State-of-the-art tool for digitization, image analysis and archiving of zooplankton and ichthyoplankton samples

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Funds are requested for the purchase of a ZooSCAN imaging system for aquatic ecology. ZooSCAN is a state-of-the-art tool for modern plankton ecology, which essentially takes a photo copy of preserved biological samples. The digital images can then be automatically analyzed with ZooSCAN software to determine the size of the organisms in the sample as well as their taxonomic identity. ZooSCAN is useful for a broad range of plankton organisms, from the small larval stages of copepods only 0.2 mm in size up to fish eggs and larvae several cm in size. Because ZooSCAN is completely objective and repeatable, it overcomes human error in conventional plankton counting. In addition, ZooSCAN images provide a permanent archive of the plankton samples, making the storage of large volumes of preserved samples unnecessary. ZooSCAN is presently being used in 20 countries.