Zooplankton counts for tucker trawls in the Gulf of Alaska 2001 - 2003

The tucker trawl surveys occurred along the coastal waters of the Gulf of Alaska during 2001-2003. Transects sampled during the survey were perpendicular to shore and extended from nearshore across the continental shelf to oceanic waters beyond the 200-m shelf break. The survey was conducted aboard the contract fishing vessel F/V Great Pacific during 2001-2002 and aboard NOAA Ship Miller Freeman during 2003. Plankton samples were collected using a 1-m2 Tucker trawl fitted with a 505-μm mesh net that was towed near surface (approximately 1 knot) for 5 minutes. The volume of water filtered by the net was estimated using flow meters. Plankton samples were transferred into vials, preserved in 5% formalin onboard the ship, and stored until a laboratory analysis was completed.