NY Sea Grant | NYSG: AIS - Great Lakes Aquatic Invasive Species: Publications

Background

Currently, there are believed to be more than 175 aquatic invasive species (AIS) resident with self-sustaining populations in the Great Lakes Basin. These range from phytoplankton and zooplankton to various molluscs and fish, floating and rooted aquatic vegetation, and shrubs and trees. On this page, you can access NY Sea Grant information on general Great Lakes invasive species issues.

Information Bulletin

Biological Pollution of the Great Lakes: The Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Invasion of North America’s Freshwater Seas. CR O'Neill. 2005. NY Sea Grant Information Bulletin. 66 pp. (pdf)

This detailed 66 page information bulletin contains background information on what makes some non-native organisms invasive and others not; the history of Great Lakes AIS introductions; vectors of AIS introduction; geographic source regions for Great Lakes AIS; profiles of 165+ Great Lakes introduced species; and all species broken down by species type (pdf), species name (pdf), and common name (pdf). Contains photographs and distribution maps of many important species.

Fact Sheets

Biological Pollution of the Great Lakes: The Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Issue. CR O'Neill. 2005. NY Sea Grant Factsheet. 8 pp. (pdf)

This 8 page factsheet is based on the 66 page information bulletin "Biological Pollution of the Great Lakes: The Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Invasion of North America’s Freshwater Seas." It does not present detailed information on the species themselves, but rather addresses characteristics of invasive species versus non-native species, the history of Great Lakes AIS introductions, vectors of AIS introduction and geographic source regions for Great Lakes AIS.

Invasive Species of Lakes Erie and Ontario. H Domske and CR O'Neill. 2004. NY Sea Grant Factsheet. 8 pp. (pdf)

This 8 page factsheet addresses in a general way the Great Lakes invasive species issue and then presents information on several important Great Lakes AIS, including: zebra mussels, spiny and fishhook waterfleas, sea lamprey, alewife, common carp, round gobies, purple loosestrife, water chestnut and Eurasian watermilfoil.