WVIZ/PBS ideastream and Great Lakes Science Center present Attack of the Alien Invaders. This half-hour special takes viewers on a quest for information about the potential invasion of "aliens" - voracious Asian carp - that may make their way into Lake Erie and upset the balance of nature.
Dante Centuori, Director of Creative Productions at Great Lakes Science Center, travels in and around Lake Erie visiting "alien" experts along the way as they take on the battle against these horrific invaders. Will these strange and dangerous "jumping fish" ever make it to Lake Erie and, if they do, what will likely happen? These are just some of the questions considered in Attack of the Alien Invaders.
View the Program
Select a segment from the list below to view.
Chapter 1: Introduction
Host Dante Centuori introduces the program as well as the classroom multimedia resource, "LSI: Life Science Investigation," on which Attack is based.
Chapter 2: Intelligence Briefing
Background of the Asian carp story; their introduction to the U.S., their spread, and their potential threat to Lake Erie.
Chapter 3: Know Your Enemy
A trip to Stone Laboratory in Put-in-Bay, Ohio where John Hageman cuts into an Asian (Silver) carp to discover one particular feature that makes it different from and a potential threat to Lake Erie’s native population.
Chapter 4: The Battlefield - Lake Erie
Jeff Reuter, Director of Stone Lab, explains why Lake Erie is unique among the Great Lakes and why it would be conducive to an Asian carp invasion.
Chapter 5: A Scouting Mission
Witness a "fish trawl" and discover a few invasive species that are already in Lake Erie, including the omnipresent zebra mussel which has had a devastating effect on the ecosystem.
Chapter 6: The Battle for the Interior
Visit a fresh water estuary near Huron, Ohio to encounter some frisky common carp whose behavior may help scientists predict what may happen to our interior rivers and streams if the related Asian carp invade.
Chapter 7: Fighting on the Front Lines
Return to Stone Lab to investigate the Asian carp’s influence and impact on the Mississippi and Illinois River ecosystems. And then back to Cleveland for an explanation of how Asian carp are being monitored and controlled in the Chicago Shipping and Sanitary Canal.
Chapter 8: Preparing the Defenses
Learn about various invasive species management techniques which may one day help control a Lake Erie Asian carp population.
Chapter 9: Predicting the Future
Several experts speculate on what may happen if Asian carp establish themselves in Lake Erie. Plus, an update on efforts to stop the spread of this potentially devastating fish into the Great Lakes.
Chapter 10: Ohio Students on the Case
See how "LSI: Life Science Investigation," the multimedia resource created for the classroom (footage and interviews for that project were re-versioned for this program!) is being used in classrooms throughout the state. Scott Barber, a teacher in Berea, Ohio, explains how this resource has helped his students learn core life science concepts.
Lesson Plans for the Classroom
Supplemental lesson plans are available free of cost to all Ohio schools by logging on to the LSI website. The website also includes a place for students to publish and discuss their predictions on the future of Lake Erie.
While the treatment is entertaining and designed to engage students' imaginations along with their scientific skills, the subject matter is serious considering that Ohio students continue to rank low on science achievement tests.
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