Microbial diversity patterns at three swimming beaches in La Jolla, CA

This dataset contains Illumina MiSeq sequencing reads produced during a community-initiated study of marine microbial diversity in La Jolla, California. The three collection sites, all popular swimming beaches, are notable for their differences in human activity and marine wildlife. 16S V4 rDNA sequencing of planktonic bacteria followed by diversity analysis in Qiime2 showed that La Jolla Cove and the La Jolla Children's Pool have significantly higher OTU diversity than La Jolla Shores. All three sites have distinct taxonomic composition. No evidence of pathogenic bacteria was found. This study is an example of low-budget, community-driven science that uses state-of-the-art DNA sequencing methods to advance our understanding of coastal environments.