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1,548 results for “Virginia”
Fish Counts and Lengths in South Bay and Hog Island Bay, Virginia 2012-2018
To study how seagrass restoration affects coastal fish communities over time, we sampled fishes at each site once or twice per year with beach seines (7.6 m wide × 1.8 m tall; 1.5 m deep pocket with 6.4 mm mesh) hauled along 25-m transects in the summer (May or June) and autumn (September or October) from 2012 through 2018. Researchers ceased sampling at the 4 initially unvegetated sites in South Bay after 2015, when these sites were colonized by seagrass, although seining occurred once more at these sites during the autumn of 2017. During each sampling event, we counted, measured (total length), and identified fish to the lowest possible taxon in the field prior to release. All seine hauls occurred during the day and within 3 hours of low tide for logistical reasons (n = 204). Due to methodological changes, after 2018 surveys are recorded in a different dataset VCR22364 "Abundance and Size of Seagrass-Associated Fishes in the Virginia Coastal Lagoons, 2019-xxxx" https://doi.org/10.6073/pasta/400c84b859e81e9a1e5212bccb37b759.
Vegetation Survey on the Virginia Barrier Islands - Species by habitat, 1974
This dataset contains observations by Cheryl McCaffrey during a 1974 mapping of the vegetation on the barrier islands of the Virginia Coast Reserve (McCaffrey, CA, Dueser RD. 1990. Preliminary Vascular Flora for the Virginia Barrier Islands. Va. J. Sci.. 41:259-281. http://www.vacadsci.org/vjsArchives/V41/41-4A/p259.pdf) It also includes additional observations by Terry Cook on Hog Island in 1989. Note, because the primary purpose of this survey was mapping, species are listed if they were observed, but no extraordinary efforts were made to list all species on a particular island. Thus, an observation indicates that a species was there, but lack of an observation does not necessarily mean that the species was absent.
Light profiles in the water column of coastal bays of Virginia 2011-2024
Measurements of light extinction were made from a small boat at designated stations. Measurements were taken above the water (AIR), 10 cm below the surface (SURFACE) and at depths from 25 cm (D_025cm) to 250 cm (D_250cm) below the surface. All light measurements were made with a Licor 4-pi quantum Photosynthetically Active Radiation (PAR) sensor LI-193 and a LI-1000 or LI-250a light meter. All light units are in microEinsteins (moles of photons) Calculations of the extinction coefficient (Kd) should NOT include air measurements.
Winds on Hog Island Virginia 2009-2019
An RM Young wind monitor was installed at the Machipongo Station n the northern part of Hog Island, on the western side of the island upland. It was initially installed on top of the tower on the station at a height of approximately 20m. Subsequent to the demolition of the Machipongo Station in 2012, the monitor was moved to near the top of an abandoned Coast Guard flag tower (approx. 15 m high) located adjacent to the former site of the Machipongo Station. Measurements of wind speed and direction were taken each hour. The mean wind vector magnitude and direction are recorded based on 60 measurements made each hour. Standard deviation of the wind direction was calculated using the Campbell Scientifics formula. Starting in 2013 peak wind speeds were also recorded. Collection of this data ended in 2019. It was replaced by the dataset knb-lter-vcr.25 (Hourly Meteorological Data for the Virginia Coast Reserve LTER 1989-present) when a full-fledged meteological station was installed atop a 20-meter tall lookout tower on southern Hog Island at the site of the former town of Broadwater.
Red Knot observations on the Virginia Coast, 2007-2019
Red Knot observations on the Virginia Coast, 2007-2019 Understanding factors that influence a species' distribution and abundance across the annual cycle is required for range-wide conservation. Thousands of imperiled red knots (Calidris cantus rufa) stop on Virginia's barrier islands each year to replenish fat during spring migration. We investigated the variation in red knot presence and flock size, the effects of prey on this variation, and factors influencing prey abundance on Virginia's barrier islands. We counted red knots and collected potential prey samples at randomly selected sites from 2007 - 2018 during a two-week period during early and peak migration. Core samples contained crustaceans (Orders Amphipoda and Calanoida), blue mussels (Mytilus edulis), coquina clams (Donax variabilis), and miscellaneous prey (horseshoe crab eggs (Limulus polyphemus), angel wing clams (Cyrtopleura costata), and other organisms (e.g., insect larvae, snails, worms)). Estimated red knot numbers in Virginia during peak migration were highest in 2012 (11,959) and lowest in 2014 (2,857; 12-year peak migration x̄ = 7,175, SD = 2,869). Red knot and prey numbers varied across sampling periods and substrates (i.e., peat and sand). Red knots generally used sites with more prey. Miscellaneous prey (x̄ = 18.85/core sample, SE = 0.88) influenced red knot presence at a site early in migration, when we only sampled on peat banks. Coquina clams (x̄ = 11/core sample, SE = 0.30) and blue mussels (x̄ = 0.94/core sample, SE = 0.04) affected red knot presence at a site during peak migration, when we sampled both substrates. Few relationships between prey and red knot flock size existed, suggesting that other unmeasured factors determined red knot numbers at occupied sites. Tide and mean daily water temperature affected prey abundance. Maximizing the diversity, availability, and abundance of prey for red knots on barrier islands requires management that encourages the presence of both sand a
Forest Transition Experiment - Leaf Litter in a Coastal Virginia Forest
Leaf litter collected in basket-based litter traps in forest transition plots
Surface Elevation (SET) Data for Brownsville Forest at the Virginia Coastal Reserve, 2019-2025
This dataset contains data from Surface Elevation Tables (SETs) located in the Brownsville Forest at the Virginia Coastal Reserve. These research plots were set up in 2019 as a part of a larger forest disturbance project. Marker Horizons and Shallow SETs were installed in 2020 but have not yet been measured. Tyler Messerschmidt has made all measurements of these SETs
Mean Seagrass Meadow Metabolism by Time of Day in Virginia, USA
The study examined benthic O2 fluxes over a seagrass meadow using the aquatic eddy covariance technique, while measuring variables that have been shown to affect metabolism (PAR, temperature, O2 concentration, current velocity). Accurate daily metabolic estimates of respiration, gross primary production, and net ecosystem metabolism are widely used to assess ecosystem health and blue carbon sequestration and storage in vegetated coastal ecosystems. Aquatic eddy covariance allows direct measurements under naturally varying in situ conditions of oxygen (O2) fluxes between a benthic substrate and the water above. Here, we used hourly O2 fluxes measured with this approach to examine how respiration for a Zostera marina seagrass meadow varies through night and day, and how this affects commonly performed metabolic estimates. Fitting our database of 2,115 hourly benthic O2 fluxes for a seagrass meadow revealed that respiration decreased linearly by 29% through the night. We primarily attribute this to consumption of highly labile compounds that are formed by photosynthesis and accumulate during daytime. Furthermore, a corresponding linear increase in respiration through the day coupled with photosynthetic production described by a standard photosynthesis irradiance curve provided an accurate prediction of measured O2 fluxes (R2 = 0.993). These results document that night- and daytime respiration vary significantly in a seagrass meadow, and that both can be described accurately by a piecewise linear relationship. Many studies have questioned the widely used assumption in metabolic estimates that night- and daytime respiration are constant and equal. However, if night- and daytime respiration can be approximated as we found here by piecewise linear relationships, these standard means for calculating daily metabolic numbers remain valid. It is, however, important that such estimates are based on full 24-h records of benthic flux data.
Consumer Front Plant Trait Sampling in Two Virginia Coast Salt Marshes, 2018
A consumer front forms when dense aggregations of herbivores form at the edge of a resource. The front then propagates through the ecosystem in search of additional resources. In U.S. Atlantic salt marshes, the purple marsh crab, Sesarma reticulatum, creates consumer fronts as it grazes the smooth cordgrass, Spartina alterniflora. Sesarma fronts typically form at the heads of tidal creeks and create distinct zonation between the low marsh, tall-form Spartina zones and the high marsh, short-form Spartina zones, with a denuded band of mudflat in between. Over time, Sesarma consumer fronts are moving directionally inland towards the short-form zone and away from the tall-form zone. This movement inland allows for tall-form Spartina to revegetate, preventing further marsh loss. However, it remains unknown why these consumer fronts are moving inland. To test the hypothesis that plant traits (i.e., nutritional quality, palatability) are driving the Sesarma consumer front inland, we collected Spartina from consumer fronts at 8 unique creekheads across two marsh systems on the Eastern Shore of Virginia (4 consumer fronts at Upper Phillips Creek and 4 at Upshur Creek). Spartina was collected from 15 replicate quadrats (0.0625m^2) from the tall-form low marsh zones (TSA) and from the short-form low marsh zones (SSA) at each creekhead. The short-form zone was delineated into two additional zones, an interior (SSA-I) and an exterior (SSA-E), to assess if there were any differences in plant traits between Spartina being actively grazed (SSA-E, adjacent to consumer front) and those that have not been grazed (SSA-I, 2 meters from consumer front). Collected Spartina plants were then processed for a series of plant traits that can influence herbivore preference.
Sediment organic matter and infauna at eight sites on the Virginia Coast, 2016 and 2019
To determine how oysters impact the spatial distribution of infauna and sediment composition through ecosystem engineering, we sampled 8 intertidal mud- flats adjacent to oyster reefs in coastal Virginia, USA. This work describes how local site characteristics, including distance to oysters, elevation, and hydrodynamics, influence infaunal community structure and sediment composition.
Erosion Rates, Soil Core Descriptions and Organic Matter on the Virginia Coast
These data include stratigraphic, organic matter, and organic carbon analyses of sediment cores, as well as values used to calculate the time-averaged carbon erosion rate for the central 10 islands of the Virginia Barrier Island chain.
Oyster fauna lengths, counts, and biomass from restored and reference reefs in Virginia coastal bays, 2005-2023
Oyster reef fauna counts and lengths were sampled at natural "reference" reefs and restored shell plant reefs located in the Virginia Coast Reserve. Overfishing and disease decimated oyster reefs in the Virginia Coast Reserve in the 1900s. Reference reefs were defined as remnant reefs that naturally recovered in the early 2000s to develop the pronounced vertical structure and multiple oyster size classes that represent the desired endpoint of restoration efforts. Nearly every year since 2003, The Nature Conservancy and Virginia Marine Resource Commission have constructed oyster reefs in intertidal areas in the VCR. To construct the restored reefs, practitioners launched dredged, fossilized oyster shell from barges to intertidal locations chosen for their bottom stability and accessibility (locations lacked oysters prior to construction). Whelk shell supplemented the oyster shell at some of the restored reefs. TNC practitioners monitor select restored and reference reefs annually for adult and spat live oysters, adult and spat box oysters, mud crabs, mud snails, oyster drills, live clams, and mussels.
Atlantic ghost crab (Ocypode quadrata) burrow counts at shorebird nests and randomly available sites on Metompkin Island, Virginia, 2022
Atlantic ghost crabs (Ocypode quadrata) are predators of beach-nesting shorebirds, their nests, and their chicks on the United States' Atlantic and Gulf coasts. Ghost crabs may also disturb birds, altering their foraging, habitat use, or nest and brood attendance patterns. Shorebird conservation strategies often involve predator and disturbance management to improve reproductive success, but efforts rarely target ghost crabs. Despite the threat to shorebird reproductive success, ghost crabs are a poorly understood part of the beach ecosystem and additional knowledge about ghost crab habitat selection is needed to inform shorebird conservation. We monitored ghost crab activity, defined as burrow abundance, throughout the shorebird breeding season on Metompkin Island, Virginia, an important breeding site for piping plovers (Charadrius melodus) and American oystercatchers (Haematopus palliatus). We counted burrows at shorebird nests and random points throughout the shorebird breeding season and tested whether ghost crab activity was greater at shorebird nest sites than random sites. We observed burrows at all nest sites in our study area (n = 63 nests), but found fewer burrows at nest sites than random sites. Ghost crabs may avoid shorebird nest sites due to aggressive defensive behaviors from incubating adults or differences in microhabitat characteristics selected by shorebirds versus ghost crabs. We also tested the effects of date, air temperature, habitat type, and shell cover on the abundance of ghost crab burrows. We found that while burrows were present across the barrier island landscape, there were more burrows in sandy habitats with sparse to little shell cover and in and behind the dunes relative to the beach and beach-front berm. Ghost crab activity increased later in the shorebird breeding season and as air temperature increased. Understanding when and where ghost crabs are most likely to be active in the landscape can aid decision-making to benefit imperi
Audio and Water Movement Data for Oyster Reef and Mudflat Sites on the Coast of Virginia, 2018
Paired marine audio soundscape recordings with concurrent acoustic Doppler velocimeter (ADV) turbulence measurements at three intertidal sites: a natural oyster reef, a restored oyster reef, and a bare mudflat. The objective was to establish the link between oyster reef soundscapes and hydrodynamics, specifically the role that turbulence plays in generating near field pressure waves that may be used as physical cues by oyster larvae when initiating settlement behaviors. Data were collected at three different locations, with water turbulance measurements at rates up to 25Hz concurrent with audio recording.
Sediment grain size in the Virginia coastal bays, 2022
This dataset contains sediment grain size distributions from benthic sediment cores collected from shallow sites across coastal bays of Virginia, USA. The samples were collected in July 2022 at 50 long-term sampling sites. Most sites were sampled in seagrass meadows (eelgrass Zostera marina), but some sites are unvegetated (bare substrate).
Salt Marsh Crab Caging Experiment, Virginia 2021
Herbivore fronts can alter plant traits (chemical and/or morphological features) and performance via grazing. Yet, herbivore-driven trait alterations are rarely considered when assessing how these fronts shape ecosystems, despite the critical role that plant performance plays in ecosystem functioning. We evaluated herbivore fronts created by the purple marsh crab, Sesarma reticulatum, as it consumes the cordgrass, Spartina alterniflora, in Virginian salt marshes. Sesarma fronts form at the head of tidal creeks and move inland, creating a denuded mudflat between the tall-form Spartina low marsh (trailing edge) and the short-form Spartina high marsh (leading edge). We quantified Sesarma front migration rate, tested if Sesarma herbivory altered geomorphic processes and Spartina traits at the trailing and leading edges, and examined how these trait changes persisted through the final 8 weeks of the growing season. Sesarma front migration in our region is two times slower than fronts in the Southeast U.S., and Spartina retreat rate at the leading edge is greater than the revegetation rate at the trailing edge. Sesarma fronts lowered elevation, and decreased sediment shear strength at the trailing edge, while having no impact on soil organic matter and bulk density at either edge. At the leading edge, Sesarma grazing reduced Spartina growth traits and defensive ability, and trait changes persisted through the remaining growing season. At the trailing edge, however, Sesarma grazing promoted belowground biomass production, and had limited to no effect on growth or defensive traits. We show that herbivore fronts negatively impact saltmarsh plant traits at their leading edge, potentially contributing to front propagation. In contrast, plants at the trailing edge were more resistant to herbivore grazing, and may enhance resilience through elevated belowground biomass production. Future work should consider herbivore-driven plant trait alterations in the context of herbivore fr
Quantifying the magnitude of storm events that have impacted the Virginia Coast Reserve (2009-2024) using the Cumulative Storm Impact Index (CSII)
This dataset contains a record of storm events along with quantified magnitudes that have impacted the Virginia Coast Reserve between 2009- 2024, minus 2010. We retrieved hourly water level data and monthly datums from the NOAA Tides and Currents database (tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov) for the tide station located in Wachapreague, VA (Station 8631044) to quantify the magnitude of storms using 1) the Storm Erosion Potential Index (SEPI; Zhang et al. 2001), and 2) the Cumulative Storm Impact Index (CSII; Fenster and Dominguez 2022). CSII incorporates the timing and magnitude of previous storms as a measure of cumulative impact, or "storminess". We identified storm events based on storm surge that exceeded two standard deviations (> 2SD) of the average surge and storm tide that exceeded the annual average Mean High Water (MHW) of a semi-diurnal tide (12 hours; SEPI). We then calculated the CSII for each storm as the sum of the SEPI and an exponentially decaying weighting factor (delta) from the previous storm's CSII that accounts for beach recovery that may have occurred between storm events. Here we use delta = 0.3 to best capture storm clustering during the 15 year period (Fenster and Dominguez 2022). Years missing >10% of data were excluded. For detailed methods on the data retrieval process, identifying storms, and quantifying storm magnitude, see Fenster and Dominguez (2022) and Dominguez et al. (2024). We identified a total of 208 storm events with an average of 14.3 events per year +/- 2.3 (SD) and an average annual CSII of 428.1 (m2hr) +/- 196.1 (SD).
Oyster recruitment to standardized ceramic tiles on the Virginia Coast in 2018, 2019, and 2021
This dataset contains measurements of Eastern oyster (Crassostrea virginica) recruitment to standardized ceramic tiles deployed across intertidal oyster reef sites in the Virginia Coast Reserve. Recruitment is defined as the number of macroscopic oyster recruits (less than or equal to 25 mm shell height) per square centimeter of tile surface, capturing settlement and early post-settlement survival. Data were collected in 2018, 2019, and 2021 across 9-16 reef sites per year, including both natural and restored reefs. The dataset supports research on spatial and environmental drivers of oyster recruitment and has been validated against natural reef substrate data for comparability.
General Lake Model-Aquatic EcoDynamics model parameter set for Falling Creek Reservoir, Vinton, Virginia, USA 2013-2019
The General Lake Model (GLM), an open-source, one-dimensional hydrodynamic model, was used to simulate physical, chemical, and biological variables in Falling Creek Reservoir, Vinton, Virginia, USA between 15 May 2013 and 31 December 2019. GLM (v.3.2.0a3) was coupled to the Aquatic EcoDynamics (AED) module library via the Framework for Aquatic Biogeochemical Modeling (FABM). GLM-AED requires three configuration files to run the model. First, the glm3.nml file configures lake metadata (including hypsometry), meteorological driver data, stream inflow and outflow driver data files, and physical response variables (mixing parameters and sediment heat zones). Second, the aed2_20220111_2DOCpools.nml file configures various biogeochemical modules for the simulation of oxygen, carbon, silica, nitrogen, phosphorus, organic matter, and phytoplankton. Third, the aed2_phyto_pars_4Jan2022.nml file configures all parameters pertaining to phytoplankton dynamics. Meteorological data, two surface stream inflow files, a submerged oxygenation inflow file, and outflow file used in this calibration are also included.
Time series of high-frequency sensors measuring water temperature and dissolved oxygen at discrete depths in Falling Creek Reservoir, Virginia, USA in 2012-2018
We measured water temperature and dissolved oxygen at multiple depths in Falling Creek Reservoir (Vinton, Virginia, USA) with high-frequency (10 to 15-minute) sensors for different durations during 2012 to 2018. Falling Creek Reservoir is owned and managed by the Western Virginia Water Authority as a primary drinking water source for Roanoke, Virginia. All measurements were collected at discrete depths at the deepest site of the reservoir adjacent to the dam. The sensors consisted of: 1) InsiteIG dissolved oxygen and water temperature sensors (Model 20 dissolved oxygen sensor) at both 1 m (November 2015 - December 2018) and 8 m (September 2012 - December 2018) and 2) HOBO (HOBO Pendant Temperature/Light 64K Data Logger) water temperature loggers deployed at 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9.3 m depths (September 2015 - January 2018).
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Allen Brain Atlas
Allen Brain Atlas is an Allen Institute collection of brain map atlases, datasets, APIs, and analysis tools covering mouse, human, and non-human primate brain resources.
Annotated Behaviour and Observability Dataset (ABODe)
ABODe is a University of Edinburgh DataShare dataset for behavior classification in group-housed mice using home-cage video, identities, bounding boxes, ground-plate positions, and annotator labels.
DANDI Archive for NWB datasets
DANDI is a BRAIN Initiative archive for publishing and sharing neurophysiology data, including electrophysiology, optophysiology, and behavioral data packaged as NWB and related standards.
International Brain Laboratory public data
The International Brain Laboratory public data releases expose standardized mouse decision-making experiments, including Neuropixels recordings, widefield calcium imaging, behavior, and session metadata accessed through the ONE API.
OpenNeuro
OpenNeuro is a free, open platform for sharing neuroimaging datasets, with public search, dataset pages, and download paths for web, S3, DataLad, and the OpenNeuro CLI.