Plankton species abundance data collected from R/V Bellows cruise of DeSoto Canyon, May 2012 (BE-1212)

This dataset reports plankton species abundance from sites off the Florida Panhandle Bight at the head of DeSoto Canyon. Plankton samples were collected from 14 offshore shelf sites May 5-7, 2012. This dataset reports the location, date, time, and length of tow for each sample. Plankton species were categorized as Ceratium spp., Dinophysis spp., other dinoflagellates, Chaetoceros spp., Rhizosolenia/Guinardia, Eucampia/Hemiaulus, other chain-forming diatoms, Thalassionema spp., Nitzschiod diatoms, other diatoms, Cyanobacteria (Trichodesmium spp.), and Zooplankton. Abundances were recorded as counts and as percentages of the total sample.