Media Category: NTL

A boat sampling on the lakes.

A note from the microbes.

Sparkling Lake.

Dr. Andrew Rypel holds a largemouth bass. Largemouth bass are a spatially variable species, and respond strongly to large scale ecosystem changes like climate change. Courtesy Andrew Rypel. CC by-SA 4.0.

Bootstrapped temporal heterogeneity measures for 18 fish species in each of four lakes compared to bootstrapped spatial heterogeneity measures for the same species across 55 lakes regionally. Species like walleye were less heterogeneous in individual lakes over time relative to patterns observed spatially. Conversely, black crappie and yellow perch had high temporal heterogeneity in lakes relative to observed spatial heterogeneity. Figure and caption from Spatial versus temporal heterogeneity in abundance of fishes in north-temperate lakes by Andrew Rypel. CC BY-SA 4.0.

One of many lakes in the North Temperate Lakes LTER. The spatial breadth of the LTER, combined with the long duration of research in the area, provided Dr. Rypel the requisite data to study population variability across both space and time in several fishes. Credit: Andrew Rypel. CC BY-SA 4.0.

Wendy Schnell’s Vanishing Point, from Drawing Water, illustrates in an artistic “graph” the increasing population of the invasive rainbow smelt alongside the declining natural walleye population. After her time at Trout Lake Station, Schnell donated the piece to the station, where it hangs for scientists and artists to view.

NTL LTER