Flotsam or jetsam? Invasive species litter the bottom of Lake Michigan
Speaker: Russell Cuhel, Senior Scientist, UWM School of Freshwater Sciences
Long ago (pre-1990), the bottom of Lake Michigan was pretty bare once you got deeper than 10 meters (33 feet) or so. The water was mostly turbid (cloudy) nearshore, and deeper areas were dark even at midday. In the late 1980s, zebra mussels moved in, and coastal water clarity increased dramatically in the warmer months. Deeper areas (30 meters or 100 feet or more) were still bare. Then the quagga mussel ran the zebra mussel out of town after 2003, and colonized a huge part of the lake bottom. This video tour of Southwestern Lake Michigan benthic (bottom) habitats will show you the extent of change, how sudden storms affect the lake bottom, and other scientifically relevant amusements.
The UWM School of Freshwater Sciences announces another semester of All Things Water seminars, featuring presentations on freshwater topics by faculty, scientists, and industry and community professionals, followed by discussion. The seminars are geared toward general audiences, and are free and open to the public. Bring your own lunch.
Lectures are 12-1pm in the UWM Union (check schedule at freshwater.uwm.edu/events for specific room), at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 2200 E. Kenwood Blvd.
