Cladophora Research and Management in the Great Lakes Proceedings of a Workshop Held at the Great Lakes WATER Institute, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, December 8, 2004 GLWI Special Report No. 2005-01 This workshop was funded in part by the Wisconsin Coastal Management Program and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management under the Coastal Zone Management Act, Grant # NA04NOS4190062. CLADOPHORA RESEARCH AND MANAGEMENT IN THE GREAT LAKES Proceedings of a Workshop Held at the Great Lakes WATER Institute, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee December 8, 2004 Workshop Organizers: Harvey A. Bootsma1 Erika T. Jensen1 Erica B. Young2 John A. Berges2 1Great Lakes WATER Institute, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee 2Department of Biological Sciences, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Workshop Sponsors UW-Milwaukee Great Lakes WATER Institute Special Report No. 2005-01 This workshop was funded in part by the Wisconsin Coastal Management Program and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management under the Coastal Zone Management Act, Grant # NA04NOS4190062. ii iii Table of Contents Introduction................................................................................................................................1 Cladophora confounds coastal communities – public perceptions and management dilemmas. V. Harris, University of Wisconsin Sea Grant .............................................5 Cladophora – How is it handled? R. Stauffer, Milwaukee Community Service Corps.........15 Why filamentous green algae dominated benthic habitats after the zebra mussel invasion in Saginaw Bay, Lake Huron. R. Pillsbury, University of Wisconsin – Oshkosh........17 Cladophora and the Beach: Implications for Public Health. G. Kleinheinz and E. Englebert, University of Wisconsin – Oshkosh.............................................................19 The interaction of two nuisance species in Lake Michigan: Cladophora glomerata and Dreissena polymorpha. W. Stankovich, University of Wisconsin – Plattville..............31 The weakest link and what makes it stink. S. Davis-Foust and J. Janssen. University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee ...................................................................................................37 Molecular phylogeography and species discrimination of freshwater Cladophora (Cladophorales, Chlorophyta) in North America. K. Müller, University of Waterloo.........................................................................................................................39 Nuisance Cladophora in Milwaukee urban streams - habitats, seasonality, productivity, nutrient trapping, heavy metal sponging - the ultimate foodweb bottleneck. C. Sandgren, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee......................43 Modeling Cladophora growth: A review of the Auer-Canale framework. M. Auer, Michigan Technological University ..............................................................................57 The contribution of Dreissena to the resurgence of Cladohpora in Lake Erie. S. Higgins, University of Waterloo................................................................................63 Systematic survey of Cladophora and water quality on the Wisconsin Lake Michigan shoreline. P. Garrison and S. Greb, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources .......73 Temporal and spatial patterns of Cladophora biomass and nutrient stoichiometry In Lake Michigan. H.A. Bootsma, E.B. Young, and J.A. Berges, Wisconsin- Milwaukee......................................................................................................................81 iv Can activity of enzymes involved in nutrient assimilation be useful as indices of nutrient status in Cladophora? E.B. Young, J.A. Berges, and H.A. Bootsma, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. ..................................................................................................89 Discussion forum: Reaching a consensus on what is known, and setting future research priorities. E.B. Young and J.A. Berges, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee ............95 Appendix 1. Workshop program...........................................................................................103 Appendix 2. List of attendees ...............................................................................................105 Cladophora Research and Management in the Great Lakes Introduction Excessive growth of the filamentous green alga, Cladophora sp., was one of the most obvious symptoms of eutrophication in the Great Lakes between the 1950s and 1970s1. During the latter part of this period, a large amount of research was conducted to determine the causes of excessive Cladophora growth. While various factors, including nitrogen2, phosphorus3,4,5, temperature6,7 and irradiance8,9 were found to influence Cladophora growth, phosphorus appeared to be the key factor responsible for excessive growth, and phosphorus abatement was seen as the most effective method of solving the problem. This approach appeared to be validated by the decline in the abundance of Cladophora and other algae in the 1980s following the removal of phosphorus from detergents, improved phosphorus removal by sewage treatment plants, and changes in agricultural practices designed to reduce phosphorus runoff from land – actions that resulted from a 1983 amendment to the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement. In the past five to ten years, excessive Cladophora growth has re-emerged as a management problem in parts of the Great Lakes. This has resulted in public complaint, generally related to the decline in aesthetic conditions near the lakeshore. Other negative impacts include human health hazards (e.g. Cladophora mats may promote the growth or retention of pathogens), the clogging of water intakes (including those of power plants), the loss of recreation opportunities, and declining lakefront property values. In addition to direct impacts on humans, excessive Cladophora growth may have significant impacts on ecosystem functions and properties such as nutrient cycling, energy flow and food web structure. These impacts have received very little attention to date. Until recently, the Cladophora problem has been observed and addressed primarily at the local scale. However, as the research and management community has become more aware of the problem, it has become increasingly obvious that this is not just a local problem, but is a larger, Great Lakes issue that may require a large-scale solution. Because the research community has only recently recognized the magnitude of the problem, there has been little communication among researchers and managers in the Great Lakes region regarding research and management activities related to Cladophora. A primary objective of this workshop was to share current perspectives and promote ongoing communication among researchers, managers and the public regarding the Cladophora problem. From the historic perspective, the recent resurgence of Cladophora in the Great Lakes is puzzling. It certainly was not anticipated, as phosphorus concentrations in all of the Great Lakes except Lake Erie are at or below the target levels set by the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement. Because there has been a 20-year hiatus in research on nearshore algae, attempts to understand the current Cladophora problem are based largely on what was learned in earlier studies. Those studies were largely successful in identifying the causes of and solutions to the Cladophora problem at the time. But the fact that this problem has resurfaced following the implementation of management 1 strategies that were previously successful at controlling it suggests that there are fundamental changes occurring in these large aquatic ecosystems and extrapolation from an earlier understanding of the problem to the current situation may be misleading. While the Cladophora resurgence is of concern in itself, it may be symptomatic of larger changes that are affecting chemical and biological dynamics at the whole-lake scale. These changes need to be identified and understood to determine whether current management strategies remain valid or need to be modified. A second objective of this workshop was to assess our current knowledge related to Cladophora and the causes of its resurgence, in the hope that this assessment will be used to guide further research and management efforts. An additional goal was to promote collaboration and a Great Lakes comparative approach to understanding the problem. A number of hypotheses have been presented regarding causes of the recent Cladophora resurgence, including climate change, increased nutrient inputs, lake level fluctuations, changes in water clarity, and alteration of internal nutrient cycles. The ability to test these hypotheses will be improved by comparing results from lakes that differ with regard to chemistry, hydrodynamics, climate, bathymetry, biotic composition and geology. Much of the public living near the Great Lakes has become made aware of the problem though observation or the media, but has been poorly informed of the nature of the problem. There are general misconceptions that foul-smelling beaches are the direct result of sewage washing ashore – an understandable misconception considering the appearance and smell of rotting algae and its associated invertebrates. Even when it is understood that algae are the direct cause of aesthetic problems on beaches, the public is unaware or misinformed of potential