Planktonic copepod community structure in summer, North West Cape, Western Australia

The community composition of pelagic copepods near Australia's North West Cape was studied during the austral summers of 1997/1998 and 1998/1999 from sampling from a set of 8 stations (A-H) along a 36km cross-shelf transect.

Over 120 species of copepods were identified: 60 species of calanoid copepods and 5 harpacticoid copepods.

Families (number of species) found were: Aetideidae (1), Arcartiidae (5), Augaptilidae (2), Calanidae (5), Candaciidae (5), Centropagidae (2), Clausocalanidae (7), Clytemnestridae (1), Coryacaeidae (22), Ectinosomatidae (1), Eucalidae (5), Euchaetidae (2), Euterpinidae (1), Lubbokcidae (1), Lucicutiidae (2), Mecynoceridae (1), Metridinidae (2), Miraciidae (1), Oithonidae (11), Oncaeidae (19), Paracalanidae (15), Pontellidae (5), Pseudodiaptomidae (3), Rhincalanidae (1), Sapphirinidae (2), Scolecitrichidae (2), Temoridae (2), Tisbidae (1), Tortanidae (1).

Data includes the date of sampling; station (4 inshore, A-D; 4 off-shore, E-H); and season - spring (October and November) and summer (December to February). [What about the 2 stations - NWC097 (Be) and NWC125 (Sl) - sampled when moved out of the way of Cyclone Tiffany?]

Measurements of zooplankton communities abundances and biomass (>73µm plankton) were also taken. Environmental variables were: depth; water temperature and salinity; in situ light levels; density, chlorophyll a; dissolved nutrients (NH4, NO2, NO3, PO4, Si); primary and bacterial production rates.

To assess zooplankton communities near North West Cape.

These data were collected in conjunction with separate datasets on larval fishes and macroplankton, described in separate metadata records.

During the sampling period, Cyclone Tiffany passed through the area (22 January - 02 February 1998) enabling comparison of the pelagic copepod community composition before and after the event.

A subset of the data has been provided to the Ocean Biogeographic Information System: Australian Institute of Marine Science - Summer planktonic communities of North West Cape, Western Australia. (OBIS, http://www.iobis.org/explore/#/dataset/1497).