Decapod larvae collected in the Canary Islands using light traps

The data provided here was collected with the aim of providing information on spatial and temporal variability of the abundance, composition, and assemblages of settlement stage of brachyuran crabs in the Canary Islands (NW Africa) by sampling with light traps during four consecutive environmental seasons. Moreover, the data was collected to study the effect of Marine Protected Areas controlling larval assemblages in relation to non-indigenous species and indigenous species with commercial interest. Samples were collected with the Ecocean CARE® light trap. The CARE light trap consisted of a float with a watertight block containing a rechargeable light, and a 2 m conical net (2 mm mesh size) hanging 1.5 m below the sea surface The dataset includes abundance information of decapod crustacean larvae (megalopa stage) at various locations of El Hierro islands (Orchilla, Bonanza, Tacorón and Bahía de Naos) and Lanzarote island (Playa Quemada, Mala, Punta Fariones and Montaña Amarilla). The study spanned four consecutive oceanographic seasons (October-November 2019, March-May 2020, September-October 2020 and March-April 2021). The limited information available on the temporal and spatial dynamics of decapod crustacean larvae in tropical and subtropical regions makes this dataset highly valuable for the scientific community.

本数据集的采集旨在通过连续四个环境季节的光诱捕采样，获取西北非洲加那利群岛海域短尾类蟹类（brachyuran crabs）定居期个体的丰度、组成及类群组合的时空变异性信息。此外，本次数据采集还用于探究海洋保护区（Marine Protected Areas）对幼体类群组成的调控效应，该研究关联外来物种与具备商业开发价值的本土物种。

样本采集采用Ecocean CARE®光诱捕器。该诱捕器由搭载密封防水盒的浮体（内置可充电光源），以及悬挂于海面下1.5米处、长2米、网目尺寸2毫米的锥形网具组成。

本数据集涵盖埃尔希罗岛（Orchilla、Bonanza、Tacorón及Bahía de Naos）与兰萨罗特岛（Playa Quemada、Mala、Punta Fariones及Montaña Amarilla）各采样点的十足目甲壳动物幼体（大眼幼体期，megalopa stage）丰度数据。本研究覆盖连续四个海洋学季节，具体为2019年10-11月、2020年3-5月、2020年9-10月及2021年3-4月。

当前热带及亚热带海域十足目甲壳动物幼体的时空动态研究资料较为匮乏，本数据集因此对科研群体具有极高的学术价值。