Development and use of a zooplankton index of wetland quality in the Laurentian Great Lakes Basin

Recent interest in biological monitoring as an ecosystem assessment tool has stimulated the development of a number of biotic indices designed to aid in the evaluation of ecosystem integrity; however, zooplankton have rarely been included in biomonitoring schemes. We developed a wetland zooplankton index (WZI) based on water quality and zooplankton associations with aquatic vegetation (emergent, submergent, and floating-leaf) that could be used to assess wetland quality, in particular in marshes of the Laurentian Great Lakes basin. Seventy coastal and inland marshes were sampled during 1995–2000; these ranged from pristine, macrophyte-dominated systems, to highly degraded systems containing only a fringe of emergent vegetation. The index was developed based on the results of a partial canonical correspondence analysis (pCCA), which indicated that plant-associated taxa such as chydorid and macrothricid cladocerans were common in high-quality wetlands, while more open-water, pollution-tolerant taxa (e.g., B...

[1]  P. Chow-Fraser,et al.  Primary determinants of macrophyte community structure in 62 marshes across the Great Lakes basin: latitude, land use, and water quality effects , 2001 .

[2]  P. Chow-Fraser,et al.  Predictions on the effect of common carp (Cyprinus carpio) exclusion on water quality, zooplankton, and submergent macrophytes in a Great Lakes wetland , 1998 .

[3]  B. Cardinale,et al.  Changes in the abundance and diversity of coastal wetland fauna from the open water/macrophyte edge towards shore , 1998, Wetlands Ecology and Management.

[4]  P. Chow-Fraser.  A conceptual ecological model to aid restoration of Cootes Paradise Marsh, a degraded coastal wetland of Lake Ontario, Canada , 1998, Wetlands Ecology and Management.

[5]  J. Bertilsson,et al.  On limnic micro-crustaceans and trophic degree , 1989, Hydrobiologia.

[6]  David R. Lenat,et al.  A Biotic Index for the Southeastern United States: Derivation and List of Tolerance Values, with Criteria for Assigning Water-Quality Ratings , 1993, Journal of the North American Benthological Society.

[7]  Patricia Chow-Fraser,et al.  Percentage land use in the watershed determines the water and sediment quality of 22 marshes in the Great Lakes basin , 1999 .

[8]  M. Hill,et al.  Data analysis in community and landscape ecology , 1987 .

[9]  J. Karr.  Biological Integrity: A Long-Neglected Aspect of Water Resource Management. , 1991, Ecological applications : a publication of the Ecological Society of America.

[10]  D. Klarer,et al.  Zooplankton Dynamics in a Great Lakes Coastal Marsh , 1991 .

[11]  H. Quade.  Cladoceran Faunas Associated with Aquatic Macrophytes in Some Lakes in Northwestern Minnesota , 1969 .

[12]  Awwa,et al.  Standard Methods for the examination of water and wastewater , 1999 .

[13]  P. Chow-Fraser,et al.  Factors that regulate the zooplankton community structure of a turbid, hypereutrophic Great Lakes wetland , 1998 .

[14]  C. Braak,et al.  Canonical correspondence analysis and related multivariate methods in aquatic ecology , 1995, Aquatic Sciences.

[15]  J. Karr.  Assessment of Biotic Integrity Using Fish Communities , 1981 .

[16]  Ter Braak,et al.  Canoco reference manual and CanoDraw for Windows user''s guide: software for canonical community ord , 2002 .

[17]  E. Gaiser,et al.  Distribution of Cladoceran Zooplankton Among Prairie Pothole Wetlands in Northwest Iowa , 1998 .

[18]  B. Whitton,et al.  The Trophic Diatom Index: a new index for monitoring eutrophication in rivers , 1995, Journal of Applied Phycology.

[19]  P. Chow-Fraser,et al.  Long-term response of the biotic community to fluctuating water levels and changes in water quality in Cootes Paradise Marsh, a degraded coastal wetland of Lake Ontario , 1998, Wetlands Ecology and Management.

[20]  Robert G. Randall,et al.  An Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI) for Fish Assemblages in the Littoral Zone of Great Lakes' Areas of Concern , 1994 .

[21]  V. Sládeček.  Rotifers as indicators of water quality , 2004, Hydrobiologia.

[22]  P. Mccormick,et al.  PERIPHYTON AS A TOOL FOR ECOLOGICAL ASSESSMENT AND MANAGEMENT IN THE FLORIDA EVERGLADES , 1998 .

[23]  J. Gannon,et al.  ZOOPLANKTON (ESPECIALLY CRUSTACEANS AND ROTIFERS) AS INDICATORS OF WATER QUALITY1 , 1978 .

[24]  R. Pennak,et al.  Fresh-water invertebrates of the United States , 1953, Journal of Aquatic Ecosystem Stress and Recovery (Formerly Journal of Aquatic Ecosystem Health).

[25]  J. Lazorchak,et al.  Zooplankton Assemblage Responses to Disturbance Gradients , 1994 .

[26]  P. Chow-Fraser.  Seasonal, Interannual, and Spatial Variability in the Concentrations of Total Suspended Solids in a Degraded Coastal Wetland of Lake Ontario , 1999 .

[27]  J. P. Riley,et al.  A modified single solution method for the determination of phosphate in natural waters , 1962 .

[28]  S. Romo,et al.  A multivariate analysis of phytoplankton and food web changes in a shallow biomanipulated lake , 1996 .

[29]  D. Schindler.  Two Useful Devices for Vertical Plankton and Water Sampling , 1969 .

[30]  K. A. Krieger.  The Ecology of Invertebrates in Great Lakes Coastal Wetlands: Current Knowledge and Research Needs , 1992 .

[31]  B. Pejler,et al.  Rotifer occurrence and trophic degree , 1989, Hydrobiologia.

[32]  S. E. HOLLINGWORTH,et al.  The Great Lakes , 1959, Nature.

[33]  C.J.F. ter Braak,et al.  CANOCO Reference Manual and User's Guide to Canoco for Windows: Software for Canonical Community Ordination (Version 4) , 1998 .

[34]  Joseph F. Koonce,et al.  State of the Lakes Ecosystem Conference , 1999 .

[35]  M. Paterson.  The distribution of microcrustacea in the littoral zone of a freshwater lake , 1993, Hydrobiologia.

[36]  R. Bozelli,et al.  Assessing the indicator properties of zooplankton assemblages to disturbance gradients by canonical correspondence analysis , 1998 .

[37]  A. Mysz,et al.  State of the Lakes Ecosystem Conference 1998 , 1999 .

[38]  D. O. Hessen,et al.  Replacement of herbivore zooplankton species along gradients of ecosystem productivity and fish predation pressure , 1995 .

[39]  J. Downing,et al.  Empirical Relationships of Phytomacrofaunal Abundance to Plant Biomass and Macrophyte Bed Characteristics , 1988 .

[40]  T. Whillans.  Changes in Marsh Area Along the Canadian Shore of Lake Ontario , 1982 .

[41]  R. Pennak,et al.  Fresh-water invertebrates of the United States , 1953, Journal of Aquatic Ecosystem Stress and Recovery (Formerly Journal of Aquatic Ecosystem Health).

[42]  V. Glooschenko,et al.  Coastal Wetlands of Three Canadian Great Lakes: Inventory, Current Conservation Initiatives, and Patterns of Variation , 1991 .

[43]  D. Schindler.  Detecting Ecosystem Responses to Anthropogenic Stress , 1987 .

[44]  T. Whillans.  Historic and comparative perspectives on rehabilitation of marshes as habitat for fish in the lower Great Lakes basin , 1996 .