MEL: Benthic samples collected by divers with a suction dredge from Bedeque Bay, an estuary in Prince Edward Island, Canada in 1967.

Bedeque Bay, an estuary in Prince Edward Island, yields a consistently large crop of oysters. In 1967, oyster production throughout Prince Edward Island in general was declining and a benthic survey of the main fishing area in the bay was conducted in order to identify the ecological factors or gradients causing the observed spatial composition of the benthos.

The benthic survey was carried out between July 12th and August 14th, 1967, just following the oyster fishing season. Samples were collected underwater by SCUBA divers using a modified suction dredge. The area enclosed by a 1 m2 quadrat was sampled with the dredge (which was equipped with a 4 mm mesh collecting bag) to a depth of 50 era. Forty four stations, covering most of the estuary, were each sampled by a single quadrat.

Animals were counted and plants recorded by dry weight. Only subjective classifications of sediment type based on field observations were made. These measurements are not part of this version of the dataset.

Species distribution information associated with this study were digitized, standardized and republished as part of the Atlantic Coastal Zone Information Steering Committee (ACZISC) Atlantic Ecosystem Initiative (AEI) funded project “Atlantic Canada’s Biological Data for Ecosystem Planning and Decision-making” and OBIS Canada.