Description

This dataset contains blue carbon data from monospecific Posidonia oceanica meadows in the South Aegean Sea, including the Saronikos Gulf, the Cyclades Archipelago, the Dodecanese Archipelago and Crete Island. The dataset includes information from 42 sampling sites and 123 sediment cores collected between 2013 and 2023. The file provides sampling-site information, geographic coordinates, water depth, sampling year, sediment-core characteristics, core compaction, slicing resolution and laboratory processing methods. It also includes mean values for sediment variables in the upper 1 m of sediment, or the maximum available core depth, including grain-size fractions, dry bulk density, organic and inorganic carbon content, δ¹³C isotopic composition, organic carbon stock and organic carbon accumulation rates over the last 500 years. The dataset also includes ¹⁴C radiocarbon dating results, Generalised Additive Model outputs used to assess the drivers of organic carbon stocks, model-performance comparisons and comparative data from P. oceanica meadows across the Mediterranean. These data provide baseline information for assessing, comparing and mapping blue carbon stocks in Mediterranean seagrass meadows, and can support conservation, restoration and climate mitigation planning.

Data and Resources