Info on California Reef Check

[Ben_ca]

So you just signed up to bad mouth this program or just to take jabs at Cyndi?

Even if what you are saying is true about the data being wasted I ask you this question: What is worse wasting time not collecting data and or at least making an attempt to capture some data while we can. And then maybe just maybe someone can use these numbers later on.

Life is about compromise. You do what you can with the resources you have. I'm sure any program would love to have a hundred PISCO trained Marine Scientists.... but how does one pay for that?

You say that Reef Check is a waste of time I say it raises awareness and provides data for current and future studies. It get's divers diving and spreads the word that our reefs do need watching. Every year that passes where we do not capture data is lost forever.

So unless you are working on that Delorean with the flux capacitor maybe you should be a little less critical.... times a wasting

 

[RCCenCal]

Thanks for the input Frisco. Our data is in the hands of Department of Fish and Game and you can check out our Memorandum of Understanding with them outlining our relationship and signed by the Director of Fish and Game at
Reef Check News - Reef Check Foundation signs Memorandum of Understanding with the California Department of Fish and Game
Dr. Mark Carr, one of the main principal investigators for PISCO, along with other leading subtidal researchers are on our Scientific Advisory Team (full list Monitoring Protocol) which helped us design a protocol that was scientifical valid, useful for management, and accessible to non-scientists.

Since you have had formal marine science education you know that a couple years of monitoring data, whether it is Reef Check California's or other monitoring groups, are not used to make managment decisions. Long-term datasets that extended for many years and in California's case are spread out over the 1100+ miles of coastline are what is required to improve the decisions made by marine managers. However, even short time scales can provide critical insights into the health of the ecosystems at a site. We are in the process of compiling our 2 year report highlighting several areas of interest, such as inside/outside MPA comparision, size frequency data for abalone on the north coast, etc. Also we will be publishing a peer reviewed scientific article compare RCCA diver counts directly to PISCO counts at the same site. Preliminary analyisis shows no significant differences for density estimates for species surveyed by both groups.

The bottom line is the state has no nearshore subtidal monitoring program and other monitoring groups cannot cover the entire coast. For example, no groups, academic or agency based currently conduct comprehensive nearshore subtidal monitoring north of the Golden Gate. Along the rest of the state there are frequent and often large spatial gaps in monitoring. Our Scientific Adivisory Team helped develop a way for divers to fill in those gaps in a scientifically robust way so marine managers will have more information to make decisions with. CA divers can make a difference doing RCCA surveys and I stand by my statements in class that having more of these types of data will improve management in CA. We have 2 years of data and we are going strong with the help of amazing, informed, and engaged CA divers. We have 48 sites currently ranging from Mendocino to San Diego and continue to increase the number of sites we survey every year. By reaching out to and learning from PISCO and similar groups we have formed a collaborative partnership that can improve marine management in CA by using standardized scientifically valid data collected by citizen-scientists up and down the state. Keep a look out for our on-line database which will be up in a few months where you can see summary graphs or directly download raw data. This tool is another example of our committment to ensure our data makes it out to the widest audience and is in a format commonly used by marine management and scientists.

 

[Gombessa]

Interesting turn this thread has taken.

I'm signed up for Reef Check training in Santa Rosa for July, and am definitely looking forward to it.

 

[micboucher]

Interesting turn this thread has taken.

I'm signed up for Reef Check training in Santa Rosa for July, and am definitely looking forward to it.

I'm also signed up for the July class in Santa Rosa and I'm very much looking forward to it!

 

[Reef Check CA_Craig]

Hi Frisco,

I am sorry to hear you did not have a positive experience in your RCCA training course and that you feel your efforts have been wasted. As the Director of the Reef Check California Program and the author of the protocol, I am surprised that you did not reach out to me with your comments and concerns. We developed the protocol in a transparent peer reviewed process and are always looking for ways to improve our programs.

It appears you have been misinformed on a number of issues and I welcome the opportunity to speak with you to discuss your concerns about the program and hear your suggestions for improvement.

Craig Shuman
Director, Reef Check California