A study of zooplankton from 10 stations located in nearshore waters adjacent to two catchments (one near-pristine - Princess Charlotte Bay, and the other intensely farmed - Innisfail) of the Great Barrier Reef. CTD casts were made through the water column at each station for salinity and temperature data. Water samples for chlorophyll a were made. Environmental variables include day and night, location and date (can allocate season, year).Mesozooplankton community structure and biomass were sampled by triplicate bottom to surface plankton hauls. Half of each sample was analysed for community composition (65 zooplankton taxa found) and the other for DW biomass estimates based on size (73-150µm, 150-350µm, >350µm).Juvenile growth rates of cyclopoid and calanoid copepods, mature female copepod (Paracaluanus aculaeatus, P. aculaeatus minor, P. indicus, Acrocalanus gracilis, Bestiolina similis, Parvocalanus crassirostris) egg production, and secondary production were measured. This research was undertaken to examine zooplankton dynamics from two catchments. A subset of the data has been provided to the Ocean Biogeographic Information System (OBIS, http://iobis.org/OBISWEB/DisplayMetaData.jsp?content=meta/1464.html).Zooplankton species: Acartia fossae, Acartia pacifica, Acrocalanus gibber, Acrocalanus gracilis, Acrocalanus monachus, Bestiolina similis, Calanopia sp., Calanopia aurivilli, Calanopia elliptica, Calanopia herdmani, Calanus minor, Calanus sp., Calocalanus plumulosus, Calocalanus spp., Candacia catula, Canthocalanus pauper, Centropages elongatus, Centropages furcatus, Centropages orsinii, Clausocalanus arcuicornis, Clausocalanus farrani, Clausocalanus furcatus, Corycaeus agilis, Corycaeus andrewsi, Corycaeus asiaticus, Corycaeus catus, Corycaeus clausi, Corycaeus crassiusculus, Corycaeus dahli, Corycaeus erythraea, Corycaeus pacificus, Corycaeus speciosus, Corycaeus spp., Corycaeus subtilis, Delius sp., Eucalanus crassus, Eucalanus pileatus, Euchaeta concinna, Euchaeta spp., Euterpina acutifrons, Farranula carinata, Farranula concinna, Farranula gibbula, Labidocera farrani, Labidocera spp., Lucicutia spp., Mecynocera clausi, Microsetella sp., Oithona attenuata, Oithona fallax, Oithona nana, Oithona plumifera, Oithona rigida, Oithona simplex, Oithona tenuis, Oncaea spp., Paracalanus aculeatus, Paracalanus aculeatus minor, Paracalanus indicus, Paracalanus sp. 1, Parvocalanus crassirostris, Temora turbinata, Unidentified harpacticoids, Undinula vulgaris.Other generic identifications: Appendicularia, Bivalves, Chaetognaths, Decapod larvae, Euphausiid larvae, Fish larvae, Gastropods, Ostracods, Phyllosoma, Polychaete, Pteropod, Salp, Shrimp, Zoea.

Reef associated zooplankton were sampled at a fixed site in the north of the lagoon of Davies Reef in June, September and December 1989 and April 1990. Three sampling techniques were used to sample the zooplankton community on each occasion. Analysis of samples focussed on the copepod community. Triplicate vertical hauls of a 150 cm long, 50 cm diameter, 64 µm plankton net were made through the full water column and also for the top 6m only. Samples were taken over a 24 hour period (2 tidal cycles) at times corresponding to low tide, mid-tide (rising), high tide and mid-tide (falling). After each set of net hauls, Niskin casts were made at 3, 6 and 9 m depth and near the bottom. Subsamples of the water were filtered through a 35 µm filter for determination of the number of nauplii and additional subsamples were taken for chlorophyll analysis. Swarming copepod species, not well sampled using plankton nets, were observed using SCUBA and samples were collected and identified when swarms were abundant.In the laboratory, the preserved net samples were subsampled. Counts were made of adult copepods, identified to species and sex where possible, and juveniles identified to the lowest possible taxonomic level. This research was undertaken to describe diurnal, tidal and seasonal changes in the reef associated copepod community in the water column in the lagoon at Davies Reef.

Reef associated zooplankton were sampled at a fixed site in the north of the lagoon of Davies Reef in June, September and December 1989 and April 1990. Three sampling techniques were used to sample the zooplankton community on each occasion. Analysis of samples focussed on the copepod community. Triplicate vertical hauls of a 150 cm long, 50 cm diameter, 64 µm plankton net were made through the full water column and also for the top 6m only. Samples were taken over a 24 hour period (2 tidal cycles) at times corresponding to low tide, mid-tide (rising), high tide and mid-tide (falling). After each set of net hauls, Niskin casts were made at 3, 6 and 9 m depth and near the bottom. Subsamples of the water were filtered through a 35 µm filter for determination of the number of nauplii and additional subsamples were taken for chlorophyll analysis. Swarming copepod species, not well sampled using plankton nets, were observed using SCUBA and samples were collected and identified when swarms were abundant.In the laboratory, the preserved net samples were subsampled. Counts were made of adult copepods, identified to species and sex where possible, and juveniles identified to the lowest possible taxonomic level. This research was undertaken to describe diurnal, tidal and seasonal changes in the reef associated copepod community in the water column in the lagoon at Davies Reef.

Zooplankton samples were collected at two sites in south eastern Tasmania, between the years 2000 and 2001 using two types of plankton net. Samples were collected using horizontal hauls during the daytime only. All copepods, salps and chaetognaths were identified and enumerated.

The community composition of pelagic copepods near Australia's North West Cape was studied during the austral summers of 1997/1998 and 1998/1999 from sampling from a set of 8 stations (A-H) along a 36km cross-shelf transect. Over 120 species of copepods were identified: 60 species of calanoid copepods and 5 harpacticoid copepods. Families (number of species) found were: Aetideidae (1), Arcartiidae (5), Augaptilidae (2), Calanidae (5), Candaciidae (5), Centropagidae (2), Clausocalanidae (7), Clytemnestridae (1), Coryacaeidae (22), Ectinosomatidae (1), Eucalidae (5), Euchaetidae (2), Euterpinidae (1), Lubbokcidae (1), Lucicutiidae (2), Mecynoceridae (1), Metridinidae (2), Miraciidae (1), Oithonidae (11), Oncaeidae (19), Paracalanidae (15), Pontellidae (5), Pseudodiaptomidae (3), Rhincalanidae (1), Sapphirinidae (2), Scolecitrichidae (2), Temoridae (2), Tisbidae (1), Tortanidae (1). Data includes the date of sampling; station (4 inshore, A-D; 4 off-shore, E-H); and season - spring (October and November) and summer (December to February). [What about the 2 stations - NWC097 (Be) and NWC125 (Sl) - sampled when moved out of the way of Cyclone Tiffany?] Measurements of zooplankton communities abundances and biomass (>73µm plankton) were also taken. Environmental variables were: depth; water temperature and salinity; in situ light levels; density, chlorophyll a; dissolved nutrients (NH4, NO2, NO3, PO4, Si); primary and bacterial production rates. To assess zooplankton communities near North West Cape. These data were collected in conjunction with separate datasets on larval fishes and macroplankton, described in separate metadata records. During the sampling period, Cyclone Tiffany passed through the area (22 January - 02 February 1998) enabling comparison of the pelagic copepod community composition before and after the event. A subset of the data has been provided to the Ocean Biogeographic Information System: Australian Institute of Marine Science - Summer planktonic communities of North West Cape, Western Australia. (OBIS, http://www.iobis.org/explore/#/dataset/1497).

Mesozooplankton community composition and structure were examined throughout the D’Entrecasteaux Channel, Huon Estuary and North West Bay, Tasmania, from November 2004 to October 2005, the data represented by this record was collected on the 13/10/2005. The composition of the mesozooplankton community was typical of inshore, temperate marine habitats, with seasonally higher abundance in summer and autumn and lower numbers in winter and spring. Copepods were the largest contributors to total abundance across all seasons and stations, while cladocerans and appendicularians were proportionally abundant in spring and summer. The faecal pellets of these three main groups, along with those of krill and amphipods, also contributed significantly to material recovered from sediment traps. Meroplanktonic larvae of benthic animals showed short-term peaks in abundance and were often absent from the water column for long periods. Spatially, North West Bay and the Channel had a higher representation of typically marine species, including Calanus australis and Labidocera cervi, while truly estuarine species, such as the copepod Gladioferens pectinatus, were more important in the Huon Estuary.

Mesozooplankton community composition and structure were examined throughout the D’Entrecasteaux Channel, Huon Estuary and North West Bay, Tasmania, from November 2004 to October 2005, the data represented by this record was collected on the 05/04/2005. The composition of the mesozooplankton community was typical of inshore, temperate marine habitats, with seasonally higher abundance in summer and autumn and lower numbers in winter and spring. Copepods were the largest contributors to total abundance across all seasons and stations, while cladocerans and appendicularians were proportionally abundant in spring and summer. The faecal pellets of these three main groups, along with those of krill and amphipods, also contributed significantly to material recovered from sediment traps. Meroplanktonic larvae of benthic animals showed short-term peaks in abundance and were often absent from the water column for long periods. Spatially, North West Bay and the Channel had a higher representation of typically marine species, including Calanus australis and Labidocera cervi, while truly estuarine species, such as the copepod Gladioferens pectinatus, were more important in the Huon Estuary.

A 20 month study of zooplankton at three stations located across the transition zone between coastal and offshore waters in the central Great Barrier Reef lagoon was undertaken.The abundance and egg production rate of constituents of the zooplankton assemblage characteristic of the coastal zone rapidly increase subsequent to events such as flooding and upwelling. Sampling spanned two summer monsoonal seasons, the first of which (1990-91) was very wet. The second monsoonal season (1991-92) was very dry and was characterised by intrusive upwelling events from the Coral Sea. Chlorophyll a concentrations did not rise in the wet year, probably because of light limitation, but did rise as a result of upwelling. Terrestrial run-off in the wet year had a greater apparent effect on zooplankton abundance patterns than did upwelling in the dry year, except where coastal trapping allowed sufficient time for increases in zooplankton abundance to occur. Egg production rates by the copepods Acrocalanus gibber and Acrocalanus gracilis showed haphazard spatial differences. Nitrogen-specific egg production ranged between 0.03 and 0.21/day for Acrocalanus gibber, and between 0.13 and 0.41/day for Acrocalanus gracilis. The egg production rate by Acrocalanus gibber was food limited for most of the year and showed a poor correlation with temperature. This research was undertaken to examine the effects of the interaction between coastally trapped water and offshore water on zooplankton community structure and production.

This thesis was conducted under the auspices of the Southern Ocean Continuous Plankton Recorder (CPR) Survey. The research conducted had the dual aims of providing baseline data for this long-term monitoring program and providing the first detailed analysis of zooplankton communities and distribution patterns in the Southern Ocean south of Australia. Data were principally collected between October 2001 and March 2002, during five voyages. As a primary step I investigated the sampling characteristics of CPR, and assessed the utility of the CPR as a long-term monitoring apparatus in the Southern Ocean. Given the shallow sampling depth of the CPR (~10.5m), a major requirement of this calibration was quantification of the fine-scale vertical distributions zooplankton. This was done through direct comparison of CPR samples with depth integrated NORPAC net hauls. The CPR-NORPAC comparison identified the component of the zooplankton sampled by the CPR and provided a means for comparison between past and present data sets. As a final component of this calibration, it was demonstrated that the CPR was effective at identifying biogeographic boundaries. An essential requirement for the identification of long-term ecological change is baseline data on natural ecosystem variability, particularly seasonality. Therefore, after calibration of the CPR the two fundamental components of spatial and seasonal variability were investigated. Firstly, the fine-scale horizontal structure of zooplankton communities was quantified from a 1170 nautical mile transect, along the 140oE meridian, spanning all of the major oceanographic zones south of Australia. Applying multivariate analyses a unique community zonation was identified which was strongly related to the complex oceanographic environment, characterised by multiple branches of the major fronts. The seasonal component of temporal variability was investigated separately in two major and distinctly different regions, the Seasonal Ice Zone and the Sub-Antarctic / Polar Frontal Zone. Multivariate analyses were used to quantify seasonal changes in species composition, Bray-Curtis dissimilarity, species densities, and the proportional contribution of species to communities. The spatial and temporal variation of zooplankton community structure was discussed in the light of environmental controls, species' vertical distributions, population cycles, and ecosystem functioning. Finally,the application of these data to long-term monitoring was discussed, and recommendations made for future research. The fields in this dataset are: CPR Segment Number Time (GMT) Date Latitude Longitude Segment Length (nautical miles) Salinity Sea Surface Temperature Species Fish Larvae Fish Scales Egg Mass Volume Bongo CTD Depth

Mesozooplankton community composition and structure were examined throughout the D’Entrecasteaux Channel, Huon Estuary and North West Bay, Tasmania, from November 2004 to October 2005, the data represented by this record was collected on the 17/08/2005. The composition of the mesozooplankton community was typical of inshore, temperate marine habitats, with seasonally higher abundance in summer and autumn and lower numbers in winter and spring. Copepods were the largest contributors to total abundance across all seasons and stations, while cladocerans and appendicularians were proportionally abundant in spring and summer. The faecal pellets of these three main groups, along with those of krill and amphipods, also contributed significantly to material recovered from sediment traps. Meroplanktonic larvae of benthic animals showed short-term peaks in abundance and were often absent from the water column for long periods. Spatially, North West Bay and the Channel had a higher representation of typically marine species, including Calanus australis and Labidocera cervi, while truly estuarine species, such as the copepod Gladioferens pectinatus, were more important in the Huon Estuary.