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How to Use This GuideColor pictures of each plant type are accompanied by a short description of key features to help identify the plant. Descriptions are primarily based on leaves attached to underwater plant stems. The submerged leaves usually offer better characteristics for identification than floating leaves and are found more frequently than floating leaves. Two photos of each plant are included. The smaller photo shows the overall look of the plant. The larger photo shows greater detail. Clicking on a photo will load a larger version. In some cases, a drawing is included to illustrate certain features of a particular plant. Usually, plants included in this report can be identified by inspection of the plant with the unaided eye. In some instances, such as when counting leaf veins, the use of a hand lens of 5 to 10X magnification will be useful. The Photo Index page contains small pictures of each of the plants described within this web site. The index page may allow the possible identifications to be narrowed more quickly if the plant's features are distinctive. Table 2 shows whether a plant type is common, uncommon, or not reported in each of the four connecting rivers. This information was compiled through personal communication with scientists knowledgeable about underwater plants in connecting waters of the Great Lakes. It is by no means definitive -- to date, only the St. Clair- Detroit River System has been intensively surveyed. Also, the composition and abundance of submersed plants in these rivers continually changes. For example, plants such as curly pondweed, Eurasian watermilfoil, and Nitellopsis were introduced into the Great Lakes only during the last 50 years, but are now common in one or more of the connecting rivers. Table 2. The occurrence and relative abundance of underwater plants in the four connecting rivers of the Great Lakes (C = common, U = uncommon, NR = not reported).
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