Table of Contents

• Coverage
• Dataset Description
  • Methods & Sampling
  • Data Processing Description
  • BCO-DMO Curation Notes
• Related Publications
• Related Datasets
• Parameters
• Instruments
• Deployments
• Project Information
• Funding

At each station, samples were collected with a modified Grey-O’Hara 0.1 m² box core. One box core sample was taken at each station. Depth was recorded from the vessels’ echosounder at the time the box corer hit the bottom. Only samples with a penetration depth of at least 5 centimeters (cm) and no slumping or other evidence of disturbance (i.e., by washing) were accepted for processing. Approximately 80 milliliters (mL) of sediment were collected from the undisturbed surface layer for grain size analysis. Any organisms noticed in the sediment subsample at the time of collection were removed and placed in the organism sample jar. The remainder of the collected core was sieved onboard through a 1.0 millimeter (mm) mesh screen, and all organisms (both infauna living in the sediment and small epifauna which may have been on the surface – hereafter collectively called macrofauna) as well as debris retained on the screen were preserved in a mixture of 10% buffered formalin and seawater. Upon return to the Oregon State University (OSU) laboratory, samples were transferred to 70% ethanol. Organisms were then removed from the debris and sorted into major taxonomic groups using a dissecting microscope by trained laboratory staff/students. The residual portion (remaining debris after removal of organisms) of every sample was checked by a second lab personnel, and any found organisms were added to the sorted jars. Crustaceans, polychaetes, other worm-like creatures, and mollusks were then sent to contracted taxonomic experts. OSU staff identified the echinoderms.

The data received from the taxonomic experts have been reviewed to make sure there are no "duplicate" species due to misspellings and all species names have been updated if necessary to the currently accepted names according to WoRMS (World Register of Marine Species).

This section documents curation actions performed prior to publication review with the submitter, and additional information relevant to understanding and reusing this dataset. It distinguishes changes made to the submitted (meta)data from unresolved issues and/or enhancements that improve future reuse and interoperability.

CURATION ACTIONS PERFORMED ON DATA

- Loaded table COPcomplete_macrofauna_data.csv as table "cop_macrofauna_data", CSV format, header row 1, empty string, "nd", and "NA"
- Converted column Date_PDT from M/D/YY string format (e.g., 10/19/21) to ISO 8601 date format YYYY-MM-DD, overwriting the original column
- Output final table to file 1004883_v1_cop_macrofauna_species_counts.csv

CURATION ACTIONS PERFORMED ON METADATA

- Standard metadata entry and text formatting steps were performed.
- Adjusted the abstract references from 7 cruises to 6, since 6 are referenced the metadata and the dataset.

ISSUES POTENTIALLY IMPACTING REUSE

- Count parameter is a decimal, which could conflict with the definition submitted.

NSF Award Abstract:
Highly productive US West Coast fishery species and marine mammals rely on benthic invertebrate communities for food. However, these communities are changing. This project addresses the potential ecological consequences of a new member to these benthic communities, the ghost shrimp Neotrypaea. In estuaries, Neotrypaea continuously rework the sediment via their burrowing activities. The combination of high shrimp abundances and the effects of burrowing mitigate the impacts of nutrient run-off (natural and human-induced) that can exacerbate low oxygen conditions. However, Neotrypaea are also considered threats to the oyster industry because of their sediment-excavating activities. An expansion of their distribution beyond estuaries may have additional unforeseen consequences for the Dungeness crab fishery (regionally valued at $33-74M/y) as Neotrypaea are both competitors with juveniles and prey for larger Dungeness crab. Thus, new data are needed to determine how offshore benthic communities are being altered by the recruitment of Neotrypaea into new habitats. This study is comparing communities with high and low shrimp abundances to understand their impact on offshore benthic communities. The shrimp’s contributions to oxygen and carbon cycling are being estimated through field measurements. Benthic community assessments are quantifying changes to food resources on the seafloor caused by the presence of these relatively large shrimp. The coastal waters along the Oregon-Washington shelf are commercially valuable, yet they are also subject to growing human-related impacts. Sustainable management requires optimizing extractive, cultural, and recreational activities. The broader impacts of this research include key data for managers, commercial fisheries’ stakeholders and oyster growers that inform decisions regarding ocean-use planning and management of burrowing shrimp. This project is providing research training for three graduate students and two summer undergraduate students. Curriculum development for elementary school students is focused on the ecology of soft-bottom benthos. The ocean sandy/muddy benthos are often unknown to K-12 students on the West Coast who are usually more familiar with intertidal and kelp forest systems.

Changing environmental conditions in shelf waters along the Oregon and Washington coasts and elsewhere have included increasingly frequent and severe hypoxia events, ocean acidification, and warming. These changes have affected biological communities and altered species distributions. An abundant mid-shelf population of the burrowing ghost shrimp, Neotrypaea sp. was documented in shelf waters following the Marine Heat Wave of 2015. Neotrypaea are ecosystem engineers that were previously known to be abundant in intertidal estuary mudflats with an insignificant presence in the open ocean. In estuaries Neotrypaea continuously rework the sediment via their burrowing activities. The shrimp can increase oxygen cycling due to burrow irrigation and reduce impacts of nutrient loading such as low-oxygen conditions. However, enhanced benthic oxygen consumption linked to Neotrypaea sp. beds could have the opposite effect on the shelf by intensifying regional hypoxia. This study is characterizing the environmental conditions associated with the expanded distribution of Neotrypaea using a habitat-suitability modeling approach. Model predictions are being validated through extensive field sampling via box coring and video lander observations. In addition, the benthic samples are documenting changes in the benthic invertebrate communities within the Neotrypaea beds and how this is potentially affecting biological interactions. Analyses of aquatic eddy covariance and of core incubations in shelf areas with and without abundant shrimp are providing estimates of the shrimp’s contribution to benthic oxygen fluxes and organic carbon cycling. These data are being used to quantify the shrimp’s and their burrows’ effects on the overall productivity of the mid-shelf benthos relative to reference areas. How Neotrypaea alter seafloor structure and biogeochemistry need to be characterized to predict the impact of these ecosystem engineers on the food supply for higher trophic levels and fisheries.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.