Seasonal Distribution of Ammonia-Oxidizing Archaea and Ammonia-Oxidation Rates in the South Atlantic Bight from April to November 2014

Previous work in nearshore waters of the Georgia USA coast has demonstrated mid-summer peaks in the abundance of Thaumarchaeota (blooms with 100 to 1,000-fold increases) accompanied by spikes in nitrite concentration. These studies were performed at one location, so the areal extent of the bloom is unknown, nor has it been demonstrated conclusively that it develops in inshore waters. We collected data on rates of ammonia oxidation and the distribution of Thaumarchaeota, ammonia-oxidizing Betaproteobacteria (AOB), nitrite-oxidizing Nitrospina and environmental variables during 6 cruises aboard the UNOLS vessel R/V Savannah from April to November 2014 on transects of the South Atlantic Bight to evaluate the areal extent and timing of the bloom. This data set includes measurements of Chlorophyll-a concentration, PAR attenuation coefficient, oxygen concenrations, temperature, salinity and nitogenous nutrient concentrations (nitrite, nitrite + nitrate, ammonium, urea), and estimates of Archaea, bacteria and diatom gene concentration based on quantitative PCR.