Australian Plankton Biomass Index For Ocean Health Monitoring

The Australian Continuous Plankton Recorder survey measures plankton communities to assess ocean health. This dataset provides a biomass index derived from dry weight analysis of plankton samples collected across Australian waters. It is a project by CSIRO Oceans and Atmosphere and the Australian Antarctic Division, funded by the Integrated Marine Observing System.

Use Cases

• Map plankton biodiversity and distribution changes in response to climate change using the biomass index.
• Develop long-term plankton baselines for Australian waters to provide indices for fisheries management.
• Detect harmful algal blooms by analyzing temporal and spatial patterns in the biomass data.
• Validate satellite remote sensing ocean color data with in-situ plankton biomass measurements.

Strengths

• Data is collected as part of a national monitoring program with structured analysis protocols.
• Planned to be interoperable with other national and international programs through IMOS Infrastructure.
• Results are accessible via the AODN portal, facilitating discovery and integration.

Limitations

• Specific data volume, row count, and column structure are not provided in the input.
• Primary data formats are HTML and web services (WMS/WFS), which may require specialized tools for programmatic analysis compared to tabular files.
• Direct use of the data requires contacting the project contact person, adding a step to access.

Provenance

Source

CSIRO Marlin Data Catalogue, via the Integrated Marine Observing System (IMOS) Ships of Opportunity facility.

Collection Method

Plankton samples collected by Continuous Plankton Recorder, with biomass analyzed via dry weight measurement after oven drying.

Time Range

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Freshness

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Geography

Australian waters.