MCR LTER: Coral Reef Resilience: Herbivore Bite Rates on the North Shore Forereef July-August 2010

These data describe bite rates of two abundant species of roving herbivorous fishes found on the forereef, Chlorurus sordidus (Scaridae), and Ctenochaetus striatus (Acanthuridae). During several days in July and August 2010, a SCUBA diver followed individual focal fish for a period of up to 5 minutes and recorded the number of bites taken as well the types of substrates bitten. Upon randomly locating a focal individual, divers estimated the total length of that individual as well as their depth at the initiation (and termination) of the observation. Data are organized in two data tables. The first data table (Focal_Herbivore_Bite_Rates) contains individuals that were observed at two depths (~ 10 m and ~ 17 m) at LTER 1 as part of a balanced sampling design (see Sampling Protocol/Design). The second data table (Additional_Bite_Rate_Data) contains individuals that were observed opportunistically at LTER 1 and Resilience 2. To minimize the effect of time of day on fish behavior, all data were collected between 10:00 and 16:00, a period of time which corresponds with peak feeding rates for many herbivorous fishes. This material is based upon work supported by the U.S. National Science Foundation under
Grant No. OCE 16-37396 (and earlier awards) as well as a generous gift from the Gordon and
Betty Moore Foundation. Research was completed under permits issued by the French Polynesian
Government (Délégation à la Recherche) and the Haut-commissariat de la République en
Polynésie Francaise (DTRT) (Protocole d'Accueil 2005-2018). This work represents a
contribution of the Moorea Coral Reef (MCR) LTER Site.

本数据集记录了栖息于前礁（forereef）的两种优势漫游植食性鱼类的啃食速率：钝头鹦嘴鱼（Chlorurus sordidus，鹦嘴鱼科Scaridae）与条纹刺尾鱼（Ctenochaetus striatus，刺尾鱼科Acanthuridae）。2010年7月至8月的数日内，水肺潜水（SCUBA）员对单尾目标个体鱼进行追踪，单次追踪最长时长为5分钟，期间记录其啃食次数与所啃食的底质类型。在随机定位目标个体后，潜水员会估算该个体的总长度，并记录观测起始（及结束）时的水深。

本数据集分为两个数据表。第一个数据表为Focal_Herbivore_Bite_Rates（目标植食鱼类啃食速率），收录了在LTER 1站点两个水深（约10米与17米）下观测得到的个体数据，其采样方案为平衡采样设计（详见采样方案/设计）。第二个数据表为Additional_Bite_Rate_Data（补充啃食速率数据集），收录了在LTER 1与Resilience 2站点经机会性采样观测得到的个体数据。

为尽可能降低日时段对鱼类行为的干扰，所有数据均采集于10:00至16:00之间——该时段与多数植食性鱼类的摄食速率峰值时段相吻合。

本数据集的研究工作获得了美国国家科学基金会（U.S. National Science Foundation）资助（项目编号OCE 16-37396及早期资助项目），以及戈登与贝蒂·摩尔基金会（Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation）的慷慨捐赠。本研究的开展已获得法属波利尼西亚政府（Délégation à la Recherche）与法国驻波利尼西亚高级专员公署（Haut-commissariat de la République en Polynésie Francaise, DTRT）签发的科研许可（接待议定书2005-2018）。

本研究为莫雷阿珊瑚礁（Moorea Coral Reef, MCR）LTER长期生态研究站的科研贡献之一。