Using Lake Ontario Biocomplexity Research Sites for Coastal Environmental Indicator Testing

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Using Lake Ontario Biocomplexity Research Sites
for Coastal Environmental Indicator Testing
Marci Meixler and Mark Bain Cornell University
Sponsored by
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Project goals

• To collect and synthesize data needed to
  develop a long-term basin-wide monitoring plan
  for Great Lakes coastal wetlands in both the US
  and Canada

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Study sites
Eastern sites
16 plant communities in 8 wetlands sampled 3
times in the summer of 2002
Western sites
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Indicator data

• Fish community health 3 methods
• Invertebrate community health 3 methods
• Landscape measures 2 methods
• Phosphorus and total nitrates
• Sediment flow
• Submerged and emergent wetland plant community
  health
• Water levels

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How this data will be used

• Comparisons
• Indicator strength
• Gear type
• Temporal changes
• Spatial variation

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Gear comparison
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Temporal comparison
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Fish sampling

• 3 fishing gears
• fyke nets
• minnow traps
• electrofishing

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Invertebrate sampling

• 3 invertebrate gears
• activity traps
• hester dendy samplers
• sweep netting

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Fish sampling

• 3,150 individuals of 25 species
• Brown bullhead, bluegill, largemouth bass and
  pumpkinseed most common
• Comely shiner, golden shiner, white sucker
  only 1 individual