| Abstract: | We examined changes in the nearshore zooplankton community of South Bay, Lake Huron before (1982) and after (2002–2005) the invasions of dreissenid mussels and Bythotrephes longimanus and found substantial changes including lower cladoceran abundance, particularly Bosminidae, and higher copepod abundance after invasion. We also estimated changes in the energy content of zooplankton potentially available to larval lake whitefish before and after invasion using published values of energy content per unit mass. There were no differences in available zooplankton energy in May, the period when larvae feed inshore based on thermal preferences and surface temperature data. We conclude that changes in nearshore zooplankton communities following these species invasions probably do not affect larval lake whitefish. (© 2009 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim) |
