Diatom cultures used to generate DNA reference library from samples collected from sites in Alpena, Michigan and Palm Coast, Florida between July 2021 & 2022.

These data are the information for each of the cultures generated from samples collected from three sites in Alpena, Michigan, one site in Monroe, Michigan, and one site in Palm Coast, Florida. Data are for cultures sequenced using Sanger sequencing and include taxonomic identification, location and water parameter information from samples used to develop the cultures, and growth medium. Each of these cultures was developed from high-sulfur, low-oxygen environments formed by underwater sinkholes and springs that create extreme habitats populated by microbial mat communities. Our study investigated previously undescribed diatom diversity in these habitats. Sequences from these cultures contribute to tying molecular data to morphologically identified isolates, providing a bridge between these two data types that can be used to improve metabarcoding analyses.