Phytoplankton counts in the coastal wetland area of Ria de Aveiro in different ecological states
Default
IdentificationAbout this resource
- Alternate Identifier
-
9cf93b55-58f7-4e08-95d7-6b1292ebc898
- Publication Date
- 2026-01-28
- Title
-
Phytoplankton counts in the coastal wetland area of Ria de Aveiro in different ecological states
- Abstract
-
This dataset contains seasonal information on phytoplankton community composition collected in the Ria de Aveiro lagoon within the RESTORE4Cs project. Sampling was carried out during four campaigns between 2023 and 2024 (October 2023, January 2024, April 2024, and July 2024), covering the main seasonal variability of the lagoon. Phytoplankton samples were collected at multiple sites representing different ecological conditions, including well-preserved wetland habitats with minimal anthropogenic influence, altered areas where key structural or functional attributes have been degraded (e.g. loss of seagrass meadows), and restored areas that have undergone ecological restoration and currently exhibit conditions comparable to reference sites. The dataset includes raw phytoplankton cell counts obtained following detailed and standardized counting procedures, along with morphological measurements such as cell length, width, and thickness, and geometric shape descriptors. Taxonomic identification is provided from kingdom to species level. Each sample is associated with comprehensive metadata describing management treatment (Altered, Protected, or Restored), replicate, sampling event, geographic locality with coordinates, and temporal information including season, month, day, and year.
- purpose
-
This dataset has been used as a case study within the Phytoplankton Virtual Research Environment to support analysis of phytoplankton community structure and functional traits in relation to ecological condition and restoration status.
- Dataset Language
-
English
- Dataset Creator
- Dataset Creator
- Metadata Provider
- Associated Party
- Associated Party
- Dataset Contact
- Keywords (Biodiversity Thesaurus)
-
-
phytoplankton
-
- Keywords (Environmental Thesaurus)
-
-
biodiversity
-
- Keywords (Traits Thesaurus)
-
-
Morphological trait
-
Shape
-
Cell length
-
Cell width
-
Cell thickness
-
Geographic Coverage
- Geographic Description
-
Ria de Aveiro
Bounding Box
- West Bounding Coordinate
-
-8.72507
- East Bounding Coordinate
-
-8.59663
- North Bounding Coordinate
-
40.74963
- South Bounding Coordinate
-
40.63271
Temporal Coverage
Range of Dates
- Begin Date
-
2023-11-15
- End Date
-
2024-07-02
Taxonomic Coverage
Taxonomic Classification
- Taxonomic Rank Name
-
Phylum
- Taxonomic Rank Value
-
Charophyta
- Taxon ID
-
KZS5S
Taxonomic Classification
- Taxonomic Rank Name
-
Phylum
- Taxonomic Rank Value
-
Chlorophyta
- Taxon ID
-
CGV7L
Taxonomic Classification
- Taxonomic Rank Name
-
Phylum
- Taxonomic Rank Value
-
Cryptophyta
- Taxon ID
-
3N
Taxonomic Classification
- Taxonomic Rank Name
-
Phylum
- Taxonomic Rank Value
-
Cyanobacteria
- Taxon ID
-
CNPLM
Taxonomic Classification
- Taxonomic Rank Name
-
Phylum
- Taxonomic Rank Value
-
Euglenozoa
- Taxon ID
-
4B
Taxonomic Classification
- Taxonomic Rank Name
-
Phylum
- Taxonomic Rank Value
-
Haptophyta
- Taxon ID
-
4P
Taxonomic Classification
- Taxonomic Rank Name
-
Phylum
- Taxonomic Rank Value
-
Heterokontophyta
- Taxon ID
-
370437
Taxonomic Classification
- Taxonomic Rank Name
-
Phylum
- Taxonomic Rank Value
-
Myzozoa
- Taxon ID
-
QKD9F
Taxonomic Classification
- Taxonomic Rank Name
-
Phylum
- Taxonomic Rank Value
-
Ochrophyta
- Taxon ID
-
5H
resourceLicensesLicense Information
- Intellectual Rights
-
Free for use, including sharing and adaptation, by all individuals provided that the owners are acknowledged in any use or publication.
Resource License
- License Name
-
cc-by
Project
• Project
- Title
-
RESTORE4Cs - Modelling RESTORation of wEtlands for Carbon pathways, Climate Change mitigation and adaptation, ecosystem services, and biodiversity, Co-benefits
Personnel
Individual Name
- Given Name
-
Alberto
- Surname
-
Basset
- Organization Name
-
University of Salento
- Position Name
-
Full professor
- User ID
-
0000-0002-3603-9316
- Role
-
Principal Investigator
Personnel
Individual Name
- Given Name
-
Nataliya
- Surname
-
Slabakova
- Organization Name
-
Institute of Oceanology – Bulgarian Academy of Sciences (IO-BAS)
- Position Name
-
Researcher
- User ID
-
0000-0002-3294-5346
- Role
-
Content Provider
- Abstract
-
All major European Union (EU) policies recognise the key role of wetlands to achieve the EU objectives regarding climate neutrality, biodiversity protection, zero-pollution, flood protection, and circular economy. Therefore, assessing the current extent and state of European wetlands, their current and potential greenhouse gases (GHG) profile and their medium to long-term mitigation capacity through restoration, or other measures, are key priorities of the European Union to tackle climate change. Led by the University of Aveiro, the Horizon project RESTORE4Cs (Modelling RESTORation of wEtlands for Carbon pathways, Climate Change mitigation and adaptation, ecosystem services, and biodiversity, Co-benefits) will assess the role of restoration action on wetlands capacity in terms of climate change mitigation and a wide range of ecosystem services using an integrative socio-ecological systems approach.
- Funding
-
EU Horizon 2.5.1 - Climate science and solutions
Methods
• Method
Method Step
- Description
-
Samples were placed in 500 ml polyethylene bottles and fixed with Lugol’s solution (10 ml/L of sample).
Method Step
- Description
-
Phytoplankton taxonomic identification, estimation of cell densities and morphometric measurements were performed using a Nikon T300E inverted microscope (Nikon T300E, Nikon Eclipse Ti) connected to a video-interactive image analysis system (L.U.C.I.A Version 4.8, Laboratory Imaging), following the Utermöhl method (1958) at 400× magnification. For each sample, at least 400 organisms were counted and identified to the lowest possible taxonomic level. The detected cell densities were expressed per liter of water (cells /L).
Method Step
- Description
-
Species/taxon-specific geometric shape were assigned using the “Atlas of Shapes” ( https://www.phytovre.lifewatchitaly.eu/vre/shapes-groups/). The geometric shape was attributed to the individual cell, even for coenobial, colonial or filamentous species where cells were not individually observable. All data collected were harmonized according to the Phytoplankton Data Template, by using the Template Builder which includes standardized terminologies according to Darwin Core, the Traits Thesaurusand the Thesaurus VRE Phytoplankton vocabularies.
Sampling
- Study Extent
-
The Ria de Aveiro coastal wetland was selected as case pilots in the context of the RESTORE4Cs project. Subsites corresponding to three different ecological status were selected by duplicate; namely, two well preserved subsites, two altered subsites and two restored subsites. Each subsite was sampled once per season from October 2023 to August 2024.
- Sampling Description
-
Water samples of 0.5 L from the subsurface (30 cm) were collected for the quantitative analysis of phytoplankton abundance and species composition.
qualityControl
- Description
-
Taxonomic validation was performed using the World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS, https://www.marinespecies.org/) and AlgaeBase ( https://www.algaebase.org/).
Data Tables
• Data Table
- Name
-
RiaDeAveiro_PhytoplanktonCounts_28012026.csv
Physical
- Object Name
-
RiaDeAveiro_PhytoplanktonCounts_28012026.csv
- Size
-
113044
- Authentication
-
MD5:5d32a0dc1b467063fd5c5c552549e5d9
- Character Encoding
-
UTF-8
Data Format
- textFormat
-
1
column
;
Attribute List
Attribute
- Name
-
catalogNumber
- Label
-
Catalog Number
- Definition
-
An identifier (preferably unique) for the record within the data set or collection.
Measurement Scale
nominal
nonNumericDomain
textDomain
- Definition
-
Any Text
Attribute
- Name
-
country
- Label
-
Country
- Definition
-
The name of the country or major administrative unit in which the dcterms:Location occurs.
Measurement Scale
nominal
nonNumericDomain
textDomain
- Definition
-
Any Text
Attribute
- Name
-
countryCode
- Label
-
Country Code
- Definition
-
The standard code for the country in which the dcterms:Location occurs.
Measurement Scale
nominal
nonNumericDomain
textDomain
- Definition
-
Any Text
Attribute
- Name
-
waterBody
- Label
-
Water Body
- Definition
-
The name of the water body in which the dcterms:Location occurs.
Measurement Scale
nominal
nonNumericDomain
textDomain
- Definition
-
Any Text
Attribute
- Name
-
survey
- Label
-
survey
- Definition
-
Term to be used when the property reported is a characteristic of a survey (for example its area, its duration). A survey is a sampling activity which can be made up of a single or multiple sampling events.
Measurement Scale
nominal
nonNumericDomain
textDomain
- Definition
-
Any Text
Attribute
- Name
-
locality
- Label
-
Locality
- Definition
-
The specific description of the place.
Measurement Scale
nominal
nonNumericDomain
textDomain
- Definition
-
Any Text
Attribute
- Name
-
parentEventID
- Label
-
Parent Event ID
- Definition
-
An identifier for the broader dwc:Event that groups this and potentially other dwc:Events.
Measurement Scale
nominal
nonNumericDomain
textDomain
- Definition
-
Any Text
Attribute
- Name
-
replicate
- Label
-
Replicate
- Definition
-
A replicate is an independent repetition of a measurement, observation, or experimental unit performed under the same conditions to assess variability, improve precision, and ensure reliability of results.
Measurement Scale
nominal
nonNumericDomain
textDomain
- Definition
-
Any Text
Attribute
- Name
-
treatment
- Label
-
Treatment
- Definition
-
A treatment is a defined experimental condition applied to test its effect on a response variable.
Measurement Scale
nominal
nonNumericDomain
textDomain
- Definition
-
Any Text
Attribute
- Name
-
day
- Label
-
Day
- Definition
-
The integer day of the month on which the dwc:Event occurred.
Measurement Scale
Date time
- Format String
-
DD
Attribute
- Name
-
month
- Label
-
Month
- Definition
-
The integer month in which the dwc:Event occurred.
Measurement Scale
Date time
- Format String
-
MM
Attribute
- Name
-
year
- Label
-
Year
- Definition
-
The four-digit year in which the dwc:Event occurred, according to the Common Era Calendar.
Measurement Scale
Date time
- Format String
-
YYYY
Attribute
- Name
-
season
- Label
-
Season
- Definition
-
A season is a recurring period within a year characterized by consistent environmental, climatic, or biological conditions, such as changes in temperature, precipitation, or photoperiod.
Measurement Scale
nominal
nonNumericDomain
textDomain
- Definition
-
Any Text
Attribute
- Name
-
scientificName
- Label
-
Scientific Name
- Definition
-
The full scientific name, with authorship and date information if known. When forming part of a dwc:Identification, this should be the name in lowest level taxonomic rank that can be determined. This term should not contain identification qualifications, which should instead be supplied in the dwc:identificationQualifier term.
Measurement Scale
nominal
nonNumericDomain
textDomain
- Definition
-
Any Text
Attribute
- Name
-
kingdom
- Label
-
Kingdom
- Definition
-
The full scientific name of the kingdom in which the dwc:Taxon is classified.
Measurement Scale
nominal
nonNumericDomain
textDomain
- Definition
-
Any Text
Attribute
- Name
-
phylum
- Label
-
Phylum
- Definition
-
The full scientific name of the phylum or division in which the dwc:Taxon is classified.
Measurement Scale
nominal
nonNumericDomain
textDomain
- Definition
-
Any Text
Attribute
- Name
-
class
- Label
-
Class
- Definition
-
The full scientific name of the class in which the dwc:Taxon is classified.
Measurement Scale
nominal
nonNumericDomain
textDomain
- Definition
-
Any Text
Attribute
- Name
-
order
- Label
-
Order
- Definition
-
The full scientific name of the order in which the dwc:Taxon is classified.
Measurement Scale
nominal
nonNumericDomain
textDomain
- Definition
-
Any Text
Attribute
- Name
-
family
- Label
-
Family
- Definition
-
The full scientific name of the family in which the dwc:Taxon is classified.
Measurement Scale
nominal
nonNumericDomain
textDomain
- Definition
-
Any Text
Attribute
- Name
-
genus
- Label
-
Genus
- Definition
-
The full scientific name of the genus in which the dwc:Taxon is classified.
Measurement Scale
nominal
nonNumericDomain
textDomain
- Definition
-
Any Text
Attribute
- Name
-
subgenus
- Label
-
Subgenus
- Definition
-
The full scientific name of the subgenus in which the dwc:Taxon is classified.
Measurement Scale
nominal
nonNumericDomain
textDomain
- Definition
-
Any Text
Attribute
- Name
-
specificEpithet
- Label
-
Specific Epithet
- Definition
-
The name of the first or species epithet of the dwc:scientificName.
Measurement Scale
nominal
nonNumericDomain
textDomain
- Definition
-
Any Text
Attribute
- Name
-
infraspecificEpithet
- Label
-
Infraspecific Epithet
- Definition
-
The name of the lowest or terminal infraspecific epithet of the dwc:scientificName, excluding any rank designation.
Measurement Scale
nominal
nonNumericDomain
textDomain
- Definition
-
Any Text
Attribute
- Name
-
acceptedNameUsage
- Label
-
Accepted Name Usage
- Definition
-
The full name, with authorship and date information if known, of the currently valid (zoological) or accepted (botanical) dwc:Taxon.
Measurement Scale
nominal
nonNumericDomain
textDomain
- Definition
-
Any Text
Attribute
- Name
-
shape
- Label
-
Shape
- Definition
-
The approximate shape of an organism.
Measurement Scale
nominal
nonNumericDomain
textDomain
- Definition
-
Any Text
Attribute
- Name
-
organismQuantity
- Label
-
Organism Quantity
- Definition
-
A number or enumeration value for the quantity of dwc:Organisms.
Measurement Scale
Ratio
Unit
- standardUnit
-
number
Numeric domain
- Number type
-
natural
Attribute
- Name
-
organismQuantityType
- Label
-
Organism Quantity Type
- Definition
-
The type of quantification system used for the quantity of dwc:Organisms.
Measurement Scale
nominal
nonNumericDomain
textDomain
- Definition
-
Any Text
Attribute
- Name
-
settlingVolume
- Label
-
Settling Volume
- Definition
-
The settling volume is the volume of sample introduced into the sedimentation chamber and allowed to settle before microscopic examination.
Measurement Scale
Ratio
Unit
- standardUnit
-
cubicMeter
Numeric domain
- Number type
-
real
Attribute
- Name
-
diameterOfSedimentationChamber
- Label
-
Diameter of Sedimentation Chamber
- Definition
-
The straight-line distance across the circular sedimentation counting chamber. Used to calculate the chamber’s total area when circular.
Measurement Scale
Ratio
Unit
- standardUnit
-
millimeter
Numeric domain
- Number type
-
real
Attribute
- Name
-
diameterOfFieldOfView
- Label
-
Diameter of Field of View
- Definition
-
The diameter of the field of view (FOV) is the linear distance across the circular area visible through a microscope at a given magnification. Used to calculate the field area and estimate the scale of observed specimens.
Measurement Scale
Ratio
Unit
- standardUnit
-
millimeter
Numeric domain
- Number type
-
real
Attribute
- Name
-
numberOfRandomFields
- Label
-
Number of Random Fields
- Definition
-
The number of random fields refers to the count of microscope fields of view selected at random within the sedimentation chamber and examined during microscopic analysis.
Measurement Scale
Ratio
Unit
- standardUnit
-
number
Numeric domain
- Number type
-
natural
Attribute
- Name
-
numberOfTransects
- Label
-
Number of Transects
- Definition
-
The number of transects refers to the number of diametral transects counted across the bottom of a sedimentation chamber.
Measurement Scale
Ratio
Unit
- standardUnit
-
number
Numeric domain
- Number type
-
natural
Attribute
- Name
-
factor
- Label
-
Factor
- Definition
-
The dilution (or concentration) factor is a dimensionless coefficient that quantifies the change in concentration of a sample resulting from dilution or concentration procedures. It is defined as the ratio between the final volume and the original sample volume and is used to convert measured concentrations to original (or concentrated) values.
Measurement Scale
Ratio
Unit
- standardUnit
-
dimensionless
Numeric domain
- Number type
-
real
Attribute
- Name
-
cellLength
- Label
-
Cell length
- Definition
-
The total distance from point to point along the longest axis of a cell.
Measurement Scale
Ratio
Unit
- standardUnit
-
micrometer
Numeric domain
- Number type
-
real
Attribute
- Name
-
cellWidth
- Label
-
Cell width
- Definition
-
The shortest linear dimension of a cell, measured perpendicular to its length, from end to end along the shortest axis of the cell.
Measurement Scale
Ratio
Unit
- standardUnit
-
micrometer
Numeric domain
- Number type
-
real
Attribute
- Name
-
cellThickness
- Label
-
Cell thickness
- Definition
-
Third dimension of a cell, measured perpendicular to its length and width.
Measurement Scale
Ratio
Unit
- standardUnit
-
micrometer
Numeric domain
- Number type
-
real
- numberOfRecords
-
449
