This instrument is lowered over the side of a boat and scoops up sediment when its two heavy steel jaws close upon impact with the bottom. The time, water depth, sample size, latitude and longitude are also recorded. Samples are then preserved and stained, in preparation for shipping to a laboratory where several biological factors are analyzed. Before heading to the next station, water quality parameters such as salinity, temperature, dissolved oxygen, and conductivity are recorded using an automated instrument. When received back from the laboratory, the raw data from each station is entered into a master database and categorized by area.
Browsers can search the database for information specific to a certain geographic area or organism.
The number of macrobenthic organisms recorded from Dr. Gottholm's 1996 data are impressive, to say the least. A total of 20,741 animals were found in the Florida Bay location, representing 642 different groups or species. The Western Florida Bay and Gulf sediments were even more abundant with marine life, revealing 989 different types of organisms and a total of 43,964 individuals. These huge numbers may be difficult to grasp, given the number of stations and samples taken. But one figure stands out for sure, which is mean density, or how many organisms on average are living in a square meter of bottom.