Great Lakes Invertebrate Distribution for Oil Spill Sensitivity Analysis, 2019

2019 vector polygons and lines representing freshwater and terrestrial invertebrate species in the Great Lakes St. Clair/Detroit River system. The data, part of an Environmental Sensitivity Index (ESI) geodatabase, includes associated tables with species abundance, seasonality, and life history information. It was created by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to characterize environmental sensitivity to oil spills.

Use Cases

• Modeling oil spill impact zones based on invertebrate species distribution and sensitivity.
• Assessing seasonal habitat vulnerability using associated species seasonality data.
• Mapping sensitive biological resources for coastal zone management and planning.
• Integrating invertebrate data with other ESI layers for comprehensive environmental risk analysis.

Strengths

• Data is part of a structured Environmental Sensitivity Index (ESI) framework designed for oil spill response.
• Includes associated tables with species-specific attributes like abundance and seasonality.
• Covers a defined study area including Lake Huron, St. Clair River, Lake St. Clair, Detroit River, and Lake Erie.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Data may reflect geographic bias inherent to the specific Great Lakes system studied.

Provenance

Source

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce

Collection Method

Likely gathered through field surveys and biological resource mapping for the ESI program.

Time Range

2019

Freshness

Last updated 2026 03 13 22:27:11.123763; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Great Lakes St. Clair/Detroit River system in southeastern Michigan, including portions of Lakes Huron and Erie.