NOAA-NMFS, Galveston Laboratory Essential Fish Habitat Project data

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Frequently-anticipated questions:

What does this data set describe?

Title:
NOAA-NMFS, Galveston Laboratory Essential Fish Habitat Project data
Abstract:
"The Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act of 1996 requires the regional Fishery Management Councils and the Secretary of Commerce to describe and identify Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) for species under federal Fishery Management Plans. Essential Fish Habitat is defined in the Magnuson-Stevens Act as "those waters and substrate necessary to fish for spawning, breeding, feeding, or growth to maturity." The word "fish" in the previous sentence includes finfish, crabs, shrimp, and lobsters in the Gulf of Mexico. By identifying EFH, we can protect these habitats and restore them if they become damaged. The Fishery Ecology Branch developed a web site to support EFH efforts of the Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management Council. Maps and information are presented for use in identifying EFH in the Gulf of Mexico using relative abundance estimates for managed fish species. These data were obtained from the Estuarine Living Marine Resources (ELMR) database developed by the National Ocean Service (NOS). The ELMR database was substantially upgraded by NOS to support of this EFH effort."
  1. How should this data set be cited?

    NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service, Unknown, NOAA-NMFS, Galveston Laboratory Essential Fish Habitat Project data.

    Online Links:

  2. What geographic area does the data set cover?

    West_Bounding_Coordinate: -81.974000
    East_Bounding_Coordinate: -80.788000
    North_Bounding_Coordinate: 25.100000
    South_Bounding_Coordinate: 24.358000

  3. What does it look like?

    HardBank.jpg (JPEG)
    Image map showing extent and distribution of this data layer coverage

  4. Does the data set describe conditions during a particular time period?

    Calendar_Date: unknown
    Currentness_Reference: publication date

  5. What is the general form of this data set?

    Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form: tabular digital data

  6. How does the data set represent geographic features?

    1. How are geographic features stored in the data set?

      This is a Vector data set. It contains the following vector data types (SDTS terminology):

      • Entity point (173)

    2. What coordinate system is used to represent geographic features?

      Horizontal positions are specified in geographic coordinates, that is, latitude and longitude. Latitudes are given to the nearest 0.000000. Longitudes are given to the nearest 0.000000. Latitude and longitude values are specified in Decimal degrees.

      The horizontal datum used is North American Datum of 1927.
      The ellipsoid used is Clarke 1866.
      The semi-major axis of the ellipsoid used is 6378206.400000.
      The flattening of the ellipsoid used is 1/294.978698.

  7. How does the data set describe geographic features?

    nmfs_hrdbnk

    FID
    Internal feature number. (Source: ESRI)

    Sequential unique whole numbers that are automatically generated.

    Shape
    Feature geometry. (Source: ESRI)

    Coordinates defining the features.

    LATITUDE

    LONGITUDE

    SITENAME

    DATASETKEY

    Entity_and_Attribute_Overview:
    Latitudes and longitudes plus the description "hard bank" for each of these locations was entered into usSEABED. What is meant by hard bank is not defined.

Who produced the data set?

  1. Who are the originators of the data set? (may include formal authors, digital compilers, and editors)

  2. Who also contributed to the data set?

    Please review the cross reference information for original data set credit to Minello, et al.

  3. To whom should users address questions about the data?

    National Marine Fisheries Service, Southeast Fisheries Science Center, Galveston Laboratory
    4700 Avenue U
    Galveston, TX 77551-5997
    USA

    409-766-3500 (voice)

Why was the data set created?

"For use in identifying EFH in the Gulf of Mexico using relative abundance estimates for managed fish species."

How was the data set created?

  1. From what previous works were the data drawn?

  2. How were the data generated, processed, and modified?

    (process 1 of 3)
    Points inserted manually into the Hard Bank polygons of the Phil Caldwell NMFS Gulf Mexico sediment mapping.

    Person who carried out this activity:

    Chris Jenkins
    Institute of Arctic & Alpine Research (INSTAAR) Univeristy of Colorado at Boulder
    1560 30th Street
    Boulder, CO 80309-0450
    USA

    (303) 492-6387 (voice)
    (303) 492-6388 (FAX)
    chris.jenkins@colorado.edu

    (process 2 of 3)
    Digital coverages supplied by Caldwell 2002

    Person who carried out this activity:

    Chris Jenkins
    Institute of Arctic & Alpine Research (INSTAAR) Univeristy of Colorado at Boulder
    1560 30th Street
    Boulder, CO 80309-0450
    USA

    (303) 492-6387 (voice)
    (303) 492-6388 (FAX)
    chris.jenkins@colorado.edu

    (process 3 of 3)
    Digital data were checked, formatted to dbSEABED input format, then processed using dbSEABED software to produce a range of output formats. The processing contained quality checking that may have declined to pass faulty or suspect data to outputs.

    Person who carried out this activity:

    Chris Jenkins
    Institute of Arctic & Alpine Research (INSTAAR) Univeristy of Colorado at Boulder
    1560 30th Street
    Boulder, CO 80309-0450
    USA

    (303) 492-6387 (voice)
    (303) 492-6388 (FAX)
    chris.jenkins@colorado.edu

  3. What similar or related data should the user be aware of?

    Minello, Thomas, Mark Monaco (NOS, Silver Spring, MD), Matthews, Geoffrey, Caldwell, Philip, (NOS), John Christensen , and (NOS), Randy Clark , Unknown, Mapping Essential Fish Habitat for the Gulf of Mexico..

    Online Links:

How reliable are the data; what problems remain in the data set?

  1. How well have the observations been checked?

  2. How accurate are the geographic locations?

  3. How accurate are the heights or depths?

  4. Where are the gaps in the data? What is missing?

  5. How consistent are the relationships among the observations, including topology?

How can someone get a copy of the data set?

Are there legal restrictions on access or use of the data?

Access_Constraints: None.
Use_Constraints: None.

  1. Who distributes the data set? (Distributor 1 of 1)

    National Marine Fisheries Service, Southeast Fisheries Science Center, Galveston Laboratory
    4700 Avenue U
    Galveston, TX 77551-5997
    USA

    409-766-3500 (voice)

  2. What's the catalog number I need to order this data set?

    NOAA-NMFS, Galveston Laboratory Essential Fish Habitat Project data

  3. What legal disclaimers am I supposed to read?

    Although this data set has been used by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), no warranty, expressed or implied, is made by the USGS as to the accuracy of the data and/or related materials. The act of distribution shall not constitute any such warranty, and no responsibility is assumed by the USGS in the use of these data or related materials. Trade, firm, or product names and other references to non-USGS products and services are provided for information only and do not constitute endorsement or warranty, express or implied, by the USGS, USDOI, or U.S. Government, as to their suitability, content, usefulness, functioning, completeness, or accuracy.

  4. How can I download or order the data?

Who wrote the metadata?

Dates:
Last modified: 25-Aug-2005
Last Reviewed: 03-May-2005
Metadata author:
Jamey Reid
U.S. Geological Survey
IT Specialist (Data Management)
384 Woods Hole Rd.
Woods Hole, MA 02543-1598

(508) 548-8700 x2204 (voice)
(508) 457-2310 (FAX)
jreid@usgs.gov

Metadata standard:
FGDC Content Standards for Digital Geospatial Metadata (FGDC-STD-001-1998)
Metadata extensions used:

Generated by mp version 2.8.24 on Mon Mar 27 19:54:41 2006