. Crown-of-thorns study:…HTML Open
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Broadscale surveys of Crown-of-thorns starfish on the Great Barrier Reef, 1991 to 1992. Long term monitoring of the Great Barrier Reef. Crown-of thorns study:…HTML Open
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Broadscale surveys of Crown-of-thorns starfish on the Great Barrier Reef 1989 to 1990. Long term monitoring of the Great Barrier Reef. Crown-of thorns study:…HTML Open
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e-Atlas Large-scale manta tow densities of crown-of-thorns starfish & benthic cover by AIMS LTMPHTML Open
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Suitability of the Manta Tow Technique for Estimating Relative and Absolute Abundances of Crown-of-ThornsStarfisf (Acanthaster planci L.) and Corals: Moran PJ…HTML Open
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The 27 year decline in coral cover on the Great Barrier Reef and its causes: De'ath AG, Fabricius KE, Sweatman HPA and Puotinen ML (2012) The 27 year decline in…HTML Open
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A guide to the reef ecology database: 1. Description of data: Baker VJ, Moran PJ, Mundy CN, Reichelt RE and Speare PJ (1991) A guide to the reef ecology…HTML Open
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Validity and reproducibility of benthic cover estimates made during broadscale surveys of coral reefs by manta tow: Miller IR and Muller R (1999) Validity and…HTML Open
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Data Summarised to reef - Zip folder containing CSV and text file size: 136 KBZIP Open
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Long-term Monitoring of the Great Barrier reef, Status Report: Sweatman HPA, Cheal AJ, Coleman GJ, Emslie MJ, Johns K, Jonker M, Miller IR and Osborne K (2008)…HTML Open
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No-take reserves protect coral reefs from predatory starfish: Sweatman HPA (2008) No-take reserves protect coral reefs from predatory starfish. Current Biology…HTML Open
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Long-term monitoring of the Great Barrier Reef. Status Report Number 7: Sweatman HPA, Burgess S, Cheal AJ, Coleman GJ, Delean S, Emslie MJ, McDonald A, Miller…HTML Open
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Rapid, large area reef resource surveys using a manta board: Done TJ, Kenchington RA and Zell LD (1982) Rapid, large area reef resource surveys using a manta…HTML Open
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NERP TE Project 1.1 - Monitoring status and trends of coral reefs of the Great Barrier Reef: NERP TE Project 1.1 - Monitoring status and trends of coral reefs…HTML Open
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Broadscale surveys of crown-of-thorns starfish along the Great Barrier Reef 1993-2003 Long-term Monitoring of the Great Barrier Reef: Miller IR, Coleman GJ,…HTML Open
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The Australian Institute of Marine Science's Coral Reef Monitoring Programs on the Great Barrier Reef: Sweatman HPA (1999) The Australian Institute of Marine…HTML Open
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Map services (WMS, WFS, KML) for LTMP manta tow reefsWMS Open
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A guide to the reef monitoring database. Long term monitoring of the Great Barrier Reef. Standard operational procedure No. 5: Baker VJ and Coleman GJ (2000) A…HTML Open
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Crown-of-thorns starfish (Acanthaster planci) populations in the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area: status report 1995-96: Engelhardt U, Miller IR, Lassig…HTML Open
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The current status of sessile benthic organisms of the Great Barrier Reef: Osborne K, Ninio R and Sweatman HPA (1997) The current status of sessile benthic…HTML Open
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Estimates of the abundance of crown-of-thorns starfish (Acanthaster planci) in outbreaking and non-outbreaking populations on reefs within the Great Barrier…HTML Open
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Long-Term Monitoring of the Great Barrier Reef. Status Report Number 6: Sweatman HPA, Abdo D, Burgess S, Coleman GJ, Delean S, Emslie MJ, Miller IR, Osborne K,…HTML Open
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A quality control procedure for observer agreement of manta tow benthic cover estimates: Miller IR and Muller R (1997) A quality control procedure for observer…HTML Open
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Broadscale surveys of crown-of-thorns starfish on the Great Barrier Reef 1988 to 1989. Long term monitoring of the Great Barrier Reef. Crown-of-thorns study:…HTML Open
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Patterns of outbreaks of Crown-of-thorns Starfish (Acanthaster planci L.) along the Great Barrier Reef since 1966: Moran PJ, De'ath AG, Baker VJ, Bass DK,…HTML Open
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Causes and consequences of the crown-of-thorns starfish on Australian coral reefs: Moran PJ and Lassig BR (1997) Causes and consequences of the crown-of-thorns…HTML Open
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Responses of coral and fish assemblages to a severe but short-lived tropical cyclone on the Great Barrier Reef, Australia: Cheal AJ, Coleman GJ, Delean S,…HTML Open
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Long-term Monitoring of the Great Barrier Reef. Status Report Number 1: Oliver JK, De'ath AG, Done TJ, Williams DMcB, Furnas MJ and Moran PJ (1995) Long-term…HTML Open
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COTSAC funded research on the ecological aspects of the Crown-of-thorns starfish (Acanthaster planci): AIMS project proposals. The corwn-of-thorns study: Moran…HTML Open
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Long-term monitoring of the Great Barrier Reef. Status Report Number 2: Sweatman HPA (1997) Long-term monitoring of the Great Barrier Reef. Status Report Number…HTML Open
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Long-term Monitoring of the Great Barrier Reef. Status Report Number 4: Sweatman HPA, Cheal AJ, Coleman GJ, Fitzpatrick BM, Miller IR, Ninio R, Osborne K, Page…HTML Open
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Long-Term Monitoring of the Great Barrier Reef, Status Report Number 5: Sweatman HPA, Cheal AJ, Coleman GJ, Delean S, Fitzpatrick BM, Miller IR, Ninio R,…HTML Open
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The Acanthaster phenomeon: subject index. Long term monitoring of the Great Barrier Reef. Crown-of-thorns study: Dartnall J and Moran PJ (1987) The Acanthaster…HTML Open
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Long-Term Monitoring Program Annual Summary Report of Coral Reef Condition 2021/2022HTML Open
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The Crown-of-thorns study, 1985 : an assessment of the distribution, effects of Acanthaster planci (L.) on the Great Barrier Reef. 13 volumes: Bradbury RH,…HTML Open
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NERP TE Project 8.1 - Monitoring the ecological effects of GBR zoning plan on mid and outer shelf reefs: NERP TE Project 8.1 - Monitoring the ecological effects…HTML Open
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Subset of this data collected as part of the NERP TE project.: Subset of this data collected as part of the NERP TE project.CSV Open
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Broadscale surveys of crown-of-thorns starfish along the Great Barrier Reef 1982-1992.Long term monitoring of the Great Barrier Reef. Crown-of-thorns study:…HTML Open
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Broadscale surveys of crown-of-thorns starfish, corals on the Great Barrier Reef 1992 to 1993. Long term monitoring of the Great Barrier Reef. Crown-of thorns…HTML Open
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Temporal patterns in coral assemblages on the Great Barrier Reef from local to large spatial scales: Ninio R, Meekan MG, Done TJ and Sweatman HPA (2000)…HTML Open
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Crown-of-thorns Starfish, Coral surveys Using the Manta Tow, Scuba Search Techniques. Long term monitoring of the Great Barrier Reef. Standard operational…HTML Open
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Crown-of-thorns starfish and coral surveys using the manta tow and scuba search techniques. Standard operational procedure No.8: Miller IR (2003)…HTML Open
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Long-Term Monitoring Program Annual Summary Report of Coral Reef Condition 2022/2023HTML Open
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Long-Term Monitoring Program Annual Summary Report of Coral Reef Condition 2023/2024HTML Open
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Long-Term Monitoring Program Annual Summary Report of Coral Reef Condition 2020/2021HTML Open
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Reef Dashboard: latest annual update of the coral cover trend in the Great Barrier ReefHTML Open
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Distribution of recent outbreaks of the Crown-of-thorns starfish (Acanthaster planci) along the Great Barrier Reef: 1985-1986: Moran PJ, Bradbury RH and…HTML Open
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Assessing loss of coral cover on Australia s Great Barrier Reef over two decades with implications for longer-term trends: Sweatman HPA, Delean S and Syms C…HTML Open
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Manta tow surveys of the Great Barrier Reef: Baker VJ, Bass DK, Christie CA, Johnson DB, Miller IR, Miller-Smith BA, Moran PJ and Thompson AA (1990) Manta tow…HTML Open
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Broadscale surveys of crown-of-thorns starfish, corals along the Great Barrier Reef : 1982-1990. Long term monitoring of the Great Barrier Reef. Crown-of-thorns…HTML Open
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Review of the Crown-of-thorns Starfish Research Committee (COTSREC) Program: Lassig BR, Engelhardt U, Moran PJ and Ayukai T (1995) Review of the Crown-of-thorns…HTML Open
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A guide to the AIMS Manta Tow technique: Moran PJ, Johnson DB, Miller-Smith BA, Mundy CN, Bass DK, Davidson J, Miller IR and Thompson AA (1989) A guide to the…HTML Open
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Distribution of Acanthaster planci outbreaks on the Great Barrier Reef between 1966 and 1989: Reichelt RE, Bradbury RH and Moran PJ (1990) Distribution of…HTML Open
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Bias in manta tow surveys of Acanthaster planci: Fernandes L, Marsh H, Moran PJ and Sinclair D (1990) Bias in manta tow surveys of Acanthaster planci. Coral…HTML Open
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Effects of training on observer performance in assessing benthic cover by menas of the manta tow technique: Miller IR and De'ath AG (1996) Effects of training…HTML Open
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Broadscale surveys of Crown-of-thorns starfish on the Great Barrier Reef, 1986 to 1987. Long term monitoring of the Great Barrier Reef. Crown-of thorns study:…HTML Open
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Long-term Monitoring of the Great Barrier Reef. Status Report Number 3: Sweatman HPA, Bass DK, Cheal AJ, Coleman GJ, Miller IR, Ninio R, Osborne K, Oxley WG,…HTML Open
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Survey Manual for Tropical Marine Resources: English S, Wilkinson CR and Baker VJ (eds) (1994) Survey Manual for Tropical Marine Resources. Australian Institute…HTML Open
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AIMS long-term reef monitoring programHTML Open
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Matthews, S. A., Williamson, D. H., Beeden, R., Emslie, M. J., Abom, R. T. M., Beard, D., Bonin, M., Bray, P., Campili, A. R., Ceccarelli, D. M., Fernandes, L.,…HTML Open
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Australian Institute of Marine Science (2020) Annual Summary Report on coral reef condition for 2019/20. Long-term Reef Monitoring Program. Australian Institute…HTML Open
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Additional information
| Date (revision) | 2026-10-25 |
|---|---|
| Status | onGoing |
| Update frequency | asNeeded |
| Metadata language | en |
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| Source metadata | ISO 19115 XML |
| Last updated | 2026-11-05 |
| Created | 2026-11-05 |
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