Vertical chemical profiles collected across haloclines in the water column of the Ox Bel Ha cave network within the coastal aquifer of the Yucatan Peninsula in January 2015 and January 2016

Natural cave passages penetrating a coastal aquifer in the Yucatan Peninsula (Mexico) were accessed to test the hypothesis that chemoclines associated with salinity gradients (haloclines) within the flooded cave networks of the karst subterranean estuary are sites of methane oxidation. Two field trips were carried out to the fully-submerged cave system located 6.6 km inland from the coastline in January 2015 and January 2016. Vertical chemical profiles across the water column haloclines were obtained using the OctoPiPi (OPP), a high-resolution water sampler built by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). The sampling efforts resulted in cm-scale profiles of major ions (e.g., chloride and sulfate), as well as concentrations...

Categories: Data; Tags: Cenote Bang, Ecology, Geochemistry, Hydrology, Mexico, All tags... Ox Bel Ha Cave System, Quintana Roo, U.S. Geological Survey, USGS, Yucatan Peninsula, anchialine ecosystem, aquatic ecosystem, biogeochemical cycling, biogeochemical cycling, carbon cycling, carbon isotope analysis, cave, cenote, chemical records, coastal aquifer, coastal ecosystems, ecosystem function, environment, environment, estuarine ecosystems, estuarine mixing, field inventory and monitoring, freshwater ecosystems, geochemical data, geochemistry, groundwater, hydrogeology, hydrologic records, hydrology, inland waters, inlandWaters, karst, salinity, subterranean estuary, Fewer tags

Sonde data to characterize physical and chemical properties of the Cenote Bang, a component of the Ox Bel Ha cave network within the subterranean estuary coastal aquifer of the Yucatan Peninsula, from December 2013 to January 2016

Subterranean estuaries extend inland into density-stratified coastal carbonate aquifers that contain a surprising diversity of endemic animals (mostly crustaceans) within a highly oligotrophic environment. How complex ecosystems thrive in this globally-distributed, cryptic habitat (termed anchialine) is poorly understood. The northeastern margin of the Yucatan Peninsula contains over 250 km of mapped, diver-accessible caves passages where previous studies have suggested chemoautotrophic processes are the source of carbon and energy sustaining the anchialine food web. This dataset, collected during four field events during U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Coastal and Marine Geology Program Field Activities 2015-013-FA...

Categories: Data; Types: Citation; Tags: Cenote Bang, Mexico, Ox Bel Ha Cave System, Quintana Roo, Mexico, Yucatan Peninsula, All tags... anchialine, aquatic ecosystems, biogeochemical cycling, cave, coastal aquifer, ecosystem functions, environment, geochemistry, inlandWaters, karst, sonde data, Fewer tags

Temporal hydrologic and chemical records from the Ox Bel Ha cave network within the coastal aquifer of the Yucatan Peninsula, from January 2015 to January 2016

Natural cave passages penetrating a coastal aquifer in the Yucatan Peninsula (Mexico) were accessed to investigate how regional meteorology and hydrology control methane dynamics in karst subterranean estuaries. Three field trips were carried out in January 2015, June 2015, and January 2016 to obtain year-long high-resolution temporal records of water chemistry and environmental parameters below and above the surface at a site (Cenote Bang) within the Ox Bel Ha cave network. These efforts resulted in chemical records of dissolved methane concentrations and its stable carbon isotopic content and major ion concentrations (i.e., chloride and sulfate) in approximately 2.5-day resolution from January 2015 to January...

Categories: Data; Tags: Aquatic Biology, Cenote Bang, Ecology, Geochemistry, Hydrogeology, All tags... Mexico, Ox Bel Ha Cave System, Quintana Roo, U.S. Geological Survey, USGS, Water Resources, Yucatan Peninsula, anchialine ecosystem, aquatic ecosystem, biogeochemical cycling, biogeochemical cycling, carbon cycling, carbon isotope analysis, cave, cenote, chemical records, coastal aquifer, coastal ecosystems, ecosystem function, environment, environment, estuarine ecosystems, estuarine mixing, freshwater ecosystems, geochemical data, geochemistry, groundwater, groundwater flow, hydrogeology, hydrologic records, hydrology, inland waters, inland waters, karst, precipitation, salinity, subterranean estuary, temporal records, Fewer tags

Geochemical data to characterize physical and chemical properties of the Cenote Bang, a component of the Ox Bel Ha cave network within the subterranean estuary coastal aquifer of the Yucatan Peninsula, from December 2013 to January 2016

Subterranean estuaries extend inland into density-stratified coastal carbonate aquifers that contain a surprising diversity of endemic animals (mostly crustaceans) within a highly oligotrophic environment. How complex ecosystems thrive in this globally-distributed, cryptic habitat (termed anchialine) is poorly understood. The northeastern margin of the Yucatan Peninsula contains over 250 km of mapped, diver-accessible caves passages where previous studies have suggested chemoautotrophic processes are the source of carbon and energy sustaining the anchialine food web. This dataset, collected during four field events during U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Coastal and Marine Geology Program Field Activities 2015-013-FA...

Categories: Data; Types: Citation; Tags: Cenote Bang, Mexico, Ox Bel Ha Cave System, Quintana Roo, Mexico, Yucatan Peninsula, All tags... anchialine, aquatic ecosystems, biogeochemical cycling, cave, coastal aquifer, ecosystem functions, environment, geochemical data, geochemistry, inlandWaters, karst, Fewer tags