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This dataset provides an inventory of physical samples collected from zooplankton bongo and/or ring net tows conducted during the Northeast U.S. Shelf Long-Term Ecological Research (NES-LTER) Transect cruises, ongoing since 2018. The NES-LTER transect, located south of Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, comprises standard stations L1-L11 and extends 150 km offshore. Dedicated NES-LTER cruises target all four seasons: winter, spring, summer, and fall. Samples are collected via oblique tows with a 61-cm bongo net fitted with 150- and 335-micron mesh nets, as well as a ring net with a 20-micron mesh net. During earlier spring and fall cruises along the NES-LTER Transect, in collaboration with the Ocean Observatories Initiative, samples were collected through vertical tows using a ring net with a 150-micron mesh. Samples collected are distributed among various laboratories for DNA metabarcoding, stable isotopes analysis, and morphological identification. 

During Northeast U.S. Shelf Long-Term Ecological Research (NES-LTER) Transect cruises, acoustic backscattering layers were identified using multifrequency echosounders and were targeted for collection of zooplankton and micronekton using an Isaacs-Kidd Midwater Trawl. On each cruise, trawling was conducted at at least three stations, including the one at the shelfbreak front, one inshore of the front, and one offshore of the front. The catches from the trawls were preserved on ship and later identified to the lowest possible taxonomic level using a dissecting microscope. Each identified taxon was counted to provide net total abundance by taxon. Trawling was initiated in spring 2023 and is ongoing.