Acoustic Profiling and Sediment Coring in Lake Ontario, Lake Erie, and Georgian Bay

1975 ◽  
Author(s):  
T W Anderson ◽  
C F M Lewis
Keyword(s):  
Lake Erie ◽  
Lake Ontario ◽  
Georgian Bay ◽  
Sediment Coring ◽  
Acoustic Profiling

Zebra Mussels as Biomonitors for Organic Contaminants in the Lower Great Lakes

1996 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 411-432 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael E. Comba ◽  
Janice L. Metcalfe-Smith ◽  
Klaus L.E. Kaiser
Keyword(s):  
Great Lakes ◽  
Organic Contaminants ◽  
Lake Erie ◽  
Soft Tissues ◽  
Lake Ontario ◽  
Dry Weight ◽  
Zebra Mussels ◽  
Organic Contamination ◽  
Contamination Levels ◽  
St Lawrence River

Abstract Zebra mussels were collected from 24 sites in Lake Erie, Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence River between 1990 and 1992. Composite samples of whole mussels (15 sites) or soft tissues (9 sites) were analyzed for residues of organochlo-rine pesticides and PCBs to evaluate zebra mussels as biomonitors for organic contaminants. Mussels from most sites contained measurable quantities of most of the analytes. Mean concentrations were (in ng/g, whole mussel dry weight basis) 154 ΣPCB, 8.4 ΣDDT, 3.5 Σchlordane, 3.4 Σaldrin, 1.4 ΣBHC, 1.0 Σendosulfan, 0.80 mirex and 0.40 Σchlorobenzene. Concentrations varied greatly between sites, i.e., from 22 to 497 ng/g for ΣPCB and from 0.08 to 11.6 ng/g for ΣBHC, an indication that mussels are sensitive to different levels of contamination. Levels of ΣPCB and Σendosulfan were highest in mussels from the St. Lawrence River, whereas mirex was highest in those from Lake Ontario. Overall, mussels from Lake Erie were the least contaminated. These observations agree well with the spatial contaminant trends shown by other biomoni-toring programs. PCB congener class profiles in zebra mussels are also typical for nearby industrial sources, e.g., mussels below an aluminum casting plant contained 55% di-, tri- and tetrachlorobiphenyls versus 31% in those upstream. We propose the use of zebra mussels as biomonitors of organic contamination in the Great Lakes.

Infection of American smelt in Lake Ontario and Lake Erie with the microsporidian parasite Glugea hertwigi (Weissenberg)

1972 ◽  
Vol 50 (9) ◽  
pp. 1183-1188 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Chen ◽  
G. Power
Keyword(s):  
Digestive Tract ◽  
Lake Erie ◽  
Ovarian Tissue ◽  
Lake Ontario ◽  
Parasite Load ◽  
Sexual Differences ◽  
Striking Difference ◽  
Female Fish ◽  
Microsporidian Parasite ◽  
Male Fish

In samples taken monthly throughout the year the percentage of American smelt in Lake Ontario and Lake Erie containing cysts of Glugea hertwigi was 5.2% and 62.7% respectively. Sexual differences in incidence were observed, the significance of which was uncertain as results from the two lakes were contradictory.In male fish infection was almost entirely restricted to the digestive tract with few cysts in the liver, skin, and testes. In female fish the digestive tract and ovaries were similarly infected.Seasonal fluctuations in Glugea infection were obvious and seemed correlated with the gonadal cycle. In both sexes the highest parasite load corresponded with the onset of maturation.A striking difference in fecundity between the two smelt populations was attributed to the Glugea infection. In females parasite cysts replaced ovarian tissue, causing a reduction in the number of maturing eggs.

Molecular and ecological characterization of toxic cyanobacteria from the Bay of Quinte (Lake Ontario) and Maumee Bay (Lake Erie)

2017 ◽  
Vol 43 (6) ◽  
pp. 1067-1083 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kirsten M. Müller ◽  
Aline Chhun ◽  
Stephanie J. Guildford ◽  
Sarah J. Yakobowski ◽  
Miroslava Jonlija
Keyword(s):  
Lake Erie ◽  
Lake Ontario ◽  
Toxic Cyanobacteria

Phosphorus Enrichment, Silica Utilization, and Biogeochemical Silica Depletion in the Great Lakes

1986 ◽  
Vol 43 (2) ◽  
pp. 407-415 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claire L. Schelske ◽  
Eugene F. Stoermer ◽  
Gary L. Fahnenstiel ◽  
Mark Haibach
Keyword(s):  
Steady State ◽  
Great Lakes ◽  
Urban Population ◽  
Thermal Stratification ◽  
Lake Erie ◽  
Lake Michigan ◽  
Lake Ontario ◽  
Lake Huron ◽  
Phosphorus Enrichment

Our hypothesis that silica (Si) depletion in Lake Michigan and the severe Si depletion that characterizes the lower Great Lakes were induced by increased phosphorus (P) inputs was supported by bioassay experiments showing increased Si uptake by diatoms with relatively small P enrichments. We propose that severe Si depletion (Si concentrations being reduced to ≤0.39 mg SiO2∙L−1 prior to thermal stratification) results when P levels are increased to the extent that increased diatom production reduces Si concentrations to limiting levels during the thermally mixed period. Large P enrichments such as those that characterized the eastern and central basis of Lake Erie and Lake Ontario in the early 1970s are necessary to produce severe Si depletion. It is clear that severe Si depletion in the lower lakes was produced by P enrichment because inflowing waters from Lake Huron have smaller P concentrations and larger Si concentrations than the outflowing waters of either Lake Erie or Lake Ontario. Severe Si depletion probably began in the 1940s or 1950s as the result of increased P loads from expanded sewering of an increasing urban population and the introduction of phosphate detergents. The model proposed for biogeochemical Si depletion is consistent with previous findings of high rates of internal recycling because, under steady-state conditions for Si inputs, any increase in diatom production will produce an increase in permanent sedimentation of biogenic Si provided some fraction of the increased biogenic Si production is not recycled or unless there is a compensating increase in dissolution of diatoms.

scholarly journals An Epizootic of Diffuse Glomerulonephritis in White Perch (Roccus americanus) from a Heavily Polluted Industrial Basin in Lake Ontario

1982 ◽  
Vol 19 (6) ◽  
pp. 638-645 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. W. Ferguson ◽  
R. D. Moccia ◽  
N. E. Down
Keyword(s):  
Lake Erie ◽  
White Perch ◽  
Lake Ontario ◽  
Environmental Pollutant ◽  
Basement Membranes ◽  
Polluted Water ◽  
Closely Related Species ◽  
White Bass ◽  
Dense Deposits ◽  
Rare Lesion

Examination of 43 white perch from a heavily polluted water basin showed all had severe diffuse glomerulonephritis. There were fibrinoid necrosis of tuft vessels, especially the afferent and efferent arterioles, and thickened basement membranes which ultrastructurally contained dense deposits in a subendothelial location. None of these lesions was found in white bass, a closely related species, from the same source nor in white perch from other relatively nonpolluted sites in Lake Ontario or Lake Erie. This is a dramatic example of a rare lesion in fish and possibly represents an immune-complex mediated response to an environmental pollutant.

Nitrogen and C/N ratios in the sediments of Lakes Superior, Huron, St. Clair, Erie, and Ontario

1977 ◽  
Vol 14 (10) ◽  
pp. 2402-2413 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. L. W. Kemp ◽  
R. L. Thomas ◽  
H. K. T. Wong ◽  
L. M. Johnston
Keyword(s):  
Organic Matter ◽  
Lake Erie ◽  
Surface Sediments ◽  
Lake Superior ◽  
Lake Ontario ◽  
Lake Huron ◽  
Surface Enrichment ◽  
Large Component ◽  
Sediment Samples ◽  
Modern Sediment

The distribution of nitrogen (N) was determined on 1238 surface sediment samples (0–3 cm) and 24 cores from Lakes Superior, Huron, St. Clair, Erie, and Ontario. The concentration of N was greatest in the depositional basins of the lakes. The N concentrations decreased sharply from high values at the sediment–water interface to uniformly lower N values at the base of the cores. The surface enrichment was related to increased inputs of N to the lakes since settlement of the region in the order: Lake Ontario > Lake Erie [Formula: see text] Lake Superior > Lake Huron > Georgian Bay.The organic carbon: total nitrogen (C/N) ratios averaged 10.2 in the surface sediments with a range of 5.1 to 66.0. The lowest ratios were found in the depositional basins, with the exception of Lake St. Clair. The magnitude of the C/N ratios was related to the source of the organic matter. Plankton, which are the main source of Org-N in the lakes, accounted for C/N ratios between 7 and 9. Dilution of the modern sediment with organic matter from glacial deposits yielded the higher ratios and low Org-C contents in the nondepositional zones. The high C/N ratios and Org-C contents in Lake St. Clair were believed to be due to a large component of macrophytes in the inputs of organic matter to the lake sediments.

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