Plant and Soil Characterizations in a Spartina alterniflora Saltmarsh Experiencing Dieback in Terrebonne Parish, Louisiana, Task 2.4

Metadata:

• Identification_Information
• Data_Quality_Information
• Entity_and_Attribute_Information
• Distribution_Information
• Metadata_Reference_Information

Identification_Information:

Citation:

Citation_Information:

Originator: U.S. Geological Survey, National Wetlands Research Center

Publication_Date: 2002

Title:

Plant and Soil Characterizations in a Spartina alterniflora Saltmarsh Experiencing Dieback in Terrebonne Parish, Louisiana, Task 2.4

Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form: Digital tabular data

Larger_Work_Citation:

Citation_Information:

Originator:

Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program Scientific-Technical Committee

Publication_Date: 20010207

Title:

Requests for submission of Scope of Services for Marsh Dieback and Nutria Control Emergency Response

Geospatial_Data_Presentation_Form: document

Publication_Information:

Publication_Place: Thibodaux, LA

Publisher:

Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program Scientific-Technical Committee

Online_Linkage: <http://www.brownmarsh.net/reports/brown_marsh_rfp.pdf>

Description:

Abstract:

This data set consists of vegetative, physical and soil characteristics/parameters of study sites in both healthy and stressed saltmarshes in Terrebonne Parish.

Purpose: To determine the causes of the brown marsh phenomenon

Supplemental_Information:

These data sets can be viewed at the brown marsh web site, not as tabular data, but as graphs. 35 mm photos were also taken at sites, in relation to the data collection.

Time_Period_of_Content:

Time_Period_Information:

Range_of_Dates/Times:

Beginning_Date: 200109

Ending_Date: 200209

Currentness_Reference: ground condition

Status:

Progress: Complete

Maintenance_and_Update_Frequency: Monthly or as needed

Spatial_Domain:

Description_of_Geographic_Extent: Terrebonne Parish

Bounding_Coordinates:

West_Bounding_Coordinate: -93.8999

East_Bounding_Coordinate: -89.5242

North_Bounding_Coordinate: 29.9177

South_Bounding_Coordinate: 29.2128

Keywords:

Theme:

Theme_Keyword_Thesaurus: None

Theme_Keyword: emergent vegetation

Theme_Keyword: brown marsh

Theme_Keyword: interstitial water

Theme_Keyword: nutrients

Theme_Keyword: salinity

Theme_Keyword: pH

Theme_Keyword: plant tracking

Theme_Keyword: saltmarsh

Theme_Keyword: stressed

Theme_Keyword: healthy

Theme_Keyword: monitoring

Theme_Keyword: soil characterization

Theme_Keyword: Eh

Place:

Place_Keyword_Thesaurus: None

Place_Keyword: Louisiana

Place_Keyword: Coastal Louisiana

Place_Keyword: Bay Junop

Place_Keyword: Old Oyster Bayou

Place_Keyword: Bayou Sale

Place_Keyword: Lake Felicity

Place_Keyword: Terrebonne Parish

Place_Keyword: Bayou DuLarge

Temporal:

Temporal_Keyword_Thesaurus: None

Temporal_Keyword: monthly

Taxonomy:

Keywords/Taxon:

Taxonomic_Keyword_Thesaurus: None

Taxonomic_Keywords: Spartina alterniflora

Taxonomic_Keywords: species

Taxonomic_Classification:

Taxon_Rank_Name: Kingdom

Taxon_Rank_Value: Plantae

Taxonomic_Classification:

Taxon_Rank_Name: Division

Taxon_Rank_Value: Magnoliophyta

Taxonomic_Classification:

Taxon_Rank_Name: Class

Taxon_Rank_Value: Liliopsida

Taxonomic_Classification:

Taxon_Rank_Name: Subclass

Taxon_Rank_Value: Commelinidae

Taxonomic_Classification:

Taxon_Rank_Name: Order

Taxon_Rank_Value: Cyperales

Taxonomic_Classification:

Taxon_Rank_Name: Family

Taxon_Rank_Value: Poaceae

Taxonomic_Classification:

Taxon_Rank_Name: Genus

Taxon_Rank_Value: Spartina

Taxonomic_Classification:

Taxon_Rank_Name: Species

Taxon_Rank_Value: alterniflora

Applicable_Common_Name: smooth cordgrass

Access_Constraints:

Data generated by the Brown Marsh principal investigators will be available only to the project’s other principal investigators, following the established QA/QC review, for a period of two years. After two years from the finalization of the data, it shall be made available to the public. Please contact the principal investigator for exact date of availability. It is strongly recommended that these data be directly acquired from the Brown Marsh Database Information Management System server and not indirectly through other sources which may have changed the data in some way.

Use_Constraints:

Acknowledgement of the principal investigator as a data source would be appreciated in products developed from these data, and such acknowledgement as is standard for citation and legal practices for data source is expected by users of these data. Users should be aware that comparison with other data sets for the same area from other time periods may be inaccurate due to inconsistencies resulting from changes in mapping conventions, methodologies, data collections and computer processes over time. The principal investigator and the distributor shall not be liable for improper or incorrect use of these data, based on the description of appropriate/inappropriate uses described in this metadata document. The principal investigator and distributor make no claims as to the data’s suitability for other purposes. These data are not legal documents and are not to be used as such.

Point_of_Contact:

Contact_Information:

Contact_Organization_Primary:

Contact_Organization: U.S. Geological Survey, National Wetlands Research Center

Contact_Person: Thomas C. Michot

Contact_Position: Wildlife Biologist

Contact_Address:

Address_Type: Mailing and Physical

Address: 700 Cajundome Blvd

City: Lafayette

State_or_Province: LA

Postal_Code: 70506

Country: USA

Contact_Voice_Telephone: 337 266-8664

Contact_Facsimile_Telephone: 337 266-8513

Native_Data_Set_Environment: Microsoft Excel 97

Data_Quality_Information:

Attribute_Accuracy:

Attribute_Accuracy_Report:

The accuracy of the attributes is determined by the experienced field biologists and the integrity of the equipment and its maintenance. An exact percent of accuracy can not be determined and would require a more formal comparison of data collection procedures.

Logical_Consistency_Report:

All equipment was calibrated according to manufacturers' guideline. Field procedures for all site visits were followed every time. Contact Principal investigator for all deviations in data collection.

Completeness_Report: There are no known omissions in the data.

Lineage:

Methodology:

Methodology_Type: Field/Lab

Methodology_Identifier:

Methodology_Keyword_Thesaurus: None

Methodology_Keyword: stem count

Methodology_Keyword: stem height

Methodology_Keyword: sulfides

Methodology_Keyword: pH

Methodology_Keyword: salinity

Methodology_Keyword: depth

Methodology_Keyword: porewater

Methodology_Keyword: sediment redox potential

Methodology_Keyword: temperature

Methodology_Keyword: transects

Methodology_Keyword: surveying

Methodology_Description:

Sites were established for both healthy and stressed saltmarsh environments (referenced and impacted, respectively). An initial site, established in June 2000, was identified into 5 vegetation zones based on color and vegetation characteristics. Transects were set up to measure boundaries and to track them over time. For each zone, randomly placed four square-metered quadrants were established. Data collection - for vegetative characteristics, the number and height of live and dead stems were measured; for dead stems, presence or absence of leaf material is indicated, and whether the dead leaves are intact or frayed. For live stems, leaves were counted, measured, and classified according to color green percentage (>90% green, 50-90% green, or <50% green). For soil and physical characteristics, salinity, conductivity, pH, Eh, sulfides, and nutrients were measured in or adjacent to each quadrant at depths of 0 cm (surface), 15 cm and 30 cm below the sediment surface. The interstitial water samples were collected with a siphon and syringe. Salinity, pH and water temperature were measured onsite. Filtered porewater samples (filtered through ashed GF/F filters) were packed on ice for lab analysis of NH4, N+N, NO2 and PO4. Sediment redox potential was measured with a platinum wire and standard calomel electrode standardized with quinhydron.

Process_Step:

Process_Description: See methodology

Process_Date: 2000-2002

Entity_and_Attribute_Information:

Overview_Description:

Entity_and_Attribute_Overview:

The attributes for this data set include elevation data for plot and zones; soil redox(Eh) potential for surface, 15 cm and 30 cm depths, and mean mV; interstitial porewater chemistry - pH for the designated depths; salinity (ppt), sulfide concentration (mmol), and well water level in relation to elevation (cm); plant data - snail counts (number of snails/meter squared), plant tracking (number of plants/meter squared), relative health of individual plants (percentage classification), mean dead plant stem counts (number of stems/meter squared) and stem height (cm); mean live plant stem counts (number of stems/meter squared) and stem height (cm).

Entity_and_Attribute_Detail_Citation: Project defined

Distribution_Information:

Distributor:

Contact_Information:

Contact_Organization_Primary:

Contact_Organization: U.S. Geological Survey, National Wetlands Research Center

Contact_Person: Scott Wilson

Contact_Position: Electrical Engineer

Contact_Address:

Address_Type: Mailing and Physical

Address: 700 Cajundome Blvd

City: Lafayette

State_or_Province: LA

Postal_Code: 70506

Country: USA

Contact_Voice_Telephone: 337 266-8664

Contact_Facsimile_Telephone: 337 266-8513

Contact_Electronic_Mail_Address: scott_wilson@usgs.gov

Distribution_Liability:

Although these data have been processed successfully on a computer system at the designated principal investigator’s facility, no warranty expressed or implied is made regarding the accuracy or utility of the data on any other system or for general or scientific purposes, nor shall the act of distribution constitute any such warranty. This disclaimer applies both to individual use of the data and aggregate use with other data. It is strongly recommended that these data are directly acquired from the official Brown Marsh Database Information Management System server or from the principal investigator, and not indirectly through other sources which may have changed the data in some way. It is also strongly recommended that careful attention be given to the contents of the metadata file associated with these data. The Brown Marsh committee shall not be held liable for improper or incorrect use of the data described and/or contained herein. So, these data are provided as is and without any express or implied warranties. Also, use of trade names or commercial products in the metadata file is solely for the purpose of providing specific information, and does not imply recommendation or endorsement. Any downloading and use of these data signifies a user’s agreement to comprehension and compliance of the disclaimer. Insure all portions of metadata are read and clearly understood before using these data in order to protect both user and principal investigators interests.

Standard_Order_Process:

Digital_Form:

Digital_Transfer_Information:

Format_Name: Microsoft Excel

Format_Version_Number: 97

File_Decompression_Technique: none

Digital_Transfer_Option:

Online_Option:

Computer_Contact_Information:

Network_Address:

Network_Resource_Name: <http://www.brownmarsh.net>

Fees: None, if available online

Custom_Order_Process: None

Metadata_Reference_Information:

Metadata_Date: 200304

Metadata_Contact:

Contact_Information:

Contact_Person_Primary:

Contact_Person: R. Scott Kemmerer

Contact_Organization: U.S. Geological Survey/NWRC-JWCS

Contact_Position: Biologist

Contact_Address:

Address_Type: Mailing and Physical

Address: 700 Cajundome Blvd

City: Lafayette

State_or_Province: LA

Postal_Code: 70506

Country: USA

Contact_Voice_Telephone: 337 266-8669

Contact_Facsimile_Telephone: 337 266-8592

Contact_Electronic_Mail_Address: scott_kemmerer@usgs.gov

Metadata_Standard_Name: Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata

Metadata_Standard_Version: FGDC-STD-001-1998

Metadata_Extensions:

Profile_Name:

Biological Data Profile of Content Standard for Digital Geospatial Metadata

Online_Linkage: <http://www.fgdc.gov/standards/status/sub5_2.html>

Metadata_Access_Constraints: None

Metadata_Use_Constraints:

Acknowledgement of the National Wetlands Research Center as the metadata source would be appreciated. Please cite the original metadata when using portions to create another record for slightly altered data, such as reprojection.