The objectives of this study are to:

• Study the sources and contamination levels of enteric bacteria and viruses in Burns Ditch, one of the most polluted streams that flow into Lake Michigan in Northwest Indiana.
• Determine the impact of the pollution of Burns Ditch on the microbial quality of lake front water off West Beach, located three kilometers west of the water outfall.
• Use a molecular approach to detect viruses in stream and lake waters.
• Use a computer-based image analysis system to determine the quantity of viruses in water samples.

The objectives of this project are to:

• Describe the longitudinal distribution of adult and larval zebra mussels in streams owing from colonized lakes.
• Test mechanisms contributing to the apparent “settlement bottleneck” for zebra mussels in streams.
• Test whether predators may influence the invasibility of streams by zebra mussels.
• Measure responses of other aquatic biota to the presence of zebra mussels in lake-outflow environments.

Our three major objectives are to determine:

• The potential competitive interactions between exotic
  Eurasian ruffe and native yellow perch in Lake Michigan and throughout the Great Lakes, through new knowledge of their preferences for prey and habitat.
• How predators (e.g., pike) and another exotic animal, zebra mussels, might affect the success of ruffe and their interactions with yellow perch in the Great Lakes.
• The current composition of benthic macroinvertebrates in Lake Michigan to generate a baseline prior to the anticipated invasion by ruffe.

The objective of this project is to characterize perch effluent water quality from two different by similarly designed recirculating aquaculture systems.

The objective of this project is to establish the current marketing status and potential for yellow perch products with wholesale and retail businesses in the seafood marketing channels in the North Central Region of the United States.

The objectives of this project are to:

• Develop a growth curve for yellow perch fed purified and practical diets.
• Evaluate the effects of dietary lipids on growth, feed efficiency, and nutritional composition of fillets.
• Provide an indication of the essential fatty acid needs of yellow perch.