The Great Lakes
"The Great Lakes contain the largest supply of freshwater in the world, holding about 18% of the world’s total freshwater and about 90% of the United States’ total freshwater. The Lakes provide drinking water to 40 million U.S. and Canadian citizens. Combined, the lakes cover an area of over 94,000 square miles (245,000 square kilometers) and contain 5,400 cubic miles (23,000 cubic kilometers) of water.
The Great Lakes are a series of five interconnecting large lakes, one small lake, four connecting channels, and the St. Lawrence Seaway. The five large lakes are: Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario. The small lake, located between Lake Huron and Lake Erie, is Lake St. Clair. Connecting these lakes together are the St. Marys, the St. Clair, The Detroit, and the Niagara Rivers. Average elevation in the Great Lakes ranges from 597 ft. (182 meters) on Lake Superior, to 242 ft. (74 meters) on Lake Ontario based on the International Great Lakes Datum of 1985 (IGLD85).
The climate, soils, and topography in the Great Lakes region vary due to the large size of the watershed. In the northern regions the ground consists of granite bedrock beneath a thin layer of acidic soils. The climate is much cooler than in the southern regions, where the soils are thicker and contain mixtures of clays, silts, sands, gravels, and boulders deposited by the glaciers that formed the lakes. The southern region of the Great Lakes watershed is dominated by agriculture due to its fertile soils."
The Great Lakes are a series of five interconnecting large lakes, one small lake, four connecting channels, and the St. Lawrence Seaway. The five large lakes are: Superior, Michigan, Huron, Erie, and Ontario. The small lake, located between Lake Huron and Lake Erie, is Lake St. Clair. Connecting these lakes together are the St. Marys, the St. Clair, The Detroit, and the Niagara Rivers. Average elevation in the Great Lakes ranges from 597 ft. (182 meters) on Lake Superior, to 242 ft. (74 meters) on Lake Ontario based on the International Great Lakes Datum of 1985 (IGLD85).
The climate, soils, and topography in the Great Lakes region vary due to the large size of the watershed. In the northern regions the ground consists of granite bedrock beneath a thin layer of acidic soils. The climate is much cooler than in the southern regions, where the soils are thicker and contain mixtures of clays, silts, sands, gravels, and boulders deposited by the glaciers that formed the lakes. The southern region of the Great Lakes watershed is dominated by agriculture due to its fertile soils."
Background
"The Great Lakes ecosystem contains various types of habitats: forests, marshes, wetlands, and dune communities. These communities allow for more than 3,500 species of plants and animals to inhabit the basin. The many varieties of mammals, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and fish make the Great Lakes basin a unique and complicated ecosystem.The northern parts of the Great Lakes region are home to dense coniferous and northern hardwood forests, while largely grasslands and prairies cover the southern areas of the region. The marshes, wetlands, and dune communities are located near and along the many lakeshores.
Some of the mammals native to the Great Lakes region include the black bear, fox, moose, coyote, gray wolf, elk, white-tailed deer, bobcat, beaver, otter, and canada lynx. Although these animals are native, many are now endangered and are rarely seen in the region.
The amphibians and reptiles native to the region include many species of frogs, turtles, and snakes, including the poisonous eastern Massasauga rattlesnake.
Native birds of the region include the great blue heron, the bald eagle, the piping plover, the herring gull, the whooping crane, the snowy owl, and wood ducks.
The Great Lakes are home to a number of fish, some of which are native and others of which have been introduced. Among those that are native to the region are the brown bullhead, the bloater, brook trout, the burbot, the deepwater sculpin, the emerald shiner, lake sturgeon, lake trout, freshwater drum, lake whitefish, lake herring, the longnose sucker, the ninespine stickleback, largemouth bass, pumpkinseed, muskellunge, northern pike, rock bass, slimy sculpin, smallmouth bass, walleye, white bass, yellow perch, and white sucker. Species that have been introduced include: alewife, white perch, brown trout, carp, rainbow smelt, various pacific salmon species, round goby, ruffe, and sea lamprey."
Works Cited
"About Our Great Lakes - Intro: NOAA Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory - Ann Arbor, MI, USA." About Our Great Lakes - Intro: NOAA Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory - Ann Arbor, MI, USA. NOAA, n.d. Web. 04 Dec. 2016.
<https://www.glerl.noaa.gov//education/ourlakes/>.
Some of the mammals native to the Great Lakes region include the black bear, fox, moose, coyote, gray wolf, elk, white-tailed deer, bobcat, beaver, otter, and canada lynx. Although these animals are native, many are now endangered and are rarely seen in the region.
The amphibians and reptiles native to the region include many species of frogs, turtles, and snakes, including the poisonous eastern Massasauga rattlesnake.
Native birds of the region include the great blue heron, the bald eagle, the piping plover, the herring gull, the whooping crane, the snowy owl, and wood ducks.
The Great Lakes are home to a number of fish, some of which are native and others of which have been introduced. Among those that are native to the region are the brown bullhead, the bloater, brook trout, the burbot, the deepwater sculpin, the emerald shiner, lake sturgeon, lake trout, freshwater drum, lake whitefish, lake herring, the longnose sucker, the ninespine stickleback, largemouth bass, pumpkinseed, muskellunge, northern pike, rock bass, slimy sculpin, smallmouth bass, walleye, white bass, yellow perch, and white sucker. Species that have been introduced include: alewife, white perch, brown trout, carp, rainbow smelt, various pacific salmon species, round goby, ruffe, and sea lamprey."
Works Cited
"About Our Great Lakes - Intro: NOAA Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory - Ann Arbor, MI, USA." About Our Great Lakes - Intro: NOAA Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory - Ann Arbor, MI, USA. NOAA, n.d. Web. 04 Dec. 2016.
<https://www.glerl.noaa.gov//education/ourlakes/>.