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Responses of Lake Erie Walleye to Turbidity

Sep. 28, 2016
The setup for the optomotor response test, which is being used by Dr. Gray to gauge the visual sensitivity of walleyes and shiners to increasing levels of turbidity. (Photo credit: Suzanne Gray)

How do Lake Erie Walleye respond to varying levels of visibility? That question is the focus of a study recently featured in The Environmental Monitor.  Suzanne Gray, assistant professor in the School of Environment and Natural Resources, with funding from Ohio Sea Grant, is conducting a number of behavioral experiments to test how well two fish species, Walleye and Emerald Shiners see prey and predators under different levels of turbidity. Both of these species of fish are dependent on their vision to find food and avoid prey and how well they adapt to varying levels of visibility may have implications for Lake Erie fisheries.