Daily benthic Photosynthetically Active Radiation (PAR) at seagrass sites in Cleveland Bay

Six sites in Cleveland Bay recorded photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) every 15 minutes from March 2017 to October 2018, converted to daily light integrals (mol m-2 d-1). The dataset was collected by the TropWATER Seagrass Group at James Cook University as part of the NESP TWQ project 3.2.1 to link sediment loads to seagrass condition. Benthic light levels were measured using submersible Odyssey loggers with automatic wipers to prevent sensor fouling.

Use Cases

• Modeling seagrass light requirements for growth based on daily PAR integrals.
• Validating spatially explicit benthic light predictions against in-situ measurements.
• Analyzing seasonal and interannual variability in benthic light levels associated with river discharge.
• Informing sediment load reduction targets for water quality management, as referenced in the Reef 2050 WQIP.

Strengths

• Data spans six specific sites over 20 months from March 2017 to October 2018.
• High-frequency measurements were taken every 15 minutes, aggregated to daily integrals.
• Dual independent loggers were deployed at each site to reduce data loss risk.
• Sensors were equipped with automatic wipers to prevent biofouling, as described in the methodology.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment for large-scale modeling.
• The data providers request contact before use, which may impose a barrier to immediate access.

Provenance

Source

TropWATER Seagrass Group, James Cook University, via the Australian Ocean Data Network.

Collection Method

Submersible Odyssey photosynthetic irradiance autonomous loggers with wiper units deployed on the seabed, calibrated against a LI-COR reference sensor.

Time Range

March 2017 to October 2018

Freshness

Last updated 2026-07-14 10:22:33.446729; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Cleveland Bay, within the Great Barrier Reef, Australia