Associations and Species Diversity in Benthic Macroinvertebrates of Bay of Quinte and Lake Ontario

1971 ◽  
Vol 28 (11) ◽  
pp. 1683-1697 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. G. Johnson ◽  
R. O. Brinkhurst

Three main macroinvertebrate associations were found in the Bay of Quinte, Prince Edward Bay, and the adjacent area of Lake Ontario: a chironomid association of the eutrophic inner and middle bays; an association of many species of sphaeriids, oligochaetes, chironomids, and crustaceans in the mesotrophic lower Bay of Quinte and Prince Edward Bay; and a cold-stenotherm association of the oligotrophic deep basin of Lake Ontario. An additional, but more confined (inner Prince Edward Bay), association consisted of a variety of taxa, whose distribution appeared to be related to the distribution of vascular vegetation. All of the main taxonomic groups contributed to each association and to differences among associations. The lakeward progression of associations in the study area was closely similar to the west to east shifts in Lake Erie reported earlier. Species diversity in Lake Ontario associations apparently was related to degree of eutrophy and to water temperature.


2001 ◽  
Vol 58 (3) ◽  
pp. 518-529 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen J Lozano ◽  
Jill V Scharold ◽  
Thomas F Nalepa

Surveys of benthic macroinvertebrates conducted in Lake Ontario during 1994 and 1997 revealed recent declines in populations of three major taxonomic groups: Oligochaeta, Sphaeriidae, and Diporeia spp. (Amphipoda), with the most drastic reductions occurring in the latter. Results from sediment measurements were used to classify deepwater sediments into three habitat zones. Densities of all three taxa declined in the shallowest (12–88 m) of the sediment zones between 1994 and 1997; the greatest changes in density were observed for Diporeia, which declined from 3011 to 145 individuals·m–2, and for total benthic macroinvertebrates, which declined from 5831 to 1376 individuals· m–2. Mean densities of Dreissena spp. in 1997 were highest in the shallowest zone, and the areas of greatest densities corresponded to areas of largest reductions in Diporeia populations. We believe that dreissenids are competing with Diporeia by intercepting the supply of fresh algae essential for Diporeia survival. A decline in macroinvertebrate densities, especially populations of an important food item such as Diporeia, in Lake Ontario sediments at depths of 12–88 m may have a detrimental impact on the benthic food web.



1991 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 472-483
Author(s):  
John N. Jackson

The Welland canals are features of great Canadian renown in terms of engineering, as transportation arteries, and through their contributions to industrial development and urban achievement. Their instigator was William Hamilton Merritt, a St. Catharines businessman. Functionally, they must be perceived as an inland extension of the St. Lawrence system of waterways. These contributions began when the First Welland Canal opened in 1829, and extend continuously up to the present. The First Welland Canal, fed from the Grand River, was constructed through the canalization of rivers north of the Niagara Escarpment, by locks across this relief barrier, and a man-made cut to the south. The canal then took advantage of the Welland and Niagara rivers to reach Lake Erie. Hardly a feature of this achievement was as anticipated and, in 1833, the route was changed by a cut direct to Lake Erie at Port Colborne. The Second Canal, opened in 1845, followed essentially the same route, but with stone locks and a new channel constructed slightly to the west of its predecessor. The Third Canal was wider and deeper. It offered fewer locks and, though retaining Port Dalhousie as its northern outlet on Lake Ontario, its alignment was now a cut east of St. Catharines and Thorold across the Ontario Plain. The Second Canal remained in use at the two ends for the smaller-sized vessels to serve St. Catharines and Thorold, and its water supply continued to power industry until hydroelectricity was obtained from the power projects on the Niagara River at Niagara Falls. Key words: Welland Canal, St. Lawrence–Great Lakes water system, William Hamilton Merritt, transportation, Grand River, Lake Erie, Lake Ontario, water power, industrial location, urban growth.



1996 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 411-432 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael E. Comba ◽  
Janice L. Metcalfe-Smith ◽  
Klaus L.E. Kaiser

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.



2021 ◽  
Vol 86 (2) ◽  
pp. 350-367
Author(s):  
Jennifer Birch ◽  
John P. Hart

We employ social network analysis of collar decoration on Iroquoian vessels to conduct a multiscalar analysis of signaling practices among ancestral Huron-Wendat communities on the north shore of Lake Ontario. Our analysis focuses on the microscale of the West Duffins Creek community relocation sequence as well as the mesoscale, incorporating several populations to the west. The data demonstrate that network ties were stronger among populations in adjacent drainages as opposed to within drainage-specific sequences, providing evidence for west-to-east population movement, especially as conflict between Wendat and Haudenosaunee populations escalated in the sixteenth century. These results suggest that although coalescence may have initially involved the incorporation of peoples from microscale (local) networks, populations originating among wider mesoscale (subregional) networks contributed to later coalescent communities. These findings challenge previous models of village relocation and settlement aggregation that oversimplified these processes.



2021 ◽  
Vol 168 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ann Bucklin ◽  
Katja T. C. A. Peijnenburg ◽  
Ksenia N. Kosobokova ◽  
Todd D. O’Brien ◽  
Leocadio Blanco-Bercial ◽  
...  

AbstractCharacterization of species diversity of zooplankton is key to understanding, assessing, and predicting the function and future of pelagic ecosystems throughout the global ocean. The marine zooplankton assemblage, including only metazoans, is highly diverse and taxonomically complex, with an estimated ~28,000 species of 41 major taxonomic groups. This review provides a comprehensive summary of DNA sequences for the barcode region of mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase I (COI) for identified specimens. The foundation of this summary is the MetaZooGene Barcode Atlas and Database (MZGdb), a new open-access data and metadata portal that is linked to NCBI GenBank and BOLD data repositories. The MZGdb provides enhanced quality control and tools for assembling COI reference sequence databases that are specific to selected taxonomic groups and/or ocean regions, with associated metadata (e.g., collection georeferencing, verification of species identification, molecular protocols), and tools for statistical analysis, mapping, and visualization. To date, over 150,000 COI sequences for ~ 5600 described species of marine metazoan plankton (including holo- and meroplankton) are available via the MZGdb portal. This review uses the MZGdb as a resource for summaries of COI barcode data and metadata for important taxonomic groups of marine zooplankton and selected regions, including the North Atlantic, Arctic, North Pacific, and Southern Oceans. The MZGdb is designed to provide a foundation for analysis of species diversity of marine zooplankton based on DNA barcoding and metabarcoding for assessment of marine ecosystems and rapid detection of the impacts of climate change.



1972 ◽  
Vol 50 (9) ◽  
pp. 1183-1188 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Chen ◽  
G. Power

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.



2018 ◽  
Vol 30 ◽  
pp. 85-101
Author(s):  
Dilip Kumar Jha

Chitwan district is endowed with varied aquatic resources which harbor diverse fish species in central Nepal. A total of 111 fish species were collected from different sampling sites of several tributaries of Trisuli, Rapti and Narayani river systems in Chitwan district and adjacent areas from August 2011 to July 2016. These species belong to 9 orders, 27 families and 72genera. Among the orders, Cypriniformes had the highest number of species (49%) followed by Siluriformes (30%), Perciformes (12%), Synbranchiformes (3%), Osteoglossiformes (2%) while Anguiliformes, Beloniformes, Clupeiformes and Tetraodontiformes represented each by about 1%. Cyprinidae has the highest number of species (40%) among the families followed by Sisoridae (12%), Bagridae (7%), Cobitidae (5.4%), Schilbeidae (4.5%), Channidae (3.6%), Balitoridae (2.7%), Mastacembelidae (2.7%), Siluridae (2.7%), Notopteridae (1.8%), Ambassidae (1.8%), Nandidae (1.8%) and Mugilidae (1.8%). Other families accounted forabout 1% were Anguillidae, Belonidae, Clupeidae, Psilorhynchidae, Anabantidae, Gobiidae, Belontidae, Synbranchidae, Amblycipitidae, Pangasidae, Clariidae, Heteropneustidae, Chacidae and Tetraodontidae. The Botia geto was reported for the first time from Rapti river of Chitwan and adjacent area. Different fish species are naturally maintained in aquatic systems and support livelihoods of the people. Catches of major food fishes are declining due to overexploitation of resources, therefore, appropriate measures are needed at once to maintain and conserve the indigenous stock.





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