This document summarizes work completed by Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant (IISG) during the summer and fall of 2023 in support of the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement (GLWQA) Annex 2 Lake Michigan Partnership. Specifically, IISG is supporting the Lake Michigan Partnership’s activities to determine science priorities for the Cooperative Science and Monitoring Initiative (CSMI) 2025 Field Year on Lake Michigan. The work described herein was sponsored by the International Joint Commission and comprised a 2-day in-person workshop plus a follow-up, online survey. Information contained in this report is intended as guidance only. While it is primarily written to help the Lake Michigan Partnership as the group sets research priorities for the 2025 intensive field year, other researchers and entities studying Lake Michigan might find the document useful.

The role of the Cooperative Science and Monitoring Initiative (CSMI) is to direct enhanced monitoring and research activities across each of the Laurentian Great Lakes to provide relevant information to address the science priorities of each Lake Partnership (established under the Lakewide Management Annex of the 2012 Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement). CSMI is an intensive effort to collect information on the health of one Great Lake each year, cycling through the lakes on a five-year period. In 2020/2021, it was Lake Michigan’s turn (over a two-year period due to COVID). This is an executive summary of the 2020/2021 research results and the associated white paper containing more specific information.

This quick fact sheet provides highlights of IISG’s work through 2023 with an Illinois perspective.

This quick fact sheet provides highlights of IISG’s work through 2023 with an Indiana perspective.

This quick fact sheet provides highlights of IISG’s work through 2023 with a bi-state perspective.

Invasive crayfish represent an ongoing threat to aquatic ecosystems in the Laurentian Great Lakes region, and one of the major pathways of introduction is through the sale of live organisms to consumers (i.e., organism-in-trade pathways). This study investigated the live trade of crayfish in the Great Lakes region through a survey of crayfish retailers to understand sale and utilization of crayfish, as well as retailer sentiments about conservation and environmental stewardship. A database of 617 retailers across eight Great Lakes states was compiled and 123 retailers were contacted for the survey. Sixteen retailers who sold crayfish through the aquarium and bait trades completed the survey. Findings revealed that retailers rely on their wholesalers for information about crayfish, signaling a critical need for increased outreach efforts directed towards these suppliers. Moreover, retailers expressed a need for clear and consistent communication regarding regulatory changes. The results underscore the importance of effective communication and education within the crayfish supply chain to mitigate the risk of future invasive crayfish introductions in the Great Lakes region.