The great lakes are a relatively young and fragile ecosystem compared to their oceanic counterparts

This Cooperative Agreement award, funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) under the Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS) Federal Grant Program (CFDA 11.012), aims to create a comprehensive biodiversity observation network for the Great Lakes. With total funding of $1,728,550 over the 5-year performance period from July 2024 to June 2029, the grant supports the development of the Great Lakes Marine Biodiversity Observation Network (GL-MBON). Key products and services to be delivered include: data portals integrating existing databases, a dynamic habitat classification framework, a genomic observation network, acoustic telemetry observations, and syntheses of biodiversity and ecosystem functioning. The primary awardee is the Regents of the University of Michigan, with sub-awards to the Great Lakes Observing System Regional Association and Oregon State University to support specific technical components. The project aims to advance understanding of Great Lakes biodiversity, ecosystem functions, and responses to environmental stressors to inform binational fisheries management and monitoring programs.

Dramatic shifts and losses in biodiversity threaten ecosystem services in these inland seas, which are under pressure from invasive species, climate change, nutrient pollution, hypoxia, and harmful algal blooms. This proposal aims to fill a critical GAP in the science and management of the great lakes by creating a biodiversity observation network that uses complementary technological approaches to understand different facets of biodiversity. The proposed great lakes marine biodiversity observation network, glmbon, will address interconnections among (i) dynamic pelagic habitats known as lakescapes, (II) biodiversity across the tree of life, (III) movement of fisheries species, and (IV) important ecosystem functions. A key innovation of the proposed work is the degree of integration across multiple technological approaches featured by NOAA, which extend from high-throughput sequencing and bioinformatics to telemetry for fish populations to mapping large-scale biogeographic patterns measured by satellites. This integration will allow US to examine impacts of multiple stressors and test hypotheses about biodiversity and ecosystem function, which are emerging areas in marine biodiversity but remain understudied phenomena in the great lakes. Partners for the proposed GL-mbon include NOAA?s great lakes environmental research laboratory, great lakes observing system (regional ioos association), great lakes coastwatch node, NOAA national marine sanctuaries, great lakes acoustic telemetry observation system, and the cooperative institute for climate, and ocean and ecosystem studies. The outcomes from the proposed work will be produced through CO-design with partners and regional stakeholders as part of an end-user advisory group. These products include data portals that build upon and connect existing databases (served by ioos, mbon, ATN, ncbi, and others), a dynamic habitat classification framework operating in near-real time, a genomic observation network connected to environmental data and remote sensing, acoustic telemetry observations targeting understudied juvenile stages; and syntheses of biodiversity and ecosystem functioning using both historical data and emerging technologies. Benefits of the proposed work include supporting binational fisheries management, enhancement of monitoring programs with new methods to observe ecological status, trends and shifts and shifts over time, advancing interoperability of different technological approaches, and improving fundamental understanding of how great lakes biodiversity supports ecosystem functions and responds to STR