PISCO: OSU: Subtidal: Community Surveys: Swath Surveys

This metadata record documents the swath surveys for PISCO subtidal benthic
community surveys. Swath sampling consists of recording the number of
selected invertebrate and algal species on 2m x 30m transects. Benthic
surveys are comprised of three components, all sampled along the same
transects: (1) uniform point contact (UPC) estimates of benthic cover
and substrate characteristics, (2) swath transects to estimate the
density of kelps and macroinvertebrates and (3) quadrat sampling
to estimate the density of recruits of selected invert species,
small invertebrates, cyrptic fishes and recruit macroalgae.
Subtidal community structure surveys are conducted annually at all
sites during the summer or early fall, and quantify substrate type and
relief, benthic cover, abundance of major groups of macroalgae and
invertebrates, and abundance and size of fishes. Spatial allocation
of sampling is designed to measure year-to-year site-wide variability
in community structure and the spatial scales at which such variation
occurs. A site is defined as a fixed stretch of coastline, occupying
approximately 500m. Each site is divided into 2 halves (areas),
which comprise random factor stratified sampling over the entire site.