Data was collected at Aldabra Atoll (Seychelles) by SIF staff and volunteers as part of the SIF Aldabra Reef Monitoring (ARM) programme at 12 monitoring sites between 2014 and 2021. Nine sites are on the seaward reef with permanently marked transects at both 5 m and 15 m water depth; three sites are inside the lagoon with permanently marked transects at 2 m water depth. Fish visual census surveys were conducted along one to three 50 × 4 m belt transects (i.e., one transect = 200 m2; 10 m gap between replicate transects) marked by surveyors with tape measures. The first transect was always the permanently marked transect; subsequent replicate transects were surveyed along the same compass bearing and following the same depth contour as the permanent transect. All transects of the same depth at each site were surveyed during the same dive.

These data also contain occurrence data from BRUV and RUV surveys done in 2020, as well as subsistence fishery data (most recent catch events per species between 2016 and 2020) sent directly from the Seychelles Islands Foundation.