SBC LTER: Reef: Seasonal Kelp Forest Community Dynamics: Detritus biomass

These data describe the abundance of macroalgal detritus (grams wet mass m-2) as part of SBCLTER's seasonal kelp forest monitoring program to track long-term patterns in species abundance and diversity. Detritus was collected in six permanent 1 m2 quadrats positioned uniformly along 40 m transects in each sampling plot. Sample collections were brought back to the laboratory, identified to species and weighed wet. The seasonal surveys were initiated in 2008 at five reef sites along the mainland coast of the Santa Barbara Channel, California, US.