Southern Ocean RADiolarian dataset (SO-RAD)

Radiolarians (holoplanktonic Protozoa) found in marine sediments are commonly used in Southern Ocean as palaeoclimate proxies. Generating such reconstructions of past climate based on radiolarian abundances requires a spatially and environmentally comprehensive reference dataset of modern radiolarian census counts. The Southern Ocean RADiolarian (SO-RAD) dataset includes census counts for 237 radiolarian taxa from 228 surface sediment samples located in the Atlantic, Indian and South-west Pacific sectors of the Southern Ocean. This compilation is the largest radiolarian census dataset derived from surface sediment samples in the Southern Ocean. The SO-RAD dataset may be used as a reference dataset for palaeoceanographic reconstructions, or for studying modern radiolarian biogeography and species diversity.