Coral Observer is a progressive web app designed to automate data entry and support the centralised Caribbean coral spawning database.
Use the Coral Observer app to streamline and automate your spawning data entry and join a network of scientists working together to monitor coral spawning activity around the Caribbean.
By joining the app, you will become part of our online community of coral reproduction enthusiasts, and you will receive updates on Caribbean-wide spawning reports
This is a first of its kind app, designed to streamline time-sensitive data collection
Your data will contribute to a regional database, facilitating data analysis to understand patterns and trends.
This won’t take you any extra time - when you upload your data we send you a .csv file with your data in to easily add to your own local database.
If you want to view the datasets to know when spawning might occur in your area, we have a searchable database that you can access by signing up, and you can also get in touch if you have any questions.
We protect the data from improper use by evaluating full access requests on a case by case basis and a data agreement is signed on release of the data.
This app was built by passionate coral reef volunteers, The Coral Observer coral spawning app is free to use and always will be!
Anyone who has monitored coral spawning in the Caribbean! In order to register, you will need to enter your name and affiliation, whether that be an academic institute, research organisation, or dive centre. A coral spawning observation can be conducted using snorkel or scuba. We advise you to collaborate with local scientists and experts, but if you don’t have any near you please get in touch and we can put you in touch with the right people for some guidance on how and when to observe coral spawning.
To make a spawning observation on Coral Observer, you will need to record the following data points:
The caribbeancoral.org web app can be accessed from any device and can also be downloaded onto a smartphone. As a progressive web app, it does not require anywhere near as much space or memory on your phone as a native app, and it won’t drain your battery either.
The data is stored in a searchable database on our secure web server Locations where spawning has been reported on our app can be viewed on this map and we release an annual report of all of the data we have received from each Caribbean coral spawning season to our registered users. You can export your own data at any time and you can request all open access data
If someone uses data from the database for any kind of report, publication, or dissertation, you can reference the Caribbean spawning database as…. TBC
To talk about the app in your paper you would use the citation:
The Coral Observer Application (2021) A progressive web application for ecological data collection, www.coralobserver.com
Or, if you want to refer to a particular observation or set of observations (i.e., for your site of interest) you can reference a particular observer. If you wish to do this, please get in touch so we can ensure that you correctly cite the data!
This platform was inspired by and designed to support the decades of research by dedicated scientists, technicians, and volunteers who have tirelessly observed coral spawning to build knowledge on the spawning times and frequency in the Caribbean. Their work has been compiled into useful calendars for estimating when to conduct your coral spawning observation. Check out the links below:
Thanks to Coral Conservation Society for the fantastic video and infographic.
Be sure to head over to coralconserve.org for more information and to support coral conservation
