Abstract:

This dataset contains benthic infauna data from sediment cores collected aboard R/V Justo Sierra cruise JS-0815 in the southern Gulf of Mexico from 2015-08-03 to 2015-08-06. Samples were collected with multiple corers from 7 stations around the original Ixtoc-1 wellhead. Organisms were identified taxonomically, and their abundance was determined. Taxonomic richness, diversity, and evenness were calculated. The samples were analyzed to test for differences between stations and to estimate the recovery rate of the benthic community after an oil spill. Organisms were identified taxonomically. The dataset contains the location, date and hydrographic conditions at the sampling collection site; average meiofauna and macrofauna taxa abundance per replicate-section; and calculations for infauna abundance, diversity, richness and evenness. The total concentration of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAHs) for the core sections and cores was included. Additional information about the hydrocarbon concentration in these sediment cores can be found under GRIIDC Unique Dataset Identifier (UDI) R4.x267.179:0024. The complete hydrographic dataset related to these sediment cores can be found under GRIIDC UDI R4.x267.179:0019. The cruise documentation was provided for the R/V Justo Sierra cruise JS-0815. The cruise was led by chief scientists Dr. David Hollander and Dr. Patrick Schwing.

Suggested Citation:

Paul Montagna, Melissa Rohal. 2019. Benthic infauna data from sediment cores collected aboard R/V Justo Sierra cruise JS-0815 in the southern Gulf of Mexico from 2015-08-03 to 2015-08-06. Distributed by: GRIIDC, Harte Research Institute, Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi. doi:10.7266/n7-16vv-kd67

Publications:

Rohal, M., Barrera, N., Escobar-Briones, E., Brooks, G., Hollander, D., Larson, R., … Schwing, P. (2020). How quickly will the offshore ecosystem recover from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill? Lessons learned from the 1979 Ixtoc-1 oil well blowout. Ecological Indicators, 117, 106593. doi:10.1016/j.ecolind.2020.106593

Purpose:

The goal of this cruise was to characterize the distribution and fate of oiled sediment at sites on the continental shelf and slope of the southern Gulf of Mexico with reference to the Ixtoc blowout (1979-1980).

Data Parameters and Units:

Station Name, latitude (decimal degrees), longitude (decimal degrees), core collection depth (m), sampling date (dd-mm-yyyy), CTD depth (m), dissolved oxygen (DO, mg/L), temperature (degrees C), salinity (psu), station name, sediment core section depth (section, cm), section id (sec), replicate number (Rep), total PAH (ng/g), macrofauna abundance (Mac_nm2, n/m^2), macrofauna richness (Mac_S, n of taxa/sample), macrofauna diversity (Mac_Hprime, Shannon H'), macrofauna diversity (Mac_N1, Hill's N1), macrofauna evenness (Mac_Jprime, Pielou J'), meiofauna abundance (Mei_nm2, n/m^2), meiofauna richness (Mei_S, n of taxa/sample), meiofauna diversity (Mei_Hprime, Shannon H'), Meiofauna Diversity (Mei_N1, Hill's N1), Meiofauna Evenness (Mei_Jprime, Pielou J'), Total number of all Copepoda (n/m²), Total number of all Nematoda (n/m²), Total number of all Dorvilleidae (n/m²), Nematode / Copepod ratio (unitless), meiofauna and macrofaunal taxa abundance (n/m²). Please see the metadata sheet inside the dataset to find all the information regarding the taxa.

Individual Files: