CoralWatch Coral Health Chart - Project AWARE Coral... · CoralWatch Coral Health Chart Distinctive Specialty Course Instructor Outline 2010 Chris Roelfsema 7 CoralWatch is a non-profit

CoralWatch Coral Health Chart Distinctive Specialty Permission Form Thank you for interest in teaching the PADI approved CoralWatch Coral Health Chart Distinctive Specialty and asking CoralWatch for permission to teach the Specialty. CoralWatch would like to stay in touch with Instructors that help us teaching people about reefs in a changing environment.

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CoralWatch and the authors of the specialty Chris Roelfsema and Diana Kleine hereby give

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Chart Distinctive Specialty.

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Please send a completed copy of this approval form to Diana Kleine at [email protected]. Once approval has been granted by the authors you can forward a signed copy of this form along with your PADI Specialty Instructor Application Form to your local PADI Training Department.

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CoralWatch Coral Health Chart Distinctive Specialty Course Instructor Outline 2010 Chris Roelfsema 1

PADI Distinctive Specialty Course

CoralWatch Coral Health Chart CoralWatch Coral Health Chart

CoralWatch is a non-profit organization built on a research project at the University of Queensland in Brisbane, Australia. CoralWatch is working with hundreds of groups and individuals worldwide to increase understanding of coral reefs, coral bleaching and climate change. CoralWatch uses an inexpensive, simple, non-invasive method for the monitoring of coral bleaching, and assessment of coral health. With the help of these Coral Health Charts, anyone in the world can monitor the health of any reef across the globe. CoralWatch collaborates with Project AWARE Foundation. Visit www.coralwatch.org to read more.

© CoralWatch 2010

Authors: C. Roelfsema PADI Instructor 901043, D. Kleine PADI Instructor 909825

All rights reserved. Acknowledgements:

• Justin Marshall founder of CoralWatch • David Logan Former CoralWatch Project manager



CoralWatch Coral Health Chart Distinctive Specialty Course Instructor Outline

I. Course Overview A. Purpose The purpose of the CoralWatch Coral Health Chart Distinctive Specialty course is to introduce snorkelers and divers to coral reef conservation and monitoring. Training should emphasise fun and safety.

B. The Goals The goals of the CoralWatch Coral Health Chart Distinctive Specialty course training are:

1. To raise awareness about the importance of coral reef conservation and introduce CoralWatch.

2. To inform students about coral reef impacts such as coral bleaching. 3. To introduce the Coral Health Chart as a monitoring tool. 4. To provide students with the knowledge and skills needed to identify

coral health and record data 5. To enable students to plan, organize and execute a coral health chart

survey in a safe manner for both students and the environment. 6. To emphasise the importance of Coral Health Chart monitoring activities

and provide coral reef conservation opportunities through participation in Project AWARE’s CoralWatch Project

7. To submit coral health data, contributing to science and conservation

II. Coral Health Chart - Course Requirements A. Prerequisite certification: Diver route: - PADI (Junior) Open Water Diver.

Non-diver route - snorkelers are encouraged to participate in the course but will have different administrative, certification and in-water requirements.

When issuing the PIC, encourage divers to choose a Project AWARE version of their certification card in order to support the Project AWARE Foundation’s work.

B. Minimum age requirement: - 10 years -

C. Student to instructor ratio: Student to instructor ratio is 8:1. 10- and 11-year-olds the maximum student diver-to-instructor ratio is 4:1 – two of which may be children ages 10 or 11. You may not increase this ratio with the use of certified assistants.


D. Confined water training The course does not include confined water training for diver or snorkeler route unless instructors choose to conduct a snorkel or scuba skills review in confined water as a pre assessment.

E. Practical component Dive data

• For the divers the course consists of two open water dives. • Maximum depth is 18 meters. For 10-11 year old the maximum depth is 12 meters.

Snorkeler data

• For the snorkeler the course consists of one snorkel dive.

F. Instructor Only current CoralWatch Coral Health Chart Distinctive Specialty Instructors may teach this CoralWatch Coral Health Chart Distinctive Specialty course. Instructors must directly supervise all student divers on Dive One of this specialty course and any Dive Two dives conducted deeper than 12 metres/60 feet. At their discretion, instructors may indirectly supervise Dive Two dives of this specialty course.

The PADI Specialty Instructor Application must be used when applying direct to PADI and written permission of the authors of the CoralWatch Coral Health Chart Distinctive Specialty must be submitted.

For more information on certification as a PADI Specialty Instructor, please refer to the “PADI Professional Ratings” section of the PADI Instructor Manual. If you still have questions after reading this section, call your PADI Office.

Note to instructors:

For dives that include 10-11 year olds, direct supervision is required at a maximum ratio of 4:1. No more than two of the four divers may be age 10 or 11.”

III. Student and Instructor Dive Equipment Requirements A. General Instructors and student divers must have, at a minimum, Standard Equipment as outlined in the PADI Instructor Manual.

Additional Equipment requirements:

• Dive light • Compass • Coral Health Chart • Underwater Slate with pencil

Note to instructors Depth and time monitoring may be accomplished through the use of electronic dive


computers, although students should be encouraged to carry additional depth and time monitoring instrumentation as a backup in case of computer failure.

You do need a slate and a flashlight for monitoring as a diver. The CoralWatch underwater data slate is recommended but any slate can be used for recording the information. You should have your divers prepare it during the pre monitoring briefing when you explain the methodology. Your divers will also need a flashlight, if they are monitoring reefs below 5 meters/15 feet. As light gets absorbed with depth it’s important that divers shine the light on both coral and the chart when making their observations.

IV. Student and Instructor Snorkelling Equipment Requirements Instructors and student divers must have

• Mask, Snorkel and Fins • Exposure suit • Coral Health Chart • Underwater Slate with pencil

A. Student Course Materials • Log Book • Coral Health Chart • Coral Health Chart data sheet • CoralWatch Do It Yourself Coral Health Monitoring Kit • CoralWatch seminar on www.projectaware.org/cwseminar • Project AWARE Ten Tips for Underwater Photography • Project AWARE 10 Ways A Diver Can Protect the Underwater Environment • Project AWARE Manual – Our World, Our Water • Coral Reef and Climate Change Book and CD

B. Instructor Course Materials

• PADI Liability Release and Assumption of Risk Agreement • PADI Standard Safe Diving Practices Statement of Understanding • PADI Medical Statement (RSTC Medical form) • AWARE Coral Reef Conservation Lesson Guides and Videos (CD-ROM) • Project AWARE Certificate of Recognition • PIC • Youth Diving: Responsibility and Risks video (or review the Youth Diving:

Responsibility and Risks Flipchart) for children who are 10 or 11 years old • CoralWatch Reef Education Package

http://www.projectaware.org/cwseminar�


V. Academic Topics A. Introductions and course overview 1. Staff and student introductions

2. Course goals: 1. To raise awareness about the importance of coral reef conservation and

introduce CoralWatch. 2. To inform students about coral reef impacts such as coral bleaching. 3. To introduce the Coral Health Chart as a monitoring tool. 4. To provide students with the knowledge and skills needed to identify

coral health and record data 5. To enable students to plan, organize and execute a coral health chart

survey in a safe manner for both students and the environment. 6. To emphasise the importance of Coral Health Chart monitoring activities

and provide coral reef conservation opportunities through participation in Project AWARE’s CoralWatch Project

7. To submit coral health data, contributing to science and conservation

3. Course overview:

• Classroom presentation • Practical training: • Diver: There are two open water training dives. • Snorkeler: One open water snorkel training dive

4. Certification Student divers are issued the CoralWatch Coral Health Chart Distinctive certification card upon successful completion of the course.

Certification recognizes that you:

• Have been trained to organise, conduct and log Coral Health monitoring as:

o Diver open water dives using the techniques taught in this course. These dives should be made in conditions generally comparable to, or better than, those of your training.

o Snorkeler, snorkel dives using the techniques taught in this course. These snorkel dives should be made in conditions generally comparable to, or better than, those of your training.

• A diver may apply for the rating of PADI Master Scuba Diver if you are a PADI Advanced Open Water Diver (or have a qualifying certification from another organization) and PADI Rescue Diver (or have a qualifying certification from another organization) with certification in four additional PADI Speciality ratings. You will also need to show evidence of at least 50 logged dives.


5. Class requirements

• Cost of course (Be sure to explain all course costs) • Equipment needs • Materials needed for the course • Attendance requirements

6. Administration • Complete paperwork – Enrolment, Standard Safe Diving Practices Statement of

Understanding, PADI Medical Statement and Liability Release and Express Assumption of Risk.

B. Project AWARE 1. Learning Objectives By the end of this session, you will be able to:

1. Explain Project AWARE’s Mission and Purpose 2. Explain Project AWARE’s partnership with CoralWatch

2. Project AWARE’s Mission and Purpose Project AWARE Foundation, helps divers mobilize to protect our ocean planet – one dive at a time. Project AWARE empowers thousands of divers in more than 180 countries to combat two major ocean issues underwater – sharks in peril and marine debris. Join the growing movement of divers striving toward a clean, healthy and abundant ocean planet. www.projectaware.org Project AWARE Foundation is a registered non-profit organization.

3. Project AWARE’s partnership with CoralWatch In 2006, Project AWARE teamed up with Australia’s University of Queensland CoralWatch group to encourage divers and snorkelers to monitor reefs. This valuable relationship has seen CoralWatch monitoring tools promoted to thousands of divers worldwide. To learn more about Project AWARE and CoralWatch visit www.projectaware.org. Entering of data and viewing data results is possible through CoralWatch. (www.coralwatch.org).

Together we can make a difference!

C. CoralWatch 1. Learning Objectives By the end of this session, you will be able to:

1. Explain what is CoralWatch 2. Explain CoralWatch’s mission and objectives 3. Explain why divers and snorkelers are important contributors to

CoralWatch 4. Explain why action to protect reefs is essential

2. CoralWatch

http://www.projectaware.org/�



CoralWatch is a non-profit research organisation based and supported by The University of Queensland, Australia. CoralWatch collaborates with Project AWARE, and works with hundreds of groups and individuals worldwide to increase understanding of coral reefs, coral bleaching and climate change.

CoralWatch uses a standardised method to evaluate the level of coral bleaching by using a Colour Health Chart. Volunteers match the intensity of the colour on the chart to the intensity of the colour of the monitored corals. The recorded level of the brightness of coral colour (on a scale from 1 to 6) is an indicator of coral stress. Following the dive, the recorded data is submitted to a global database.

3. CoralWatch’s Mission and Objectives CoralWatch Mission: Providing hands-on community monitoring and education tools to raise awareness of reef threats and encourage behaviour change towards a sustainable, low-carbon future.

CoralWatch Objectives:

1. To involve divers and snorkelers in a simple, non-invasive coral reef monitoring program

2. To supporting an expanding network of volunteers engaged in coral health monitoring

3. To raise awareness about coral reef conservation and the underwater environment

4. To manage an interactive online database providing up-to-date data on reef conditions worldwide

4. Divers and snorkelers are important contributors to CoralWatch CoralWatch sees three basic reasons why volunteer involvement matters:

1. There are too few scientists to observe all world’s reefs 2. More data is required to better understand local and global patterns of bleaching

and recovery 3. Community involvement is important to raise awareness

Your participation in this specialty indicates that you are concerned about reef health. CoralWatch would like you to participate in regular monitoring. There are not enough scientists to monitor reefs, but there are lots of divers and snorkelers who can help with ongoing coral monitoring. Coral bleaching is happening everywhere in the world and we need regular information from as many places as possible over time. Data from reef monitoring is required to detect and better understand local and global patterns of bleaching and recovery, to allow researchers, managers, politicians and ourselves to make well-informed decisions to best protect our reefs.

5. Actions to protect reefs is essential By organizing and participating in monitoring activities you contribute to an international research effort and educate others about threats to coral reefs. Coral reefs are in danger of disappearing from temperature induced bleaching in the next 30-50 years.

Volunteers can help by:

1. Understanding and helping minimize local stressors such as overfishing or land based sources of pollution.

2. Reducing your carbon footprint– you can find out more about this on CoralWatch website


3. Educating others about the global warming and coral bleaching connection 4. Participating in conservation activities such as CoralWatch

ACT NOW for the future of our reefs

D. Coral Reefs 1. Learning Objectives By the end of this session, you will be able to:

1. Explain what corals reefs are 2. Explain why coral reefs are important 3. Explain threats to coral reefs

2. Coral Reefs Corals are colonies of tiny living animals found in marine waters containing few nutrients. Corals are members of the same invertebrate phylum as jellyfish and sea anemones, known as Cnidaria. Hard corals (like brain, branching and plate coral) have hard, limestone skeletons which form the basis of coral reefs. They are also called reef-building corals. Soft corals (like sea fingers and sea whips) do not build reefs.

Coral reefs form some of the most diverse ecosystems on earth. They occupy less than 1% of the world ocean surface, but they provide a home for 25% of all marine species. They are most commonly found at shallow depths in tropical waters, particularly in the Pacific Ocean. Deep water and cold water corals exist, but on a much smaller scale.

3. Importance of Coral Reefs Hundreds of millions of people rely on coral reef ecosystems as their primary source of protein. The fishing and tourism industry provide food, jobs and income. Reefs also protect our shoreline, acting as natural breakwaters that protect people and homes from storm surges and waves. The total annual value of goods and services that these ecosystems supply in terms of food, coastal protection, tourism, recreational activities, building materials and oil supplies is estimated to be US$375 billion.

4. Threats to coral reefs Coral reefs are fragile ecosystems, partly because they are very sensitive to water temperature. They are under threat from climate change, ocean acidification, blast fishing, cyanide fishing for aquarium fish, overuse of reef resources, and harmful land-use practices. High nutrient levels such as those found in runoff from agricultural areas can harm reefs by encouraging excess algae growth. High water temperatures that persist over time can lead to coral bleaching.

E. Coral Bleaching

1. Learning Objectives By the end of this session, you will be able to:

1. Explain the meaning of colours on coral reefs 2. Explain the importance of coral reef research 3. Explain the term coral bleaching


2. Colours on Coral Reefs Reefs are some of the most colourful places on our planet. Colours are important for reef animals to communicate, to find prey or keep hidden, and to advertise that they are toxic, aggressive or looking for a mate. Colour also provides us with an indication of coral health. The dramatic colour loss associated with increasingly frequent bleaching events indicates that corals are under serious stress on a worldwide scale. Maintaining a healthy colour can mean the difference between life and death on a reef.

3. Coral Reef Research Scientists have recorded colour loss on reefs all over the world, with corals changing from healthy brown to brilliant white. This whitening, also called coral bleaching, can lead to the coral death. Some corals may recover but not regain full health. In the mass bleaching event in 1998, almost one-sixth of the world’s coral colonies died. Bleaching represents a serious problem for coral reefs and understanding patterns of bleaching and recovery is of vital importance to reef researchers, managers and anyone concerned with long term health of coral reefs.

4. Coral Bleaching Coral is a living animal that builds a limestone skeleton thanks to a unique relationship between the coral and symbiotic algae (Zooxanthellae) that live inside the coral tissue. The algae provide the coral with food and give it colour, the coral provides shelter and nutrients to the algae. When the coral is stressed it expels the coloured algae living inside it and the coral tissue becomes transparent. The coral appears white because what you’re seeing is a white, limestone skeleton shining through the thin, transparent tissue of the coral.

Figure 1: Coral bleaching and recovery

The single greatest determining factor as to whether a coral survives a bleaching event is the amount of time that it is exposed to elevated temperatures under high light conditions. The longer the coral is exposed, the greater the chances of mortality, with many succumbing to disease and being overgrown by algae. Corals can recover quite quickly from bleaching events once the stresses are relieved, in some cases regaining their colour in a matter of days. Each bleaching event weakens the overall health of the coral over time.

Note to Instructor


To learn more about the science behind the protocol watch the CoralWatch Seminar with your students: http://coralwatch.org/web/guest/instruction-seminar or combine the course with AWARE Coral Reef Conservation to understand how corals are formed. Also refer to the book “Coral Reefs and Climate Change, the guide for education and awareness’ especially the sections about Coral Bleaching, Ecosystem resilience and State of the Reefs.

F. Coral Type


1. Identify coral types surveyed with Coral Health Chart 2. Explain why we record coral type

2. Coral types surveyed with Coral Health Chart

Branching Plate Boulder Soft

Figure 2. Coral types used with Coral Health Chart surveys

Coral types are described simply by the basic growth forms or shapes of coral colonies. The Coral Health Chart uses four coral types to classify corals. Branching refers to any branching coral such as Acropora species. Boulder refers to any massive or rounded corals such as some Platygyra and Porites species. Plate refers to any coral that forms a plate-like formation such as tabular Acropora species, and the soft category refers to corals lacking a hard skeleton, such as the Xenia species.

All hard and soft corals can be surveyed using the Coral Health Chart. Some corals may not clearly match one of these four coral types. Our aim is to keep the chart and survey as simple as possible, so if you’re experiencing difficulties when classifying your corals, please simply choose the closest coral type.

3. Recording of coral type A healthy reef, depending on its location, will generally have a balanced mix of all four coral types. Branching and plate corals are typically found in shallow waters, as they needs lots of sunlight for the zooxanthellae to photosynthesise, while boulder corals are generally found in slightly deeper waters. Soft corals tend to be found in a variety of locations and don’t seem to have a preferred spot. If a reef is lacking one of the major coral types, this could implicate certain disturbances in the area. Each coral type reacts to disturbances in different ways, and knowing the percentage of each type on a reef can help scientists to do more research.

http://coralwatch.org/web/guest/instruction-seminar�


G. Coral Health Chart Survey


1. Explain the basis of the Coral Health Chart 2. Explain step by step use of the Coral Health Chart 3. Explain which coral types to monitor 4. Explain monitoring methods 5. Explain what not to monitor 6. Explain what more to monitor 7. Explain environmental and safety considerations

2. Basis of the Coral Health Chart

Figure 3 CoralWatch Coral Health Chart

The colour health chart is basically a series of sample colours (Figure 3), with variation in brightness, representing different stages of bleaching/recovery. Scientists at the University of Queensland, Australia, conducted a series of experiments assessing different stages of coral bleaching. In the laboratory, a controlled bleaching experiment was conducted to establish the relationship between colour and symbiont/chlorophyll content, using five species of branching corals. These experiments showed that as corals became stressed during increased temperatures, their colour changed. In the field, a photographic field survey of 200 corals was undertaken during a period of bleaching in order to identify the most common colours associated with normally pigmented and bleached corals from a broad range of species. Scientific findings indicate that the intensity of coral colour is correlates with the concentration of symbiotic algae and the degree of coral bleaching. This led to the creation of the Coral Health Chart.

3. Step by Step Use of the Coral Health Chart Using Figure 4, each step involved in using of the Coral Health Chart is explained:


Figure 4 Explanation of CoralWatch Coral Health Chart.

1. Choose a random coral. 2. Look down at the coral and select the lightest area, avoiding the tips of branching

corals. 3. Hold the colour chart next to the selected area. 4. Rotate chart until you find the closest colour match. 5. Record the matching colour code along with coral type on the underwater data slate

(Figure 5) when diving and/or snorkelling. 6. Repeat steps 2 to 5 for the darkest area of the coral. 7. Continue survey with other corals. 8. When you finish, transcribe your collected data to the website data sheet & submit.


Figure 5 CoralWatch Data Slate

4. Coral types You don’t need to know the species of corals in order to effectively monitor them. You just need to be able to identify the four different types of corals: branching, boulder, plate and soft. If you know species you can record them or come across different growth forms you can record them.

5. Monitoring Methods Depending on your needs, abilities and interests, you can choose a Coral Health Chart monitoring approach suitable for different water depth:

• Snorkeling in water too deep to walk in, or where snorkeling is more suitable (up to a safe water depth).

• Diving in water too deep to snorkel, or where SCUBA is more suitable up to a maximum water depth of 18 feet. When diving deeper than 5 m/15 feet, an underwater dive light should be used. Due to loss of light through the water column, colours seem to disappear starting with the red colors followed by yellow, green and blue. As a result you will need to bring a dive light to be able to match the colours correctly and use a strobe with your underwater camera.

There are a number of different monitoring methods that participants can use:

• Random – You can choose to monitor corals randomly. An example would be to collect data on every third or fifth fin-kick but be sure that your selection is truly random and not a collection of bleached corals. This is useful for a once-off visit to a reef or if you are not returning to the same site or corals each time.

• Transect - You can use a transect line and monitor along the same transect every time you schedule your monitoring activity. Note that setting up a permanent transect may require approval from your local authorities.

• Same corals - Select the same corals that you know scattered throughout your favorite dive sites and return to them over time.

No matter which method you choose, make sure that you and your snorkelers or divers remain consistent in your approach.


The reaction to various stressors may be influenced by coral type, species and/or depth and location. To address these potential differences you can select multiple types (i.e. equal ratios of branching, boulder, plate or soft corals) to provide a more detailed picture of reef health. You can also conduct a depth comparison at say 3, 6, 9 meters.

Don’t record the tips of corals; these growing tips appear to be often naturally white.

6. What not to monitor? Corals that have been impacted by other causes then coral bleaching should not be monitored. These impacts include:

• Coral diseases: In general, the coral diseases move forward across a coral colony, often starting from the base. Sometimes a band between healthy coral and diseased coral is visible. Some coral diseases include black band disease, brown band disease or red brand disease.

• Storms, anchor, fishes or human damage: Coral may be damaged by storms, anchors, fish or humans (e.g. divers or snorkelers) and show scars or break off. Fish scars are often recognized by the visible teeth marks. All these scars damage the coral skeleton independently of coral bleaching processes.

• Crown of Thorns (COTS) outbreaks: Crown of Thorns are a starfish which eat coral polyps. When an outbreak of COTS occurs then they are capable to seriously impact a coral reef. COT scares are similar to that of coral bleaching although it occurs more in a band and often the COT can still be seen. Other invasive species which can eat coral include the Drupella snail.

If you are not sure whether a coral is white because of bleaching, disease or something else, please include it in the survey and if possible, add a note to the comments section when you enter your data.

Note to the instructor

One way to check if a coral is bleached or diseased is to assess if any coral tissue is present. If you can see tissue or polyps, then the coral is likely to be bleached rather than diseased

7. What more to monitor? Often other environmental parameters could provide indicators of coral bleaching and should be recorded as well. These parameters are:

• Average Depth: Increased depth may reduce the amount of light penetrating through the water column. It is known that high levels of light are factor increasing coral bleaching. Because of this it is important to record depth.

• Sea water temperature: As sea water temperature is one of the main causes of coral bleaching, it is advised to note temperature as well.

• Wind conditions: Low wind conditions over longer time are considered an additional factor influencing coral bleaching.

• Cloud cover conditions: Reduced cloud cover over longer time increased the amount of light penetrating through the water column. It is known that high levels of light are factor increasing coral bleaching.

8. Environmental and safety considerations Project AWARE has listed ten tips for environmental awareness and safety, of which the following should be considered especially when conducting Coral Health Chart Surveys.


•

H. Coral Health Chart Data 1. Learning Objectives By the end of this session, you will be able to:


1. Record Coral Health Chart Data during your survey 2. Submit the data to CoralWatch 3. Explain what happens with the data

2. Record Coral Health Chart Data during your survey At the surface you record the following information on the Coral Health Chart Data Sheet;

• Group name: • Your name: • Email address: • Participation field: • Country of reef: • Reef name: • GPS if possible: • Sea temperature: • Date of survey: • Time collected: • Weather: • Your activity: snorkeling / diving

During your survey you should use an underwater slate to record;

• lightest and darkest colour code • type of coral •

Waterproof slates can be created by simply copying the data sheet onto a piece of hard plastic.

3. Submit the data to CoralWatch Data reporting is an integral part of your monitoring effort. Following the dive, the preferred method of submitting the information to CoralWatch is online.

Go to www.coralwatch.org, become a member (free of charge) and you can enter your data.

When you enter the data, graphs will be automatically generated to show you the health of your reef. Make sure you recorded all necessary information; otherwise the data will not be accepted. We need to ensure that only valid data is entered.

If you don’t have access to the web you can email, fax or post the data sheet to us. Please send us an email to check preferred method. [email protected]

There are many ways to ensure the data is submitted: you can do it yourself or better yet engage others. You can involve the divers as part of the post-dive briefing and social activity. Entering the data is actually quite easy to do and will certainly ignite the interest of your divers.

4. Database for scientific analysis Once your data is entered online into the CoralWatch database, you have contributed important information needed for scientific analysis. However, you can also track the health of your own dive sites and others over time and compare it to the condition of reefs in different regions of the world (Figure 6).


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Figure 6 Map showing all monitoring sites www.coralwatch.org

I. Coral Health Chart Data Results


1. Explain the results of your survey 2. Explain the colour score distribution graph 3. Explain the coral type distribution graph 4. Explain How to Compare Your Survey with Existing Data

2. Results of your survey Once you have entered your data online, 2 graphs will be automatically generated showing:

• Colour Score Distribution Graph • Coral Type Distribution Graph

Colour score distribution graph

In Figure 7, the colour score bar graph explains the distribution of colour scores that you recorded for a particular reef. The colour score ranges from 1 to 6 with 1 representing the lightest corals and 6 representing the darkest. A healthy reef would be expected to have a very small number of corals with colour scores of 1-2 and larger numbers with higher colour scores, like 4-6. A bleached reef would be expected to have a large number of corals with a colour score of 1 and only a few corals with values of 4 or more. Bleached corals can appear as bright yellow, green, blue and pink in addition to the common white.


Figure 7 Colour Score Distribution Graph

The higher the number, the darker the coral, and the more symbiotic dinoflagellates are contained in the coral tissue. Bleached corals have low numbers of symbionts, are light in colour and have low colour score values. Even if the reef is healthy, not all corals will have the same number of symbionts, or the same colour, and it is expected that you will find a distribution of colour scores spanning the entire range.

Coral type distribution graph

This pie chart (Figure 8) explains the percentage of each coral shape that you monitored today. This can give you an idea if, perhaps, you’re monitoring site is dominated by one shape in particular.

Figure 8 Coral Type Distribution Graph

Measuring the percentage of each coral type on a reef can tell us a lot about that reef and how it functions. Reefs with predominantly branching and plate corals are likely very shallow reefs and will be particularly vulnerable to disturbances from storms, tourists and ocean temperature rises. On the other hand, reefs with predominantly boulder corals are likely more robust and less likely to be exposed to wide-spread bleaching, as boulder corals tend to be stronger than branching and plate corals.

3. Compare your survey with existing data If you are able to visit the website www.coralwatch.org you can compare your data with existing data. Go to DATA and VIEW REEFS and select the reef you are interested in.


Figure 9 Average colour score over time

This line graph (Figure 9) shows all monitoring dates with average health scores of a specific reef. Each data point is the average of all the colour scores for that time period (month, year, etc.), from all the data collected so far. This shows how the health of your reef is progressing over time. Significant drops in your colour score can relate to threats to the reef such as bleaching, diseases, invasive species or increased tourism.

VI. Practical Sessions Certified Diver A. Open Water Training Dive One (Certified Diver – only) 1. Learning Objectives By the end of this session, you will be able to:

1. Demonstrate a controlled entry and descent 2. Demonstrate neutral buoyancy by hovering 3. Identify healthy coral and their different coral types 4. Identify bleached coral and their different coral types 5. Demonstrate understanding of how to measure coral health 6. Take note of any bleached corals 7. Maintain a safe and comfortable distance from the coral while taking

notes 8. Perform a proper exit

2. Briefing a. Evaluation of conditions b. Dive boat orientation, if applicable c. Entry techniques d. Exit techniques e. Bottom composition and topography f. Depth range g. Ending tank pressure – when to terminate the dive underwater


h. Interesting/helpful facts about the dive site i. Sequence of training dive – review Dive One tasks:

Entry. Neutral buoyancy exercise. Identify healthy coral and their different coral types Identify bleached coral and their different coral types Demonstrate understanding of how to determine coral bleaching level

using the coral health chart and dive light Take note of any bleached corals Exit

j. Special communication underwater and topside (review boat recall system if applicable).

k. What to do if an emergency arises l. What to do if student loses class/buddy underwater. m. Buddy assignments

3. Predive procedures a. Prepare personal diving equipment b. Perform no decompression calculations. [Students should use Deluxe Data

Carrier or Recreational Dive Planner Data Carrier] c. Perform proper predive safety check – BWRAF

4. Dive One Tasks a. Perform a controlled entry and descent b. Demonstrate neutral buoyancy by hovering c. Identify healthy coral and their different coral types d. Identify bleached coral and their different coral types e. Demonstrate understanding of how to determine coral bleaching level using

the Coral Health Chart f. Take note of any bleached corals

5. Post dive procedures a. Check in with divemaster (if appropriate) b. Assist buddy with equipment removal c. Set timing device for surface interval (if necessary) d. Stow personal equipment (if appropriate) e. Calculate pressure group letter – complete the PADI Repetitive Dive Work

Slate or the Recreational Dive Planner Data Carrier.

6. Debriefing a. Provide positive comments regarding student performance

Problems encountered during the dive and those to be avoided on future dives b. Discuss the predominate

health coral types observed during the dive bleached coral types observed during the dive level of bleaching observed

c. Discuss the use of the coral health chart

7. Log dive (instructor signs log)

8. Arrange for data to be added to the CoralWatch database, if applicable


B. Open Water Training Dive Two (Certified Diver – only) 1. Learning Objectives By the end of this open water training session you will be able to:

1. Demonstrate a controlled entry and descent 2. Demonstrate understanding of how to conduct a complete Coral Health

Chart survey 3. Maintain a safe and comfortable distance from the coral while taking


2. Briefing a. Evaluation of conditions b. Dive boat orientation, if applicable c. Entry techniques d. Exit techniques e. Bottom composition and topography f. Depth range g. Ending tank pressure – when to terminate the dive underwater h. Interesting/helpful facts about the dive site i. Sequence of training dive – review Dive Two tasks

Entry Neutral buoyancy exercise Identification of healthy and bleached coral and determine their coral

bleaching level by using the Coral Health Chart and entering it on the coral health data entry sheet

j. Exit k. Special communication on underwater and topside (review boat recall system

if applicable). l. What to do if an emergency arises m. What to do if separation student loses class/buddy underwater n. Buddy assignments

3. Predive procedures a. Prepare personal dive equipment b. Perform no decompression calculations. [Students should use Deluxe Data

Carrier or Recreational Dive Planner Data Carrier] c. Perform proper predive safety check – BWRAF

4. Dive Two Tasks a. Perform a controlled entry and descent b. Identification of healthy and bleached coral and determine their coral bleaching

level by using the coral health chart and entering it on the coral health data entry sheet

c. Perform a controlled ascent and exit

5. Post dive procedures a. Check in with divemaster (if appropriate) b. Assist buddy with equipment removal c. Set timing device for surface interval (if necessary) d. Stow personal equipment (if appropriate)


e. Calculate pressure group letter – complete the PADI Repetitive Dive Work Slate or the Recreational Dive Planner Data Carrier.

6. Debriefing a. Provide positive comments regarding student performance b. Problems encountered during the dive and those to be avoided on future dives c. Discuss conducting a complete Coral Health Chart survey d. Discuss the predominant

healthy coral types observed during the dive bleached coral types observed during the dive level of bleaching observed

e. Discuss conducting a complete coral health chart survey

7. Log dive (instructor signs log)



VII. Practical Sessions Snorkeler - A. Open Water Training Snorkel Dive - 1. Learning Objectives By the end of this session, you will be able to:

1. Demonstrate a controlled entry 2. Identify healthy coral and their different coral types 3. Identify bleached coral and their different coral types 4. Demonstrate understanding of how to measure coral health 5. Take note of any bleached corals 6. Maintain a safe and comfortable distance from the coral while taking


2. Briefing a. Evaluation of conditions b. Snorkel Dive boat orientation, if applicable c. Entry techniques d. Exit techniques e. Bottom composition and topography f. Depth range g. Interesting/helpful facts about the snorkel dive site h. Sequence of training snorkel dive – review snorkel dive tasks:

Entry. Identify healthy coral and their different coral types Identify bleached coral and their different coral types Demonstrate understanding of how to determine coral bleaching level

using the Coral Health Chart and dive light Take note of any bleached corals Exit

i. Special communication topside (review boat recall system if applicable). j. What to do if an emergency arises k. What to do if student loses class/buddy at surface. l. Buddy assignments

3. Pre snorkel dive procedures a. Prepare personal snorkel diving equipment

4. Snorkel Dive Tasks a. Perform a controlled entry b. Identify healthy coral and their different coral types c. Identify bleached coral and their different coral types d. Demonstrate understanding of how to determine coral bleaching level using

the coral health chart e. Take note of any bleached corals

5. Post snorkel dive procedures a. Check in with divemaster (if appropriate) b. Assist buddy with equipment removal c. Stow personal equipment (if appropriate)


6. Debriefing a. Provide positive comments regarding student performance b. Problems encountered during the snorkel dive and those to be avoided on

future snorkel dives c. Discuss the predominate

health coral types observed during the snorkel dive bleached coral types observed during the snorkel dive level of bleaching observed

d. Discuss the use of the Coral Health Chart

7. Log snorkel dive (instructor signs log)


-


VIII. Appendix A. Table of Appendix contents

• CoralWatch Data Sheets • CoralWatch Do It Yourself Kit • Project AWARE 10 Ways A Diver Can Protect the Aquatic Environment • Project AWARE 10 tips for Underwater Photographers

B. Recommended reading: Teymour, A. Rad and M.S. Sanjani (2010) Status of Coral Reef Species at Chabahar Bay, Sistan and Baluchistan, Iran. Pakistan Journal of Biological Sciences.

Reid, C., Marshall, N. J., Logan, D. and Kleine D. (2009) Coral Reefs and Climate Change; The guide for education and awareness. CoralWatch, The University of Queensland, Brisbane. 256 p ISBN 9780646523606.

Leiper, I.A., Siebeck U.E., Marshall N.J., and Phinn S.R. (2009) Coral health monitoring: linking coral colour and remote sensing techniques. Canadian Journal of Remote Sensing 35:276-286

Siebeck, U. E., Marshall, N. J., Kluter, A. and Hoegh-Guldberg, O. (2006). Monitoring coral bleaching using a colour reference card. Coral Reefs. 25:453-460.

Siebeck, U. E., Marshall, N. J. and Logan, D. (2008) CoralWatch: a flexible bleaching monitoring tool for you and your group. Proceedings of the 11th International Coral Reef Symposium. Unpublished

Marshall, P. and Schuttenberg, H. (2006). A Reef Manager’s Guide to Coral Bleaching. Townsville, Australia, Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority. Fabricius, K.E. (2006) Effects of irradiance, flow and coral pigmentation on the temperature microenvironments around corals: Implications for coral bleaching? Limnology and Oceanography. 51(1):30-37

Hoegh-Guldberg, O. (1999) Climate change, coral bleaching and the future of the world’s coral reefs. Marine & Freshwater Research. 50:839-866.

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