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Dataset Overview | National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI)

Benthic Habitats of the Florida Keys derived from color aerial photography collected between 1991-12 and March 1992 (NCEI Accession 0143928)

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This project was a cooperative effort between the National Ocean Service and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection's Florida Marine Research Institute (now called the Fish and Wildlife Research Institute). The goal of the effort was to produce shallow-water (from 0 to approximately 30 m water depth) benthic habitat maps of the Florida Keys and adjacent waters.

The maps were generated by expert visual interpretation of 1:48,000 scale color aerial photography and subsequent photogrammetric, stereo, digital compilation of interpreted habitat polygon boundaries from aerial photography. The Minimum mapping unit = 0.4 hectare (4,047 sq m; 1 acre) for all habitat. Patch reefs may be <0.5 ha. The aerial photography was acquired using a NOAA jet from December 1991 through March 1992. The photography was acquired with 60% side and 80% forward overlap to facilitate stereo compilation. Approximately 450 aerial photographs were acquired and used for the mapping project. Ground validation of interpreted habitat polygons was performed by visual verification at actual field sites prior to compilation. Aircraft Inertial Measurement Unit data were used to correct photography positioning in photogrammetric analytical plotters. The analytical solution used in the photogrammetric plotter for positioning was applied to bundles of 30-40 adjacent, overlapping aerial photographs. The stereo positioning of the photography was < 1 m. Digital data for bundles of compiled aerial photographs from the photogrammetric stereo plotter was imported into the ESRI ArcInfo GIS. The GIS was used to merge and edit the vector and attribute features of the 15 bundles to generate a mosaic benthic habitat map of the Florida Keys and adjacent areas covered by the aerial photography. Field validation of digitized habitat features visible in the aerial photography mosaics was performed to ensure correct interpretation. An assessment of the correctness of the interpreted digital map was performed by experts familiar with the the seafloor habitat found in the Florida Keys.
  • Cite as: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; Florida Department of Environmental Protection; Florida Marine Research Institute; Sport Fishing Restoration (2016). Benthic Habitats of the Florida Keys derived from color aerial photography collected between 1991-12 and March 1992 (NCEI Accession 0143928). [indicate subset used]. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. Dataset. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/archive/accession/0143928. Accessed [date].
gov.noaa.nodc:0143928
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Distribution Formats
  • Shapefile
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Distributor NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
+1-301-713-3277
NCEI.Info@noaa.gov
Dataset Point of Contact NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information
ncei.info@noaa.gov
Time Period 1991-12-01 to 1998-01-01
Spatial Bounding Box Coordinates
West: -83
East: -80.2
South: 24.25
North: 25.25
Spatial Coverage Map
General Documentation
Associated Resources
  • Benthic habitats of the Florida Keys
    • Benthic habitats of the Florida Keys (FMRI Technical Report TR-4)
      "This atlas contains 32 color maps depicting the benthic habitats at a scale of 1:51,000. In addition to showing the locations and extents of different habitat types in the Florida Keys, the atlas provides a brief description of the Florida Keys region, summary information on the extents of the ecological habitats by subregion, and a detailed description of each habitat type. ... The data can serve as a baseline for research and for monitoring projects undertaken by scientists, managers, and the academic community and to support resource-assessment activities and management decisions"
Publication Dates
  • publication: 2016-03-03
Data Presentation Form Digital table - digital representation of facts or figures systematically displayed, especially in columns
Dataset Progress Status Complete - production of the data has been completed
Historical archive - data has been stored in an offline storage facility
Data Update Frequency As needed
Purpose This dataset is available to the public for a wide variety of uses including scientific research and analysis.
Use Limitations
  • accessLevel: Public
  • Distribution liability: NOAA and NCEI make no warranty, expressed or implied, regarding these data, nor does the fact of distribution constitute such a warranty. NOAA and NCEI cannot assume liability for any damages caused by any errors or omissions in these data. If appropriate, NCEI can only certify that the data it distributes are an authentic copy of the records that were accepted for inclusion in the NCEI archives.
Dataset Citation
  • Cite as: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; Florida Department of Environmental Protection; Florida Marine Research Institute; Sport Fishing Restoration (2016). Benthic Habitats of the Florida Keys derived from color aerial photography collected between 1991-12 and March 1992 (NCEI Accession 0143928). [indicate subset used]. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. Dataset. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/archive/accession/0143928. Accessed [date].
Cited Authors
Contributors
Resource Providers
Points of Contact
Publishers
Theme keywords NODC DATA TYPES THESAURUS NODC OBSERVATION TYPES THESAURUS WMO_CategoryCode
  • oceanography
CoRIS Discovery Thesaurus
  • Geographic Information > Ecological Characterization
CoRIS Theme Thesaurus
  • EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Aquatic Habitat > Reef Habitat
  • EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Aquatic Habitat > Reef Habitat > Description
  • EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef monitoring and assessment
  • EARTH SCIENCE > Biosphere > Zoology > Corals > Reef monitoring and assessment > In situ biological
  • EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Coastal Processes > Coral Reefs
  • EARTH SCIENCE > Oceans > Coastal Processes > Coral Reefs > Coral reef ecology > Habitats
Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Science Keywords None
  • aquatic vegetation
  • coral reef
  • coralline algae
  • cover
  • habitat
  • macroalgae
  • point
  • reef
  • seagrass
  • structure
  • submerged
  • unconsolidated sediments
  • zone
Data Center keywords NODC COLLECTING INSTITUTION NAMES THESAURUS NODC SUBMITTING INSTITUTION NAMES THESAURUS Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Data Center Keywords
Instrument keywords NODC INSTRUMENT TYPES THESAURUS Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Instrument Keywords
Place keywords NODC SEA AREA NAMES THESAURUS CoRIS Place Thesaurus
  • COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > Florida
  • COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > Florida > Monroe County > Alligator Reef (24N080W0001)
  • COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > Florida > Monroe County > Big Pine Key (24N081W0004)
  • COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > Florida > Monroe County > Key Largo (25N080W0010)
  • COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > Florida > Monroe County > Key West (25N080W0016)
  • COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > Florida > Monroe County > Looe Key Reef (24N081W0002)
  • COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > Florida > Monroe County > Marathon (24N081W0001)
  • COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > Florida > Monroe County > Molasses Reef (25N080W0003)
  • COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > Florida > Monroe County > Rodrigues Key (25N080W0025)
  • COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > Florida > Monroe County > Summerland Key (24N081W0005)
  • COUNTRY/TERRITORY > United States of America > Florida > Monroe County > Western Sambos (24N081W0014)
  • OCEAN BASIN > Atlantic Ocean > North Atlantic Ocean > Florida
  • OCEAN BASIN > Atlantic Ocean > North Atlantic Ocean > Florida Reef Tract > Lower Florida Keys > Key West (25N080W0016)
  • OCEAN BASIN > Atlantic Ocean > North Atlantic Ocean > Florida Reef Tract > Lower Florida Keys > Marquesas Key (24N082W0002)
  • OCEAN BASIN > Atlantic Ocean > North Atlantic Ocean > Florida Reef Tract > Lower Florida Keys > Summerland Key (24N081W0005)
  • OCEAN BASIN > Atlantic Ocean > North Atlantic Ocean > Florida Reef Tract > Lower Florida Keys > Western Sambos (24N081W0014)
Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Location Keywords None
  • United States
Project keywords NODC PROJECT NAMES THESAURUS
Keywords NCEI ACCESSION NUMBER
Use Constraints
  • Cite as: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; Florida Department of Environmental Protection; Florida Marine Research Institute; Sport Fishing Restoration (2016). Benthic Habitats of the Florida Keys derived from color aerial photography collected between 1991-12 and March 1992 (NCEI Accession 0143928). [indicate subset used]. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. Dataset. https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/archive/accession/0143928. Accessed [date].
Access Constraints
  • Use liability: NOAA and NCEI cannot provide any warranty as to the accuracy, reliability, or completeness of furnished data. Users assume responsibility to determine the usability of these data. The user is responsible for the results of any application of this data for other than its intended purpose.
Fees
  • In most cases, electronic downloads of the data are free. However, fees may apply for custom orders, data certifications, copies of analog materials, and data distribution on physical media.
Lineage information for: dataset
Processing Steps
  • 2016-03-03T17:35:48Z - NCEI Accession 0143928 v1.1 was published.
Output Datasets
Acquisition Information (collection)
Instrument
  • camera
Last Modified: 2024-03-02T15:19:04Z
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