A total of 64 stations were occupied along onshore-offshore transect lines from the Bering Strait to Barrow Canyon. At each station we sampled zooplankton using a 1m^2 Tucker Sled with 333 micron mesh nets. One net was fished entirely along the bottom. The second net collected zooplankton from the bottom to the surface. Inside this second net was a 150 micron mesh, 25 cm diamter Clarke-Bumpus net to collect the smaller zooplankton species. Both Tucker nets had a calibrated General Oceanics flow meter mounted inside the net mouth. A SeaBird FastCat (SBE 49) was attached to the top of the Tucker Sled to determine the depth of the samplers in real time and to measure temperature and conductivity. A multi-frequecy acoustic systems (TAPS-6) was also mounted on the top of the sled frame for acoustic determination of zooplankton biomass and size composition. The device insonified a small volume directly in the path of the net. During the cruise we recovered a multi-frequency acoustic device that had been moored off of Icy Cape for almost one year and then deployed two more acoustic devices to overwinter.

The dataset contains records of fish eggs and larvae collected during FOCI assessment surveys. Records include all data pertinent to identify where specimens were collected (lat, lon, date, gear used, max depth of gear, water depth). Specific data on specimens includes scientific name, stage of development, number collected (whole numbers and CPUE), lengths of larvae, and diameters and stages of eggs. In addition, there are comments that explain any irregularities that may have occurred during sample collection; depending on the reason data is being extracted, comments may indicate a sample is not suitable for consideration.

The Pre-recruit survey project is collaborative involving researchers from the FE Division based in 3 laboratories (Newport, Seattle and Hammond), scientists from the Southwest Fisheries Science Center (Santa Cruz), along with researchers from several universities (Oregon State University, University of Oregon, University of Washington, University of California, Santa Cruz). In concert with a similar SWFSC survey effort through California, the purpose of this project is to conduct annual surveys within the coastal ecosystem off Oregon and Washington to quantify the environmental conditions and biota found along the California Current and to elucidate ecosystem-level processes affecting managed and protected marine resources. This project currently supports three main efforts: 1. An annual sampling regime of the hydrology, plankton, small fish, and predators along transects over the Continental Shelf from Oregon and Washington. This consistent survey has generated significant information on within- and between-year variability in the California Current Marine Ecosystem and has yielded valuable insights into the food web off our coast. 2. Collection of specimens for diet analysis, growth, containment load, and other studies related to the ecology and production of commercially important taxa and their relationships within the food web. 3. Parameters and ecological processes quantified during this effort are used in forecasts involving species, assemblages, and ecosystems and also to parameterize ecosystem models used to evaluate cumulative risks and managerial strategies. We towed a 71 cm diameter Bongo net at each trawl station from 100 m to the surface.

A total of 105 stations were occupied. There were two sample grids (southeast Alaska and Yakutat Bay) and two transects in the vicinity of Kayak Island. At each station we sampled using paired 20 and 60 cm Bongo frames (150 and 500 micron mesh nets, respectively) and a Sameoto neuston sampler (500 micron mesh net) to estimate the abundance of zoo- and ichthyoplankton. A SeaBird SeaCat (SBE 19 plus) was used with the bongo frames to determine the depth of the samplers in real time and to measure temperature and conductivity. At a few selected stations depth-stratified plankton were obtained with a 1 meter squared MOCNESS (500 micron mesh nets) and at other selected stations microzooplankton were sampled with vertical tows of a CalVET net (53 micron mesh).

To understand natural and anthropogenic sound in the ocean, and to compare underwater soundscapes globally, standard methods of analysis must be applied to passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) data. Methods that balance constrained volume and adequate resolution of acoustic spectra have recently been published (Martin et al., 2021a,b). These records are the results of this standardized analysis of PAM data, specifically calculation of hybrid millidecade (HMD) sound pressure levels derived from calibrated passive acoustic data from a long-term monitoring effort in the U.S. national marine sanctuary system. Daily HMD at 1 minute resolution were created using PyPAM software v0.2.0.

We conducted acoustic-trawl (AT) surveys of the US continental shelf region of the Chukchi Sea during ice-free periods (1 August to 27 September) with a focus on Arctic cod (Boreogadus saida), a key species in Arctic ecosystems. These surveys indicate that midwater fishes are dominated by age-0 Arctic cod, with large numbers of age-0 walleye pollock (Gadus chalcogrammus) found in the region for the first time. Age-0 Arctic cod abundances were significantly larger than observed in previous surveys. Age-0 Arctic cod were distributed north of 68 °N with the highest densities in the northeastern Chukchi Sea, and age-0 pollock were found throughout the region north of 66 °N. Additional key pelagic species included capelin (Mallotus villosus), saffron cod (Eleginus gracilis), and Pacific cod (Gadus macrocephalus). These three species were primarily found in coastal areas between 66.5-72 °N. As had been previously observed, sizeable populations of age-0 Arctic cod were observed in the northern Chukchi Sea, which suggests that this area is an important nursery ground. The increase in age-0 pollock abundance suggests that environmental conditions now enable species from the south to colonize the Chukchi Sea, at least on a seasonal basis.

The Alaska Fisheries Science Center (AFSC) Recruitment Processes Program, which includes Ecosystem and Fisheries-Oceanography Coordinated Investigations (EcoFOCI) has conducted oceanographical and biological research surveys in the U.S. west coastal area, Gulf of Alaska, Bering Sea, Chukchi Sea and Beaufort Sea in 1972, and yearly from 1977 - present. Samples collected at sea include ichthyoplankton, zooplankton, juvenile fish, measurements of temperature and salinity along with nutrients and chlorophyll. Lab processed data include fish diet data and fish otolith data.

This record represents the hybrid millidecade (HMD) sound levels derived from calibrated passive acoustic data. Daily HMD at 1 minute resolution were created using standalone MANTA software (v9.6.13). Sound levels are calculated at 1 Hz resolution up to 435 Hz and then at millidecade frequency bands above 435 Hz. Details on the hybrid millidecade calculation can be found in Martin et al (2021). The source audio data were recorded using Autonomous Hydrophones deployed in the Fram Straight by NOAA's Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory (PMEL) and the Alfred Wegener Institute.

The broad scope of the Essential Fish Habitat (EFH) mandate requires an efficient process for describing and mapping the habitat needs of federally managed species. For example, research indicates surficial sediments affect the distribution and abundance of many groundfish species, yet traditional sampling with grabs and cores is impractical over areas as large as the Bering Sea shelf. Acoustic tools are suitable for large-scale surveying and show great promise as a substitute for direct-sampling methods, but they have not been proven useful for EFH purposes.

Acoustic-Trawl Survey of Walleye Pollock in the Gulf of Alaska (MF0309, EK500). The Midwater Assessment and Conservation Engineering (MACE) program of NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), Alaska Fisheries Science Center (AFSC) conducted an acoustic-trawl (AT) stock assessment survey in the Gulf of Alaska during late spring/early summer of 2003 to estimate the distribution and abundance of walleye pollock (Theragra chalcogramma). The survey was conducted along the Gulf of Alaska (GOA) shelf and shelfbreak from the Shumagin Islands to Prince William Sound, 4 June to 16 July 2003, aboard NOAA Ship Miller Freeman, a 66 meter stern trawler equipped with acoustic and oceanographic instrumentation. The vessel departed Kodiak, Alaska on 4 June and arrived in Kodiak on 16 July. The echosounder system was calibrated at the start of the cruise in Three Saints Bay, Kodiak Island, Alaska on 5 June, and at the end of the cruise in Ugak Bay, Kodiak Island, Alaska, 16 July 2003.