Great Lakes SmackDown!
By Alice Rossignol and Rachael Gleason
Welcome to the Great Lakes SmackDown!
Which invasive species is the most ecologically destructive to the Great Lakes? We pitted eight of the region’s most formidable aquatic invasive species against each other in “lake fights” in true March Madness form.
We asked biologists, resource managers, invasive species experts and Echo readers to weigh in on each battle. Follow the links below to see how the contenders fared in three rounds of lake fights. Check out each battle’s “discussion” to see our reasoning behind each winner.
Updates:
- Echo launched the Great Lakes SmackDown’s sequel, Terrestrial Terror, in March 2011. See which land brawler took the title of the region’s most destructive terrestrial invader.
- The SmackDown! is a national finalist and first-place regional winner in the Society of Professional Journalists Mark of Excellence Awards for online opinion and commentary.
Let’s Fight!
Week 1 Oct. 4th-8th: Introduction
Week 2 Oct. 11th-15th : Round 1 Matches
Zebra Mussel vs. Quagga Mussel
Eurasian Watermilfoil vs. Curly-Leaf Pondweed
Week 3 Oct. 18th-22nd: Round 1 Winners/Round 2 Matches
Round 1 Winners and Discussion Match 1 & 2
Round 1 Winners and Discussion Match 3 & 4
Quagga Mussel vs. Eurasian Watermilfoil
Week 4 Oct. 25th-29th: Round 2 Winners/Final SmackDown!
Round 2 Winners and Discussion, Sea Lamprey vs. Alewife
Round 2 Winners and Discussion, Quagga Mussel vs. Eurasian Watermilfoil
Final SmackDown! Quagga Mussel vs. Sea Lamprey
Week 5: Nov. 1st
[...] note: Great Lakes Smackdown! is an ongoing Great Lakes Echo [...]
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[...] Center for Environmental Journalism. Students Alice Rossingnol and Rachael Gleason created the Great Lakes Smackdown, a project they’ve described as “March Madness for invasive [...]
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[...] took down seven other Great Lakes invaders to become the most destructive species in the region here. var addthis_language = 'en'; © 2010, Great Lakes Echo, Michigan State University Knight [...]
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[...] Last year, eight aquatic invasives fought it out for the title of “most destructive.” The quagga mussel, also known as the “The Quagmeister,” came out victorious against the sea lamprey by filter feeding at extreme velocities, hording toxins and being a general pain in the lake. [...]
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[...] The Great Lakes Smackdown! Prod people to interact with your content, even when it’s a serious topic. [...]
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