Antarctic Phytoplankton Pigment Concentrations from 1985 SIBEX II Cruise

Phytoplankton taxonomic identity, distribution, and abundance data were collected during the Nella Dan's SIBEX II research cruise in the Australian Antarctic sector during January 1985. The dataset includes over 60 pigment concentration measurements, such as chlorophyll a and fucoxanthin, analyzed via high-performance liquid chromatography. This subset was produced by the Australian Antarctic Division as part of ASAC project 40.

Use Cases

• Model phytoplankton community composition using ratios of diagnostic pigments like peridinin (dinoflagellates) and fucoxanthin (diatoms).
• Analyze spatial and temporal distribution of Chlorophyll a total against Latitude, Longitude, Date, and Depth to map primary production.
• Investigate pigment degradation processes by correlating % Degradation with specific pigment concentrations like Phaeophytin a.
• Calibrate remote sensing algorithms by comparing in-situ pigment concentrations (e.g., 19'-hexanoyloxyfucoxanthin) with satellite-derived data for the Mawson to Davis region.

Strengths

• Over 60 distinct pigment concentration measurements per sample, including major and minor pigments.
• Data includes precise geospatial (Latitude, Longitude) and temporal (Date, Time GMT) coordinates for each sample.
• Associated with a published research report (ANARE Research Notes 58) and a full Excel spreadsheet of pigment analysis.

Limitations

• Dataset is a subset of the full cruise data, potentially omitting some measurements.
• Single cruise's data from January 1985 provides only a temporal snapshot with no longitudinal time series.
• A key explanatory paper from 2006 on pigmentation has download restrictions limited to Australian Antarctic Division personnel.

Provenance

Source

Australian Antarctic Division (AU_AADC) as part of ASAC project 40.

Collection Method

Phytoplankton samples analyzed using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) during the SIBEX II cruise.

Time Range

January 1985.

Freshness

Data is from a single cruise in January 1985; no updates are expected.

Geography

Australian Antarctic sector, specifically the Mawson to Davis region and Prydz Bay.