Abstract:

This dataset contains zooplankton data collected in association with the Mobile Bay discharge plume aboard R/V Point Sur cruise PS16-20 (PTS02) in the northern Gulf of Mexico from 2016-04-08 to 2016-04-10. Depth-discrete plankton samples were collected during the spring CONCORDE cruise using a Bedford Institute of Oceanography Net Environmental Sampling System (BIONESS). The BIONESS (0.25 m^2 opening) was fitted with 335-µm and 202-µm mesh nets. Zooplankton samples included in this data set were collected nearshore on the coastal shelf downstream of the Mobile Bay river plume to examine how variable freshwater discharge from the Mobile Bay impacts zooplankton distributions. The dataset includes the location, date, bin depth and other sample collection information.

Suggested Citation:

Kelia Axler, Frank Hernandez, Carla Culpepper. 2020. Zooplankton data collected in association with the Mobile Bay discharge plume aboard R/V Point Sur cruise PS16-20 (PTS02) in the northern Gulf of Mexico from 2016-04-08 to 2016-04-10. Distributed by: GRIIDC, Harte Research Institute, Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi. doi:10.7266/D0FA1GEB

Purpose:

Data were collected during the CONCORDE Spring 2016 cruise to examine how variable freshwater discharge from the Mobile Bay impacts zooplankton distributions.

Data Parameters and Units:

The file "PTS02_Zooplankton_Plume_Process_Study": FH # (internal processing number, integer), Cruise (Identifies the cruise number, PTS02 denotes the CONCORDE spring cruise), Sample Date (UTC date that sample was collected, M/DD/YYYY), Station (Identifies the station sampled, PROCESS), Gear (Type of equipment used and haul number, MNXXXX), Net (Net number from which sample was drawn), Bin (Depth bin sample was collected from, m), Latitude (Degree minutes), Latitude_DD (Decimal degrees), Longitude (Degree minutes), Longitude_DD (Decimal degrees), Mesh (Mesh size; 335 or 202 μm), Sample Aliquot (The amount of sample that the sample aliquot was removed from), Swept Volume (The volume of sample collected in m^3), Count Volume (The volume of liquid and plankton combined when the samples were counted/identified in mL), Zooplankton Aliquot (The volume of liquid and plankton that was taken to count/identify in mL), Columns R-BK (Density reported as count per m^3 of each taxa - Calanoid Copepod, Cyclopoid Copepod, Harpacticoid Copepod, Parasitic Copepod, Copepod nauplius, Ostracod, Mysid Shrimp, Cladoceran, Amphipod, Euphausiid, Isopod, Chaetognath, Hydromedusae, Siphonophore, Polychaete, Pteropod, Heteropod, Cephalopod with, Salp, Doliolid, Larvacean, Polychaete larvae (trochophores), Gastropod larvae, Bivalve larvae, Brachiopoda (lingula larvae), Ectoprocta (Bryozoa larave), Echinoderm, Barnacle nauplii, Barnacle cypprid, Stomatopod, Crab zoea, Crab megalopa, Other decapod, Anthozoan, Ascidian, Cumacean, Juvenile crab, Lancelet, Poecilostomatoid copepod, Pycnogonid, Sipunculid, Tanaid, Tornaria, Unidentified, unidentified nauplius, and water mite). The file "GRIIDC_Cruise_Data_Documentation_Template_Zoop": The cruise documentation with cruise information for the R/V Point Sur cruise led by chief scientists Adam Greer & Alison Deary.

Methods:

Plankton net contents were rinsed with seawater, sieved, fixed in 95% ethanol, and stored in 85% ethanol. All fish larvae and zooplankton collected by the BIONESS nets were sorted and identified to the lowest possible taxonomic level using a Leica MZ9.5 dissecting microscope.

Instruments:

Bedford Institute of Oceanography Net Environmental Sampling System (BIONESS), 0.25 m^2 opening, fitted with 335-µm and 202-µm mesh nets.

Individual Files: