For the last several years, the Center for Limnology’s Trout Lake Station has hosted an “artist-in-residence” program each summer. Our summer science communication intern spent a day with one of the 2018 artists, Mary …
Year: 2018
Forget “Needle in a Haystack,” Try Finding Littorella in a Lake
by Sydney Widell If you’ve never heard of Littorella, you are definitely not alone. Incredibly rare, this grassy aquatic plant only graces the beds of a few select lakes in Northern Wisconsin. Today, Susan Knight, …
Study Finds “Hidden Harvest” in World’s Inland Fisheries
A new study published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences says we are dramatically underestimating the role inland fisheries play in global food security. While it’s widely known that people across …
WPR’s Larry Meiller Reflects on 51 Years On Air at Science on Tap-Minocqua
by Sydney Widell When talk show host Larry Meiller ventures up to the Northwoods, it’s usually to camp or fish. But on Wednesday, June 6th, the legend of Wisconsin airwaves spent the evening with Science …
Diatoms Prove That Not All Algae Are Ugly
Think algae are gross? A new website will make you take a closer look. Dedicated to Lake Mendota’s diatoms – single-celled members of the brown algae classification – the website serves as a field guide …
What Causes the Algae Blooms in Madison’s Lakes?
After last week’s massive cyanobacteria (blue-green algae) bloom in Lake Mendota and smaller (but no less unpleasant) blooms reported in Lake Monona and Waubesa, we received all sorts of questions on what causes these blooms, …
Massive Blue-Green Algae Bloom Stretches Across Lake Mendota
A couple of weeks ago, after yet another round of intense rain in the Madison area, we headed over to the website of the Wisconsin State Climatology office, curious if we were seeing more rain …
Running Diary of Flux Chambers, Mini Me and a Marathon Day in the Field
Necessity, of course, is the mother of invention. And scientific fieldwork is often the mother of necessity. Researchers are constantly having to invent new ways to collect data in challenging environments. What follows is a …
What’s Tipping the Scales Toward More Bass, Fewer Walleye in Wisconsin Waters?
by Sydney Widell For walleye and other northern Wisconsin fish, a warming climate may mean smaller populations and shrinking ranges, said Center for Limnology Director, Jake Vander Zanden, in a lecture Wednesday. Addressing a crowd …
Is Lake Monona A Sign That Lake Mendota’s Clear Water Phase Is On Its Way?
Earlier this week, Center for Limnology director, Jake Vander Zanden, noted a startling difference in Madison’s two largest lakes, Mendota and Monona. The waters of Lake Monona, near where he lives, were crystal clear, while …