Abstract:

This dataset contains MOCNESS (Multiple Opening/Closing Net Environmental Sensing System) zooplankton data collected on board the R/V F.G. Walton Smith during Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) Plankton Survey Walton Smith 4 (WS4) in the Gulf of Mexico from 2011-04-26 to 2011-05-23. This survey (WS4, chief scientist: Malinda Sutor) was part of a series of NRDA cruises conducted in 2010 and 2011 to evaluate the distribution and densities of ichthyoplankton and other zooplankton in Gulf of Mexico waters potentially affected by the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill (DWHOS) and in surrounding areas. This dataset includes zooplankton data collected with depth-discrete MOCNESS tows including sampling event data (time, latitude, longitude, depth, volume filtered) and specimen data from ZooScan imagery (taxonomic identification, number of individuals per unit volume).

Suggested Citation:

Calhoun, Stacy, Kelly Robinson, and Malinda Sutor. 2021. MOCNESS zooplankton data collected during NRDA Plankton Survey Walton Smith 4 (WS4) in the northern Gulf of Mexico from 2011-04-26 to 2011-05-23 on board the R/V F.G. Walton Smith Cruise WS1107. Distributed by: GRIIDC, Harte Research Institute, Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi. doi:10.7266/n7-9kwb-eh85

Purpose:

This data was collected as part of the Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) of the MC252 Deepwater Horizon 2010 oil spill.

Data Parameters and Units:

CruiseName [Survey vessel]; CruiseNo [Number of NRDA survey on above vessel]; StationID Station name (B# stations are from the NOAA SEAMAP Grid); DayNightSample [Time of day associated with the sample. Day (D) is 1 hour after sunrise to 1 hour before sunset. Night (N) is 1 hr post sunset to 1 hr pre sunrise]; DeepShallowSample [General depths targeted by MOCNESS tow (not individual nets). Shallow (S) = 0-160 m; Deep (D) = 0-1500+ m]; DeploymentID [Unique identifier for each MOCNESS tow]; Field.Sample.ID [Unique identifier for each depth discrete net sample within the MOCNESS tow]; SampDateStart [Date sample was started (net entered the water/opened), M/DD/YYYY]; SampDateEnd [Date sample was ended (net exited the water/closed), M/DD/YYYY]; TowStartTime [Time of depth discrete net opening]; TowEndTime [Time of depth discrete net closing]; UpperDepth [Minimum depth sampled by net (m)]; LowerDepth [Maximum depth sampled by net (m)]; Volume [Volume of water filtered through the net (m3)]; StartLat [Start latitude of the tow]; StartLon [Start longitude of the tow]; EndLat [End latitude of the tow]; EndLon [End longitude of the tow]; Latitude [Latitude of the station (target coordinates, not actual sampling coordinates)]; Longitude [Longitude of the station (target coordinates, not actual sampling coordinates)]; NetNo [Net number (when applicable)]; NRDA_Taxon [Taxonomic classification abbreviations assigned during image sorting]; Density_Taxon [Descriptive classifications/long form versions of NRDA_Taxon classifications]; Density_No_m3 [Density of organisms (number of individuals/m^3)]. The dataset also includes the ReadMe file with detail information on - sample collection, data processing, NRDA identification description, and NRDA to density identifications.

Methods:

The majority of zooplankton image and density data were acquired from the Sutor lab at Louisiana State University (LSU). Samples not scanned during the original NRDA effort were scanned by the Sutor lab at LSU (for remaining Walton Smith Cruise 1 samples) and the Robinson lab at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette (for remaining Walton Smith 3 and Walton Smith 4 Cruises). The densities in this dataset were calculated from the ZooScan image data. Density was calculated as the (number of individuals*reciprocal of aliquot)/volume filtered. The dataset authors are curating the deep-pelagic plankton data for analysis and were not part of the sample collection effort. Original zooplankton data were received as image data and excel spreadsheets with density calculations for samples processed during the NRDA effort. Image data is submitted under the following MOCNESS data was received as excel files from the Hernandez lab at the University of Southern Mississippi that compiled the field data from Microsoft Access database files received from Data were acquired from the Deepwater Horizon Plankton Assessment Archive (DWHPAA) and NCEI. Field data were filtered by cruise and joined to zooplankton density data. NRDA data have undergone QC by the dataset authors. Data have been reviewed and edited for accuracy (e.g., corrections to depth, volume, latitude, and longitude based on MOCNESS instrument files and cruise plans). Samples without corresponding volume data were considered non-quantitative and were removed from the dataset. Columns and stations not pertinent to MOCNESS zooplankton data analysis were removed from the dataset.

Individual Files: