Dataset: Seawater chlorophyll concentration offshore from Moorea, French Polynesia from 2008 to 2020

The ecological methods are described in detail in Edmunds et al. (2024, doi:10.1007/s00442-024-05517-y), and are briefly summarized below. 

The study utilized the time series of the Moorea Coral Reef LTER, as they relate to coral community dynamics on the north shore fore reef. Annual measurements of coral cover, the density of coral settlers, and the density of small corals were used together with records of the environmental conditions to which they were exposed. Analyses focused on 2008–2021, which captured the final years of the last population outbreak of the crown of thorns (COTs) sea star, the coral population recovery that took place between 2010 and 2019, and coral mortality attributed to bleaching in 2019. Biological data came from two sites (LTER1 and LTER2) that are ~ 3 km apart, with environmental data from the same or similar sites (temperature), one of the two sites (flow at LTER1), or from 4.5 km resolution remote sensing data (Chlorophyll a).

The yearly subsurface concentration of Chlorophyll a (mg m^-3) was determined by remote sensing from the MODIS level-3, monthly data (4.5 km resolution) for an area centered on Moorea (16˚S-19˚S/147˚W-151˚W) after the removal of the land pixels (Tahiti, Moorea, Maiao, Tetiaroa); yearly values were obtained by averaging the monthly data for each year.

* See "Related Datasets" section for access to related dataset pages which include dataset-specific methodology.