Why do people live along the Great Lakes?


Why do people live along the Great Lakes? Today more than 35 million people live in the Great Lakes basin in Canada and the United States. The Great Lakes are important sources of drinking water, irrigation, transportation, and recreation opportunities such as fishing, hunting, boating, and wildlife watching.


Which Great Lake has the most people living around it?

Lake Erie is the most densely populated of the Laurentian Great Lakes with more than 11 million people living within the basin (10,017,530 in the U.S. and 1,664,639 in Canada). The surrounding areas have been heavily farmed due to highly fertile soils and moderate temperatures.


Could there be bull sharks in the Great Lakes?

But Bull Sharks are able to recycle salt in their kidneys, maintaining salt levels critical to its survival. Yet even the Bull Shark would not be able to make its way into the Great Lakes watershed and survive! The water temperature in the Great Lakes is far too cold for most sharks (including the Bull Shark).


Why are there no bull sharks in the Great Lakes?

But Heithaus said it would not be possible for a bull shark to reach the Great Lakes on their own because most don't travel very far upstream. If one did reach the lakes, it would not be able to survive due to the cold water temperature.


Which Great Lake is cleanest?

Lake Superior is barely developed, compared to the other Great Lakes. This has allowed it to remain relatively undisturbed and free from much of the pollution and habitat destruction that the other lakes have suffered.


Which country owns the Great Lakes?

The water in the Great Lakes is owned by the general public according to the Public Trust Doctrine. The Public Trust Doctrine is an international legal theory – it applies in both Canada and the United States, so it applies to the entirety of the Great Lakes.


Can you swim in all 5 Great Lakes?

The Great Lakes are fascinating and a dream come true for swimmers. Yes, we can all swim in the Great Lakes. It's even possible to swim in all five Great Lakes in less than 24 hours!


Can you swim in Lake Erie?

Currents in Lake Erie can be dangerous! Any current flowing faster than 2 mph is considered dangerous. Dangerous currents can exceed 5 mph — faster than an Olympic swimmer can swim. Currents can pull swimmers away from shore.


Which Great Lake is 100% in the US?

Lake Michigan, the third largest by surface area (22,300 square miles) and second largest by volume (1,180 cubic miles), is the only Great Lake located entirely within the United States.


What lives at the bottom of the Great Lakes?

The organisms living on the bottom in shallow waters are the same kinds of snails, clams, worms, mayflies, and caddisflies found in most small lakes. The deep waters, however, are the realm of some organisms that are found only in the deep, cold lakes of the northern latitudes.


What predators live in the Great Lakes?

The most dangerous predator in the Great Lakes is the sea lamprey, which was actually introduced as an invasive species. Primarily, it goes after a sports fish called the lake trout, often wounding them as they kill them off. It is also attracted to the blood and bodily fluids of any creature.


Are there alligators in the Great Lakes?

Alligators are rarely found in the Great Lakes. Although some alligators thrive in freshwater, it's just too cold in the north for them to survive. They don't typically live farther north than North Carolina. It's unclear how the alligator arrived to Lake Michigan.


What is the unhealthiest Great Lake?

Lake Erie is the fourth-largest lake in North America (by surface area) and the eleventh-largest worldwide. It is the Great Lakes' southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume. By the 1960s, Lake Erie had become the most polluted of the Great Lakes, owing to the substantial industrial presence along its coasts.


Which Great lake can you not swim in?

Lake Michigan in particular is the roughest of the Great Lakes, and poses a major risk to those thinking of taking a dip.