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Cercopagis Invasion of Lake Michigan: Predictable Responses or "Invasional Meltdown" of the Planktonic Food Web?
Like the spiny waterflea, Bythotrephes cederstroemii before it, the invasion of Lake Michigan by the fishhook waterflea Cercopagis pengoi is of great concern because it is a predatory zooplankton that competes with larval yellow perch and alewives for food. This new invasion offers an important opportunity to test the predictability of how Great Lakes ecosystems respond to repeated invasions by ecologically similar planktonic species. This continuing project examines Lake Michigan’s ability to absorb this new invader by documenting the dynamics of competing predatory zooplankton populations. This work addresses a cross-cutting AIS and Fisheries priority of evaluating the effects of invasive species on Great Lakes food webs as well as an Ecosystems & Habitats priority of evaluating the importance of invertebrate species to planktonic food webs.
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