Dataset: Urchin diameters at Sitka Sound and Torch Bay

Name: Sea urchin frequency and diameters as surveyed in Sitka Sound and Torch Bay, Alaska
Published: 2021-02-26
Keywords: urchin, diameter, frequency, Alaska, biota, oceans

Cite This Dataset

DOI:10.26008/1912/bco-dmo.842621.1

Spatial Extent: N:58.9729 E:-135.293 S:58.3279 W:-136.817

Temporal Extent: 1988-07-25 - 2019-08-07

Project:

CAREER: Energy fluxes and community stability in a dynamic, high-latitude kelp ecosystem (High latitude kelp dynamics)

Principal Investigator:

Kristy J. Kroeker (University of California-Santa Cruz, UCSC)

Co-Principal Investigator:

James A. Estes (University of California-Santa Cruz, UCSC)

Peter T. Raimondi (University of California-Santa Cruz, UCSC)

Contact:

Kristy J. Kroeker (University of California-Santa Cruz, UCSC)

BCO-DMO Data Manager:

Dana Stuart Gerlach (Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, WHOI BCO-DMO)

Taylor Heyl (Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, WHOI BCO-DMO)

Version:

Version Date:

2021-02-26

Restricted:

Validated:

Yes

Current State:

Final no updates expected

Sea urchin frequency and diameters as surveyed in Sitka Sound and Torch Bay, Alaska

Abstract:

This dataset is part of a suite of studies conducted in Southeast Alaska to determine how benthic communities respond to variable environmental conditions. In an effort to determine how temperature and carbonate chemistry combine to affect primary consumer bioenergetics and research the indirect effects of ocean acidification and warming on primary consumers, the sea urchin population was investigated. The frequency of occurrence and test diameter was recorded for sea urchins at Sitka Sound and Torch Bay, Alaska from 1988 to 2019.

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Archival Copy

Version Date	Archive	Persistent Identifier	Date Assigned
2021-02-26	Marine Biological Laboratory/Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution Library (MBLWHOI DLA)	10.26008/1912/bco-dmo.842621.1	2021-07-14

Methods & Sampling

The frequency of occurrence and size (test diameter) was recorded for sea urchins at 19 sites in Sitka Sound and Torch Bay, Alaska from 1988 to 2019. At each site, twenty quadrats were placed at random locations along a transect line. Sea urchins were measured in either all 20 quadrats or when 200 sea urchins had been sized, whichever came first.

Sampling and analytical procedures: Sizing the sea urchin was done by measuring the test diameter with calipers. Data represents combined observations and measurements collected from multiple groups using the same approach in the field.

GPS coordinates are only relevant for data collected after 1988

Data Processing Description

BCO-DMO processing description:
- Converted dates to ISO date format (yyyy-mm-dd)
- Replaced 'not recorded' with 'nd' (BCO-DMO's default missing data identifier)
- Adjusted field/parameter names to comply with database requirements
- Added a conventional header with dataset name, PI names, version date
- Corrected columns with inadvertently shifted data

Data Files

File
urchin_diameter_frequency_data.csv (Comma Separated Values (.csv), 70.97 KB) MD5:4bcc85fa20c485afe1a9029c894e29f9 Primary data file for dataset ID 842621

More Information about this dataset

Funding Sources

Funding Source	Award Number
NSF Division of Ocean Sciences	OCE-1752600
David and Lucile Packard Foundation	Packard - Kelp Ecosystem Dynamics
Alfred P. Sloan Foundation	Sloan - Kelp Ecosystem Dynamics

Deployments

None available yet

Instruments

calipers

Supplied Name:

Supplied Description:

Instrument Type

Generic Name: calipers

Generic Description:

A caliper (or "pair of calipers") is a device used to measure the distance between two opposite sides of an object. Many types of calipers permit reading out a measurement on a ruled scale, a dial, or a digital display.

Global Positioning System Receiver

Supplied Name: hand-held GPS

Supplied Description:

GPS coordinates were take using a handheld GPS unit (2018 data with Garmin Legend, other years unspecified)

Instrument Type

Generic Name: Global Positioning System Receiver

Acronym: GPS

Community Identifier: http://vocab.nerc.ac.uk/collection/L05/current/POS03/

Generic Description:

The Global Positioning System (GPS) is a U.S. space-based radionavigation system that provides reliable positioning, navigation, and timing services to civilian users on a continuous worldwide basis. The U.S. Air Force develops, maintains, and operates the space and control segments of the NAVSTAR GPS transmitter system. Ships use a variety of receivers (e.g. Trimble and Ashtech) to interpret the GPS signal and determine accurate latitude and longitude.

Parameters

Date and time formats are described in python strftime() syntax.

Supplied Name	Supplied description	Supplied Units	Standard Name
Frequency	Number of individuals of size in quadrat	individuals	abundance
Quadrat_Area	Area of quadrat	meters squared (m^2)	area_measured
Species	Species of Sea Urchin surveyed	unitless	common_name
Depth	Depth surveyed (in feet)	feet	depth
Test_Diameter	Diameter of sea urchin test	millimeters (mm)	diameter
Latitude	Latitude	decimal degrees	lat
Longitude	Longitude	decimal degrees	lon
ISO_Date	Date of survey (yyyy-mm-dd) Format: %Y-%m-%d	unitless	no_bcodmo_term
Area	Location in Southeast Alaska	unitless	region
Site	Site of survey	unitless	site

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Database

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Dataset: Urchin diameters at Sitka Sound and Torch Bay