Seneca Lake Lab Report

Introduction:    Seneca Lake is approximately 3.7 miles at the widest point and 630 feet at the deepest point. According to the packet the lake can get as warm as 72 degrees F and as cold as 38 degrees F. The lake contains several types of macro invertebrate that live all over the lake such as stonefly larva, crayfish, amphipod, and mayfly larva. On a website it is shown that areas with lower depths result in higher amounts of macro invertebrate variations and levels. Seneca Lake is one of the eleven Finger Lakes and is the largest lake when it comes to total area and it is also the deepest of the eleven Finger Lakes.

Research Question: How does water depth and water temperature affect the amount and diversity of zooplankton (or macro invertebrate) in the water?

Hypothesis: I believe that the deeper the portion of the lake is the more diverse and the higher of a quantity there will be in that section, and as the temperature increases so does the amount and variety of macro invertebrate will increase as well. This is supported by the website I mentioned earlier, it states that as the site gets deeper the variety of macro invertebrate and the quantity of the macro-invertebrate increase as well.

Variable Identification: 

Independent Variables	Dependent Variable
Spots of sampling	Macro invertebrate levels
Relative depth of water	Temperature of water

Experimental Setup: In order to keep these sample locations constant I will use the same boat and use the same procedure for each location in order to keep my findings constant. To limit variability I will use the same net to collect the macro invertebrate and the same thermometer to collect data from each of the three locations.  

Procedure:  1. Go to a very shallow depth location on Seneca Lake.
2. Measure for temperature at this location.
3. In order to collect macro invertebrate information you will first need to make sure you have a firm grip on the nets rope.
4. You MUST make sure the clasp at the bottom of the net is closed.
5. Next lower the net over the side of the boat and walk from stern to bow, back and forth, slowly.
6. Bring the net back up and wash the remaining plankton into a cup at the end of the net.
7. Take plankton back to lab for analysis.
8. Next go to a medium depth in the lake and repeat steps 2-7.
9. Next go to deeper portion of the lake and repeat steps 2-7.

Data:    Fortunately for us the weather the day of the sampling was fair, the temperature for all locations that day were pretty average for that time of year with  a slight breeze in the air. All locations were within a degree of each other and there were no significant changes (other than the depth) between each location. As for the depths we recorded the deepest we got our dredge samples was 62.6m and the shallowest depth we got was 7.5m. Our dredge sample contained a lot of mussels but the majority of the sample was sediments including sand, silt and clay.

	Sample 1 A	Sample 1 P	Sample 2 A	Sample 2 P	Sample 3 A	Sample 3 P
Latitude	N 42D 49.9’	N 42D 49.92’	N 42D 51’	N 42D 52’	N 42D 52’	N 42D 52’
Longitude	W 76D 58’	W 76D 57.49’	W 76D 58’	W 76D 58’	W 76D 58’	W 76D 58’
Sample temp.	13D Celsius	7D Celsius	13D Celsius	14D Celsius	13D Celsius	13D Celsius
Sample depth	38.9m	54m	10m	10m	0m	0m
P.H.	7.3	7.4	7.4	7.4	7.5	7.3
Chloride	200 ppm	180 ppm	300 ppm	143 ppm	200 ppm	140 ppm
Dissolved Oxygen	30 ppm	10.4 ppm	6 ppm	10 ppm	10 ppm	10 ppm

    Bold sample location on bottom chart means zebra mussels are present

Sample	Species total	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8
1A	9	2	2	2	3	0	0	0	0
1P	21	1	1	1	16	2	0	0	0
2A	15	2	2	1	7	2	1	0	0
2P	17	1	1	1	2	5	2	4	1
3A	9	1	1	3	1	1	1	1	0
3P	19	6	1	7	3	1	1	0	0

Results:

 

 

Discussion:    Compared to the logger data graphic my data is fairly similar in multiple of the categories. One of these similar categories includes the temperature, according to both my data and the data logger graphic as you get farther down in the lake the temperature drops, the is especially at approximately 32m down. Another category we have in common is dissolved oxygen, according to the graphic and my data the deeper you get in the lake the less dissolved oxygen there is, the drop happens at around 45m according to the data logger graphic.

Evaluation:   To complete my report I would need the names and exact numbers of the macro invertebrate in the water. I would also need to have more trials because the numbers of macro invertebrate were insufficient for reliable analysis. Based on my data my hypothesis was not correct because the deeper the lake got the less macro invertebrate were present. In this experiment human error was a prevalent force throughout the course. This experiment could have been improved if we got more time to get more precise numbers. Our experiment also needed to be better explained and have more precise directions. These are the weaknesses our class faced during this experiment.

 

Conclusion:   During this experiment I learned that as depth of almost any body of water is decreased the temperature and dissolved oxygen are decreased as well, I got this from my data as well as the data logger graphic. Along with these things I learned I believe with more time I could have gotten a lot experience and learned a lot more. Also if we received more precise directions I feel we would not need more time, but if not more time would be necessary to get the best experience. Overall this experiment was a lot of fun and even though it was fun it didn’t mean we didn’t learn anything making one of the best labs I’ve ever done.

References: "Lake County Water Atlas." Seneca, Lake: Ecology. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Oct. 2015.

"Does Water Level Affect Benthic Macro-invertebrates of a Marginal Lake in a Tropical River-reservoir Transition Zone?" Does Water Level Affect Benthic Macro-invertebrates of a Marginal Lake in a Tropical River-reservoir Transition Zone? N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Oct. 2015.

 "Seneca Lake." - A Guide to Hotels, Bed and Breakfasts in the Finger Lakes. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Oct. 2015.