Lake Superior: Nearshore variability and a landscape driver concept
Keywords:
monitoring, spatial scales, electronic sensors, optical plankton counterAbstract
Spatial variation is well known to exist in water quality parameters of the Great Lakes nearshore; however, strong patterns for extended reaches also have been observed and found to be robust across seasonal time frames. Less is known about robustness of inter-annual variation within parameters for water quality in the nearshore. We have conducted high-resolution surveys with towed electronic instrumentation in nearshore areas of Lake Superior and have combined several seasons (2001–2005) of measurements from multiple research efforts to investigate how spatial variation compares across years. The combined survey tows ranged across approximately 1200 km of Lake Superior's south shore. In addition to the survey tracks, we also sampled fixed stations to collect calibration data and other parameters not observed by the in situ electronic sensors. The towed sensor data provided information on the spatial and temporal variability of water quality parameters along the nearshore. We found a consistent spatial pattern over time along the south shore of Lake Superior. Nearshore water quality parameters were analyzed with respect to landscape characteristics of the adjacent watersheds (US only) using multivariate stepwise regressions and found to correlate to landscape characterization. The stressor categories of landscape character that best described the nearshore parameters were agriculture-chemical usage and land-cover attributes. Peak nearshore values corresponded with landscape position that had the most altered landuse character (e.g. Duluth/Superior region). The landscape character appears to drive and maintain the spatial pattern in nearshore water quality parameters.
References
Allan, J. D., Erickson, D. L. and Fay, J. 1997. The influence of catchment land use on stream integrity across multiple spatial scales. Freshwater Biol., 37: 149–161.
Auer, M. T. and Gatzke, T. L. 2004. The spring runoff event, thermal bar formation, and cross margin transport in Lake Superior. J. Great Lakes Res., 30(Supplement 1): 64–81.
Csanady, G. T. 1970. Dispersal of effluents in the Great Lakes. Water Res., 4: 79–114.
Danz, N. P., Regal, R. R., Niemi, G. J., Brady, V., Hollenhorst, T., Johnson, L. B., Host, G. E., Hanowski, J. M., Johnston, C. A., Brown, T., Kingston, J. and Kelly, J. R. 2005. Environmentally stratified sampling design for the development of Great Lakes environmental indicators. Envir. Monit. Assmnt., 102: 41–65.
Herlihy, A. T., Stoddard, J. L. and Johnson, C. B. 1998. The relationship between stream chemistry and watershed land cover data in the mid-Atlantic region, U.S. Water Air and Soil Pollution, 105: 377–386.
Herman, A. W. 1992. Design and calibration of a new optical plankton counter capable of sizing small zooplankton. Deep Sea Res., 39: 395–415.
Herman, A. W., Beanlands, B. and Phillips, E. F. 2004. The next generation of optical plankton counter: the Laser-OPC. J. Plank. Res., 26: 1135–1145.
Hollenhorst, T. P., Brown, T. N., Johnson, L. B., Ciborowski, J. J.H. and Host, G. E. 2007. Methods for generating multi-scale delineations for indicator development in Great Lake coastal ecosystems. J. Great Lakes Res., 33(Special Issue 3): 13–26.
Isaaks, E. H. and Srivastava, R. M. 1989. Applied geostatistics, NY: Oxford University Press Inc..
Kelly, J. R. 2009. “Chapter 5.1. Nutrients and the Great Lakes nearshore, circa 2002–2007”. In Nearshore areas of the Great Lakes Background paper, State of the Lakes Ecosystem Conference 2008. Environment Canada and U. S. Environmental Protection Agency, ISBN 978-1-100-13562-5, EPA 905-R-09-013, Cat. No. En164-19/2009E
Kelly, J. R., Yurista, P. M., Miller, S.E., Cotter, A.C., Corry, T.C., Scharold, J.S., Sierszen, M.E., Isaac, E.J. and Stockwell, J.D. 2011. Challengs to Lake Superior's condition, assessment, and management. A few observations across a generation of change. Aquat. Ecosyst. Health Mgmt., 14(4): 332–344.
Kerr, S. R. and Dickie, L. M. 2001. The biomass spectrum: a predator-prey theory of aquatic production, NY: Columbia University Press.
Kireta, A. R., Reavie, E. D., Danz, N. P., Axler, R. P., Sgro, G. V., Kingston, J. C., Brown, T. N. and Hollenhorst, T. 2007. Coastal geomorphic and lake variability in the Laurentian Great Lakes: implications for a diatom-based monitoring tool. J. Great Lakes Res., 33(Special issue 3): 136–153.
Mackey, S. D. and Goforth, R. R. 2005. Foreword: Special issue on Great Lakes nearshore and coastal habitats. J. Great Lakes Res., 31(Supplement 1): 1–5.
Morrice, J. A., Danz, N. P., Regal, R. R., Kelly, J. R., Niemi, G. J., Reavie, E. D., Hollenhorst, T., Axler, R. P., Trebitz, A. S., Cotter, A. M. and Peterson, G. S. 2008. Human influences on water quality in Great Lakes coastal wetlands. Environ. Manage., 41: 347–357.
Rao, Y. R. and Schwab, D. J. 2007. Transport and mixing between the coastal and offshore waters in the Great Lakes: a review. J. Great Lakes Res., 33: 202–218.
Reavie, E. D. 2007. A diatom-based water quality model for Great Lakes coastlines. J. Great Lakes Res., 33(Special issue 3): 86–92.
Schertzer, W. M. and Rao, Y. R. 2009. “An overview of the characteristics of Lake Superior meterology, hydrology and physical limnology”. In State of Lake Superior, Edited by: Munawar, M. and Munawar, I. F. 3–50. Burlington, ON: Aquatic Ecosystem Health & Management Society. Ecovision World Monograph Series
Sprules, W. G., Jin, E. H., Herman, A. W. and Stockwell, J. D. 1998. Calibration of an optical plankton counter for use in fresh water. Limnol. Oceanogr., 43: 726–733.
Stevens, D. L. and Olsen, A. R. 2004. Spatially balanced sampling of natural resources. J. Am. Stat. Assoc., 99: 262–278.
SURFER. 2002. Surface mapping system, Golden Software Inc.
SYSTAT. 2004. The system for statistics, SPSS, Inc.
Trebitz, A. S., Brazner, J. C., Cotter, A. M., Knuth, M. L., Morrice, J. A., Peterson, G. S., Sierszen, M. E., Thompson, J. A. and Kelly, J. R. 2007. Water quality in Great Lakes coastal wetlands: basin-wide patterns and responses to anthropogenic disturbance gradient. J. Great Lakes Res., 33(Special issue 3): 67–85.
Yurista, P. M. and Kelly, J. R. 2009. “Spatial patterns of water quality and plankton from high-resolution continuous in situ sensing along a 537-km nearshore transect of western Lake Superior, 2004”. In State of Lake Superior, Edited by: Munawar, M. and Munawar, I. F. 439–471. Burlington, ON: Aquatic Ecosystem Health and Management Society. Ecovision World Monograph Series
Yurista, P. M., Kelly, J. R. and Miller, S. E. 2005. Evaluation of optically acquired zooplankton size-spectrum data as a potential tool for assessment of condition in the Great Lakes. Environ. Manage., 35: 34–44.
Yurista, P. M., Kelly, J. R. and Miller, S. E. 2006. Comparisons of zooplankton community size structure in the Great Lakes. J. Geophysical Res. Oceans., 111 C05S08, [doi:10.1029/2005JC002971]
Yurista, P. M., Kelly, J. R. and Miller, S. E. 2009. Lake Superior zooplankton: biomass: Alternate estimates from a probability-based net survey and spatially-extensive LOPC surveys. J. Great Lakes Res., 35: 337–346.
Yurista, P. M., Kelly, J. R., Miller, S. E. and Van Alstine, J. 2011. Lake Ontario: nearshore variability in water quality parameters.. J. Great Lakes Res., DOI: 10.1016/j.jglr.2011.09.002
Published
Issue
Section
License
Manuscripts must be original. They must not be published or be under consideration for publication elsewhere, in whole or in part. It is required that the lead author of accepted papers complete and sign the MSU Press AEHM Author Publishing Agreement and provide it to the publisher upon acceptance.
