Quebec Region Zooplankton Biomass from Atlantic Monitoring Program

Quebec's Atlantic Zone Monitoring Program provides mean zooplankton biomass data from 46 stations in the Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence. The dataset includes measurements for total zooplankton, mesozooplankton, macrozooplankton, and euphausiids, collected during June and November surveys from 2013 to 2022. Data is provided in CSV format with columns for station location, date, depth, and biomass by group.

Use Cases

• Analyze spatial trends in Zooplankton/Zooplancton(g/m³) and Euphausiids/Euphausides(g/m³) biomass across the 46 Station locations using Latitude and Longitude.
• Model temporal changes in Mesozooplankton/Mésozooplancton(g/m³) and Macrozooplankton/Macrozooplancton(g/m³) using the Date(UTC) field from 2013-2022.
• Correlate biomass measurements from Depth_min/Profondeur_min(m) and Depth_max/Profondeur_max(m) layers with environmental conditions from other AZMP data.
• Build a time series visualization for total Zooplankton/Zooplancton(g/m³) biomass at specific stations to track interannual variability.

Strengths

• Data covers a consistent 10-year time series from 2013 to 2022 for June and November surveys.
• Includes biomass measurements for four distinct zooplankton groups: total, meso-, macro-, and euphausiids.
• Geographic coverage is specific, with data from 46 stations grouped into transects under Quebec region responsibility.

Limitations

• Sampling is limited to two months per year (June and November), missing full seasonal coverage.
• The year 2020 was not sampled, creating a gap in the annual time series.
• Biomass values are mean aggregates, lacking individual sample-level data or associated environmental covariates.

Provenance

Source

Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Atlantic Zone Monitoring Program (AZMP).

Collection Method

Zooplankton sampled via bottom-surface vertical net tow with a 202 µm net, preserved in formaldehyde, following AZMP protocol.

Time Range

2013 to 2022 (excluding 2020) for June and November surveys.

Freshness

Data is updated with recent surveys; the last update was in March 2026.

Geography

46 stations in the Estuary and Gulf of St. Lawrence under Quebec region responsibility.