IMOS - AusCPR: Plankton Biomass Index for Australian Waters

Australian ocean plankton biomass data from the Continuous Plankton Recorder survey, a joint project by CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere and the Australian Antarctic Division. The dataset supports mapping biodiversity, developing long-term baselines, and documenting changes in response to climate change. Results are available through the Australian Ocean Data Network portal and the project was funded by the Integrated Marine Observing System.

Use Cases

• Map plankton biodiversity and distribution based on survey data from Australian waters.
• Develop long-term plankton baselines for Australian waters based on the continuous survey.
• Document plankton changes in response to climate change based on time-series biomass measurements.
• Provide indices for fisheries management based on plankton community data.
• Detect harmful algal blooms based on plankton biomass and distribution patterns.

Strengths

• Data is part of a long-term survey aiming to establish the first long-term plankton baseline for Australian waters.
• Dataset is interoperable with other national and international programs through the IMOS infrastructure.
• Analysis is carried out by staff at CSIRO laboratories in Queensland and Hobart and the Australian Antarctic Division in Hobart.

Limitations

• Description metadata is limited; actual data quality requires manual inspection after download.
• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• This dataset has been superseded by a newer collection, which may affect its relevance.

Provenance

Source

Australian Ocean Data Network (AODN) portal, sourced from the Integrated Marine Observing System (IMOS) Ships of Opportunity facility.

Collection Method

Plankton samples collected via Continuous Plankton Recorder (CPR), with biomass measured by dry weight after being washed onto a pre-weighed filter and oven-dried.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-06-27 16:01:43.030651; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Australian waters.