Cyanobacterial bloom phenology in Saginaw Bay from MODIS and a comparative look with western Lake Erie

•This paper describes bloom phenology of cyanobacteria in Saginaw Bay,.•The paper compares and contrasts the cyanobacteria blooms in Saginaw Bay with those in western Lake Erie,.•The paper illustrates the importance of wetlands in mitigating cyanobacteria blooms,.•The paper illustrates the importance of dissolved relative phosphorus loads and land use with cyanobacterial blooms.