Lake Superior: Current conditions, trends, and emerging threats – Foreword to the special section

Abstract

Lake Superior is one of the five Laurentian Great Lakes and the largest lake in the world by surface area. Lake Superior and its surrounding watershed support a wide range of species, provide a wealth of ecosystem services, and support a robust economy, much of which is reliant on the health of the ecosystem. Though Lake Superior continues to lead the other Laurentian Great Lakes in condition and quality, it has also undergone significant changes including chemical pollution, invasive species, and harmful algal blooms (HABs). The lake is also sensitive to climate change, with rapidly warming water temperatures, significant nutrient input from extreme storm events, and changes to habitat and food web structure, among other impacts. Understanding the current conditions, trends, and emerging threats to Lake Superior from local to ecosystem scales allows us to better manage the lake now and prepare for the future. This Journal of Great Lakes Research special section features a wide range of research, capturing the status of Lake Superior and providing insight to current and future stressors. Further, this issue includes results from the 2021 Lake Superior Cooperative Science and Monitoring Initiative field season and other collaborative efforts to better understand and protect Lake Superior.