Great Lakes

Invasive weather fish in the Des Plaines

Shedd staff recently conducted surveys on the invasive weatherfish (Misgurnus anguillicaudatus) and here’s a picture of a weatherfish we found in the process. As a popular fish for home aquariums, it’s believed that weatherfish were released into Chicago waterways by well-intentioned pet owners attempting to dispose of them.  This is a good reminder to never release pets into the wild if you can no longer care for them.  It could potentially become another invasive population in an already taxed Great Lakes ecosystem! Stay tuned for a future posting about our project!

Posted by Nicole, conservation

Carp Corral 2009

For the 14th year in a row the US Fish and Wildlife Service welcomed volunteers from Shedd Aquarium, US Coast Guard, Army Corp of Engineers to resume the survey of the Illinois River.  The survey is commonly known as the carp corral since the focus is on monitoring the movement of the invasive bighead carp and silver carp toward Lake Michigan.  Volunteers also track the movement of invasive round gobies toward the Mississippi River basin and the spread of a deadly fish pathogen called viral hemorrhagic septicemia.

Eric Leis from US Fish and Wildlife Service with a big head carp found in Peru, Illinois near Starved Rock State Park.

Lake Levels Rising

In the past couple months water levels in Lake Michigan and the other Great Lakes have been rising.  The National Oceanic and Atmosphere Administration website charts lake levels and records that information daily.

It is great for our ecosystem that water levels are rising but we must put this information in context.  Lake levels fluctuate two or three feet naturally over the course of 20 years.  Weather patterns and natural cycles of the earth contribute to this change.  Though the lake levels are rising right now we still need to be aware of the stresses that climate change may play on our water supply in the future.  We still need to make smart water choices in our homes even though it looks like we are awash in water right now.

--Posted by Kurt, fishes

Protect your pastime

At Shedd, we have a special relationship with the creatures inhabiting the Earth’s waters. Even the smallest amount of mercury can be deadly to fish – and anything that eats them. In 1996, we took a first step in eliminating mercury through a lighting retrofit. By changing the kind of fluorescent tube lights that we use, we eliminated more than 61 grams of mercury, or the equivalent of 87 thermometers’ worth of the toxic substance, building-wide. The current tubes that we use, although ecofriendly, still contain trace amounts of mercury, so we dispose of burned-out lights through a company that recycles them within our specifications. Since 2002, we’ve prevented a further 11 thermometers’ worth of mercury from contaminating a landfill or as much as 16 acres of water.

I grew up in a small town and used to walk to a pond to go fishing. I just caught little sunfish and bluegills, but for a kid, it was a thrill. Wouldn’t it be a shame if kids today were deprived of this childhood ritual because the water or the aquatic life in their local pond was contaminated? By recycling these fluorescent tubes – and getting others around me to participate as well – I feel that I’m looking out for the future of our environment and for the future of those kids, wherever they may go fishing!

-- Posted by Susan, facilities

Great Lakes on the big screen

"If you could take everyone on this continent on an expedition from one end of the Great Lakes to the other, you would change the way that they look at these natural treasures."

That was the thought behind Canadian film producer David Lickley's movie Mysteries of the Great Lakes playing now at Imax and Omnimax theaters around the basin.  I recently saw this movie at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago and absolutely loved it.  It was incredible to see footage of ship wrecks, caribou in the wild and the beautiful bluffs of Lake Superior.  Watching this movie made me proud to live in the Great Lakes region.  I give the film two thumbs up!

For teachers, the film has an educator's guide to use after your students see the movie.  Check it out!

--Posted by Elizabeth, conservation

Fascinating inland oceans

Today's blog was written by Colby, Great Lakes ecology educator

For an innately terrestrial creature, being out of view of land can do some funny things to our usual sense of perception.  A ship tied to a dock seems massive and ungainly.  The same ship suddenly becomes more manageable and almost undersized as the coast falls over the edge of the earth behind you. 

By contrast, the water, which formerly shared the horizon with its dry counterpart, becomes overwhelmingly vast. As a young boy first venturing away from the New England coast my mind raced to wrap itself around this shift in scale.   An ocean took over all lines of sight and my perspective changed forever. 

Now, as an educator, I see the same shift in the eyes of students as they come to realize the enormity of an equally important resource; our Great Lakes.  It is revelations like those experienced during High School Lake Ecology that will ultimately transcend the individual and lead to a shared understanding and respect for these vast inland seas.

Below is a picture I took one night of the fabulous full moon we saw on board the SV Sullivan when I was up teaching the students about constellations.

Hands on learning

Today's blog was written by Elizabeth, Great Lakes field coordinator

The High School Lake Ecology Students became sailors and scientists overnight.  One minute these young men and women were enjoying their summer vacations.  The next minute, they are composing a hypothesis, testing water quality and collecting sediment samples from the bottom of Lake Michigan.  Take a look below at a group of students diving into a sediment sample taken close to South Manitou Island.

The students found more than just silt, clay and mud when sifting through the sediment.  One student found a handful of pesky zebra mussels.

All hands on deck

Today's blog was written by Elizabeth, Great Lakes Field Coordinator

All aboard Wisconsin's flagship schooner, the SV Denis Sullivan! 

Last week I had the pleasure of participating in Shedd's High School Lake Ecology program on the SV Denis Sullivan - a 137 foot ship - with a group of 30 energetic students, Shedd educators and sailing crew.  We spent the entire week sailing on Lake Michigan, conducting science projects and learning how to navigate the second largest Great Lake.

I quickly picked up the two main rules aboard the ship: 

1. Safety first!  We practiced man overboard drills as well as the abandon ship protocol.  Good thing we were only practicing!

2.  There are no spectators on board the SV Denis Sullivan!  Everyone handles the sails, steers the ship, navigates, conducts boat checks and washes dishes.  Sailing is fun but there is also lots of hard work involved.  Who knew?

This week Sandy and I will be sharing our experiences aboard the ship.  We will also hear from Maggie, Matt and Colby, the fantastic educators behind the High School Lake Ecology program.  So stay tuned for more pictures, stories and lessons.

Did you know...

... that Lake Michigan and Lake Huron are actually one lake?  The large bodies of water are connected by the Mackinac Strait which is at least 3 miles wide.  Water levels fluctuate in all of the lakes but Lake Michigan and Lake Huron have nearly identical water levels.  If the early North American explorers had not assumed that the bodies of water were separate, Lake Michigan would have been known as the largest Great Lake!  But instead that title goes to Lake Superior. 

Right Bite Spotlight

Today our Right Bite expert will be cooking a delicious yellow perch recipe on ABC 7's 11:00 AM segment.  If you don't have a chance to watch it click here to view three delicious and healthy Right Bite recipes you can try at home.

Our groundbreaking research revealed that yellow perch was a "best choice" for you and for the Great Lakes.  To learn why yellow perch is a healthy option click here.