Webinar on diatom harmonization

WY diatom data (2007 to 2018)  and CO diatom data (2005 to 2018) will be harmonized and prepared for linkage to NRSA voucher floras to maximize consistency and support future monitoring and criteria efforts. Update (9/30/2021): Technical assistance was provided to CO to update taxonomy and convert diatom density data into relative abundance so that a national multi-metric index could be applied. Additional assistance with CO's periphyton database will be provided by ORD to allow consistent taxonomy between the long-term dataset and data generated by a new contractor. For WY, only one contractor was used for taxonomic work, so minimal harmonization and taxonomic updates were needed. In a related RARE project, diatom data from several datasets of northeast lakes were merged and harmonized using a voucher flora approach. A webinar explaining the taxonomic harmonization process was recorded.

Impact/Purpose

This webinar describes how multiple datasets of sediment diatoms from northeast lakes were merged and harmonized to have consistent taxonomy. The harmonization used a voucher flora approach and a translation table was developed to document all updates and changes to taxonomy. The harmonized dataset will allow states in Regions 1 and 2 to develop a regional-scale index of biological condition to support development of lake water quality standards. Other Regions and states may use this harmonization approach as a model for improving the quality of taxonomic information in their own datasets.

Citation

Potapova, M. AND S. Lee. Webinar on diatom harmonization. Northeast Sediment Diatom Collaborative, NA, Virtual, October 13, 2021.