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Inventory of macroalgae and benthic macroinvertebrates on the north shore of the Saint-Lawrence Estuary (2019)

This inventory, conducted from September 26th to October 3th, 2019, aimed to describe the community structure of macroalgae and benthic macroinvertebrates of five small estuaries of the Upper North Shore of Quebec, namely Barthélemy Bay and the Colombier, Mistassini, Franquelin and Saint-Nicolas rivers.

This inventory is part of a doctoral study of Valentine Loiseau on the global changes in the St. Lawrence system, mainly the study of marine benthic communities in response to changes of salinity, to ensure proper management of the environment in the face of future changes. The main objective is to describe the structure and the levels of specific diversities of mediolittoral communities of benthic macroinvertebrates and macroalgae along a salinity gradient. 

These five small estuaries were selected because of their similar size, hard substrates and easy access. Three levels of hypoosmotic stress (low, medium, high) and one control level (seawater) were used for each of the selected estuaries, with eight quadrats per stress level. Quadrat positions were randomly selected but had to meet two criteria: (1) regular height in the foreshore to control the influence of other stresses (temperature, exposure); and (2) presence of at least one macroalga to maintain homogeneity. A percentage cover by macroalgal and macroinvertebrate species was estimated, and then all organisms were weighed by species and size group. The salinity of the nearest water point was measured at mid-tide with a portable refractometer and a Castaway-type CTD (Conductivity-Temperature-Density) probe. The inventory was done using a stratified random sampling design and the sampling unit was a quadrat measuring 25 x 25 cm.

The three files provided (DarwinCore format) are complementary and are linked by the "eventID" key. The "event_information" file includes the generic information of the quadrat, including date and location. The "additional_information_event_and_occurrence" file includes salinity and substrate type of the quadrat, as well as the total weight of all individuals of the same species caught in the quadrat extrapolated to one square metre of surface. For nudibranchs and barnacles, weight was estimated from the size of the individuals so that they were not removed from the environment. The "taxon_occurrence" file includes the taxonomic inventory of macroalgal and benthic macroinvertebrate species observed in the quadrat, identified to the lowest possible species or taxonomic level and biomass by identified species.

For quality control, organisms were identified on the field using the following guide: Chabot, Robert et Anne Rossignol. 2003. Algues et faune du littoral du Saint-Laurent maritime : Guide d'identification. Institut des Sciences de la mer de Rimouski, Rimouski ; Pêches et Océans Canada (Institut Maurice-Lamontagne), Mont-Joli. 113 pages. The taxonomy was checked against the World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) to match recognized standards and using the R obistools and worrms libraries. The WoRMS match was placed in the "scientificNameID" field of the occurrence file. All sample locations were spatially validated.

This project was funded by DFO Coastal Environmental Baseline Program under Canada’s Oceans Protection Plan. This initiative aims to acquire environmental baseline data contributing to the characterization of important coastal areas and to support evidence-based assessments and management decisions for preserving marine ecosystems.

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Date ( RI_367 )
2021-11-09
Date ( RI_366 )
2021-04-28
Date ( RI_368 )
2024-05
RI_419
  Government of Canada; Fisheries and Oceans Canada; Sciences/SAISB - Yanick Gendreau ( Aquatic science biologist )
Maurice Lamontagne Institute, 850, route de la Mer , Mont-Joli , Quebec , G5H 3Z4 , Canada
Status
completed; complété RI_593
Maintenance and update frequency
asNeeded; auBesoin RI_540
Keywords ( RI_530 )
  • Samplingevent; Occurrence; Macroalgal; Macroinvertebrates; Salinity; Hypoosmolarity
Keywords ( RI_525 )
  • Estuaries; Marine Intertidal; Upper North Shore; St. Lawrence; Mediolittoral; Barthelemy Bay; Colombier River; Mistassini River; Franquelin River; Saint-Nicolas River, Upper North Shore; North Shore St. Lawrence Estuary
Government of Canada Core Subject Thesaurus Thésaurus des sujets de base du gouvernement du Canada ( RI_528 )
  • Aquatic plants
  • Aquatic ecosystems
  • Aquatic wildlife
Classification
unclassified; nonClassifié RI_484
Use limitation
Open Government Licence - Canada (http://open.canada.ca/en/open-government-licence-canada)
Access constraints
license; licence RI_606
Use constraints
license; licence RI_606
Spatial representation type
grid; grille RI_636
Metadata language
eng; CAN
Metadata language
fre; CAN
Character set
utf8; utf8 RI_458
Topic category
  • Biota
  • Environment
Begin date
2019-09-26
End date
2019-10-03
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Reference system identifier
http://www.epsg-registry.org / EPSG:4326 /
Distribution format
  • CSV ( 16.0.5149.1000 )

RI_414
  Government of Canada; Fisheries and Oceans Canada; Sciences/SAISB - Section Gestion de données - Direction des avis, information et soutien scientifiques / Data Management Section - Scientific Advice, Information and Support Branch ( )
Maurice Lamontagne Institute, 850, route de la Mer , Mont-Joli , Quebec , G5H 3Z4 , Canada
OnLine resource
Data dictionary ( HTTPS )

Supporting Document;CSV;eng,fra

OnLine resource
Map of macroalgae and benthic invertebrate data ( ESRI REST: Map Server )

Web Service;ESRI REST;eng

OnLine resource
Map of macroalgae and benthic invertebrate data ( ESRI REST: Map Server )

Web Service;ESRI REST;fra

OnLine resource
Inventory data of macroalgae and benthic macroinvertebrates ( HTTPS )

Dataset;CSV;eng,fra

OnLine resource
Map of station ( HTTPS )

Supporting Document;PNG;eng,fra

File identifier
9c96d46e-f45d-450d-9189-7e31b10fcde9 XML
Metadata language
eng; CAN
Character set
utf8; utf8 RI_458
Parent identifier
Coastal Environmental Baseline Program 7f4b9eb6-805f-4d0b-a597-2d7a44e045d7
Hierarchy level
dataset; jeuDonnées RI_622
Date stamp
2025-02-06T00:53:33.837Z
Metadata standard name
North American Profile of ISO 19115:2003 - Geographic information - Metadata
Metadata standard version
CAN/CGSB-171.100-2009
RI_418
  Government of Canada; Fisheries and Oceans Canada; Science/SAIBS - Valentine Loiseau ( Research associate )
Maurice Lamontagne Institute, 850, route de la Mer , Mont-Joli , Quebec , G5H 3Z4 , Canada
418-515-2005
RI_414
  Government of Canada; Fisheries and Oceans Canada; Sciences/SAISB - Section Gestion de données - Direction des avis, information et soutien scientifiques / Data Management Section - Scientific Advice, Information and Support Branch ( )
Maurice Lamontagne Institute, 850, route de la Mer , Mont-Joli , Quebec , G5H 3Z4 , Canada
 
 

Overviews

overview
St. Lawrence Estuary inventory

Spatial extent

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Keywords


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