Abstract:

Data were used to describe environmental conditions and phytoplankton communities among three Texas estuaries (San Antonio Bay, Nueces-Corpus Christi Bay, Baffin Bay) with a gradient in freshwater inflow. Data were collected monthly from sites in San Antonio Bay (n=4) receiving high freshwater inflow, Nueces-Corpus Christi Bay (n=4) – a neutral estuary, and Baffin Bay (n=6), a low-inflow lagoonal system that is frequently hypersaline. Observations include environmental (physical, chemical), phytoplankton (chlorophyll a, biovolume) and composition (algal group biovolume) parameters over a 17-month period.

Suggested Citation:

Wetz, Michael. 2022. Environmental and phytoplankton data for comparison across a gradient of freshwater inflow within San Antonio Bay, Nueces-Corpus Christi Bay, and Baffin Bay, Texas from 2018-03-13 to 2019-07-11. Distributed by: GRIIDC, Harte Research Institute, Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi. doi:10.7266/Q3Y0RBNM

Purpose:

The submitted data were used to describe environmental conditions and phytoplankton communities among three Texas estuaries (San Antonio Bay, Nueces-Corpus Christi Bay, Baffin Bay) with a gradient in freshwater inflow.

Data Parameters and Units:

Date (mm/dd/yyyy), Time (hh:mm), Site, chl_whole (chlorophyll µg/L), chl_<20 (Size-fractioned chlorophyll <20 µg/L), chl_<3 (Size-fractioned chlorophyll <3 µg/L), Conductivity (µS/cm), Salinity, Dissolved Oxygen Concentration (mg/L), Dissolved Oxygen Saturation (%), pH, Temperature (°C), Depth (m), Secchi (m), Turbidity (NTU), Dissolved Organic Carbon (µM/L), Total Dissolved Nitrogen (µM/L), Total Organic Carbon (µM/L), Total Nitrogen (µM/L), Ammonium (µM/L), Nitrate + Nitrite (µM/L), Nitrite (µM/L), Orthophosphate (µM/L), Silicate (µM/L), Diatoms (um^3/mL), Dinoflagellates (um^3/mL), Euglenoids (um^3/mL), other flagellates (um^3/mL), Picocyanobacteria (um^3/mL), Mesodinium (um^3/mL), 'Brown tide' Aureoumbra lagunensis (um^3/mL), Unidentified (um^3/mL), Green/Chlorophytes (um^3/mL).

Methods:

At each site, hydrographic measurements were collected with a YSI ProPlus multi-parameter instrument from the surface to the bottom at intervals of 0.5 m. A vertical profile was obtained in this manner for temperature, salinity, conductivity, dissolved oxygen concentration and saturation, and pH. A secchi measurement was obtained by submerging a secchi disc in a spot out of direct sunlight to a depth at which it could no longer be seen, and total depth was obtained by lowering the secchi disc to the bottom. Discrete grab samples were collected at 10 cm below the surface and 10 cm above the bottom (using a Van Dorn bottle) in acid-washed, polycarbonate amber bottles, and were stored on ice until processing. Refer to Wetz et al. 2017 for further methodological details. Lugol's preserved phytoplankton samples were enumerated and measured for biovolume using the Utermohl method, and summarized as functional groups.

Instruments:

YSI Professional Plus Multi-Parameter Probe Seal QuAAtro autoanalyzer Shimadzu TOC-Vs analyzer with nitrogen module Turner Trilogy fluorometer

Provenance and Historical References:

Wetz, Michael S., Emily K. Cira, Blair Sterba‐Boatwright, Paul A. Montagna, Terence A. Palmer, and Kenneth C. Hayes. 2017. Exceptionally high organic nitrogen concentrations in a semi‐arid South Texas estuary susceptible to brown tide blooms. Estuarine Coastal and Shelf Science. 188:27–37. DOI:10.1016/j.ecss.2017.02.001

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