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Great Lakes Science Center

Welcome!  The Great Lakes Science Center (GLSC) is part of the Midcontinent Region of the USGS, DOI Regions 3 and 5. Our scientists work in the Great Lakes region and other parts of the country to meet the nation’s need for scientific information used by resource managers to restore, enhance, manage, and protect the living resources and habitats in the Great Lakes basin. 

News

GLSC Sea Lamprey Science Highlighted by Great Lakes Fishery Commission

Interview With GLSC’s Nicole Watson About PhD Dissertation Research at Michigan State University Featured in Article About Arctic Grayling Reintroduction

Inaugural USGS Wildlife Health Awareness Day - April 25, 2025

Publications

Visioning and conceptual framework for coordinating Great Lakes connecting waters research and monitoring Visioning and conceptual framework for coordinating Great Lakes connecting waters research and monitoring

The Laurentian Great Lakes are connected via naturally occurring straits and rivers: St. Marys River, Straits of Mackinac, St. Clair-Detroit River System, Niagara River, and the St. Lawrence River. Despite the historical ecological and economic importance of these waters, international agreements (e.g., Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement) only recently explicitly named the Great Lakes...
Authors
Robin L. DeBruyne, Edward F. Roseman, Ashley H. Moerke, Lauren M Fry, Michael R. Twiss, Samantha N. Tank

Status and trends of the Lake Huron prey fish community, 1976-2024 Status and trends of the Lake Huron prey fish community, 1976-2024

The U. S. Geological Survey-Great Lakes Science Center has monitored annual changes in the offshore (depth > 9m) prey fish community of Lake Huron since 1973. Monitoring of prey fish populations in Lake Huron is based on a bottom trawl survey that targets demersal species (i.e., those predominantly or intermittently associated with the lake bottom) and an acoustic-midwater trawl survey...
Authors
Darryl W. Hondorp, Robin L. DeBruyne, Cory Brant, Peter C. Esselman, Timothy P. O'Brien

Exposure to ultraviolet radiation induces escape hatching of Cisco (Coregonus artedi) embryos Exposure to ultraviolet radiation induces escape hatching of Cisco (Coregonus artedi) embryos

Cisco (Otoonapii in Ojibwe; Coregonus artedi Lesueur, 1818), is a widely distributed stenothermic freshwater fish whose embryos typically incubate under ice and in the dark. We used Cisco as a model organism for testing the potential of UV-induced escape hatching behaviour. Owing to reduced ice cover and increased water transparency in north temperate lakes, these experiments provide...
Authors
Nicole Lynn Berry, David Bunnell, Erin P. Overholt, Jennifer A. Schumacher, Addison Z. Almeda, Casey W. Schoenebeck, Peter C. Jacobson, Kristopher Dey, Jason B. Smith, Andrew Tucker, Thomas J. Fisher, Elizabeth M. Mette, Bradley N. Carlson, Gretchen J.A. Hansen, Tyler D. Ahrenstorff, Derek L. Bahr, Kevin Keeler, Brian Weidel, Abigail Lynch, Craig E. Williamson

Science

Coastal Wetland Vulnerability to Climate Change and Sea-Level Rise: Understanding Ecological Thresholds and Ecosystem Transformations

Coastal Wetland Vulnerability to Climate Change and Sea-Level Rise: Understanding Ecological Thresholds and Ecosystem Transformations

Eighteen USGS coastal scientists from all four coasts of the conterminous United States are working together to advance the understanding of climate change and sea-level rise impacts to coastal wetlands.
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Improve Control Efficiency Through Better Understanding of Grass Carp Movements and Habitat Use

The goal of this project is to address the threat of invasive Grass Carp by developing a comprehensive understanding of seasonal movements, habitat use, and areas of aggregation to determine when and where eradication efforts would be most effective.
Improve Control Efficiency Through Better Understanding of Grass Carp Movements and Habitat Use

Improve Control Efficiency Through Better Understanding of Grass Carp Movements and Habitat Use

The goal of this project is to address the threat of invasive Grass Carp by developing a comprehensive understanding of seasonal movements, habitat use, and areas of aggregation to determine when and where eradication efforts would be most effective.
Learn More

Identifying Spawning Tributaries and Specific Spawning Areas of Grass Carp

Grass carp ( Ctenopharyngodon idella) is an invasive species translocated to the United States in the 1960s due to its potential for nuisance aquatic vegetation control. Following escapes, authorized stockings, and unauthorized stockings, the grass carp range rapidly expanded in the U.S.
Identifying Spawning Tributaries and Specific Spawning Areas of Grass Carp

Identifying Spawning Tributaries and Specific Spawning Areas of Grass Carp

Grass carp ( Ctenopharyngodon idella) is an invasive species translocated to the United States in the 1960s due to its potential for nuisance aquatic vegetation control. Following escapes, authorized stockings, and unauthorized stockings, the grass carp range rapidly expanded in the U.S.
Learn More
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