as the percent of each yearly mean and the range of yearly percents from 

 1976 through 1980 is presented (Table 2). The detectable difference as 

 the percent of the yearly mean ranged from about 20% to 30% for dominant 

 copepods (_P. minutus , C. hamatus , A. hudsonica , A. tonsa ) and from about 

 20% to 60% for dominant meroplankton (gastropod eggs and veligers, 

 cirripedia nauplii and cyprids) . The present zooplankton entrainment 

 sampling effort is sufficient to detect a large change in dominant 

 zooplankton abundance. 



Offshore Zooplankton 



An extensive offshore zooplankton sampling program has been conducted 

 at Millstone to determine the spatial distribution of the local zooplankton 

 community. Ichthyoplankton samples were subsampled for zooplankton 

 identification and enumeration. Several changes were made in sampling 

 frequency, stations sampled, and tow type, due to ichthyoplankton data 

 evaluations. The rationale for the changes are presented in the ichthyo- 

 plankton section. 



Battelle (Clapp Laboratories) collected offshore zooplankton 

 samples from 1973 through 1979 and processed samples collected through 

 1977. NUSCo staff processed samples since 1978 and collected the offshore 

 samples since 1980. A extensive sampling program was conducted from 

 1973 through 1975 with day and night sampling, with surface, bottom and 

 oblique tows (0.333-mm-mesh) at different frequencies (NUSCo 1976) and 

 with up to 16 stations (Figure 4) . The sampling program was reduced in 

 197 6 to six stations sampled monthly with day oblique tows. This reduced 

 sampling program maintained sufficient stations to examine inshore - 

 offshore density changes. Since 1979, offshore sampling has been conducted 

 at one station located in mid-Niantic Bay (Station 5) . A day and night 



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