MCR LTER: Coral Reef: Modeling the effects of selectively fishing key functional groups of herbivores on coral resilience; data for Cook et al., 2023 Ecosphere

These data and code were generated in support of the manuscript: Cook DT, Schmitt RJ, Holbrook SJ, and HV Moeller, Ecosphere.
To investigate the impacts of selectively harvesting functional groups of herbivorous fishes on coral resilience, we used a dynamic model that is grounded by the coral reef system in Moorea, French Polynesia. Our model simulates the fraction of a reef occupied through time by classes of key benthic spaceholders (coral, two stages of macroalgae, and turf). Benthic and fishing dynamics are linked through the harvesting of two functional groups of herbivorous fishes. We utilize data collected on the abundance of fishes on the reef and in the catch in Moorea, French Polynesia to inform our model and to empirically explore patterns of fishing selectivity.
These data and code were published in Ecosphere and were a part of the thesis of D. Cook (2023).
This manuscript uses data collected by the U.S. National Science Foundation's (NSF) Moorea Coral Reef Long Term Ecological Research (MCR LTER) site under Grant No. OCE 2224354 (and earlier awards). Additional financial support to the MCR LTER site was provided through 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 2005-2023).