|
\ NMFS / AFSC / RACE/ |
FOCI | ||
Fisheries-Oceanography Coordinated Investigations |
FOCI PI Meeting Minutes - 15 June 2000
ATTENDING
Kevin Bailey, Ned Cokelet, Martin Dorn, Mike Guttormsen, Al Hermann, Sarah Hinckley, Anne Hollowed, Art Kendall, Allen Macklin, Bern Megrey, Jeff Napp, James Overland, Ron Reed, Phyllis Stabeno, Sonia Hamilton (rapporteur).ANNOUNCEMENTS
Large numbers of eulachon contaminated trawl catches conducted outside of the western side of the Strait. Methods to apportion the acoustic sign between eulachon and pollock are being explored at this time. Preliminary abundance analyses suggest that the 1999 year class is strong, roughly on the order of about 4 billion fish. It also appears that the biomass of 40 cm and longer fish is the lowest since the 1989 survey, which was the lowest biomass estimate in the Survey history.
MF00-08 - Kevin Bailey presented information from the late-larval survey of Shelikof Shelf. The cruise was conducted from May 25 to June 4 on the Miller Freeman. A short way out of Dutch Harbor, two satellite-tracked drifters were deployed in the Bering Sea. Between Unimak Pass and the Shumagin Islands approximately 20 icthyoplankton stations were sampled with bongo tows. The regular FOCI grid of stations was occupied from the Shumagin Islands to Kodiak Island. Approximately 120 stations were occupied. Three satellite-tracked drifters were deployed in the vicinity of high concentrations of pollock larvae. At the termination of the grid, line 8 was sampled with CTDs, 20/60 cm bongo tows and Calvet. The Calvet was utilized for sampling microzooplankton instead of bottle casts because water sample filtering devices were not available. Several line 8 stations were eliminated due to time constraints and due to a rupture of the hydraulic line on the port-side oceanographic winch. The Munson (small boat) was deployed outside of Wide Bay for the nearshore sampling. Two bongo tows were taken inside Wide Bay. This work is still in the experimental phase to determine the feasibility of obtaining quality samples from a small boat. Several bottom trawls and an Aleutian Wing midwater trawl were conducted to obtain samples. Three exploratory Methot trawl samples were collected for Atka mackerel juveniles by rigging the net frame to sample neustonically. Finally, several bongo stations were occupied on the outside of Kodiak Island and in Chignik Bay.
The abundance of larval pollock appeared
to be moderately high compared to other recent years. A large aggregation
of larvae straddled the Shelikof sea valley and extended onto the shelf
west of the Semidi Islands. There appeared to be an unusually
high abundance of larval euphausiids.
On the first visit to site 2, the water
column was well-mixed, temperatures were cold (0.5 — 0.9 °C), there
was measurable nitrate and silicate in the surface water, and the spring
phytoplankton bloom had not yet begun. Test deployments of a SCAMP (Self-Contained
Autonomous Micro-structure Profiler) were conducted to determine proper
ballasting of the instrument and collect data. At site 4, the water column
was slightly stratified, temperatures were warmer (1 — 2 °C) than at
M2, and the phytoplankton bloom had begun with diatoms dominating the assemblage
(Chaetoceros spp., in particular). Surface nitrate and silicate concentrations
were lower than at M2. On a transect between the Pribilof Islands
and out Pribilof Canyon taking CTD and bongo tows to look for pollock (Theragra
chalcogramma) eggs and larvae, and for evidence of transport of nutrients
along the axis of the canyon and up onto the shelf, concentrations of large
phytoplankters were so high that the largest mesh zooplankton nets were
clogging. At site 3 and at four stations surrounding the mooring, phytoplankton
clogging of nets was again a problem, but this time it was the fine mesh
(153 µm) 20-cm bongos that were affected. The cod end foamed when
the net was washed and there was a distinctive odor of Phaeocystis pouchetti
in the catch. Examination under the microscope confirmed that the bloom
was dominated by the colonial form of this taxon. On the revisit to site
2, the water column was now stratified (both salinity and temperature),
slightly warmer (0.5 — 1.5 °C), and the spring phytoplankton bloom
had begun with Thalassiosira, Coscinodiscus and to a lesser extent Chaetoceros
dominating the diatom community. Phaeocystis colonies were also present,
but their concentration was lower than at M3. Nitrate and silicate
concentrations had decreased since the previous visit. The cruise
ended with two lines of stations (4 each) orthogonal to the Alaska Peninsula
and crossing the Inner Front. Bongo net tows (60 cm only) were taken to
look for eggs and larvae of pollock. Pollock larvae were found
in abundance at the stations closest to the peninsula. The new Cruise
Observation Database (COD), designed by Bill and Lisa Rugan to replace
the FOCI Discrete Sample Database (DSDB), is working well.
A discussion of the methods for incorporating non-base FOCI research into annual ship requests was postponed until later this summer when all interested PIs could attend.NEXT MEETING
The next FOCI PI meeting will be at 10 a.m. on Thursday, 13 July 2000, in the Cloud Chamber (3/2065). Please submit to Allen Macklin, no later than the day before the meeting, agenda items and fax-ready copies of figures or handouts that you intend to present at the next meeting. Alternately, presentation materials may be posted on the WWW or e-mailed to remote participants before the meeting.CORRECTIONS
Mail corrections and addenda to the FOCI Coordinator.Return to Minutes selection