Compass Port Baseline Marine Surveys: Northern Gulf of Mexico (Alabama) Zooplankton (2004-2006)

Metadata:

Identification_Information:
Citation:
Citation_Information:
Originator:
Dr. William M. Graham
Publication_Date:
Unpublished material
Title:
Compass Port Baseline Marine Surveys: Northern Gulf of Mexico (Alabama) Zooplankton (2004-2006)
Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form:
database
Description:
Abstract:
In 2004 Compass Port LLC (Compass Port) and the Dauphin Island Sea Lab (DISL) developed a research plan to assess the possible biological impacts of the proposed Compass Port liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility in lease block MO910, approximately 18 km south of Dauphin Island. This plan was developed in consultation with NOAA. As part of the overall baseline survey, depth-discrete zooplankton samples were collected between 2004-2006 to assess the abundance, diversity and temporal and spatial distribution at the proposed Compass Port site. The shallow coastal northern U.S. Gulf of Mexico (GOM) represents one of the most biologically and physically dynamic systems in North America. Because biological variance in zoooplankton is largely driven by the physical environment, the key to conducting near-term baseline surveys and long-term biological monitoring is to capture all relevant signals and biological variance from less than 1 day to greater than 1 year.
Purpose:
The study outlined below has been designed to provide baseline information for the project area and to address the following study objectives: 1. Characterize benthic habitat structure and utilization; 2. Develop a biological baseline of abundance and distribution covering benthic, planktonic, and nektonic vertebrates and invertebrates; Mammals; Birds; and Turtles; 3. Quantify egg/larval vertical distributions and patchiness of commercially important fishery species over time-scales from less than one day to greater than one year as they relate to stratification and de-stratification in the water column; and 4. Use this baseline of information to develop an operational biological monitoring program to ascertain whether predicted impacts actually occur.
Supplemental_Information:
This metadata record describes only the zooplankton component of the larger work.
Time_Period_of_Content:
Time_Period_Information:
Range_of_Dates/Times:
Beginning_Date:
2004
Ending_Date:
2006
Currentness_Reference:
ground condition
Status:
Progress:
Complete
Maintenance_and_Update_Frequency:
As needed
Spatial_Domain:
Description_of_Geographic_Extent:
This project is focused in the shallow coastal northern U.S. Gulf of Mexico.
Bounding_Coordinates:
West_Bounding_Coordinate:
-88.23080344290
East_Bounding_Coordinate:
-88.18070062220
North_Bounding_Coordinate:
30.10944562200
South_Bounding_Coordinate:
30.06588406170
Keywords:
Theme:
Theme_Keyword_Thesaurus:
None
Theme_Keyword:
zooplankton
Theme_Keyword:
copepod
Theme_Keyword:
decapod
Theme_Keyword:
shrimp
Theme_Keyword:
jelly
Theme_Keyword:
baseline biological information
Theme_Keyword:
egg
Theme_Keyword:
larvae
Theme_Keyword:
vertical distribution
Theme_Keyword:
stratification
Theme_Keyword:
water column
Theme_Keyword:
abundance
Theme_Keyword:
depth
Theme_Keyword:
wind speed
Theme_Keyword:
wind direction
Theme_Keyword:
mininess
Theme:
Theme_Keyword_Thesaurus:
ISO 19115 Topic Categories
Theme_Keyword:
biota
Theme_Keyword:
environment
Theme_Keyword:
oceans
Place:
Place_Keyword_Thesaurus:
None
Place_Keyword:
Gulf of Mexico
Place_Keyword:
Dauphin Island
Place_Keyword:
Alabama
Place_Keyword:
Mobile Bay
Place_Keyword:
DISL
Place_Keyword:
Dauphin Island Sea Lab
Access_Constraints:
Permission to access these data must be given by Dr. William M. Graham of the University of Southern Mississippi Department of Marine Science.
Use_Constraints:
Acknowledgment of Dauphin Island Sea Lab (DISL), the Fisheries Oceanography of Coastal Alabama (FOCAL) program and Conoco Phillips is required in products developed from these data, and such acknowledgment as is standard for citation and legal practices for data source is expected by users of these data. Users should be aware that comparison with other data sets for the same area from other time periods may be inaccurate due to inconsistencies resulting from changes in mapping conventions, data collection, and computer processes over time. The distributor shall not be liable for improper or incorrect use of these data, based on the description of appropriate/inappropriate uses described in the metadata document. These data are not legal documents and are not to be used as such.
Point_of_Contact:
Contact_Information:
Contact_Person_Primary:
Contact_Person:
William M. Graham
Contact_Organization:
University of Southern Mississippi: Department of Marine Science
Contact_Position:
Principal Investigator
Contact_Address:
Address_Type:
mailing and physical
Address:
1020 Balch Blvd.
City:
Stennis Space Center
State_or_Province:
MS
Postal_Code:
39529-9904
Country:
USA
Contact_Voice_Telephone:
228-688-3177
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Data_Quality_Information:
Logical_Consistency_Report:
not applicable
Completeness_Report:
Data was gathered from 200410 to 200610 with no major lapses between collections.
Lineage:
Process_Step:
Process_Description:
All plankton tows utilized a multiple opening and closing net system. For this project, we used a version of the BIONESS (Bedford Institute of Oceanography, Net Environmental Sampling System) system called a “Mininess.” These systems are real-time controlled and are comprised of a series of 9 serially opening-closing nets. Tows can be performed obliquely (diagonally) through the water or horizontally at selected depths with the nets closed at different depths to provide a series of stratified samples over the entire water column. A Conductivity-Temperature-Depth (CTD) unit attached to the frame of the Mininess allows real-time display of conductivity and temperature over depth of the water. These data were collected in conjunction with zooplankton collection to determine water column physical structure. The zooplankton nets are constructed of 202-micrometer (µm) Nitex plankton gauze with a nominal mouth opening of 0.25 m2 and a total filtration area of 5:1. Real-time displays from two flow meters (one inside and one outside the net mouth) allow assessment of filtration efficiency and clogging in real-time. Zooplankton samples were collected on a monthly basis (25 events) utilizing a stratified Mininess tow. A total of 8 zooplankton stations (replicates) were selected randomly each month, though they are stratified by quadrant (2 random plats per four quadrants). At each station, vertically stratified zooplankton was sampled at depth intervals of approximately 3 m (i.e., six stratified layers plus two oblique integrated samples) using 202 µm mesh nets for the first oblique and stratified layers and a 333 µm mesh net for the subsequent oblique net. The 202 µm mesh was used to minimize extrusion of smaller fish eggs commonly lost in traditional SEAMAP sampling that uses 333 µm mesh nets, and the 333 µm mesh is use as a comparison of SEAMAP sampling. Diel variations of zooplankton were measured on a quarterly basis (8 events). For these diel studies one station near the proposed LNG facility site was sampled repeatedly at about six-hour intervals over a three-day period.
Process_Date:
200610
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Entity_and_Attribute_Information:
Overview_Description:
Entity_and_Attribute_Overview:
Microsoft Access tables cataloging zooplankton data for the shallow coastal northern U.S. Gulf of Mexico.
Entity_and_Attribute_Detail_Citation:
Data sets contain the following information: baseline biological information, copepod counts,jelly counts, depth, wind speed, wind direction, sample volume, dry weight, total zooplankton (#/m3), fish eggs, fish eggs (#/m3), start time of tow, finish time of tow, opening depth, closing depth, distance towed, total swept volume (m3),jelly biovolume, water temperature, taxa, number of taxa per cm, station ID, latitude, longitude
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Distribution_Information:
Distributor:
Contact_Information:
Contact_Person_Primary:
Contact_Person:
William M. Graham
Contact_Organization:
University of Southern Mississippi: Department of Marine Science
Contact_Position:
Principal Investigator
Contact_Address:
Address_Type:
mailing and physical
Address:
1020 Balch Blvd.
City:
Stennis Space Center
State_or_Province:
MS
Postal_Code:
39529-9904
Country:
USA
Contact_Voice_Telephone:
228-688-3177
Distribution_Liability:
The Dauphin Island Sea Lab makes no warranty regarding these data, expressed or implied, nor does the fact of distribution constitute such a warranty. The DISL cannot assume liability for any damages caused by any errors or omissions in these data, nor as a result of the failure of these data to function on a particular system.
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Metadata_Reference_Information:
Metadata_Date:
201101
Metadata_Contact:
Contact_Information:
Contact_Organization_Primary:
Contact_Organization:
Dauphin Island Sea Lab
Contact_Position:
Data Management Specialist
Contact_Address:
Address_Type:
mailing and physical
Address:
101 Bienville Blvd.
City:
Dauphin Island
State_or_Province:
Al
Postal_Code:
36528
Country:
USA
Contact_Voice_Telephone:
251-861-2141
Contact_Electronic_Mail_Address:
metadata@disl.org
Hours_of_Service:
8-5:00 CST
Contact_Instructions:
Please email the metadata specialist for further information.
Metadata_Standard_Name:
FGDC Biological Data Profile of the Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata
Metadata_Standard_Version:
FGDC-STD-001-1998
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