Download AIS Intro PowerPoint Slides

Download Ballast Water PowerPoint Slides

Updated February 15, 2022

In this Great Lakes Invaders Investigation students will learn the difference between native, non-native, and invasive species. Students will learn about invasive species introduced to the Great Lakes, how they were introduced, why these species are a problem, and various management practices that can be used to prevent further spread or introduction of aquatic invasive species.

After completing this investigation, students in grades 5-8 will be able to:

• Differentiate between native, non-native, and invasive species.
• Identify Great Lakes aquatic invasive species and state why they are a problem.
• Suggest management recommendations based on species characteristics.

The lesson plan is best used with an invasive species education kits called the Attack Pack. Attack Packs include examples of invasive species associated with the lesson plan and information cards on each organisms. To borrow an Attack Pack for free contact your local Ohio Sea Grant Educator.

• Sue Bixler, bixler.42@osu.edu (Toledo area and southeast Michigan)
• Tory Gabriel, gabriel.78@osu.edu (Oak Harbor area)
• Sarah Orlando, orlando.42@osu.edu (Sandusky/Lorain area)
• Scott Hardy, hardy.116@osu.edu (Cleveland area)
• Jill Bartolotta, bartolotta.2@osu.edu (Mentor/Ashtabula area)

Ohio Sea Grant and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources are participating in a binational multi-agency effort aimed at raising public awareness and promoting actions to prevent the spread of harmful aquatic invasive species (AIS). This webinar provided information on aquatic invasive species and prevention efforts in the Great Lakes.

Grass carp, also called white amur, are stocked in ponds to control aquatic vegetation without the use of herbicides.

The very reason that you want grass carp in your pond makes them harmful to wild habitats: They remove large amounts of aquatic vegetation which our native fish, waterfowl and other creatures need to survive.

Never release unwanted grass carp into natural waterbodies.

Research Brief
Invasive Species Management and Research: Are we working at the same scales?
Dr. Jonathan Bossenbroek, Professor of Ecology, The University of Toledo

Guest Lecture
Fish Management in the 21st Century
Rich Carter, Executive Administrator, Fish Management Group, Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Wildlife

This powerpoint provides detailed information on the 4 species of invasive Asian carp (grass carp, black carp, bighead carp, silver carp) and the dangers they pose to local ecosystems.

The round goby, Neogobius melanostomus, is an invasive benthic fish species in the Laurentian Great Lakes that is threatening native fish populations through competition, predation, and trophic dynamic change. This study examined the trophic dynamic plasticity of round goby along a depth gradient based on laboratory and field observations to determine prey species consumed and mussel prey size selection. Prey size selection in the laboratory was assessed by presenting individual round goby with quagga mussels (Dreissena rostriformis bugensis) of various class sizes (i.e., 6.0–9.9 mm, 10.0–12.9 mm, 13.0–15.9 mm, and 16.0–18.9 mm in length). Round goby exhibited a selection preference for small sized quagga mussels, although in individual trial events, mussels were consumed from all four size classes. Prey species consumed from shallow and deep sites in the western basin of Lake Erie were assessed using individual gut contents to calculate measures of prey importance, diversity, and dominance. Based on the Index of Relative Importance (IRI), Cladocera was found to be the most consumed prey item for both males and females and between study sites. Both sexes consumed a variety of prey items although females exhibited greater prey dominance or reliance on one prey item. Round goby individuals at the shallow, natural shoreline site had the highest trophic diversity, while individuals at the deep site exhibited the highest prey dominance. Diet of round goby in the western basin of Lake Erie are mainly dominated by just a few prey items.