Fish Habitat Expanded in Lake Ontario!
Ann Arbor, MI — Fish habitat in Lake Ontario can be mapped using aerial photographs and the maps showed significant expansion of submerged aquatic vegetation during the last three decades.
The quantitative assessment of fish habitat is critical to both restoration and maintaining current fish and fisheries in the Great Lakes. "Coverage of submerged aquatic vegetation in bays of Lake Ontario has increased significantly since 1972," says Bin Zhu, Research Scientist at the Finger Lakes Institute. "This is mainly due to the increase in water clarity. Over the last three decades, water clarity in Lake Ontario increased continuously, especially the period after the invasion of zebra mussels and quagga mussels."
Excessive aquatic plant growth has been observed in many shallow water habitats of Lake Ontario and the accumulation of decaying plant material on the shore in late summer concerns lake residents. Indeed, Zhu and his collaborators at Cornell University and the University of Toledo found aquatic plant coverage increased 42% in Sodus Bay and 200% in Chaumont Bay from 1972 to 2002! The coverage increased slightly from 1972 to 1980 and then significantly since 1980, the period after zebra mussels and quagga mussels invaded Lake Ontario. Their low-cost method - interpretation of pre-existing aerial photographs allows mapping of submerged aquatic vegetation over large geographic areas and enables other researchers and lake managers to evaluate similar habitat assessment questions elsewhere.
Original Publication Information
Results of this study "Quantification of Historical Changes of Submerged Aquatic Vegetation Cover in Two Bays of Lake Ontario with Three Complementary Methods," are reported by Bin Zhu, Dean G. Fitzgerald, Susan B. Hoskins, Lars G. Rudstam, Christine M. Mayer and Edward L. Mills in the latest issue (Volume 33, No. 1, pp. 122-135) of the Journal of Great Lakes Research, published by the International Association for Great Lakes Research, 2007.
Contacts
For more information about the study, contact Bin Zhu, Finger Lakes Institute, Hobart and William Smith Colleges, 601 S. Main Street, Geneva, NY 14456; zhu@hws.edu; (315) 781-4384.
For information about the Journal of Great Lakes Research, contact Marlene Evans, Editor, National Water Research Institute, 11 Innovation Boulevard, Saskatoon, SK, S7N 3H5, Canada; editor@iaglr.org; (608) 692-1076.
Links
Since 1967, IAGLR has served as the focal point for compiling and disseminating multidisciplinary knowledge on North America's Laurentian Great Lakes and other large lakes of the world and their watersheds. In part, IAGLR communicates this knowledge through publication of the Journal of Great Lakes Research, available to members in print and electronic form. A searchable archive of the journal is available online and includes the abstracts of articles from the journal's inception in 1975 through the most recent issue. In addition, complete articles are available to members who have signed up for an electronic subscription.
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