This illustration captures some of those stories about the Great Lakes ecosystem. Big fish are eating little fish. Exotic species are insinuating themselves in the food chains of long-time residents.

To identify the species in this poster, click on the image  below of the key. It will provide you with a numbered list of identified species.

As these stories of change have occurred, New York Sea Grant has been observing, recording, researching. Over the last few decades, NYSG research, outreach, and education in Lake Ontario and Lake Erie have centered on such topics as lake food webs, population dynamics, and predator-prey interactions, with special emphasis on fish communities, fish ecology and their population dynamics. Groundbreaking work has been done, too, on aquatic invasive, exotic, and non-indigenous species. Some projects have also addressed topics born of human activities and interactions such as water quality, habitat destruction and the economics of sportfishing and agritourism.

Poster ordering information
Great Lakes and Long Island Bays food web posters. Two separate 24" X 36" fullcolor illustrated posters with identification keys. Individual poster: $5; one of each: $8. Posters shipped in mailing tube. CD with both images (pdf) to print out 11" x 17": $8. CD and both posters: $15. Call  NYSG Communications at 631.632.9124 for discounts on multiple posters.

About the artist
Jan C. Porinchak comes from a family of artists and art educators and is himself an art teacher on Long Island. In this poster, his detailed work illustrates the exquisite intricacy of such subjects as the flora and fauna of the Great Lakes. An avid outdoorsman and naturalist on Long Island, he also enjoys fishing in the Great Lakes.