Intense storm events and flooding are changing the ecology of rivers in the Great Lakes region.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/02/intense-storms-climate-change-harming-michigan-streams-rivers/
By Kelly House, Bridge Michigan, through the Institute for Nonprofit News network
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television; and Michigan Radio, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; who work together to bring audiences news and information about the impact of climate change, pollution, and aging infrastructure on the Great Lakes and drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/02/pfas-fish-wildlife-researchers-michigan/
This article was republished here with permission from Great Lakes Echo.
By Yue Jiang, Great Lakes Echo
They glide over the lake, waiting for the best time to catch fish.
In the blink of an eye, they dive into the water without hesitation.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/02/u-s-canadian-researchers-birds-conservation-research/
This article was republished here with permission from Great Lakes Echo.
By Kalah Harris, Great Lakes Echo
Herring gulls are aquatic birds that feed at the water’s surface and so are restricted to feeding on prey fish at the surface and shallow nearshore waters.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/02/herring-gull-eggs-monitor-great-lakes-ecosystems/
By Kelly House, Bridge Michigan, through the Institute for Nonprofit News network
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television; and Michigan Radio, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; who work together to bring audiences news and information about the impact of climate change, pollution, and aging infrastructure on the Great Lakes and drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/02/michigan-thin-ice-climate-experts/
Great Lakes Moment is a monthly column written by Great Lakes Now Contributor John Hartig. Publishing the author’s views and assertions does not represent endorsement by Great Lakes Now or Detroit Public Television.
As recently as the 1980s, a small backwater on the Trenton Channel of the Detroit River in Trenton, Michigan, was so polluted and toxic that scientists named it the Black Lagoon.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/02/beavers-detroit-river-black-lagoon-restoration/
By Caroline Llanes, Michigan Radio
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television; and Michigan Radio, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; who work together to bring audiences news and information about the impact of climate change, pollution, and aging infrastructure on the Great Lakes and drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/01/great-lakes-low-ice-cover/
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — The state Department of Natural Resources policy board narrowly refused Republican legislators’ request Friday to implement a wolf hunt immediately, citing concerns that the department can’t move that fast and Wisconsin’s Native American tribes haven’t been consulted as per treaty rights.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/01/ap-wisconsin-dnr-board-refuses-early-wolf-hunt/
PFAS, short for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are a group of widespread man-made chemicals that don’t break down in the environment or the human body and have been flagged as a major contaminant in sources of water across the country.
Keep up with PFAS-related developments in the Great Lakes area.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/01/pfas-news-lake-superior-smelt-wisconsin-settlement-mcdonalds-epa/
TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) — One of the world’s longest-running wildlife field studies has fallen prey to the coronavirus pandemic.
Since 1959, a research team has spent most of the winter observing the interplay between wolves and moose at Isle Royale National Park in Lake Superior.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2021/01/ap-pandemic-interrupts-longtime-isle-royale-wolf-moose-study/
In Lake Erie, the northern pike occupies, on the grand fish scale of things, a not-so-special place.
The elongated, fast, toothy eating machine is in general neither widely loved nor widely hated. In fact, as far as a sportfish goes, which it most definitely is, it is rather neglected.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/12/pike-huron-michigan-ontario-superior-erie-seiche/
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Wisconsin will resume its wolf season next November after the animal is dropped from the federal endangered species list, the state announced Friday.
The Department of Natural Resources said wolf season will begin Nov. 6. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced last month that it would delist gray wolves, citing thriving populations in the western Great Lakes region, Rocky Mountains and Pacific Northwest.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/12/ap-wisconsin-wolf-season-next-november/
By Kelly House, Bridge Michigan, through the Institute for Nonprofit News network
The Great Lakes News Collaborative includes Bridge Michigan; Circle of Blue; Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television; and Michigan Radio, Michigan’s NPR News Leader; who work together to bring audiences news and information about the impact of climate change, pollution, and aging infrastructure on the Great Lakes and drinking water.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/11/great-lakes-stressed-climate-change-worse/
BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — Wildlife advocates and environmental groups have announced that they are challenging the removal of federal protections for gray wolves across most of the U.S.
Two coalitions of groups filed formal notices over the past several days that they plan to sue the U.S. Interior Department in federal court unless protections are restored.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/11/ap-groups-gray-wolf-protections/
PFAS, short for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, are a group of widespread man-made chemicals that don’t break down in the environment or the human body and have been flagged as a major contaminant in sources of water across the country.
Keep up with PFAS-related developments in the Great Lakes area.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/11/pfas-news-fish-wisconsin-canada/
Long-lived chemicals that were banned years or even decades ago in the U.S. and Canada are still turning up in the bodies of fish and migrating terns in the Great Lakes, and they continue to affect the health of those threatened birds.
Scientists found all three chemicals they checked for in the brains and livers of more than two dozen common terns, at all life stages – chicks, juveniles and adults.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/11/legacy-pollutants-great-lakes-terns-emerald-shiners/
BLOOMINGTON, Minn. (AP) — Trump administration officials on Thursday stripped Endangered Species Act protections for gray wolves in most of the U.S., ending longstanding federal safeguards and putting states and tribes in charge of overseeing the predators.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/10/ap-trump-officials-end-gray-wolf-protections-across-us/
Anglers as a group are generally nice people – polite, kind, generous and peaceful. But throw out a couple high-end, super-sweet fishing machines and stacks of cash, and they’ll brawl hard. For six weeks.
The 10th Annual B’Laster Fall Brawl began at 12:01 a.m Oct. 16 and runs through 8:00 a.m.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/10/fall-brawl-sheffield-lake-fishing-derby/
Whether they’re in oceans or the Great Lakes, shipwrecks create unique ecosystems for a variety of aquatic life. They also have historical significance and provide recreational opportunities for divers, snorkelers and boaters.
Scenes of them open the PBS documentary series “The Age of Nature,” which broadcasts on PBS stations across the country in October 2020.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/10/shipwrecks-ecosystems-watch-party-great-lakes-now-age-of-nature/
This article was republished here with permission from Great Lakes Echo.
By Eric Freedman, Capital News Service
To keep healthy this fall, deer hunters have more to worry about than just COVID-19 and the flu.
On the beware list: a group of chemicals known as PFAS and lead from ammunition.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/10/hunters-contaminated-game-pfas-lead/
This article is published in conjunction with PBS’s “The Age of Nature” series which begins airing on Oct. 14.
Join Great Lakes Now‘s “Watch Party: Damming Decisions – A discussion about dam removals and what they mean for the environment” on Facebook on Monday, Oct.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/10/when-a-dam-comes-down-removal-of-dams-allows-fish-passage-and-habitat-restoration/
After nearly a century of generating hydroelectric power on the St. Regis River in upstate New York, the Hogansburg Dam came down in December 2016. Fish who could now swim freely along the river weren’t the only ones celebrating. The end of the dam also marked the first time a tribal nation led the decommissioning process for a federal dam.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/10/dams-great-lakes-aging-infrastructure/
All that remained of the schooner was a bit of its hull – a tightly-packed row of wooden planks stretching 40 feet across the bottom of Lake Huron. Sunbeams easily penetrated the 20 feet of clear lake water above the wreck.
The site appeared lifeless.
There were no schools of emerald shiners, black-striped minnows or yellow perch in sight.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/10/shipwreck-ecosystem-fish-great-lakes-species/
Lake Erie’s Western Basin didn’t do well on its first big test: a report card produced by the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science.
The report card gave it a mediocre score, an overall C+, based on a various factors regarding the lake’s condition. The watershed surrounding western Lake Erie scored a C.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/10/western-lake-erie-mediocre-score-report-card/
By Kimberly M. S. Cartier, Eos
This story originally appeared in Eos and is republished here as part of Covering Climate Now, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story.
As Chicago’s industries and population boomed in the late 1800s, city officials decided to reverse the course of the Chicago River so that it flowed away from Lake Michigan.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/09/chicago-wetlands-shrank-40-20th-century/
TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. (AP) — Gray wolves that were taken to Michigan’s Isle Royale National Park to rebuild its nearly extinct population are forming social groups, staking out territory and apparently mating — promising signs despite heavy losses from natural causes and deadly fights, scientists said Monday.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/09/isle-royale-wolves-moose-herd/
MADISON, Wis. (AP) — State environmental and health officials warned people Tuesday to avoid eating the livers of deer harvested around the Marinette area to avoid exposure to PFAS chemicals.
PFAS are man-made chemicals that research suggests can cause a range of health problems in humans. The chemicals have been used for decades in a range of products, including nonstick cookware, fast-food wrappers and firefighting foam.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/09/ap-dnr-pfas-deer-livers-wisconsin-marinette/
Sea lamprey control in the Great Lakes has been a success.
Compared to the 1950s, 90% fewer of the toothy, invasive, eel-like parasite are spawning.
Control efforts have been so successful that some researchers now suggest a more permanent solution: complete eradication of the pest from the Great Lakes.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/09/sea-lamprey-invasive-species-research-eradication-great-lakes/
The Toledo Zoo’s popular lake sturgeon stocking event won’t happen this year, though a pause in the program – thanks to the international COVID-19 pandemic – won’t hurt the project.
“In a nutshell, our partners out of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in Alpena, Michigan, and Genoa, Wisconsin, are the ones who collect the eggs,” explained Kent Bekker, director of conservation at the zoo.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/09/sturgeon-stocking-covid-19-release-program/
Josh Otten reached down and pulled two turtles from the bow compartment of his kayak. One was the size of a dinner plate; the other was barely the size of a silver dollar pancake. Both were northern map turtles, the most common species of turtle in the Kalamazoo River watershed, according to Otten who played a key role in the rescue and rehabilitation of more than 2,000 turtles in 2010 following the Kalamazoo River oil spill.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/09/turtle-recovery-kalamazoo-river-enbridge-oil-spill/
After a stint as an intern for Great Lakes Now, Kathy Johnson is shining a light on the Kalamazoo River oil spill 10 years ago and the subsequent turtle recovery efforts with her first fully produced segment for Great Lakes Now.
Like many journalists working in the Great Lakes region covering stories about the Great Lakes, Kathy Johnson’s roots begin in the region.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/08/great-lakes-producer-ecosystems-life-water-covering-lakes/
HARTVILLE, Ohio (AP) — Dishwashing detergent created foam that killed hundreds of fish a couple weeks ago in a northeastern Ohio waterway, according to the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency.
The fish were found last Monday in the Tuscarawas River in northern Stark and southern Summit counties.
An investigation determined that someone dumped the detergent on the ground near a storm drain in Hartville, an EPA spokesperson said.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/08/ap-dishwashing-detergent-killed-hundreds-fish-ohio-river/
As algal blooms flourish on the edges of the Great Lakes, lake management bodies look to cut down the flow of nutrients into the water that feeds the algae. But, as a recent report by the International Joint Commission explains, not all parts of the lakes suffer from too many nutrients — in fact, the deeper offshore waters aren’t getting enough.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/08/offshore-great-lakes-fish-populations-nutrient-levels/
ESCANABA, Mich. (AP) — A bald eagle launched an aerial assault on a drone operated by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy — known as EGLE — ripping off a propeller and sending the aircraft into Lake Michigan.
The attack happened July 21, when the drone was mapping shoreline erosion near Escanaba in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula to document and help communities cope with high water levels, the department said in a statement.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/08/ap-bald-eagle-drone-lake-michigan/
ESCANABA, Mich. (AP) — Michigan officials are investigating a fish kill that affected a dozen species on the middle branch of the Escanaba River in the Upper Peninsula.
The die-off was reported Aug. 9 on the 52-mile-long river, which is popular with anglers, officials said Wednesday.
It happened near Gladstone, downstream of Verso Corp.’s Escanaba Paper Mill, which the previous week had reported the rupture of a pipe at its wastewater treatment plant.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/08/ap-michigan-fish-kill-escanaba-river/
CHICAGO (AP) — The variety of fish swimming in Chicago’s rivers have increased in recent decades, which authorities attribute to a decline in pollution, according to a sampling study released Monday by the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District.
The report claims there are nearly 60 different types of fish swimming in the Chicago and Calumet rivers.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/08/ap-fish-types-chicago-waters-increases/
Great Lakes Now is hosting a live chat about invasive species with the Belle Isle Conservancy on Friday, Aug. 7. Check out the event page here for more details.
Since the 1800s, at least 25 non-native fish species – like the sea lamprey, zebra mussel or round goby – have entered the Great Lakes, changing the Great Lakes ecosystem in a variety of ways.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/11/invasive-species-quiz-great-lakes/
By John Funk, Energy News Network, through the Institute for Nonprofit News network
A bipartisan coalition of 32 state lawmakers from Northeast Ohio has interceded on behalf of the Lake Erie Energy Development Company’s 20.7-megawatt demonstration offshore wind project, now before state regulators.
In a strongly worded letter to Sam Randazzo, chair of the Ohio Power Siting Board, the lawmakers objected to the board’s ruling in May granting a permit — if LEEDCo agreed to shut down the wind farm’s six turbines from dusk to dawn eight months out of the year, Mar.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/07/ohio-lawmakers-offshore-wind-ruling-revisited/
This article was republished here with permission from Great Lakes Echo.
By Carin Tunney, Great Lakes Now
A million-dollar grant to study aquaculture aims to boost the number of fish farms in the Great Lakes region.
Aquaculture refers to raising fish both to eat and to stock streams and lakes.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/07/grant-great-lakes-aquaculture/
Close your eyes for a moment and imagine you are on a roller coaster ascending the first and highest hill on the ride. You hear the click, click, click as the car slowly climbs to the top and you start getting excited, even nervous, the closer you get to the peak.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/06/michigan-history-environmental-contamination/
The animals at various aquariums are dealing with their own COVID-19 lockdown struggles as they adjust to new routines, new procedures and a distinct lack of the public, and each animal handles it a little differently.
Thanks to Great Lakes aquariums like Shedd Aquarium in Chicago, the Aquatarium at Tall Ships Landing in Brockville, Ontario, and Belle Isle Conservancy in Detroit, the public can get a peek at the various things staff are doing to keep the animals happy and entertained.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/05/animal-quiz-great-lakes-aquarium-animal-covid-19-quarantine/
Chicago’s Shedd Aquarium is one of the more popular, well-known aquariums around the country with 2 million visitors every year.
But the COVID-19 pandemic has closed it to the public, which is a big change for the penguins, whales, fish and other creatures that live in the Shedd’s various habitats.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/05/covid-19-shedd-aquarium-visitors/
There are cockroaches roaming the aquarium at the Belle Isle Conservancy.
But don’t worry, they’re supposed to be there.
Unlike the smaller, more common roaches you might find in a dirty or old building, these cockroaches are Madagascar hissing cockroaches, who have their own exhibit at the conservancy and were given a chance to say hello to some fish while the aquarium is closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/05/covid-19-belle-isle-fish-and-insects-visitors/
Masks or no, the otters at the Aquatarium at Tall Ships Landing in Brockville, Ontario, know exactly who’s in their den space.
“They really recognize us more by our smell and our boots,” said Jennipher Carter, senior aquarist at the Aquatarium. For the otters at least, adjusting to their caretakers all wearing masks didn’t take long.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/05/ontario-aquatarium-covid-19-virtual-engagement/
LANSING, Mich. (AP) — A crayfish that reproduces by cloning has been added to Michigan’s prohibited species list.
All known specimens of marbled crayfish are genetically identical females that can produce up to 700 eggs per reproductive cycle without the need for fertilization, according to the state Department of Natural Resources.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/05/ap-marbled-crayfish-michigans-prohibited-species/
As the author of Great Lakes Now’s Collection of Lesson Plans, educational consultant Gary Abud Jr. is now providing more support for parents, teachers and caregivers who want to incorporate Great Lakes learning into their time with children and students. His series of writings can be found HERE along with the lesson plans and a Virtual Field Trip.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/05/great-lakes-learning-younger-learners/
Great Lakes Moment is a monthly column written by Great Lakes Now Contributor John Hartig. Publishing the author’s views and assertions does not represent endorsement by Great Lakes Now or Detroit Public Television.
Most people know river otters from zoos or YouTube videos as endearing playful creatures that can put a smile on anyone’s face.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/05/river-otters-western-lake-erie/
The contested case of the Icebreaker Wind Farm has implications for renewable energy in the region.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/04/rust-resilience-lake-erie-wind-farm/
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — An Ohio fishery has been charged with wildlife violations after investigators observed abuse and waste of game fish, officials said.
Investigators from the state Department of Natural Resources Division of Wildlife recorded employees from Szuch Fishery Inc. intentionally injure a rare trophy-size fish after it was removed from a commercial fishing net in western Lake Erie on March 31, the Dayton Daily News reported Sunday.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/04/ap-ohio-fishery-charged-abusing-wasting-game-fish/
Spring in the Great Lakes region brings blooming tulips, pollinating bees, biting sunfish and the threat of spreading invasive species.
As residents head outdoors to freshen backyard ponds and launch fishing boats, state and provincial resource managers are urging everyone to keep a few simple guidelines in mind to keep the Great Lakes safe.
Great Lakes Now
https://www.greatlakesnow.org/2020/04/states-stop-spread-aquatic-invasive-species/
