Australian Phytoplankton Colour Index from Continuous Plankton Recorder

A collection of phytoplankton colour index (PCI) measurements from the Australian Continuous Plankton Recorder (AusCPR) survey, a joint project of CSIRO and the Australian Antarctic Division. The data is used to map plankton biodiversity, develop long-term baselines, and document changes in response to climate change in Australian and New Zealand waters.

Use Cases

• Analyze Phytoplankton Colour Index trends over time to detect changes in plankton communities in response to climate change.
• Map plankton biodiversity and distribution across Australian regional seas like the Tasman Sea and Coral Sea using the PCI data.
• Develop indices from PCI measurements for fisheries management applications in Australian waters.
• Use PCI data to validate satellite remote sensing of ocean color and phytoplankton biomass.
• Initialize and test marine ecosystem models with PCI-derived estimates of phytoplankton abundance.

Strengths

• Data collection is a joint project of CSIRO Marine and Atmospheric Research and the Australian Antarctic Division, providing authoritative scientific backing.
• Dataset is designed to be interoperable with other national and international programs through the IMOS infrastructure.
• Spatial coverage includes multiple Australian states, territories, and regional seas, as indicated by the extensive geographic tags.

Limitations

• This dataset has been superseded by a newer collection as of March 2022, indicating it is not the most current version available.
• Specific data structure details like row count, column names, and sample data are unavailable, limiting immediate analytical understanding.
• The methodology reference (Richardson et al 2006) is required for proper use, creating a prerequisite for users.

Provenance

Source

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

Collection Method

Phytoplankton colour index data analyzed from Continuous Plankton Recorder (CPR) samples as per Richardson et al 2006 methodology.

Freshness

Last updated metadata indicates 2026-03-21, but the dataset itself is noted as superseded since March 2022.

Geography

Australian waters, New Zealand, and surrounding regional seas including the Arafura Sea, Tasman Sea, Coral Sea, Timor Sea, Indian Ocean, and Pacific Ocean.