The objectives of this cruise are to conduct an ichthyoplankton survey and process oriented studies in the region between Unimak Pass, the Shumagin Islands, and through Shelikof Strait to Kodiak Island, Alaska, so that we may estimate the abundance, transport, and factors influencing the survival of young walleye pollock larvae. We will also occupy stations on Line 8 to continue our 19 year time series of environmental and biological conditions in Shelikof Strait.

The objectives of this cruise are to conduct an ichthyoplankton survey and process oriented studies in the region between Unimak Pass, the Shumagin Islands, and through Shelikof Strait to Kodiak Island, Alaska, so that we may estimate the abundance, transport, and factors influencing the survival of young walleye pollock larvae. We will also occupy stations on Line 8 to continue our 20 year time series of environmental and biological conditions in Shelikof Strait.

Fisheries-Oceanography Coordinated Investigations (FOCI) is an effort by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and associated academic scientists. FOCI's goal is to understand the effects of abiotic and biotic variability on ecosystems of the North Pacific Ocean and Bering Sea in order to discern the physical and biological processes that determine recruitment variability of commercially valuable finfish and shellfish stocks in Alaskan waters. We will focus our efforts on the physical, chemical, and biological processes occurring in particular areas of this region. These include Portlock Bank, Stevenson Trough, and one of the large offshore eddies, that typically impact this area between April and September and contribute to on and offshore fluxes.

To recover and deploy several surface and subsurface oceanographic instrumentation moorings at PMEL historical mooring sites BS-2 and BS-4. To complete CTD casts and bongo tows at specified Bering Sea locations.

The objectives of this cruise were to conduct an ichthyoplankton survey and process studies in the region between the Shumagin Islands and Shelikof Strait and then from SE Kodiak to the Kenai Peninsula so that we could estimate the abundance, transport, and factors influencing the survival of young walleye pollock larvae. We also occupied six of the stations on Line 8 to continue our 27-year time series of environmental and biological conditions in Shelikof Strait. In addition to this sampling, 43 stations selected from the grid for the GOA-IERP research project were occupied on the shelf break as well as on the NE side of Kodiak Island to acquire larval fish of five target species (sablefish, walleye pollock, Pacific cod, arrowtooth flounder, and Pacific Ocean perch). A SBE 19Plus was deployed synoptically with gear used to sample icythoplankton and zooplankton at selected stations. Temperature and Conductivity were measured and Salinity and Sigma-T were derived from these measurements. While the SeaCAT measures values on the down and upcasts, only the upcasts are used.

We will conduct an ichthyoplankton survey in the Gulf of Alaska in the vicinity of Kodiak Island, Alaska. This area is a known nursery ground for a variety of species of fish - walleye pollock, Pacific cod, rock sole, and Pacific halibut. Work is needed to describe larval fish and zooplankton assemblages in summer, and to examine the movement of water and associated biota from the slope onto the shelf. We will also conduct some trawling to describe abundances of juvenile groundfishes and small forage fishes in selected canyons and in the vicinity of Kodiak Island. Six satellite-tracked drifters will be released to study current trajectories in the vicinity of Port Lock Bank. Conductivity, Temperature, and Depth profiler casts will be made to characterize water column properties, collect nutrient and chlorophyll information, and to use to evaluate the flow field.

Examine the interactions among climate, weather, and the recruitment of fishes in the eastern Bering Sea. We will conduct an ichthyoplankton and zooplankton survey in the waters from the Pribilof Islands in the north to the Aleutian Islands in the south and along the Alaska Peninsula east to Bristol Bay. This work is needed to describe larval fish and zooplankton assemblages and determine how physical and biological factors affect the transport and survival of fish larvae.

The primary objective of the 2012 Basis survey in the northern Bering Sea and Chukchi Sea shelf are to 1. collect baseline fisheries and oceanographic data to enable resource managers to better predict effects of climate and human impacts on ocean productivity and the ecology of anadromous and marine fish species.....

To recover and deploy surface and subsurface oceanographic instrumentation moorings. To complete conductivity, temperature and depth (CTD) profiler casts. To complete bongo and CalVET tows.

The primary objective was to conduct an assessment of eggs and larvae of Walleye Pollock (Gadus chalcogrammus) over the eastern Bering Sea shelf. The data collected will be used to examine the interactions among climate, weather, and ichthyoplankton distribution and abundance. This work is needed to describe larval fish assemblages and determine how physical and biological factors affect the transport and survival of fish larvae. The survey is a collaboration between two Alaska Fisheries Science Center (AFSC) programs, Ecosystems and Fisheries Oceanography Coordinated Investigations (Eco-FOCI), and Ecosystem Monitoring and Assessment (EMA). A SBE 49 was deployed synoptically with Bongo, CalVET and Tucker trawls used to sample icythoplankton and zooplankton at selected stations. Temperature and Conductivity were measured and Salinity and Sigma-T were derived from these measurements. While the SeaCAT measures values on the down and upcasts, only the upcasts are used.