Development of resource shed delineation in aquatic ecosystems

We apply a concept derived from food web ecology to large-scale spatial patterns of material supply within and between watersheds and coasts by generalizing the definition "resource shed" to source areas for materials supplied to a receptor (e.g., a point location) over a specified time interval. Independent hydrologic and hydrodynamic models, coupled with a particle tracking model, were used to delimit resource shed total spatial extent and relative contributory importance for selected receptors in Lake Erie (North America) over varying time intervals. One resource shed was extended into the Maumee River watershed (OH) by integrating the lake and hydrologic models. Model validation was achieved through comparison with data from the 2005 International Field Years on Lake Erie (IFYLE) study. Resource shed size, orientation, and internal structure varied with receptor location, in-lake circulation, terrestrial precipitation, time interval, and season. River plume extent and interaction were illustrated, and model integration revealed the relative contributory importance of subwatershed catchments to an off-shore receptor.