Tuesday, August 5, 2008: 1:30 PM-5:00 PM
102 C, Midwest Airlines Center
SYMP 7 - Ecological Processes Across the Salinity Divide: Contrasts and Comparisons in Marine and Great Lakes Ecosystems
This session will present currently important contrasts between ecological processes in marine and inland seas (Great Lakes) and introduce a number of key concepts in aquatic ecology to a more general ecological audience. The theme is comparison between ecological processes in marine and Great Lakes ecosystems. The Laurentian Great Lakes are inland seas subject to meso-oceanic physical factors such as strong wind-driven currents, earth-spin, and waves large enough to sink large ships. These physical factors have prevented establishment in Great Lakes’ main basins of many organisms found in smaller lakes, such as vascular macrophytes and littoral zone fishes. Unlike the African Great Lakes and Lake Baikal, which are relatively old, and support diverse and endemic species, the Laurentian Great Lakes are only ~10,000 years old. Great Lakes native biota are primarily species that survived Pleistocene glaciation in river refugia and marine glacial relict species. Physical factors may promote success of freshwater-tolerant, marine coastal invasive species (e.g., sea lamprey, alewife, dreissenid mussels, and Cladophora). Comparison of diverse marine ecosystems and the comparatively depauperate Great Lakes ecosystems will provide insights into critical ecological “services” of marine systems that are lacking, or are less efficient in the Great Lakes. However, interaction between ecologists working in the Great Lakes and coastal marine environments is not common. The purpose of the session is to encourage interaction and communication between marine and Great Lakes ecologists working with complementary ideas. The session will explore some important and currently relevant and emerging themes, including invasive species, effects of invasive species on nutrient cycling, ecological change in upper trophic levels, ecological stoichiometry, the ecological role of aquatic viruses in marine and freshwater ecosystems, the peculiar ecology of sea mounts, physical processes shaping Great Lakes ecology, and population ecology of marine and Great Lakes fishes.
Organizer:	John Janssen, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
Co-organizer:	Erica B. Young, University of Wisconsin- Milwaukee
Moderator:	Erica B. Young, University of Wisconsin- Milwaukee
1:30 PM			Introductory Remarks
1:35 PM	SYMP 7-1		Migration of ideas across the salinity gradient James Kitchell, Univ. of Wisconsin-Madison
2:00 PM	SYMP 7-2		Growth of invasion biology in aquatic ecosystems Hugh MacIsaac, University of Windsor
2:20 PM	SYMP 7-3		Dreissenid mussels in the Great Lakes and changes to nearshore nutrient ecology Robert Hecky, University of Minnesota - Duluth, Sairah Malkin, University of Waterloo, Tedy Ozersky, University of Waterloo, David Depew, University of Waterloo, Adam Houben, University of Waterloo, Stephanie Guildford, University of Minnesota - Duluth
2:40 PM	SYMP 7-4		The contribution of coastal marine invertebrates to the nearshore nitrogen cycle Catherine A. Pfister, University of Chicago
3:00 PM	SYMP 7-5		The ecological role of viruses in marine and freshwater ecosystems Steven Wilhelm, University of Tennessee
3:20 PM			Break
3:30 PM	SYMP 7-6		Enhancing ecological education: Research experience for undergraduates in marine and Great Lakes systems Carmen Aguilar, University of Wisconsin, Russell Cuhel, University of Wisconsin
3:45 PM	SYMP 7-7		Ecological stoichiometry: Contrasts across the marine and freshwater divide Robert W. Sterner, National Science Foundation, Bridget Seegers, University of Minnesota
4:05 PM	SYMP 7-8		Adrift at "sea": Episodes and pitfalls associated with survival of marine and freshwater fish larvae John M. Dettmers, Great Lakes Fishery Commission, Michael J. Weber, South Dakota State University, Scott M. Miehls, Great Lakes Fishery Commission
4:25 PM	SYMP 7-9		Mysids: The krill of the North American Great Lakes and the Baltic Sea Lars Rudstam, Cornell University, Sture Hansson, University of Stockholm, Brent Boscarino, Cornell University, Marten Ogonowski, University of Stockholm
4:45 PM	SYMP 7-10		Seamounts, banks, and boulder piles: The functional role of abrupt topographies in deep water Peter Auster, University of Connecticut, John Janssen, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

See more of Symposium

See more of The 93rd ESA Annual Meeting (August 3 -- August 8, 2008)