Citizen Lake Monitoring Network

The 2009 Secchi Dip-in is here! It is June 27 - July 19, 2009. The Dip-in is an annual event sponsored by Kent State University. Volunteers from all over the US (and even the world) take a secchi reading during this time. Bob Carlson, a professor at Kent State, who developed the Trophic State Index (TSI), analyzes the data at a national level to look for trends.

Thanks to all volunteers, participation in 2008 was excellent (and even more data is still rolling in). In 2008, 978 volunteers monitored at over 800 locations!

I found an aquatic invasive species that is new to my lake. What do I do?

As a person who works around water, you should be aware of problems associated with algal toxins. They have been implicated in deaths of pets, livestock and, in one case, a man in Wisconsin. Since few people drink algae laden water, the primary danger comes from skin reactions or respiratory problems associated the toxin.

Can you tell the difference between freshwater jellyfish and bryozoans? The freshwater jellyfish found in Wisconsin are one of several species of Craspedacusta native to China. Two species (C. sowerbii and C. sinensis) live in the Yangtze River?the world's third longest river and one so vast it makes the Wisconsin River seem like a trout stream! Freshwater jellyfish were first reported in North America as early as 1884. Sightings in Wisconsin date to 1969.

Pictured: Several adult freshwater jellyfish (Craspedacusta sowerbii) in the medusa stage. Photo by Sharon Milstead.
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Bryozoans are native to Wisconsin. Bryozoans are colony-forming animals. Many millions of individuals can form one colony. The colonies range from millimeters to meters in size, but the individuals that make up the colonies are tiny, usually less than a millimeter long.

Pictured: Bryozoan on a rake
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