399
Lakes
Courtney Jaeger, Gabe Duncanson,
and Ashley Appelhof
Invasive Species Report
Eurasian Watermilfoil
Where it can be found?
It can be found in the lakes as shown on the map.
http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/invasives/aquaticplants/milfoil/index.html
Biotic Factors
Abiotic Factors
How Does This Effect Our Lakes?
The watermilfoil spreads quickly because it can grow from broken off stems. It also creates dense mats, which not only crowd out native plants, but also interfere with recreational activities (Eurasian Watermilfoil).
http://www.nature.org/idc/groups/webcontent/@web/@indiana/documents/media/prd_007256.jpg
- Fish
- Algae
- Bacteria
- Sea Weed
What Can We Do?
Disturbance To Our Organisms
There are multiple ways to manage this invasive species and help to stop it from spreading.
Producer
Secondary Consumer
The green algae will not be able to make their own mats and continue to grow because the watermilfoil crowds the algae out.
The yellow perch will also have a decreased food supply because there will be less snails to eat, therefore decreasing the yellow perch population as well.
Weevils
Mechanical Removal
This approach would only eliminate the watermilfoil, and would decrease the population of this invasive plant (Eurasian Watermilfoil).
Weevils are native insects that decline the watermilfoil population, and would not harm the native plants (Eurasian Watermilfoil).
Primary Consumer
Decomposer
Herbicides
The bacteria will have an increased food supply because the snails and the perch are dying off from lack of food. This results in an increased bacteria population.
The great pond snail will have a decreased food supply because the algae is being taken over, therefore decreasing the snail population.
These herbicides would decrease the watermilfoil, but leave the other plants unharmed (Eurasian Watermilfoil).
- Sand
- Rocks
- Water
- Air
- Dirt
- Sunlight
Food Web
Walleye
Decomposer
http://www.dfw.state.or.us/resources/fishing/warm_water_fishing/images/Walleye.gif
Yellow Perch
3rd consumer: Walleye
http://www.dfw.state.or.us/resources/fishing/warm_water_fishing/images/Walleye.gif
Great Pond Snail
http://www.michigan.gov/images/perch_36470_7.jpg
2nd consumer: Yellow Perch
Energy Pyramid
http://www.bostonbakesforbreastcancer.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/sun.jpg
http://www.thefishguide.com/sites/default/files/great-pond-snail.jpg?1292760284
Green Algae
http://www.michigan.gov/images/perch_36470_7.jpg
Primary Consumer: Great Pond Snail
Bacteria
http://www.biocyclopedia.com/index/images/Plant%20organisms/Green_algae/Chlorophyta_large.jpg
http://www.thefishguide.com/sites/default/files/great-pond-snail.jpg?1292760284
Producer: Algae
http://www.biocyclopedia.com/index/images/Plant%20organisms/Green_algae/Chlorophyta_large.jpg
Habitat:
Bacteria is found on all parts of the earth, such as in lakes (Bacteria).
Population Size:
As separate individuals, there is more bacteria than any other organism, and can be as many as 2.5 billion bacteria in 1 gram of fertile soil (Bacteria).
Symbiotic Relationship
Reproductive Behavior
http://blogs-images.forbes.com/daviddisalvo/files/2012/03/bacteria.jpg
Secondary Consumer
Bacteria breaks down the dead matter of organisms and uses it as nutrients (Bacteria).
Bacteria reproduces asexually, mainly by binary fission, where the parent cell divides into two identical cells (Bacteria).
This is commensalism because the bacteria is receiving a food source, while the organisms are either dead, or the dead matter is no use for them (Bacteria).
Bacteria can also reproduce asexually through budding or fragmentation (Bacteria).
http://imgc.allpostersimages.com/images/P-473-488-90/26/2628/OZHMD00Z/posters/joel-sartore-dead-yellow-perch.jpg
Yellow Perch
Nutrition
Food Web Position:
Human Usefulness
Bacteria is the decomposer in the food web.
Nutritional Requirements:
Bacteria is useful to use because we use it for many different things. We use bacteria for soil enrichment, fermentation, decomposition of organic and toxic waste, as well as many other processes. We also use bacteria because it makes good objects for genetic study (Bacteria).
Bacteria live off other organisms by eating their dead matter, making them heterotrophic (Bacteria).
Sensitivity To Environmental Insults
NUTRITION:
HABITAT: Lake
The bacteria would be harmed if all the organisms died off and there was no more dead matter to live off of, the bacteria population would not survive.
i, Food web postion. Secondary consumer
ii, Nutrition, Perch eat minnows and the young of other small fish. They also eat insects such as mayflies.
POPULATION:Minnesota is loaded with perch. But on many lakes, the average size of perch is decreasing because of overfishing. In the past, there was no limit on the number of perch you could catch and keep. But in recent years the limit has been lowered. The DNR hopes to increase the average size of perch by decreasing the number of perch killed by anglers.
Sensitivity to Environmental Insults: Yellow perch are plentiful although there are limits to how many you can catch due to recent overfishing
Human usefulness: Eating
Primary Consumer
The Great Pond Snail
Example of Symbiotic Relationship:
commensalism
http://www.michigan.gov/images/perch_36470_7.jpg
An example of commensalism is when a yellow perch poops it is supplying a food source for other bottom feeder fish like bullheads.
Habitat
Reproductive Behavior
REPRODUCtIVE BEHAVIOR:
The snail can mate as male or female role, But only one sexual role can be performed within a copopulation (Lymnaea Stagnalis).
Population Size
There are about 1,000,000 known living Great Pond Snails (Lymnaea Stagnalis).
Yellow perch spawn in early May in southern Minnesota and in mid-May in northern lakes.The eggs hatch after two or three weeks. The newborns (fry) eat plankton and water fleas and are eaten by many newly hatched predator fish such as walleyes.
Still or slow moving fresh water (Lymnaea Stagnalis).
http://www.thefishguide.com/sites/default/files/great-pond-snail.jpg?1292760284
Producer
Nutrition
Sensitivity to Environment
This snail does not have much sensitivity to the environment, there is no conservation attempts or threats Great Pond Snail (Lymnaea Stagnalis).
Green Algae
The great pond snail is a heterotroph. In the food web it is the primary consumer (Great Pond Snail (Lymnaea Stagnalis).
Habitat:
Green algae float in the water of rivers, marshes, ponds, pools and lakes (Moran).
Nutritional Requirements
The great pond snails eat plants, algae, and decaying organic matter (Freshwater Pond Snails).
Human Usefulness
Population Size:
The Great Pond Snail is commonly used in laboratories to study how the central nervous system is effected (Freshwater Pond Snails).
Symbiotic Relationship
Parasitism
The lymnaea Stagnatis or Great Pond Snail is a host of Moliniella Anceps or Molins (Lymnaea Stagnalis).
The population of algae is the highest when the water is warm, and there is a lot of animal waste to feed on (Moran).
Reproductive Behavior
Lake Ecosystem
Algae reproduces asexually when the parent cell divides in two and creates two identical organisms. They can also reproduce asexually when the parent cell divides into one or more fragments which eventually become separate organisms (Green Algae Facts).
http://www.biocyclopedia.com/index/images/Plant%20organisms/Green_algae/Chlorophyta_large.jpg
Lake Superior
Nutrition
Food Web Position
Algae is the producer in the food web.
Symbiotic Relationship
Nutritional Requirements
Human Usefulness
Algae helps all the organisms by taking in waste from the water and providing oxygen (Moran).
Algae requires sunlight, to survive. With it, they make their own food. Algae also needs nitrogen, which they get from animal waste (Moran).
Algae makes oxygen, which is needed for water to be water. This is useful to us because we need water to survive (Moran).
This is an example of mutualism because the algae is getting a food source and the organisms are receiving oxygen (Moran).
Sensitivity to Environment Insults
Lake Superior contains green algae, great pond snails, yellow perch, and bacteria.
An environmental insult that harms green algae is the over population of it's consumers. This insult will decrease the population of the algae because too much of the algae will be eaten.
Lake Superior
The lake is the largest border lake in Minnesota, being 20,364,800 acres total, with 962,700 acres in Minnesota (Lakes).
http://www.minnesotalakes.net/lakesuperior13.jpg
The lake also has a maximum depth of 1,290 feet (Lakes).