Optimizing remote underwater video sampling to quantify relative abundance, richness, and corallivory rates of reef fish
Hsu, Tsai Hsuan Tony, Gordon, Sophie, Ferrari, Renata, Hoey, Andrew S., and Figueira, Will F. (2025) Optimizing remote underwater video sampling to quantify relative abundance, richness, and corallivory rates of reef fish. Coral Reefs, 44 (2). e1001569. pp. 435-449.
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Abstract
Remote underwater videos (RUVs) are valuable for studying fish assemblages and behaviors, but analyzing them is time-consuming. To effectively extract data from RUVs while minimizing sampling errors, this study developed optimal subsampling strategies for assessing relative abundance, richness, and bite rates of corallivorous fish across eight geographically dispersed reef sites on the Great Barrier Reef and in the Torres Strait. Analyzing 40 frames per 60-min video yielded precise and accurate estimates of the mean number of individuals per frame (i.e., MeanCount), with systematic sampling (one frame every 90 s) proved as effective as or better than random sampling, depending on the survey sites. However, this approach underestimated species richness by ~ 40%, missing the less common species. For estimating bite rates, 30 min or 15 feeding events were optimal, with no significant gains in precision and accuracy with further effort. These strategies enhance data standardization and process efficiency, reducing the time required for MeanCount and bite rate estimates by nine and two times, respectively, compared to full video annotation.
| Item ID: | 88170 |
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| Item Type: | Article (Research - C1) |
| ISSN: | 1432-0975 |
| Keywords: | Coral reef fish, Corallivory, Relative abundance, Species richness estimate, Tropical reefs, Unbaited RUV |
| Copyright Information: | © The Author(s) 2025. This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article's Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article's Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/. |
| Date Deposited: | 01 Apr 2026 01:02 |
| FoR Codes: | 31 BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES > 3103 Ecology > 310305 Marine and estuarine ecology (incl. marine ichthyology) @ 100% |
| SEO Codes: | 18 ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT > 1805 Marine systems and management > 180504 Marine biodiversity @ 100% |
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