Geology topics

Kelley Smith

Publications and source records attributed to Kelley Smith.

2 recordsLinked to original sources

USGS2022

Field application of carbon dioxide as a behavioral control method for invasive red swamp crayfish (Procambarus clarkii) in southeastern Michigan water retention ponds

This study evaluated carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) injected into water as a possible behavioral stimulant to enhance capture and removal of invasive red swamp crayfish (RSC, Procambarus clarkii [Girard, 1852]) from a retention pond in southeastern Michigan. Objectives of this study were (1) to determine if target CO 2 concentrations were attainable within the infested pond and (2) to determine if CO 2 treatment was effective to push RSC either towards shorelines or onto dry land, where they could be collected and removed. Carbon dioxide was applied directly into one treatment pond (about [~]2,500 cubic meters) in Novi, Michigan. Two nearby ponds in Livonia, Mich., were used as untreated control ponds. Crayfish removal efficiency was evaluated in all ponds using baited traps and shoreline surveys. Results showed that the CO 2 treatment pond reached its target concentration of greater than (>) 200 milligrams per liter (mg/L) of CO 2 , a benchmark determined from previous laboratory studies, approximately 11 hours after injection started, and maintained concentrations between 200 and 351 mg/L of CO 2 for about 2.5 days. During treatment, some emergent crayfish were observed near influent culverts around the pond, which possibly brought about a behavioral response. However, the number of individuals and crayfish observations were minimal and infrequent. Crayfish continued to be removed throughout CO 2 treatment with baited traps and perimeter surveys, but differences in catch rates between the treatment and control ponds were not apparent and confounded by a temporal decline in catch rates across all ponds. Overall, this study demonstrated that open-water treatment applications with CO 2 are possible, but its effectiveness to enhance RSC removal was unclear because of the limited crayfish observations.

Michigan↗

USGS2012

Status and trends of prey fish populations in Lake Michigan, 2012

The U.S. Geological Survey Great Lakes Science Center has conducted lake-wide surveys of the fish community in Lake Michigan each fall since 1973 using standard 12-m bottom trawls towed along contour at depths of 9 to 110 m at each of seven index transects. The resulting data on relative abundance, size and age structure, and condition of individual fishes are used to estimate various population parameters that are in turn used by state and tribal agencies in managing Lake Michigan fish stocks. All seven established index transects of the survey were completed in 2012. The survey provides relative abundance and biomass estimates between the 5-m and 114-m depth contours of the lake (herein, lake-wide) for prey fish populations, as well as burbot, yellow perch, and the introduced dreissenid mussels. Lake-wide biomass of alewives in 2012 was estimated at 9 kilotonnes (kt, 1 kt = 1000 metric tonnes), which continues the trend of unusually low alewife biomass since 2004 but represented a 20% increase from the 2011 estimate. The age distribution of alewives larger than 100 mm was dominated (i.e., 84%) by age-2. Record low biomass was observed for several species, including bloater (0.4 kt), rainbow smelt (0.1 kt), deepwater sculpin (1.5 kt), and ninespine stickleback (0.01 kt). Slimy sculpin lake-wide biomass was 0.73 kt in 2012, which was the third consecutive year revealing a decline. Estimated biomass of round goby increased by 79% to 3 kt. Burbot lake-wide biomass (0.5 kt in 2012) has remained below 3 kt since 2001. Numeric density of age-0 yellow perch (i.e., < 100 mm) was only 2 fish per ha, which is indicative of a relatively poor year-class. Lake-wide biomass estimates of dreissenid mussels have continued to increase from 2010, from 12 to 95 kt in 2012. Overall, the total lake-wide prey fish biomass estimate (sum of alewife, bloater, rainbow smelt, deepwater sculpin, slimy sculpin, round goby, and ninespine stickleback) in 2012 was 15 kt, which represented the lowest total biomass of the time series.

Lake Michigan↗