Benthic macrofauna abundance and biomass data collected in Baffin Bay and Laguna Madre, Texas from 2014-03-20 to 2017-07-11

Baffin Bay, Texas is a predominantly hypersaline estuarine system with frequent fluctuations in water quality and algal blooms. Macroinfauna samples were collected quarterly via benthic coring to assess the effect of changes in water quality on the benthic community. Three replicate 35.4 cm2 cores for each station were separated into 0-3cm and 3-10cm depth sections. Macrofauna collections were completed over a wide range of salinity conditions (Mean bay-wide salinity 15.8 - 53.9) from March 2014 to July 2017. Stations in the Baffin Bay were assessed for the entire study period, and 2 stations in the more hydrologically stable Laguna Madre were added in 2015 for comparison. These data were collected as part of a larger study to assess trophic functioning of the Baffin Bay, particularly resource availability for the commercially important Black Drum (Pogonias cromis). Stable isotope data for organic matter, macrofauna, and fish were also collected, and those data are available under GRIIDC Unique Dataset Identifier (UDI) HI.x846.000:0002 (DOI: 10.7266/PJ139ZRD). This dataset supports the publications: Breaux, N., Lebreton, B., Palmer, T. A., Guillou, G., & Beseres Pollack, J. (2019). Ecosystem resilience following salinity change in a hypersaline estuary. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 225, 106258. doi:10.1016/j.ecss.2019.106258; and Rubio, K. S., Ajemian, M., Stunz, G. W., Palmer, T. A., Lebreton, B., & Beseres Pollack, J. (2018). Dietary composition of black drum Pogonias cromis in a hypersaline estuary reflects water quality and prey availability. Journal of Fish Biology, 93(2), 250–262. doi:10.1111/jfb.13654.

This dataset was funded by the Coastal Bend Bays & Estuaries program and Texas Sea Grant.

得克萨斯州巴芬湾（Baffin Bay, Texas）是一个以高盐度河口系统（hypersaline estuarine system）为主的区域，其水质和藻华存在频繁波动。研究人员通过底栖取芯（benthic coring）每季度采集大型底栖动物（macroinfauna）样本，以评估水质变化对底栖群落的影响。每个站点采集3个重复的35.4平方厘米取芯样本，并将其分为0-3厘米和3-10厘米深度段。2014年3月至2017年7月期间，研究人员在广泛的盐度条件下（全湾平均盐度15.8-53.9）完成了大型底栖动物样本的采集。整个研究期间对巴芬湾内的站点进行了评估，并于2015年新增了水文条件更稳定的马德雷湖（Laguna Madre）的2个站点作为对照。
这些数据是评估巴芬湾营养功能（trophic functioning）大型研究的一部分，重点关注具有商业价值的黑鲈（Black Drum，学名Pogonias cromis）的资源可获得性。研究还采集了有机质、大型底栖动物和鱼类的稳定同位素数据，这些数据可通过GRIIDC唯一数据集标识符（UDI）HI.x846.000:0002获取（DOI：10.7266/PJ139ZRD）。本数据集支持以下两篇论文：Breaux, N., Lebreton, B., Palmer, T. A., Guillou, G., & Beseres Pollack, J. (2019).《Ecosystem resilience following salinity change in a hypersaline estuary》（《Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science》，第225卷，106258页，DOI：10.1016/j.ecss.2019.106258）；以及Rubio, K. S., Ajemian, M., Stunz, G. W., Palmer, T. A., Lebreton, B., & Beseres Pollack, J. (2018).《Dietary composition of black drum Pogonias cromis in a hypersaline estuary reflects water quality and prey availability》（《Journal of Fish Biology》，第93卷第2期，250-262页，DOI：10.1111/jfb.13654）。

本数据集由Coastal Bend Bays & Estuaries项目和德克萨斯海洋赠款（Texas Sea Grant）资助。