Abstract:

This dataset contains data on the expanded footprint of the Deepwater Horizon (DWH) oil spill on benthic macrofauna and meiofauna communities analyzed from the sediment cores collected aboard R/V Ocean Veritas and R/V Gyre cruises in the northern Gulf of Mexico from 2010-09-16 to 2010-10-22. Samples were collected using an OSIL, Bowers and Connelly, multiple corers (multi-corer) from 116 stations. 12 sediment cores were collected per deployment and each deployment is a "replicate drop". Organisms were identified taxonomically and their abundance was determined. Taxonomic richness, diversity, and evenness were calculated. Concentrations of oil contaminants, organic compounds, and trace metals were measured. Grain size distribution was analyzed. A principal component analysis (PCA) revealed that 263 square kilometers were affected by the DWH oil spill, an area 78% larger than a previous estimate based on 58 stations (Montagna et al., 2013). The dataset also includes the location (latitude and longitude), date and depth of the sampling collection site. The cruise documentation was provided for the R/V Gyre (09-14-2010_Gyre) and R/V Ocean Veritas (09-24-2010_Ocean_Veritas) cruises led by chief scientists Dr. Abby Spencer and Dr. Frank Coluccio respectively.

Suggested Citation:

Paul Montagna. 2020. Benthic footprint of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill data analyzed from sediment cores collected aboard R/V Ocean Veritas and R/V Gyre cruises in the northern Gulf of Mexico from 2010-09-16 to 2010-10-22. Distributed by: GRIIDC, Harte Research Institute, Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi. doi:10.7266/FDKAJKNF

Publications:

Reuscher, M. G., Baguley, J. G., & Montagna, P. A. (2020). The expanded footprint of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico deep-sea benthos. PLOS ONE, 15(6), e0235167. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0235167

Purpose:

The data was generated to estimate the benthic footprint of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.

Data Parameters and Units:

Station, Sample Date (date sampled; DD-Mon-YY), Latitude (decimal degrees), Longitude (decimal degrees), Depth (m), Distance (Distance from DWH wellhead; km), macrofauna abundance (individuals per meter square), macrofauna taxonomic richness (taxa per sample), macrofauna diversity (based on Shannon Diversity Index), macrofauna diversity (based on Hill's Diversity Index), macrofauna evenness (based on Pielou's Evenness Index), meiofauna abundance (individuals per 10 square centimeters), meiofauna taxonomic richness (taxa per sample), meiofauna diversity (based on Shannon Diversity Index), meiofauna diversity (based on Hill's Diversity Index), meiofauna evenness (based on Pielou's Evenness Index), sediment porosity (%), sediment carbon content (%), sediment total organic content (%), sediment rubble content (%), sediment sand content (%), sediment silt content (%), sediment clay content (%), sediment mud content (%), concentration of Aluminium (ppm), concentration of antimony (ppm), concentration of arsenic (ppm), concentration of barium (ppm), concentration of beryllium (ppm), concentration of cadmium (ppm), concentration of chromium (ppm), concentration of cobalt (ppm), concentration of copper (ppm), concentration of iron (ppm), concentration of lead (ppm), concentration of manganese (ppm), concentration of mercury (ppm), concentration of nickel (ppm), concentration of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (ppb), concentration of silver (ppm), concentration of titanium (ppm), concentration of total petroleum hydrocarbon (ppm), concentration of vanadium (ppm). Please note that the variable name, variable description (units), and details about all the worksheets in the data file are provided in the worksheet "Metadata".

Methods:

Diversity of benthic macrofauna and meiofauna communities were analyzed and correlated to potential impacts of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. For detail methods on sample collection and analysis, please refer to NOAA Technical Memorandum NOS NCCOS 166; Interim Data Summary Report by Montagna et al., (2013).

Provenance and Historical References:

Montagna, P. A., Baguley, J. G., Cooksey, C., Hartwell, I., Hyde, L. J., Hyland, J. L., Kalke, R.D., Kracker, L.M., Reuscher, M. and Rhodes, A. C. E. (2013). Deep-Sea Benthic Footprint of the Deepwater Horizon Blowout. PLoS ONE, 8(8), e70540. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0070540 Montagna, P.A., J.G. Baguley, C. Cooksey, and J.L. Hyland. 2013. Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill: Assessment of Potential Impacts on the Deep Soft-Bottom Benthos. Interim Data Summary Report. NOAA Technical Memorandum NOS NCCOS 166. NOAA, National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science, Charleston, SC. 32 p.

Individual Files: