Description
This research was conducted aboard the research vessel Helmer Hanssen over a five-day cruise around Svalbard. The fieldwork was a part of a course (AB-202) organized by UNIS (The University Centre in Svalbard), involving 18 students, professors, and the ship's crew. Sampling was carried out at four stations: Isfjorden(IsK), Kongsjorden (KB3), Smeerenburg (SME) and St.Jonsfjorden (STJ). The aim was to investigate benthic communities and environmental conditions across fjords with varying degrees of Atlantic and Arctic influence. At each station, benthic samples were collected using a bottom trawl and Van Veen grab, followed by sieving and taxonomic identification.The dataset provides insight into species composition distribution, and relative abundance in Svalbard fjords during early spring. These data can contribute to longterm monitoring of benthic communities and assessments of climate-related changes in Arctic marine ecosystems.
Data Records
The data in this occurrence resource has been published as a Darwin Core Archive (DwC-A), which is a standardized format for sharing biodiversity data as a set of one or more data tables. The core data table contains 187 records.
This IPT archives the data and thus serves as the data repository. The data and resource metadata are available for download in the downloads section. The versions table lists other versions of the resource that have been made publicly available and allows tracking changes made to the resource over time.
Versions
The table below shows only published versions of the resource that are publicly accessible.
Rights
Researchers should respect the following rights statement:
The publisher and rights holder of this work is The University Centre in Svalbard. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY 4.0) License.
GBIF Registration
This resource has been registered with GBIF, and assigned the following GBIF UUID: d4df5c3b-1691-4e8f-aedd-7f9f24759d8c. The University Centre in Svalbard publishes this resource, and is itself registered in GBIF as a data publisher endorsed by GBIF Norway.
Keywords
Occurrence; Benthos; Labwork; Cruise; Arctic; UNIS; Students; Research; Bentic trawl; Van Veen grab; Arctic Marine Ecosystems; Climate-change; Fjords; Svalbard; Annelida; Polychaeta; Sipuncula; Nemertea; Echinodermata; Decopoda; Arthropoda; Mollusca; Bivalvia; Gastropoda; Amphipoda; Isopoda; Cumacea; Euphasiacea; Tanaidacea; Ophiuroidea; Holothuroidea; Crinoidea; Asteroidea; Echinoidea; Crustacea
Contacts
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Project Data
No Description available
| Title | UNIS AB-202 |
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| Identifier | https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q118395664 |
Sampling Methods
At each station, one bottom trawl and two Van Veen grab samples were conducted. At the Smeerenburg station, two bottom trawls were preformed due to an excessive amount of algae (Desmarestia spp.) in the catch, which hindered access to the benthic organisms
| Study Extent | The fjords with the station name we sampled from is: Isfjorden (IsK), Kongsfjorden (KB3), Smeerenburg (SME), St.Jonsfjorden (STJ) |
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Method step description:
- For the bottom trawl, all benthic species were collected, sorted, counted, and identified to the lowest possible taxonomic level. Note: At the Smeerenburg station, two bottom trawls were conducted due to a dence presence of witch's hair algae (Desmarestia spp.), which made it difficult to access the benthic organisms. Although the second trawl was performed to improve sample quality, both trawls were affected by the algae. As a result, the material was divided into two subsamples, and species count from this station are not considered quantitative. At each station, two van veen grab samples were collected and sieved through a 500 µm mesh. Seawater was used to rinse off as much sediment as possible. The samples were brought indoors for further processing. All organisms were sorted, counted, and identified to the lowest possible taxonomic level.
Additional Metadata
| Alternative Identifiers | https://ipt.gbif.no/resource?r=unis_ab202_benthos_2025 |
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