North Temperate Lakes LTER: Pelagic Macroinvertebrate Abundance 1983 - current

Five vertical tows are done at the deepest point of each of the seven primary lakes in
the Trout Lake area (Allequash, Big Muskellunge, Crystal, Sparkling, and Trout lakes and bog
lakes 27-02 [Crystal Bog], and 12-15 [Trout Bog]) using a 1-mm mesh net with a 1-m wide
mouth. On Trout Lake four additional sites are sampled, where depths are approximately at 10
m, 15 m, 20 m, and 25 m respectively, with three tows done at each site. All samples are
taken in darkness. Samples are preserved and counted, yielding numbers caught. These night
tows target the large invertebrate planktivore component of the pelagic zooplankton
community. Sampling Frequency: annually Number of sites: 11