Taaja R. Tucker Jean V. Adams Lisa R. Fogarty Brenda Moraska Lafrancois Stephen C. Riley 2015 <p>Deposition of the macroalgae <i>Cladophora</i> spp. was monitored on 18 beaches around Lake Michigan during 2012 at a high temporal frequency. We observed a high degree of spatial variability in <i>Cladophora</i> deposition among beaches on Lake Michigan, even within local regions, with no clear regional pattern in the intensity of <i>Cladophora</i> deposition. A strong seasonal pattern in <i>Cladophora</i> deposition was observed, with the heaviest deposition occurring during mid-summer. Several beaches exhibited high temporal variability in <i>Cladophora</i> deposition over short time scales, suggesting that drifting algal mats may be extremely dynamic in nearshore environments of the Great Lakes. <i>Cladophora</i> deposition on Lake Michigan beaches was primarily related to the presence of nearshore structures, local population density, and nearshore bathymetry. There was relatively little evidence that waves, winds, or currents were associated with <i>Cladophora</i> deposition on beaches, but this may be due to the relatively poor resolution of existing nearshore hydrodynamic data. Developing a predictive understanding of beach-cast <i>Cladophora</i> dynamics in Great Lakes environments may require both intensive <i>Cladophora</i> monitoring and fine-scale local hydrodynamic modeling efforts.</p> application/pdf 10.1016/j.jglr.2015.09.008 en International Association for Great Lakes Research Factors associated with the deposition of <i>Cladophora</i> on Lake Michigan beaches in 2012 article