IMOS National Reference Station Zooplankton Biomass from Nine Australian Coastal Sites

IMOS National Reference Station (NRS) Zooplankton Biomass data comprises monthly biomass sampling from nine stations around the Australian coastline. The plankton ecology lab analyzes samples for community composition, biomass as dry weight, and size spectrum analysis. Data storage is planned to be interoperable through IMOS Infrastructure and is freely available via the Australian Ocean Data Network portal.

Use Cases

• Analyzing long-term trends in zooplankton biomass based on monthly sampling at reference stations.
• Studying marine community composition changes based on taxon per cubic meter data.
• Conducting size spectrum analysis of zooplankton populations using Zooscan-derived data.

Strengths

• Data is collected from nine stations regularly sampled around the Australian coastline.
• Sampling is conducted monthly at most stations, suggesting a consistent time-series.
• Three zooplankton samples are taken each month for different analysis types (formalin-fixed, unfrozen).

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.
• The dataset has been superseded by a newer collection, which may affect its relevance.

Provenance

Source

Integrated Marine Observing Systems (IMOS) National Mooring Network - National Reference Station (NRS) field sampling.

Collection Method

Samples collected using a drop net with a 60 cm diameter and 100 micron mesh, weighted to fall at 1 m/s, sampling on the way down.

Time Range

Includes Port Hacking 4 (PH4) samples from 2002 to January 2009, with ongoing sampling at other stations.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-04-28 13:51:21.471896; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Nine reference stations located around the Australian coastline.