Notes from the Northwoods: Wading to Trip

by AnnaKay Kruger Michaela Kromrey clips herself into her bulky waders, fitting the straps over her shoulders and sealing herself into their protective rubber lining. We’ve dropped anchor near the shore of Jute Lake, and waves whip the side of the boat vigorously in the high wind. It’s a beautiful day, utterly devoid of cloud …

Limno-Week: Four Center for Limnology Public Events in Three Days!

Summer is our field season, which means you’ll see a lot more “UW-Limnology” boats out on Wisconsin waters. But it’s also when we ramp up our outreach programming. This is an especially busy week as, from Wednesday, June 10th through Friday the 12th, our faculty, students and staff will be speaking to public audiences everywhere from …

Video: Up-Close Look at Lake Mendota Water Clarity

On June 4th, after a week of clear-water conditions in Lake Mendota, some of us here at Hasler Lab decided that our window for swimming in clear water was closing. So we decided to take an up-close and personal reading of conditions. It turns out that our timing was perfect for a refreshing (read: cold) …

Notes from the Northwoods: Heavy Lifting on Sparkling Lake

by AnnaKay Kruger “Well, that was an adventure!” says Aaron O’Connell, a UW-Plateville undergraduate, looking down at his bare feet as he steps gingerly across the gravel driveway. In one hand he carries his sodden shoes, and like me, he is covered from head-to-toe in lake grime. We have just spent the last two hours …

Monitor Mendota: Water Clarity, Daphnia on the Rebound

Last week on this blog, we wondered if Lake Mendota’s clear water phase was a thing of the past. You see, last year, the algae-eating native zooplankton, daphnia pulicaria were so diminished by predation from the invasive spiny water flea, that their numbers couldn’t grow large enough to keep algae from clouding our waters. Combined with …

All Aboard! 4th Annual Hasler Lab Open House

                    Join us FRIDAY, JUNE 12th for the                         Hasler Lab Open House! If you’re in the Madison area, come on down for a “behind the scenes” event and spend a half hour or the whole …

Fish Fry Day: Daphnia Update & Perch (H2O) Purifiers?

Lake Monona is crystal clear, while Mendota stays murky and, on Wednesday, we asked you to help us monitor Lake Mendota as we wait to see if the native zooplankton, daphnia pulicaria, can rally and clear up the situation after being decimated by a tiny invasive predator called the spiny water flea. Read that previous …

It’s Spring 2016! Help Us Monitor Mendota’s Clear-Water Phase

Last year at this time, we asked you to help us monitor Lake Mendota, as we worried that we’d missed its “clear-water” window. We’re happy to report that, in 2016, we’re nearing a 6 meter Secchi depth and seeing lots of daphnia in our nets. Will this be a clear spring for Madison’s lakes? Stay …

Fish Fry Day Redux: Sneaking and Spawning

We’re swamped here at the CFL, so apologies for the slow posting. Today, though, we’ve dug up a classic post on one of the aquatic rites of spring – the crazy sex life of bluegill. I know, I know, bluegill aren’t exactly a rare species. In fact, they’re often the first fish kids learn to …

Video: UW-Madison Undergrad Shares Fish Tales from Thailand

Vera Swanson is a UW–Madison undergraduate in the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences (CALS). She spent her spring semester in Thailand working with CFL grad student, Aaron Koning. Here’s her amazing video recap of life doing international fieldwork! Vera’s Time in Thailand from Aaron Koning on Vimeo.