| Summary: | Baffin Bay, Texas is a predominantly hypersaline estuarine system with frequent fluctuations in water quality and algal blooms. Macroinfauna samples were collected quarterly via benthic coring to assess the effect of changes in water quality on the benthic community. Three replicate 35.4 cm2 cores for each station were separated into 0-3cm and 3-10cm depth sections. Macrofauna collections were completed over a wide range of salinity conditions (Mean bay-wide salinity 15.8 - 53.9) from March 2014 to July 2017. Stations in the Baffin Bay were assessed for the entire study period, and 2 stations in the more hydrologically stable Laguna Madre were added in 2015 for comparison. These data were collected as part of a larger study to assess trophic functioning of the Baffin Bay, particularly resource availability for the commercially important Black Drum (Pogonias cromis). Stable isotope data for organic matter, macrofauna, and fish were also collected, and those data are available under GRIIDC Unique Dataset Identifier (UDI) HI.x846.000:0002 (DOI: 10.7266/PJ139ZRD). This dataset supports the publications: Breaux, N., Lebreton, B., Palmer, T. A., Guillou, G., & Beseres Pollack, J. (2019). Ecosystem resilience following salinity change in a hypersaline estuary. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, 225, 106258. doi:10.1016/j.ecss.2019.106258; and Rubio, K. S., Ajemian, M., Stunz, G. W., Palmer, T. A., Lebreton, B., & Beseres Pollack, J. (2018). Dietary composition of black drum Pogonias cromis in a hypersaline estuary reflects water quality and prey availability. Journal of Fish Biology, 93(2), 250–262. doi:10.1111/jfb.13654. This dataset was funded by the Coastal Bend Bays & Estuaries program and Texas Sea Grant.
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