Cooperative Agreement for CESU-affiliated Partner with Great Lakes – Northern Forest Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit

The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Great Lakes Science Center has a new research project seeking to estimate the survival of lake whitefish eggs in Thunder Bay, Lake Huron that ultimately seeks to determine whether invasive dreissenid mussels have a negative impact.   This research is to test a hypothesis that invasive mussels reduce lake whitefish egg survival and thus is a key factor underlying a more than 50% reduction in lake whitefish yield in Lakes Huron and Michigan over the past two decades. This research project would be part of a multi-agency effort that evaluates the effectiveness of small-scale invasive mussel control on lake whitefish egg survival.