A data package consisting of diatom, total phosphorus, and related data collected in Big Cypress National Preserve as part of the SFCN Periphyton Vital Signs protocol. Periphyton is a microbial mat community that forms the base of the aquatic food web in South Florida wetlands such as the marshes in Everglades National Park (EVER) and the Big Cypress National Preserve (BICY). It is a vital component of these wetlands, contributing to critical functions such as primary production, nutrient cycling, and soil production and stabilization. Periphyton is sensitive to changes in hydropattern (water quantity and duration) and water quality. Changes to these ecosystem processes can quickly alter periphyton community structure (species composition and relative abundance), which in turn can create cascading effects through higher trophic levels. Thus, periphyton is an early and integrative indicator of local and regional changes to hydrology. The South Florida/Caribbean Network has implemented the monitoring of periphyton communities in Big Cypress National Preserve to assess the impact of hydrologic and water quality changes on the diatom community structure and total phosphorous (TP) concentrations of the periphyton mats. The specific monitoring objectives are: 1) Identify any basins in the northwest section of Big Cypress National Preserve where periphyton community structure and periphyton TP content are different from an oligotrophic (low-nutrient) and unimpacted community signal. 2) Document any temporal and/or spatial changes in the periphyton community structure and periphyton TP content showing progression towards an oligotrophic, unimpacted condition or a eutrophic (high-nutrient), impacted condition. This dataset includes all data collected (both pilot and standard) between 2008 and 2025. 2025 sites are listed in this release alongside their field data, but lab results have yet to be received for these sites at this time.

A data package consisting of diatom, total phosphorus, vegetation, and related data collected in Big Cypress National Preserve as part of the SFCN Periphyton Vital Signs protocol. Periphyton is a microbial mat community that forms the base of the aquatic food web in South Florida wetlands such as the marshes in Everglades National Park (EVER) and the Big Cypress National Preserve (BICY). It is a vital component of these wetlands, contributing to critical functions such as primary production, nutrient cycling, and soil production and stabilization. Periphyton is sensitive to changes in hydropattern (water quantity and duration) and water quality. Changes to these ecosystem processes can quickly alter periphyton community structure (species composition and relative abundance), which in turn can create cascading effects through higher trophic levels. Thus, periphyton is an early and integrative indicator of local and regional changes to hydrology. The South Florida/Caribbean Network has implemented the monitoring of periphyton communities in Big Cypress National Preserve to assess the impact of hydrologic and water quality changes on the diatom community structure and total phosphorous (TP) concentrations of the periphyton mats. The specific monitoring objectives are: 1) Identify any basins in the northwest section of Big Cypress National Preserve where periphyton community structure and periphyton TP content are different from an oligotrophic (low-nutrient) and unimpacted community signal. 2) Document any temporal and/or spatial changes in the periphyton community structure and periphyton TP content showing progression towards an oligotrophic, unimpacted condition or a eutrophic (high-nutrient), impacted condition.

A data package consisting of diatom, total phosphorus, vegetation, and related data collected in Big Cypress National Preserve as part of the SFCN Periphyton Vital Signs protocol. This hydrologic year was collected before the 2019 publication of the protocol so it represents pilot data, but the methods were largely consistent with what was published. Periphyton is a microbial mat community that forms the base of the aquatic food web in South Florida wetlands such as the marshes in Everglades National Park (EVER) and the Big Cypress National Preserve (BICY). It is a vital component of these wetlands, contributing to critical functions such as primary production, nutrient cycling, and soil production and stabilization. Periphyton is sensitive to changes in hydropattern (water quantity and duration) and water quality. Changes to these ecosystem processes can quickly alter periphyton community structure (species composition and relative abundance), which in turn can create cascading effects through higher trophic levels. Thus, periphyton is an early and integrative indicator of local and regional changes to hydrology. The South Florida/Caribbean Network has implemented the monitoring of periphyton communities in Big Cypress National Preserve to assess the impact of hydrologic and water quality changes on the diatom community structure and total phosphorous (TP) concentrations of the periphyton mats. The specific monitoring objectives are: 1) Identify any basins in the northwest section of Big Cypress National Preserve where periphyton community structure and periphyton TP content are different from an oligotrophic (low-nutrient) and unimpacted community signal. 2) Document any temporal and/or spatial changes in the periphyton community structure and periphyton TP content showing progression towards an oligotrophic, unimpacted condition or a eutrophic (high-nutrient), impacted condition.

A data package consisting of diatom, total phosphorus, vegetation, and related data collected in Big Cypress National Preserve as part of the SFCN Periphyton Vital Signs protocol. This hydrologic year was collected before the 2019 publication of the protocol so it represents pilot data, but the methods were largely consistent with what was published. Periphyton is a microbial mat community that forms the base of the aquatic food web in South Florida wetlands such as the marshes in Everglades National Park (EVER) and the Big Cypress National Preserve (BICY). It is a vital component of these wetlands, contributing to critical functions such as primary production, nutrient cycling, and soil production and stabilization. Periphyton is sensitive to changes in hydropattern (water quantity and duration) and water quality. Changes to these ecosystem processes can quickly alter periphyton community structure (species composition and relative abundance), which in turn can create cascading effects through higher trophic levels. Thus, periphyton is an early and integrative indicator of local and regional changes to hydrology. The South Florida/Caribbean Network has implemented the monitoring of periphyton communities in Big Cypress National Preserve to assess the impact of hydrologic and water quality changes on the diatom community structure and total phosphorous (TP) concentrations of the periphyton mats. The specific monitoring objectives are: 1) Identify any basins in the northwest section of Big Cypress National Preserve where periphyton community structure and periphyton TP content are different from an oligotrophic (low-nutrient) and unimpacted community signal. 2) Document any temporal and/or spatial changes in the periphyton community structure and periphyton TP content showing progression towards an oligotrophic, unimpacted condition or a eutrophic (high-nutrient), impacted condition.

This dataset includes files associated with a 21-day nutrient diffusing substrate experiment run in Pear Lake of Sequoia National Park, California in summer 2022. The experiment was designed to evaluate the effects of different treatment levels of a macronutrient (nitrogen) and a micronutrient (copper) on periphyton growth and community structure in an alpine lake. While the effects of nitrogen on primary productivity are well-studied, including in remote mountain lakes, the potential effects of low concentrations of necessary micronutrients are poorly understood. This experiment used three nitrogen treatments (0, 0.05, 2 mg/L NO3-N) and six copper treatments (0, 0.005, 0.05, 0.5, 1, 5 mg/L Cu), totaling 18 unique treatment combinations. For each treatment, we collected three replicate samples for periphyton copper concentrations, periphyton growth as ash-free dry mass, and periphyton community structure quantified using metabarcoding methods. We used a 16S rDNA primer to quantify bacteria taxa, including cyanobacteria, and an 18S rDNA primer to quantify eukaryotic primary producers. The sequencing data (fastq files) are stored in a separate repository with the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI; BioProject PRJNA1200755). The remaining data are published in this release, including the periphyton copper concentrations (NDS_copper.csv) and ash-free dry mass data (NDS_afdm.csv). Additionally, this data release includes the data from our lab test to verify that copper would diffuse from agar (labDiffusionTest.csv), metadata associated with each of the field experiment’s sample units (NDS_treatment.csv), the water quality results collected at the start and end of the experiment (NDS_watqual.csv), and a file that includes a list of all of the Phyla identified in the samples via metabarcoding, the count of each Phyla, and the broad category that we assigned to the Phyla for downstream analyses (phylaDescriptions.csv). Water chemistry data collected with passive data loggers (pH, dissolved oxygen, conductivity, and temperature) are also associated with this experiment, but those data are released in a separate data release (https://doi.org/10.5066/P1T6UYAX; hourlyLoggers.csv and hourlyLoggers.rds).

This data release includes periphyton sample and taxonomic information collected within the Lower Grand River hydrologic unit code 10280103, Missouri and Iowa, 2011 through 2018. Sample information includes U.S. Geological Survey station name and identification number where the sample was collected, the sample date, if the sample was a replicate sample, and a unique sample identification code. Taxonomic information provided in each row includes the currently accepted taxa name, average cell density, average biovolume per cell, total taxa biovolume, relative biovolume, total sample biovolume, laboratory notes, and taxon name provided by the identifying laboratory.

This data release includes periphyton sample and taxonomic information collected within the Lower Grand River hydrologic unit code 10280103, Missouri and Iowa, 2011 through 2018. Sample information includes U.S. Geological Survey station name and identification number where the sample was collected, the sample date, if the sample was a replicate sample, and a unique sample identification code. Taxonomic information provided in each row includes the currently accepted taxa name, average cell density, average biovolume per cell, total taxa biovolume, relative biovolume, total sample biovolume, laboratory notes, and taxon name provided by the identifying laboratory.

Periphyton is a complex community of detritus, bacteria, fungi, and algae that grows attached to submerged substrates. Assemblage structure data for algae and cyanobacteria from periphyton samples were collected on a monthly basis from 2017 to 2021. Compiled data were reported as absolute abundance (cells) and biovolume per volume as well as absolute abundance (cells) and biovolume per area at four locations increasing in distance East of the L-67 canal in Water Conservation Area 3 (WCA 3) of the Florida Everglades immediately north of Everglades National Park. The periphyton assemblages were analyzed for five sample types including periphyton plates (Plates), invertebrate inclusion and exclusion plates (Inverts), biological oxygen demand cores (BOD), vertical/sediment traps (VertSedTrap), and metaphyton cores (MetaCore).

Dataset contains discrete nutrient data collected at the following parks: Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Cape Lookout National Seashore, Fort Pulaski National Monument, Cumberland Island National Seashore, Fort Matanzas National Monument, Canaveral National Seashore, and Timucuan Ecological and Historic Preserve. Data parameters include measures of nitrogen, phosphorus, and chlorophyll-a.