Data for: Functions of coastal feeder bluff systems: Implications for prioritizing protection and restoration
Data files
Oct 27, 2025 version files 136.15 KB
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bluff_dunegrass.csv
600 B
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bluff_fish.csv
32.93 KB
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bluff_geomorph_sediment.csv
1.32 KB
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bluff_logs.csv
3.57 KB
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bluff_supratidal_inverts.csv
35.33 KB
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bluff_vegetation_cover.csv
586 B
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bluff_vegetation_species.csv
18.96 KB
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bluff_wrack.csv
7.18 KB
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MLLW.csv
27.65 KB
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README.md
8.03 KB
Abstract
We conducted field sampling at 20 feeder bluff beaches in the Salish Sea, WA, USA, during spring-summer 2022. We sampled parameters spanning the top of the bluff to the low shore, and evaluated metrics including vegetation, supratidal invertebrates, logs, beach wrack, fish observations, MLLW biota, beach and bluff characteristics, and sediment size and sorting. We collected data across four treatments: “Protect High” (unarmored, ranked as high management priority), “Protect Low” (unarmored, ranked low), “Restore High” (armored, ranked high), and “Restore Low” (armored, ranked low); and five “Regions”: Penn Cove, Dabob Bay, Agate Pass, Vashon Island, and Harstine Island.
Dataset DOI: 10.5061/dryad.vx0k6dk3j
Description of the data and file structure
Data was collected on feeder bluffs in Puget Sound. We conducted field sampling at twenty sites, five each ranked as (1) Restore High, (2) Restore Low, (3) Protect High, and (4) Protect Low. Our twenty sites were dispersed equally among five geographic regions in Puget Sound, with each region encompassing sites of all four treatments.
Any empty cells are "n/a", data not applicable, due to corresponding data entry in other fields (e.g., a zero count for fish means there are no data on fish lengths).
Files and variables
File: bluff_dunegrass.csv
Description: Dunegrass data
Variables
- Region: Penn Cove, Dabob Bay, Agate Pass, Vashon Island, and Harstine Island
- Treatment: four “Treatments” of Protect High (PH), Protect Low (PL), Restore High (RH), and Restore Low (RL)
- Transect_point: Replicate on transect
- Patch_width_m: dunegrass patch width in meters
File: bluff_geomorph_sediment.csv
Description: geomorphology and sediment data
Variables
- Region: Penn Cove, Dabob Bay, Agate Pass, Vashon Island, and Harstine Island.
- Treatment: four “Treatments” of Protect High (PH), Protect Low (PL), Restore High (RH), and Restore Low (RL)
- Slope_Toe_MSL: slope of beach (m/m) from toe of armor or bluff to MSL
- Width_toe_MLLW: width of the beach (m) from the toe of armor or bluff to MLLW
- Relative_Encroachment: the difference between MHHW and the toe elevation of the bluff or armor for the site; positive encroachment indicates the toe elevation is below that of MHHW, encroaching into intertidal areas, whereas negative encroachment indicates the toe elevation is above MHHW
- Normalized_Sorting_MHHW: value of normalized sediment sorting at MHHW (unitless)
- Sand_MHHW: Percent sand at MHHW
- Sand_MLLW: Percent sand at MLLW
- Wave_Height: Wave height (m)
- Normalized_Sorting_MLLW: value of normalized sediment sorting at MLLW (unitless)
- Bluff_Height: bluff height (m)
- Bluff_Exposure: bluff exposure (m2)
File: bluff_fish.csv
Description: observations from snorkel surveys
Variables
- Date: date of sampling
- Season: season of sampling
- Start_time: start of survey
- Secchi_m: underwater visibility in meters, measured with a horizontal secchi disk
- Region: Penn Cove, Dabob Bay, Agate Pass, Vashon Island, and Harstine Island.
- Treatment: four “Treatments” of Protect High (PH), Protect Low (PL), Restore High (RH), and Restore Low (RL)
- Transect_depth: transect number, from shore outwards to water
- Transect_length: transect length (m)
- Water_depth: water depth in meters
- Observation: observation number
- Fish_species: fish observed
- Fish_group: grouping of fish observed
- Count: number
- Density: count divided by transect length and secchi
- Length_min: minimum value of fish observation
- Length_max: maximum value of fish observation
- Water_column: position in water column: middle (M), bottom (B), surface (S)
- Behavior: behavior of fish observation: feeding (FD), schooling (SC), swam away (SA), freeze (FR), hiding (HD), unaffected (U)
File: bluff_vegetation_cover.csv
Description: percent cover of vegetation
Variables
- Region: Penn Cove, Dabob Bay, Agate Pass, Vashon Island, and Harstine Island.
- Treatment: four “Treatments” of Protect High (PH), Protect Low (PL), Restore High (RH), and Restore Low (RL)
- Date: date of sampling
- Overhanging_pct: percent cover of overhanging vegetation
- Supratidal_pct: percent cover of supratidal vegetation
File: bluff_supratidal_inverts.csv
Description: supratidal invertebrates from fallout traps
Variables
- Region: Penn Cove, Dabob Bay, Agate Pass, Vashon Island, and Harstine Island.
- Treatment: four “Treatments” of Protect High (PH), Protect Low (PL), Restore High (RH), and Restore Low (RL)
- Date: date of sampling
- SN: replicate sample number
- Taxa: invertebrate taxa
- Life stage: life stage of taxa
- Family: family of taxa
- Order: order of taxa
- Count: count of taxa
- Density #/m2: density of count and surface area
- Hours deployed: hours fallout trap deployed
- Surface area m2: surface area of fallout trap
File: bluff_logs.csv
Description: log data
Variables
- Region: Penn Cove, Dabob Bay, Agate Pass, Vashon Island, and Harstine Island.
- Treatment: four “Treatments” of Protect High (PH), Protect Low (PL), Restore High (RH), and Restore Low (RL)
- Date: date of sampling
- Replicate: replicate along the transect
- Width_log_line_m: width of the log line in meters
- Total_log_count: total count of logs
- Partially_buried_count: count of partially buried logs
- Terrestrial_growth_count: count of logs with terrestrial growth
- Fallen_tree_count: count of fallen trees
File: MLLW.csv
Description: MLLW biota and sediments
Variables
- Region: Penn Cove, Dabob Bay, Agate Pass, Vashon Island, and Harstine Island.
- Date: date of sampling
- Treatment: four “Treatments” of Protect High (PH), Protect Low (PL), Restore High (RH), and Restore Low (RL)
- Rep: replicate sample
- Eelgrass: percent eelgrass
- Boulder.pct: percent boulder
- Cobble.pct: percent cobble
- Pebble.pct: percent pebble
- Sand.pct: percent sand
- Shell hash.pct: percent shell hash
- Oyster.pct: percent oyster
- Dead.barn: percent dead barnacles
- Zost.mar: percent eelgrass Zostera marina
- Zost.jap: percent eelgrass Zostera japonica
- Ulva: percent Ulva
- Fucus: percent Fucus
- Porphyra: percent Porphyra
- Scytosiphon: percent Scytosiphon
- Gelidium: percent Gelidium
- Caulacant: percent Caulacant
- Polysiphonia: percent Polysiphonia
- Prionitis: percent Prionitis
- Gracilaria: percent Gracilaria
- Mast: percent Mastocarpus
- fleshy.crust: percent fleshy crust
- diatoms: percent diatoms
- Live.barn: percent live barnacles
- Spio.tubes: percent spionid tubes
- Serpulids: percent serpulids
- Polynoids: percent polynoids
- Amphip: number amphipods
- Sphaerom: number sphaeromatids
- Tresus.siph: number tresus siphons
- Hemi.o: number Hemigrapsus oregonensis
- Pagurids: number pagurids
- Lophopanopeus: number Lophopanopeus
- Litt.scut: number Littorina scutulata
- Lacuna: number Lacuna
- Limpets: number limpets
- Nucella.lam: number Nucella lamellosa
- Mytilus: number mytilus
- Platyhelm: number platyhelminthes
- Haminoea: number haminoea
- Sabellids: number sabellids
- Midshipmen: number midshipmen
- Live.oysters: number live oysters
- Terebellids: number terebellids
- Geoduck.siphons: number geoduck siphons
- Mopalia: number mopalia
- Moon.snail: number moon snails
- Dendraster: number dendraster
- A.eleg: number A. eleg
- Neotryp.holes: number neotrypaea holes
- Metridium: number metridium
- juv.Pisaster: number juvenile pisaster
- Onchidoris: number onchidoris
- nemert: number nermtean
- Stichaeeid: number stichaeeid
File: bluff_wrack.csv
Description: wrack data
Variables
- Date: date of sampling
- Region: Penn Cove, Dabob Bay, Agate Pass, Vashon Island, and Harstine Island.
- Treatment: four “Treatments” of Protect High (PH), Protect Low (PL), Restore High (RH), and Restore Low (RL)
- Replicate: replicate number along the transect
- Total_cover: total percent cover
- Terrestrial: terrestrial percent cover
- Wrack_depth_cm: wrack depth in cm
- Wrack_width_m: wrack width in m
File: bluff_vegetation_species.csv
Description: vegetation species
Variables
- Region: Penn Cove, Dabob Bay, Agate Pass, Vashon Island, and Harstine Island.
- Treatment: four “Treatments” of Protect High (PH), Protect Low (PL), Restore High (RH), and Restore Low (RL)
- Date: date of sampling
- Common_name: common name of vegetation
- Taxa: scientific name of vegetation
- Status: introduced, native, or cryptic