Application of a lower food web ecosystem productivity model for investigating dynamics of the invasive species Bythotrephes longimanus in Lake Michigan

Abstract

A Lake Michigan Ecosystem Model (LMEco) that includes a detailed description of trophic levels and their interactions was developed for Lake Michigan. The LM-Eco model constitutes a first step toward a comprehensive Lake Michigan ecosystem productivity model to investigate ecosystem-level responses and effects within the lower food web of the lake. The effect of the invasive species Bythotrephes longimanus on individual zooplankton species was investigated based upon extensive field data collected at multiple locations in Lake Michigan during the 1994-1995 Lake Michigan Mass Balance Study. Field data collected at 15 sampling stations within Lake Michigan over a series of 8 sampling cruises throughout a 2 year period demonstrated that over 65% of zooplankton species exhibited a decline with the occurrence of Bythotrephes in the sample.The LM-Eco model was successfully applied to simulate the trends of Bythotrephes and zooplankton abundance as observed in the collected field data. Model simulations allowed for examination of interactions between the invader Bythotrephes and native zooplankton groups on a 5 km by 5 km resolution throughout Lake Michigan. Analysis was completed as a time series specific to individual field sampling locations within the lake, and also on a lake-wide scale.

Physical and biogeochemical mechanisms of internal carbon cycling in Lake Michigan

“…Miller et al . [] coupled hydrodynamic model output to a lower food web ecosystem model to simulate the impact of invasive spiny water fleas ( Bythotrephes longimanus ) on zooplankton population from 1994 to 1995. Pauer et al .…”

Distribution of Sediment Measurements in Lake Michigan as a Case Study: Implications for Estimating Sediment and Water Interactions in Eutrophication and Bioaccumulation Models

“…Nutrients (phosphorus, silica, and nitrogen) that are present in the sediment are important for algae growth in both marine and freshwater ecosystems when they are reintroduced into the water column. Eutrophication models are commonly developed for water bodies to understand the dynamics between algae populations, the lower food web, and available nutrient concentrations [6]- [16]. In such models, the sediment plays a very important role as both a source and a sink for nutrients from the water column, with nutrients moving between the sediment and the water column by resuspension, settling, and diffusion.…”