These 3D models of corals were used to measure the growth and erosion of coral colonies and skeletons in situ over a year. This has not been done before with the fine scale resolution approach that we have taken. We found that dead coral colonies eroded by 52%, while live colonies grew by 20% of their original volume and surface area. 3D models are a very accurate and precise method to quantify both volume and surface area of coral colonies in situ without manipulating them, avoiding negative effects on corals associated with more invasive methods. Our metrics were within the range of previously reported values, which we also briefly review.

This collection is part of the electronic supplementary material of a manuscript published in Scientific Reports (rdcu.be/z5pC).

Please refer to it as: Ferrari et al. (2017) 3D photogrammetry quantifies growth and external erosion of individual coral colonies and skeletons. Scientific Reports 7 (16737) DOI:10.1038/s41598-017-16408-z