Alexandra Kler Lago
Field Support and Partnerships Manager, MERMAID
At MERMAID, we believe that powerful data workflows should be accessible to everyone—not just those with coding experience.
We’re excited to introduce Easy PQT or ‘Easy Photo Quadrat’, a simple and user-friendly web app that lets you import your benthic photo quadrat data from CoralNet and ReefCloud directly into your projects in MERMAID—no R, no coding, no barriers.
From complex data workflows to a few clicks
Until now, importing benthic photo quadrat (PQT) data from CoralNet and ReefCloud into MERMAID required using our R package mermaidr. While powerful, this workflow depends on familiarity with R—something not all users have.
At the same time, many monitoring programs already rely on tools like CoralNet and ReefCloud to annotate their benthic images with their own trained models and label sets—and need an easy way to bring that data into MERMAID.
Easy PQT bridges that gap.
What is Easy PQT?
Easy PQT is a web-based Shiny app designed to help you:
Import benthic photo quadrat data from CoralNet and ReefCloud
Automatically reshape your dataset to the MERMAID data format
Map labels to MERMAID’s standardized benthic attributes
Upload your data directly into your projects in MERMAID Collect
All through a guided, step-by-step interface—no coding required.
Why this matters
Accessible to everyone
Whether you're a field practitioner, government partner, or researcher, you can now import benthic photo quadrat data without needing R and coding skills.
Faster data workflows
What used to take scripting and troubleshooting in R now takes just a few clicks—from export to import.
Built-in validation
Easy PQT checks and reshapes your data as you go, maps your labels to the MERMAID benthic attributes, and highlights mismatches, to help you quickly resolve them before import—improving data quality and standardization from the start.
Seamless integration
No need to keep your data in silos. Continue using your trained models in CoralNet and ReefCloud, then seamlessly bring your benthic photo quadrat data into MERMAID.
Data standardization
Once your CoralNet and ReefCloud data is in MERMAID, it sits alongside your fish, bleaching, habitat complexity, and other reef monitoring data in a single standardized format.
Expanded analysis and visualizations
From there, export your data from MERMAID Collect or Explore, analyze it using the R package mermaidr, visualize results through interactive chats in MERMAID Explore, and easily share findings with collaborators or contribute to global reef data efforts.
How it works
Easy PQT guides you through a simple workflow:
Prepare your MERMAID project
Make sure your sites, management regimes, and users are set up.Export your data
From CoralNet (CSV with labels and auxiliary fields)
From ReefCloud (ZIP export of point classifications)
Upload into Easy PQT
Drag and drop your file into the app and select your MERMAID project. You must be an admin in the project.Match and review
Map your data fields (site, management, transect)
Assign labels to MERMAID benthic attributes and growth forms
Resolve any flagged mismatches
Import into MERMAID
Once validated, your data is reshaped and imported as sample units—ready for validation and submission in Collect.
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With Easy PQT, automatically turn your annotated photo quadrat points into validated benthic observations in your MERMAID projects, and get calculated benthic cover.
The app also allows you to download your reshaped dataset at any stage for transparency and review.
For a full step-by-step guide, read more in:
A few important notes
You’ll need a verified MERMAID account to use Easy PQT
Only project admins can import data into MERMAID projects
The demo project won’t appear in the project dropdown list
After import, you’ll still need to complete a few required fields (e.g. depth, transect length, quadrat size), as well as the validation and submission steps from your Collecting page of the project in MERMAID Collect.
Designed for real-world workflows
Easy PQT reflects how reef monitoring actually happens for some teams:
Annotate images in CoralNet or ReefCloud
Export your data
Bring it into MERMAID for validation, visualization, and analysis
By removing technical barriers, Easy PQT helps more teams standardize, centralize, and use their data effectively.
Try Easy PQT
Ready to bring your CoralNet and ReefCloud data into MERMAID?
Log into Easy PQT using your MERMAID account and get started today.
New to photo quadrats?
We’ve got you covered with MERMAID AI.
Through our partnership with CoralNet, MERMAID offers an integrated AI model directly in Collect—so you can upload and classify your benthic photo quadrats from day one without creating your own label sets, training models, or managing performance.
If you have any questions or need support, reach out to us at contact@datamermaid.org. We’re here to help.