High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) data from phytoplankton collected aboard R/V Weatherbird II and R/V Bellows cruises in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico and west Florida shelf from 2010-07-10 to 2014-08-11

This dataset contains high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) data from phytoplankton obtained aboard the R/V Weatherbird II and R/V Bellows research cruises in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico and west Florida shelf from 2010-07-10 to 2014-08-11. Phytoplankton HPLC pigment data were collected between July 2010 and August 2014 in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico and on the west Florida shelf to assess the spatial, seasonal, and interannual variability of phytoplankton pigments in relation to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Phytoplankton were sampled for HPLC pigments from July 2010 to August 2014 at 2 – 4 depths at each station, ranging from the upper mixed layer, the chlorophyll maximum, and deeper water. Depths of samples ranged from 1.2 - 399 meters. 2000 mL of seawater were filtered through 47 mm GF/F filters under low vacuum and then placed in cryovials, and frozen at -80° Celsius in the dark. HPLC analyses was performed. The dataset contains the date, latitudes and longitudes of the sampling locations.