This report provides an overview of the current state of scientific knowledge concerning PFAS, as well as a concise assessment of current and potential impacts of its continued use. It also focuses on exposure pathways impacting the health of the people, organisms, and environment in Indiana and the region and provides recommendations regarding pressing challenges and how we can work to reduce the presence of PFAS while also limiting exposure and negative impacts. Initiated and produced through Purdue University’s Institute for a Sustainable Future, this report was researched and drafted in collaboration with Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant, state and regional organizations, as well as scientists from multiple Indiana academic institutions including Purdue University, Indiana University-Bloomington, and the University of Notre Dame, and Indiana Department of Environmental Management.

To view the report, please visit Purdue’s Institute for a Sustainable Future at: https://docs.lib.purdue.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1001&context=isfdocs

Ecological complexity may improve ecosystem function, stability and adaptability to natural and anthropogenic disturbances. Intraspecific trophic variation can represent a significant component of total community variation and can influence food web structure and function. Thus, understanding how trophic niches are partitioned between intraspecific and interspecific processes could improve our understanding of food web dynamics.

We examined gut contents, fatty acids and stable isotope ratios in round goby (Neogobius melanostomus) and yellow perch (Perca flavescens) across six sites in Lake Michigan, USA, to determine patterns in intra‐ and interspecific trophic composition (i.e., mean gut or fatty acid composition) and diversity (i.e., the diversity of gut items or fatty acids). We also examined relationships between fatty acid diversity and gut content characteristics to understand potential mechanisms shaping individual trophic phenotypes. There was significant variation in both trophic composition and diversity among sites, and individual and spatial variation was as important to total trophic variation as species identity. Round goby that consumed dreissenid mussels had more diverse fatty acid profiles than those that consumed other benthic invertebrates, whereas yellow perch fatty acid diversity was not related to gut content composition. Our results confirm that intraspecific variation in resource use can be as important to trophic dynamics as interspecific variation, and that spatial variation in lower level food web processes or habitat may strongly structure local food web dynamics. Individual‐level examination of trophic diversity, in concert with trophic composition, could provide additional information about the resilience, function and adaptability of local food webs.

Document available through publisher’s website: 10.1111/eff.12472

Land use planners in the Great Lakes region make recommendations that can affect the quality and quantity of ground and surface water resources. Challenges include a lack of up-to-date data, and insufficient political and financial support. In this publication, university researchers in the Great Lakes region show how collaboration led to development and maintenance of an online decision support system.

Document is available from the Purdue Extension Education Store at, https://edustore.purdue.edu/fnr-601-w.html.

A rain garden is a green infrastructure project that can improve the quality of stormwater, minimize pollution, and enhance biodiversity and pollinator habitat. Purdue, Iowa State and Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant researchers explain how to site, size, design, install and maintain a rain garden, and provide advice on plant selection, too. Document is available for download in the Purdue Extension Ed-Store.

Invasive crayfish pose a substantial threat to aquatic habitats in the Great Lakes Region because of their ability to reduce habitat quality and dramatically alter aquatic food webs. Currently, efforts to prevent the introduction and spread of invasive crayfish consist largely of reducing the size of existing populations and encouraging people to refrain from releasing crayfish into new bodies of water. The ICC focuses on improving upon our collective management and outreach capabilities.

For more detailed information, visit Invasive Crayfish Collaborative

Invasive crayfish pose a significant and ongoing threat to aquatic ecosystems in the Laurentian Great Lakes (GL) region. Coordination and communication among crayfish stakeholders are crucial for effective management. The Invasive Crayfish Collaborative (ICC) brings industry, science, and land management stakeholders together to enhance the management of invasive crayfish in the GL. To systematically guide the direction of the ICC and help facilitate the coordination of research, collaboration, and outreach, a five-year strategic plan was developed. This plan, informed by data from ICC surveys, workshops, and external feedback, outlines priority projects designed to equip stakeholders and partners with the necessary resources to effectively tackle the challenges presented by invasive crayfish. This plan plays a key role in highlighting the collective vision for crayfish management and ultimately contributes to the protection of native species and preservation of our aquatic ecosystems.