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.