FWS R5 FR LGLFWCO EDM Invertebrate Surveillance PublicView [U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service]
Department of the Interior Full Details
Full Details
- Title
- FWS R5 FR LGLFWCO EDM Invertebrate Surveillance PublicView [U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service]
- Description
- Benthic invertebrate surveys are a component of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services (USFWS) Lower Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Conservation Office (LGLFWCO) Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) Early Detection and Monitoring (EDM) program. Benthic invertebrate surveys were included in the EDM program starting in 2012 with the goal of detecting novel AIS invertebrate species by sampling a diversity of habitats with a wide array of gear types. Surveys occurred annually from 2012 - present. Sampling focuses on harbors, rivers, and streams of the lower Great Lakes (Erie and Ontario) as determined by arisk-based prioritization framework for AIS in the Great Lakes.Benthic invertebratesare collected using a variety of sampling gears with the most utilized including: colonizers (rock bags and Hester-Dendy samplers), sweep nets, petite ponars and benthic sleds.The survey design targets the following three general taxon:Amphipoda, Bivalvia, and Gastropoda. These taxon are targeted due to the potential invasiveness and level of concern of species within those taxa as determined byEcological Risk Screening Summaries (ERSS).The sampling season is typically between July and October - not all locations are sampled on a similar temporal scale, particularly those locations on the fringes of the programs surveillance range.Sampling strategies are analyzed and designed to capture the maximum species richness at locations with the assumption that capturing an abundance of species, including singletons and doubletons, could lead to detecting rare novel AIS species if present.Samples are preserved using 95% ethanol (EtOH) which allows for tissue preservation. The samples are then picked and sorted in-house (LGLFWCO) by the three aforementioned general taxon. Currently, taxonomic identifications have also been conducted in-house using available keys for benthic invertebrates. The information within this dataset is geospatial in nature and documents benthic invertebrate sampling events. Both abiotic and biotic data is collected for each individual sampling event. It is possible that over time, the tools, gears, and instruments used to collect information have changed or been modified. The EDM program is adaptive in nature and standardization, although important for comparisons, is not the primary intention of this AIS sampling strategy. Therefore, in some instances, the general statements made above regarding sample procedures may not apply. Also, identifying aquatic invertebrates such as amphipods, bivalves, and gastropods are difficult - especially when tasked with discovering novel AIS with limited support from reference materials (keys, voucher specimens, etc.). Because of this, some specimens collected cannot be assigned to the species level. Furthermore, due to these difficulties, identifications within this data set may be inaccurate and those records will remain within this data set unless otherwise detected and removed.
- Creator
- Department of the Interior
- Temporal Coverage
- Last modified 2023-02-07
- Date Issued
- 2022-01-12
- Access Rights
- Public
- Format
- File
- Language
- English
- Date Added
- August 28, 2025
Location
Links
Cite and Reference
-
Citation
Department of the Interior (2022). FWS R5 FR LGLFWCO EDM Invertebrate Surveillance PublicView [U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service]. . https://gis-fws.opendata.arcgis.com/maps/fws::fws-r5-fr-lglfwco-edm-invertebrate-surveillance-publicview (web service) -
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