Compilation of Data for Parameterization of an Ecopath Model of Lake Superior at the Beginning of the 21st Century (2001-2016)

This data release includes tabular data files. The dataset consists of four input data tables (Appendices A1-A4) for a Lake Superior EcoPath with EcoSim (EwE; http://ecopath.org) model parameterized to the early 21st century using 2001-2016 collections. The data presented here are primarily intended to development a static ecosystem model representing a snapshot of Lake Superior circa 2005 when the bulk of information was collected. Input data were compiled from multiple federal, state, provincial, and tribal agencies, academic institutions, published reports, theses, and peer review journal articles. This dataset includes results from lake-wide Cooperative Science and Monitoring Initiative surveys (CSMI; CSMI 2020) of Lake Superior undertaken in 2005-06, 2011 and 2016. We provide results of three lake-wide acoustic surveys (2003-2006, 2011 and 2016) that provided biomass estimates (kg/ha) of pelagic prey (cisco, bloater, kiyi and rainbow smelt); the later two (2011 and 2016) were part of the larger CSMI efforts. Our inputs on fish rely heavily on data included in Isaac (2010) who used USGS bottom trawl samples. These trawl data had been included in a previously released data set (Great Lakes Science Center 2019). We include these samples in the current release because we made a QA/QC effort to verify that the results of Isaac (2010) could be reproduced. We found that biomass estimates were close to that reported by Isaac (2010) for most groups (see associated metadata record process step 8 for details), but not exact. We opted to use biomass estimates as reported in Isaac (2010) for four species because his production to biomass (P/B) we’re using in the EcoPath model are explicitly linked to the biomass estimates provided by Isaac (2010). Collectively, these data represent the best available estimates of lake-wide population characteristics (biomass, production, consumption, diet, harvest, etc.) across trophic levels from bacteria to sea lamprey. Readers interested in learning more details about this data compilation and balancing of this Lake Superior ecosystem model should read the associated manuscript (Matthias, et al.), which is noted in the metadata cross reference section.
References:
Cooperative Science and Monitoring Initiative (CSMI). 2020. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. https://www.epa.gov/great-lakes-monitoring/cooperative-science-and-monitoring-initiative-csmi [accessed 10/82020]
Isaac, E.J., 2010. An Evaluation of the Importance of Mysis relicta to the Lake Superior Fish Community. University of Minnesota - Duluth, Duluth, MN. https://conservancy.umn.edu/handle/11299/93161 [accessed 10/8/2020].
Matthias, B.G., T.R. Hrabik, J. Hoffman, M. Seider, D. Yule, M. Sierszen, and P. Yurista. In review. Trophic transfer efficiency in the Lake Superior food web: assessing the impacts of non-native species. Journal of Great Lakes Research.
USGS (U.S. Geological Survey), 2019. Great Lakes Research Vessel Operations 1958-2018. (ver. 3.0, April 2019): U.S. Geological Survey data release. Available from: https://doi.org/10.5066/F75M63X0 [accessed 10/8/2020].

Tags: biota, ecosystem-functions, food-web, freshwater-ecosystems, native-species, nonindigenous-species, usgs-5f43d7c682ce4c3d1222d328
Organization: Department of the Interior