As he stood in front of us in the classroom, Sam Cook’s eyes grew misty as he read this passage from Aldo Leopold’s “A Sand County Almanac:” A dawn wind stirs on the great marsh. With almost imperceptible slowness it rolls a bank of fog across the wide morass. Like the white ghost of a Read more about Tips for good outdoors and nature writing[…]
We’re continuing to gather background information in preparation for Wisconsin Sea Grant’s 50th anniversary celebration, which will happen in a few years. After speaking with Wisconsin Sea Grant’s first director Robert Ragotzkie, I caught up with our second director, Anders Andren, as he “slaved away” on tasks as secretary of his condo association in Florida. Read more about Life after Sea Grant: An interview with Anders Andren, former Wisconsin Sea Grant director[…]
Earlier this fall, Molly Bodde joined Sea Grant as the aquatic invasive species (AIS) coordinator for southeast Wisconsin. (She’s pictured below, at right, along with Samantha Lammers of the Wisconsin DNR, at a waterfowl hunter outreach day.) Molly works closely with Sea Grant AIS Outreach Specialist Tim Campbell to connect Kenosha, Racine, Milwaukee and Ozaukee Read more about Meet Molly Bodde: New-yet-familiar face joins the ongoing fight against aquatic invasive species[…]
Some of the best holidays are invented (Festivus, anyone?). Lovers of all things aquatic have something to celebrate in December: 25 Days of Fishmas! And don’t worry, you don’t have to scour the mall for presents – just hop on Twitter to participate. 25 Days of Fishmas is a science communication effort spearheaded by Katie Read more about Catch the Fishmas spirit![…]
Some know Wisconsin Sea Grant Fisheries Specialist Titus Seilheimer by his active Twitter presence as “Dr. Fish” (at the handle @DrFishSG). Soon, Titus will take on yet another identity in Manitowoc on Dec. 8. It’s one well suited to the season: Santa Claus! As part of the Wisconsin Maritime Museum’s annual Christmas Tree Ship Celebration Read more about Sea Grant fisheries specialist takes on holiday alter ego[…]
Elizabeth Minor, a professor with the University of Minnesota Duluth’s Large Lakes Observatory and Department of Chemistry, described her research on the impact of sediment plumes on the St. Louis River and Lake Superior for the River Talk on Nov. 14. “It’s a pretty impactful thing,” Minor said. Excess dirt (sediment), water and nutrient runoff Read more about Sediment plumes bloom in Lake Superior[…]
Fifty years ago in 1968, the Wisconsin Sea Grant Program was funded for formation at the University of Wisconsin. We didn’t actually start providing grant money for research projects for a few years. Because that’s one of our main purposes, we’ve chosen to wait a few more years before we start any 50th anniversary hoopla. Read more about The birth of Wisconsin Sea Grant[…]
The first River Talk of the season kicked off on Oct. 24 at the Estuarium on Barker’s Island in Superior, Wisconsin. People gathered to listen to Kelsey Prihoda, a researcher with the Lake Superior Research Institute at the University of Wisconsin-Superior, describe her work with groundwater. “Groundwater is a very limited resource,” Prihoda said. “Less Read more about Breaking ground on Wisconsin groundwater research[…]
Healthier habitats are coming back to the St. Louis River, which forms the far northwest border between Minnesota and Wisconsin. Many natural resources agencies, researchers and nonprofit organizations are conducting the work. This progress means that the “Stories and Science of the St. Louis River Estuary” website (stlouisriverestuary.org) needs to keep pace with the progress. Thanks Read more about Restoration Progress Updated on St. Louis River Website[…]
Halloween is upon us. In this season of goblins and ghouls it also seems an appropriate time to ponder vampires, and in the context of the Great Lakes, the vampire fish. The sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) has earned its moniker because of a rasping disk-shaped mouth outfitted with teeth that clamp onto a host fish’s Read more about Children of the Night? Nope, These Vampires are Round-the-Clock Terrors[…]