ANN ARBOR—Anyone requiring science-based information on zebra mussels and other non-indigenous species can now obtain it through the touch of their fingertips through the Great Lakes Sea Grant Network. The Sea Grant zebra mussel and non-indigenous species World Wide Web site (sgnis) contains a comprehensive collection of research publications and education materials produced by Sea Grant programs across the country.

The site can be accessed through the World Wide Web, Telnet, or directly through a modem at: http://www.ansc.purdue.edu/sgnis/. A CD-ROM version will soon be available for those users who do not have Internet access.

This site is useful for industrial and municipal water users, shoreline property owners, boaters, resource management agencies, students, teachers, outreach professionals, and researchers.

Although currently focused on zebra mussels, the site also contains Sea Grant information on four other invaders, the Eurasian ruffe, the round goby, sea lamprey and the spiny waterflea.

“The Web site brings to one place the cumulative effort of many experts in the fast-paced topic of recent invasions by aquatic non-indigenous species,” said Russell Moll, director of the Michigan Sea Grant Program and a research scientist at the University of Michigan Center for Great Lakes and Aquatic Sciences. The Great Lakes Sea Grant Programs envision this Web site will provide the latest information on a wide variety of issues to anyone concerned with the spread of unwanted biological invaders to our inland waters.

“We hope the site will give people the information they need to help prevent or slow the spread and improve the control of invading species,” said Al Miller, project coordinator from the Wisconsin Sea Grant Institute.

More than 150 research reports and 60 educational items are housed at the site, including four newsletters, proceedings of past international conferences and a slide library. The site also provides a brief introductory written and pictorial description of the exotics, for those who aren’t familiar with them.

All entries, with the exception of conference proceedings and newsletters, have been peer-reviewed to ensure they are the highest quality science. The searchable site allows entry via “Products” available, “Users” of the materials, “Key Words” or through a site search engine. The search engine allows browsers to search for documents by title, author(s), the organization of the author, date or publication, users, products and keywords.

The site provides linkages to the National Biological Service’s Nonindigenous Aquatic Species Geographic Information System, the Great Lakes Information Network, as well as to non- indigenous species home pages of individual Sea Grant programs.

Even more Sea Grant research and educational information on zebra mussels and other aquatic non-indigenous species will be added in the future.

Housed at Purdue University, and developed as a Great Lakes Network effort by Michigan Sea Grant and Sea Grant programs in Illinois-Indiana, Minnesota and Wisconsin, the site provides a model for the transfer of university-based research and outreach to the public.

Phone: (313) 647-1848