Results from Calanus pacificus Acidification Laboratory Experiments from 2019-2020 (Zooplankton Swimming project)

We conducted laboratory experiments using stratified 1 m x 0.1 × 0.1 acrylic water columns to measure the effects of bottom water hypoxia and low pH on mortality, distribution, and swimming behaviors of the calanoid copepod Calanus pacificus. Calanus pacificus were collected from within Puget Sound, Washington, USA, between June and October of 2019 and 2020. Their behaviors and vertical distributions in response to either hypoxic or acidified bottom waters were observed in an array of 4 replicate columns. Swimming behavior was observed for 90 minutes using 5-megapixel IR USB cameras. Two front-facing cameras (‘bottom camera’, ‘surface camera’) recorded swimming in the X (left, right) and Z (up, down) directions. An upwards-facing ‘base camera’ was added to each tank in 2020 to improve tracking and behavioral analysis of copepods near the bottom. Base cameras recorded the bottom 2 cm of each tank in the X and Y (front, back) directions.

The primary data file of this dataset contains collection and organism details for copepods used in acidification experiments (926368_v1_zooplankton_acidification_pH_experiment_overview.csv). This dataset also includes four Supplemental Files .csv files summarizing results from our acidification experiments (926368_v1_zooplankton_acidification_pH_chemistry.csv, 926368_v1_zooplankton_acidification_pH_moribundity.csv, 926368_v1_zooplankton_acidification_pH_mean_height.csv, 926368_v1_zooplankton_acidification_pH_speed.csv).