SBCLTER: Reef: Kelp Removal Experiment:: Fish Abundance

These data describe the abundance and size of fish species as part of SBCLTER's Kelp Removal Experiment to track long-term patterns in species abundance and diversity. This study began in 2008 in the Santa Barbara Channel, California, USA, and the dataset is updated annually. The abundance and size of all taxa of resident kelp forest fish encountered along one kelp removal and one kelp control transect are recorded at four reef sites located along the mainland coast of the Santa Barbara Channel. These sites reflect several oceanographic regimes in the channel and vary in distance from sources of terrestrial runoff. For these surveys, fish were sized and counted in a 2x2 meter water parcel along a 40m transect.