Marine Institute releases major benthic dataset in celebration of Biodiversity Week. Over 650,000 marine records spanning twelve years are now freely accessible online, marking a landmark moment for Open Science and open environmental data in Ireland.
To mark Biodiversity Week 2026 (15th – 24th May), the Marine Institute has made its Water Framework Directive (WFD) benthic invertebrate dataset publicly available for the first time, opening more than a decade of seabed survey data to researchers, planners, policymakers, and the public across Ireland and beyond.
The dataset, which covers the period from 2012 to 2024, contains records of 650,304 individual organisms from 2,529 distinct species, collected across 4,415 sampling events in coastal waterbodies around Ireland. It will be updated annually going forward.
“Protecting biodiversity starts with understanding it. Making this data openly available is therefore an important step in ensuring that Ireland’s marine environment is monitored, understood, and protected for generations to come,” shared Louise Healy, Scientific and Technical Officer in Benthic Ecology. “It is a wonderful and fitting way to mark Biodiversity Week, by sharing our work and existing data on the biodiversity of our seas.”
What is benthic monitoring and why does it matter?
Benthic communities are animals living in and on the seabed, including molluscs, crustaceans, algae, and microorganisms. These organisms underpin the health of coastal ecosystems, driving nutrient cycling, supporting marine food webs, and stabilising the seabed. The Marine Institute monitors benthic communities in Ireland’s coastal waterbodies every two years, recording which species are present and in what abundance.
These data underpins Ireland’s monitoring and reporting obligations under the EU Water Framework Directive (WFD), the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD), and support effective Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP). The data play a central role in classifying the ecological status of Ireland’s coastal and transitional waters, and in guiding conservation and planning decisions.
Data now available through two platforms
The dataset is now accessible via the Marine Institute’s Data Catalogue (through ERDDAP) and through the National Biodiversity Data Centre’s (NBDC) biodiversity maps tool, Ireland’s national platform for biodiversity information.
Members of the public can use the NBDC maps tool to explore which species have been recorded in their local bay, estuary, or coastline, from Clew Bay to Galway Bay and beyond.
A commitment to FAIR, Open Science
The release of this dataset follows a significant period of quality checking and standardisation, guided by the Marine Institute’s Data Management Quality Management Framework (DM-QMF). This framework introduced faster, reproducible workflows and ensures that the dataset meets FAIR principles, which means it is Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, and Reusable.
Centralising access to quality-checked data in this way enhances efficiency, streamlines data sharing, and supports collaboration across research institutions, government agencies, and the broader scientific community. The dataset represents an invaluable long-term resource for biodiversity assessment, environmental monitoring, and marine planning in Ireland.
Celebrating Ireland’s Marine Biodiversity
Ireland’s waters are home to some of Europe’s most spectacular marine wildlife. The Marine Institute’s YouTube channel features footage of species including Basking Sharks, Angel Sharks, and Atlantic Bluefin Tuna; all of which have been recorded in Irish coastal and offshore waters.
Ireland’s coastline is among the best locations in Europe for encounters with these extraordinary animals, and the Marine Institute’s monitoring work plays a critical role in tracking and protecting these populations. To see some of this wildlife up close, visit the Marine Institute’s YouTube account.
Image: Orange brisingids on coral, Marine Institute