Taiwan Fish Eggs and Larvae DNA Barcode Database

Data as a DwC-A file	download 7,602 records in English (174 KB) - Update frequency: unknown
Metadata as an EML file	download in English (20 KB)
Metadata as an RTF file	download in English (10 KB)

Description

Fish eggs and larval stages play a crucial role in the marine ecosystem; however, their rapidly changing morphological characteristics and the absence of distinct diagnostic features make species identification based solely on morphology challenging. This study utilizes DNA barcoding technology (COI gene) to establish a comprehensive database of fish eggs and larval fish in the coastal waters off Taiwan. This database enhances species identification accuracy and serves as a scientific foundation for biodiversity conservation and fisheries resource management. A total of 7,602 records of fish egg and larval fish were collected from the waters surrounding Taiwan between 2004 and 2023 and identified using DNA barcoding technology. By comparing the sequences with the NCBI and BOLD databases, the dataset was found 1112 taxa encompass 24 orders, 158 families, 500 genera, and 844 fish species. This database facilitates studies on the early life stages of fish in Taiwanese waters and serves as a scientific foundation for conservation and fisheries resource management. This database provides comprehensive spatial and temporal distribution data on fish eggs and larvae in the waters surrounding Taiwan, contributing to a better understanding of fish spawning seasons, spawning grounds, and resource fluctuations. It serves as a valuable reference for biodiversity conservation and fisheries resource management in Taiwanese waters.

Data Records

The data in this occurrence resource has been published as a Darwin Core Archive (DwC-A), which is a standardized format for sharing biodiversity data as a set of one or more data tables. The core data table contains 7,602 records.

This IPT archives the data and thus serves as the data repository. The data and resource metadata are available for download in the downloads section. The versions table lists other versions of the resource that have been made publicly available and allows tracking changes made to the resource over time.

Versions

The table below shows only published versions of the resource that are publicly accessible.

How to cite

Researchers should cite this work as follows:

Shao K, Ko H (2025). Taiwan Fish Eggs and Larvae DNA Barcode Database. Version 1.6. Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica, Taiwan. Occurrence dataset. https://ipt.taibif.tw/resource?r=taiwanfishlarvaedb&v=1.6

Rights

Researchers should respect the following rights statement:

The publisher and rights holder of this work is Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica, Taiwan. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC-BY-NC 4.0) License.

GBIF Registration

This resource has been registered with GBIF, and assigned the following GBIF UUID: 1ccbbf52-46c3-42ca-a04f-251b72749fa3. Biodiversity Research Center, Academia Sinica, Taiwan publishes this resource, and is itself registered in GBIF as a data publisher endorsed by Taiwan Biodiversity Information Facility.

Keywords

Occurrence; Specimen; Species identification; DNA Barcoding; COI

Contacts

Kwang-Tsao Shao

Originator ●
Point Of Contact

Research Fellow (Retired)

Academia Sinica

Academia Sinica, No. 128, Section 2, Academia Road, Nangang District, Taipei 115, Taiwan (R.O.C.)

Taipei

Hui-Ling Ko

Publisher

Assistant Research Fellow

Fisheries Research Institute, Ministry of Agriculture,

199, Hou-lh Road, Keelung 20246, Taiwan, R.O.C.

Keelung

Hui-Ling Ko

Publisher

Assistant Research Fellow

Fisheries Research Institute, Ministry of Agriculture

huilingko@gmail.com

Geographic Coverage

Ranging from northern Taiwan to Taiping Island in the South China Sea. The majority of the sampling stations were concentrated in the western waters of Taiwan.

Bounding Coordinates	South West [10.374, 114.362], North East [26.514, 122.236]

Taxonomic Coverage

No Description available

Kingdom	Animalia
Phylum	Chordata
Class	Actinopterygii
Order	Gadiformes, Gasterosteiformes, Tetraodontiformes, Ophidiiformes, Beryciformes, Stomiiformes, Lophiiformes, Mugiliformes, Atheriniformes, Aulopiformes, Gonorynchiformes, Osmeriformes, Elopiformes, Beloniformes, Scorpaeniformes, Perciformes, Lampridiformes, Cyprinodontiformes, Siluriformes, Zeiformes, Anguilliformes, Pleuronectiformes, Clupeiformes, Myctophiformes

Temporal Coverage

Start Date / End Date	2004-05-30 / 2023-02-01

Sampling Methods

All phytoplankton specimens were collected using either a plankton net or a light trap. Subsequently fish eggs and larvae were selected and preserved in 95% ethanol. The morphological classification, measurement of egg diameter and standard length, and photography were conducted under a dissecting microscope.

Study Extent	This database of fish eggs and larval fish, verified through DNA barcoding, was compiled by a research team led by Dr. Kwang-Tsao Shao, who has retired from the Biodiversity Research Center at Academia Sinica. The specimens were collected from the waters surrounding Taiwan between May 2004 and February 2023, ranging from northern Taiwan to Taiping Island in the South China Sea. The majority of the sampling stations were concentrated in the western waters of Taiwan.

Study Extent

This database of fish eggs and larval fish, verified through DNA barcoding, was compiled by a research team led by Dr. Kwang-Tsao Shao, who has retired from the Biodiversity Research Center at Academia Sinica. The specimens were collected from the waters surrounding Taiwan between May 2004 and February 2023, ranging from northern Taiwan to Taiping Island in the South China Sea. The majority of the sampling stations were concentrated in the western waters of Taiwan.

Method step description:

All DNA sequences were analyzed using the NCBI and BOLD databases in 2024 for species identification. Specimens exhibiting a similarity of over 99% were identified at the species level, while those with a similarity between 97% and 98.99% were identified at the genus level. Molecular identification techniques were applied to classify fish eggs and larvae to the species or genus level whenever feasible.

Additional Metadata

Alternative Identifiers	1ccbbf52-46c3-42ca-a04f-251b72749fa3
	https://ipt.taibif.tw/resource?r=taiwanfishlarvaedb