Experimental dataset for "Weakened Microzooplankton Grazing Pressure Supports Hotspots of Primary Production Associated with Anticyclonic Eddy in the Northern South China Sea"

This dataset accompanies the manuscript “Weakened Microzooplankton Grazing Pressure Supports Hotspots of Primary Production Associated with Anticyclonic Eddy in the Northern South China Sea.” The dataset consists of synchronous physical, chemical, and biological observations collected during ship-based surveys in the northern South China Sea. Measurements include hydrographic variables (temperature, salinity, density, and depth), nutrient concentrations (total dissolved inorganic nitrogen, phosphate, and silicate), phytoplankton biomass and community composition derived from pigment analysis, as well as microzooplankton biomass. Phytoplankton growth rates and microzooplankton grazing rates were estimated using dilution experiments. All data are provided with corresponding spatial and temporal metadata and are intended to support analyses of eddy-driven physical–biological coupling and its role in regulating phytoplankton biomass and primary production.