The Basics (Geology & Geography)
How were the Great Lakes originally created?
By the melting of glaciers.
In a food chain, what do you call a series of plants and animals where each depends on the one below it for food?
A food chain.
What is the main difference between point-source and non-point-source pollution?
Where the pollution comes from.
The sea lamprey and zebra mussel are examples of what Great Lakes problem?
Invasive species.
What is the term for a geographic area that includes all the rivers and streams flowing into a lake or sea?
A watershed.
According to the food chain diagram, if all the phytoplankton died, which animals would lose their food source?
The smelt, lake trout, and herring gulls.
Which chemical, often found in detergents, is a major cause of algae mats growing in the Great Lakes?
Phosphorus.
If you catch a 30+ inch Carp in Lake Erie, what does the Fish Advisory say about eating it?
Do not eat these fish.
Insects are eaten by tiny fish, which are eaten by larger fish, which are then eaten by eagles. What is this process called?
A food chain.
Based on the diagram, which two species depend directly or indirectly on smelt to survive?
Lake trout and herring gulls.
Which group of animals suffered the most from DDT poisoning?
Fish-eating birds.
Which two contaminants are listed as reasons for the Walleye fish advisory?
PCBs and Dioxins.
What is a primary cause of habitat loss in the Great Lakes region?
Loss of forests and wetlands due to industrial activity.