Reef Life Survey is a program that monitors marine life in Hobart, Tasmania. It works in many countries around the world, but most of its activities take place in Australia because many of the volunteers are from there. Most surveys are carried out by volunteer divers who enjoy diving as a hobby. These divers collect information about different types of sea life to help protect the ocean. The data collected is shared with scientists who study ocean life and is also used by people who manage protected ocean areas in Australia, New Zealand, American Samoa, and the eastern Pacific.

Function

Reef Life Survey helps protect ocean life and manage marine resources in a way that keeps them healthy for the future. They gather and organize information about ocean biodiversity on a larger scale than most scientific dive teams can manage, using volunteer divers who are trained in RLS methods. The University of Tasmania stores and manages the RLS database, and the data is available for free to the public for non-profit use through their website and other public resources.

History

Reef Life Survey was created by scientists from the University of Tasmania and first supported by the Commonwealth Environment Research Facilities (CERF) Program. This program is the main work of the Reef Life Survey Foundation Incorporated, which is a nonprofit organization based in Australia.

Personnel

Reef Life Survey includes a group of trained recreational scuba divers who volunteer their time, as well as an Advisory Committee. The Advisory Committee includes managers and scientists who use the data collected by the divers, along with members from the group of recreational divers.

Procedures

Standard survey methods are used for different types of land and water areas. Simple tools are used, including a waterproof clipboard with a record sheet, an underwater camera, and a 50-meter surveyor's tape measure. Surveys are usually repeated at different times at specific locations, which are marked by GPS coordinates, transect depth, and direction. Surveys are often done as two transects, moving in opposite directions from a central point, at a similar depth. Data collected includes fish counts by sight in a 5-meter by 5-meter area on both sides of the transect line (Method 1), counts of mobile invertebrates in a 1-meter wide area on both sides of the line (Method 2), and photographs taken every 2.5 meters along the 50-meter transect line. Manufactured debris may also be recorded. Observations made outside the transect area are noted separately (Method 0). For fish, both the number and size group are recorded, while only the number is recorded for most invertebrates.

Data

Since 2006, divers have gathered information for RLS from more than 44 countries. As of September 2015, more than 4,500 species have been listed from over 7,000 surveys.

Expeditions

A group of volunteer scientists sailed around Australia on a boat named Reef Dragon. The journey began on February 16, 2013, from Port Davey, Tasmania, and followed a counterclockwise path around the continent. The voyage ended in February 2014 in Prince of Wales Bay, Hobart. During the trip, the scientists collected basic information about reef life to help create the new Coral Sea Commonwealth Marine Reserve network.

• Reef Dragon was anchored at Leigh, New Zealand, between survey trips in November 2012.
• A volunteer diver prepared for a survey dive from the Reef Dragon.
• A diver swam a transect for Reef Life Survey on Mayor Island, New Zealand, in 2012.
• Reef Dragon arrived in Hobart after completing the circumnavigation of Australia.

Publications

• Protecting oceans effectively requires five important features in marine protected areas.
• The Reef Life Survey program studies reef fish communities worldwide in a structured way.
• Reefs that were once fished heavily can become important conservation areas if fishing stops for many years.
• A large-scale study shows how marine protected areas affect rocky reef ecosystems.
• Combining data on fish numbers and roles helps identify new areas with high fish diversity worldwide.