Designing a Monitoring Program for Ohio's Lake Erie Shoreline Fish Community: The First Step in a Long-Term Data Series

Over the past century many anthropogenic influences, such as armoring, wetland diking, high nutrients and sediment inputs and Driessena have affected the Lake Erie shoreline.   These changes have doubtlessly influence the shoreline fish community, but there is no current monitoring to guide management of this this highly impacted ecosystem.    In 2011 we initiated intensive monitoring in order to design a long-term sampling program for the Ohio Division of Wildlife.  We found that night time electrofishing captured more species and individuals than day time electrofishing or trap netting suggesting that this method provides a more complete community description.  Individual based species accumulation curves showed that 500 meters per site and a total of 11 sites would maximize information about the fish community.  Highly altered shorelines have significantly lower species richness than sites that have at least some natural features.  Gradients in water quality extending out from tributaries may also influence traits of the fish community.  Long-term and spatially comprehensive observational data are crucial to the management of large ecosystems.  Our study is providing a well-planned basis for monitoring of a habitat that is essential to ecosystem function in a Great Lake and provides substantial benefit to human users.