Description
This study is the first to examine the species composition and population density of macrobenthic communities living in soft-bottom sediments within the sublittoral zone surrounding Chryssi and Mikronisi islands. Data were gathered from sediment samples taken during a baseline survey conducted between April 23rd and May 1st, 2023. A grid of eleven sampling stations was established around the two islands, covering water depths of roughly 10 to 30 meters, with samples collected using a Smith–McIntyre grab (0.1 m²). The sediments were predominantly coarse-to-medium and fine-to-very-fine sand, a characteristic linked to the intense hydrodynamic activity found on both the northern and southern sides of the islands. The resulting dataset offers an evaluation of soft-bottom macrobenthic community structure in the region, and forms part of a broader environmental baseline assessment conducted around Chryssi and Mikronisi islands under the project "Implementation of the Action Plan Measures for Chryssi Island," funded by the Region of Crete / Sub-Regional Unit of Lasithi.
Data Records
The data in this sampling event resource has been published as a Darwin Core Archive (DwC-A), which is a standardized format for sharing biodiversity data as a set of one or more data tables. The core data table contains 11 records.
1 extension data tables also exist. An extension record supplies extra information about a core record. The number of records in each extension data table is illustrated below.
This IPT archives the data and thus serves as the data repository. The data and resource metadata are available for download in the downloads section. The versions table lists other versions of the resource that have been made publicly available and allows tracking changes made to the resource over time.
Versions
The table below shows only published versions of the resource that are publicly accessible.
How to cite
Researchers should cite this work as follows:
Maidanou M., Chatzigeorgiou G., Rallis I., Mavraki D., Koulouri P. (2026).Distribution of macrobenthic communities of the coastal marine ecosystem of Chrysi island (Crete, Greece, Spring 2023).
Rights
Researchers should respect the following rights statement:
The publisher and rights holder of this work is Hellenic Center for Marine Research. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY 4.0) License.
GBIF Registration
This resource has been registered with GBIF, and assigned the following GBIF UUID: 2e711b16-5b5b-4c56-81f6-ed742901a566. Hellenic Center for Marine Research publishes this resource, and is itself registered in GBIF as a data publisher endorsed by Ocean Biodiversity Information System.
Keywords
Samplingevent; macrobenthos; soft-bottoms; Chryssi island; protected marine ecosystem; Mediterranean Sea; Specimen
Contacts
- Metadata Provider ●
- Originator
- Originator
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3507-6542
- Originator ●
- Point Of Contact
- Custodian Steward
- Custodian Steward
Geographic Coverage
Chrysi Island, Crete, Greece
| Bounding Coordinates | South West [34.789, 25.568], North East [34.965, 25.862] |
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Taxonomic Coverage
No Description available
| Phylum | Mollusca, Arthropoda, Annelida, Echinodermata |
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Temporal Coverage
| Start Date / End Date | 2023-04-26 / 2023-05-01 |
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Project Data
No Description available
| Title | Implementation of the Action Plan Measures for Chryssi Island, Region of Crete/sub-regional Unit of Lasithi. |
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| Funding | Region of Crete / sub-regional Unit of Lasithi |
| Study Area Description | A grid of eleven stations, Chryssi island, (Crete, Greece) |
| Design Description | This study aimed to enhance understanding of the structure and spatial variability of soft-bottom macrobenthic communities around the marine area of Chryssi and Mikronisi Islands. |
The personnel involved in the project:
- Author
- Content Provider
- Principal Investigator
Sampling Methods
At each station, one sediment sample was collected using a quantitative Smith–McIntyre grab with a sampling surface of 0.1 m². The location of each station was recorded with a FURUNO SFN-70 satellite navigator, and water depth was measured using a SIMRAD K-400 echo sounder of the research vessel PHILIA of the Hellenic Centre for Marine Research (HCMR). Samples were sieved on board through a 0.5 mm mesh and preserved in 75% ethanol buffered with seawater. Back to the laboratory, macrobenthic organisms were extracted from the sediment, counted, and identified to the lowest possible taxonomic level using both a stereoscope and a microscope.
| Study Extent | A grid of 11 stations at Chryssi island was established to assess the qualitative and quantitative composition of the main macrobenthic faunal groups inhabiting soft-bottom substrates. |
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| Quality Control | All samples were processed following a consistent protocol, and species identifications were cross-validated by expert taxonomists. Data management adhered to the FAIR principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable), ensuring that both metadata and datasets were machine-actionable and appropriately connected through persistent identifiers and established community standards (Wilkinson et al., 2016). Taxonomic and occurrence data were standardized using Darwin Core terms, a globally recognized framework for structuring and exchanging biodiversity information (Wieczorek et al., 2012). Scientific names were harmonized through the World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) using the Taxon Match tool (WoRMS Editorial Board, 2025). Additional measurements and contextual information were standardized using controlled vocabularies from the NERC Vocabulary Server, improving interoperability across marine data repositories (BODC, 2025). Finally, the dataset underwent validation with the LifeWatch & EMODnet Biology Quality Control Tool (Perez et al., 2024), which assesses Darwin Core Archive files against EMODnet Biology data quality criteria. |
Method step description:
- "1) Macrofauna one replicate per station 2) Water Column Analysis Parameters: photosynthetic pigments, organic carbon, and nutrients 3) CTD Profiling In situ measurements of temperature, salinity, dissolved oxygen, and photosynthetically active radiation (PAR) 4) Sediment Analysis one replicate per station Parameters: granulometry, photosynthetic pigments, organic carbon and in situ measurements of redox potential and temperature. "
Collection Data
| Collection Name | Distribution of macrobenthic communities of the coastal marine ecosystem of Chrysi island (Crete, Greece, Spring 2023). |
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| Specimen preservation methods | Alcohol |
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Additional Metadata
| Alternative Identifiers | 10.25607/5iced5 |
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| https://ipt.medobis.eu/resource?r=chrysi-macrobenthos-2023 |