Zooplankton biomass data from Cook Inlet and Cook Shelf 2012-2023

Zooplankton biomass estimates within the Cook Inlet and Cook Shelf region of the Gulf of Alaska from 2012-2023. Calculated following
Atkinson* A, Best M, Djeghri N, Eerkes-Medrano D, Holland MM, Johns DG, Lilley MKS, McEvoy
AJ, Ostle C, Pitois S, Rasmussen J, Taylor C (2024) Estimates of individual carbon masses of
zooplankton taxa from the NE Atlantic and NW European shelf, based on ring nets and Continuous
Plankton Recorder. The Archive for Marine Species and Habitats Data (DASSH). (Dataset)
https://doi.org/10.17031/6733204cc545e.1

NOTE: Only selected taxa have been included in this data extract, for specific taxa requirements please email [e-mail]. Excel file contains two sheets, the first A: midpoint of sample local date and time B: midpoint of sample latitude in decimal degrees C: midpoint of sample longitude in decimal degrees D:GeoRegion E:onwards = CPR abundance counts multiplied by Body mass as µgC per individual from Atkinson et al., 2024 https://doi.org/10.17031/6733204cc545e.1. The taxa_info sheet give more information on the taxa included; the counting method (1=eyecount, 2=traverse) and if the category is a grouping that includes other categories (to avoid double counting in your analyses). The Continuous Plankton Recorder (CPR) is a marine sampler that is towed behind volunteer ships of opportunity at speeds of up to ∼20 knots and samples at a depth of ∼7 m below the surface. The CPR unit is a metal casing in the shape of a ∼1 m torpedo that houses a roll of silk which automatically rotates using a geared propeller system. The seawater enters the front aperture where plankton and small particles are captured onto the rotating silk, which has a mesh size of 270 µm. This silk is stored in 4 % buffered formalin to preserve the sample until microscopic analysis at the laboratory in Plymouth. The silk is cut into pre-defined sections that represent one sample and equate to 10 nautical miles of tow. Phytoplankton and zooplankton are identified and counted at different stages of the microscopic analysis: semi-quantitative count of phytoplankton across 20 fields of view per sample, quantitative count of all zooplankton >= 2 mm (these are picked off the silk for identification), and semi-quantitative traverse count of all zooplankton 2 mm. For a more in-depth description of the sampling methodology please refer to Richardson et al. (2006).