Ohio Sea Grant Research to Determine How Algal Blooms Impact Fish’s Vision and Hunting Behavior
Researchers at The Ohio State University are studying how well fish can see both prey and predators underwater, and how that ability is influenced by changes in water clarity. They hope that the research will help Lake Erie fisheries adapt to algal blooms that reduce underwater visibility, which is important to visual hunters such as walleye. Fish tend to follow a rotating stripe pattern that can be set up around a round tank in the lab. This allows researchers to study how well fish can see in various water conditions – no movement means the water is too murky for them.
Learning for Life
For many, Stone Lab, Ohio State’s island campus on Lake Erie, is more than just a place to take some summer classes that doesn’t involve sitting in a lecture hall. It’s a way of life that gets in your bones and stays with you from the first time you step off a boat onto the Gibraltar Island docks.
Stone Lab experiences often start with a field trip for kids as young as fifth grade. The Lake Erie Science Field Trip Program takes students out onto the lake for a fish trawl and water sampling session before bringing them back to the lab to dissect their catch and analyze their water samples under microscopes. Additional activities include everything from a plant walk around the island to meeting some of Stone Lab’s reptilian residents.
For many of the students, it’s the first time they get to experience science beyond reading about it in a book.
Taking Climate Explorations to New Shores
Climate change is likely to have a profound impact on the Great Lakes, affecting everything from residents’ electricity bills to local crops and insect pests. However, many Great Lakes residents don’t know what those impacts could be, or what actions could address or prevent them.
Ohio Sea Grant’s outreach programs are committed to closing that knowledge gap, with approaches as varied as a webinar series and a curriculum set for middle and high school classes. Stone Lab’s Lake Erie Science Field Trip program has also added a climate change activity to its lineup, using display panels on Gibraltar Island to educate participants about the impacts of climate change on the region, as well as about ways to prevent and mitigate those impacts with personal actions.
NOAA and Partners Issue 2016 Seasonal Harmful Algal Bloom Forecast from Ohio State’s Stone Lab
The National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration’s National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science issued its fifth seasonal harmful algal bloom (HAB) forecast for western Lake Erie at an all-day press event at The Ohio State University’s Stone Laboratory on July 7, 2016. The forecast predicts a moderate bloom for this summer, comparable to conditions seen in 2008-2010.
The 2016 HAB is expected to measure 5.5 on the severity index introduced in 2014. The index runs from a 10, which is equivalent to the bloom observed in 2011, down to zero. The 2015 bloom was rated at 10.5, Lake Erie’s most severe bloom to date, while 2013’s bloom received a final score of 8.7. Any score above 5 is considered to be of concern.
Watching Fish See
No matter how useful it will eventually be, sometimes science just looks silly. In Dr. Suzanne Gray’s lab at The Ohio State University, a fish in a cylindrical tank slowly swims in circles as it follows the black and white panel rotating around the outside of the glass.
Gray and her Ohio State collaborators, Dr. Jeremy Bruskotter and Eugene Braig, are studying how well fish can see both prey and predators underwater, and how that ability is influenced by changes in water clarity. They hope that the research will help Lake Erie fisheries adapt to algal blooms that reduce underwater visibility, which is important to visual hunters such as Walleye. Those important sport fish, along with prey fish like Emerald Shiners, are the current focus of the project.
Tracking Harmful Algal Blooms from Source to Impact
The three Harmful Algal Bloom Research Initiative projects in this focus area aim to improve use of existing technologies as well as develop new methods to detect, prevent and mitigate harmful algal blooms (HABs) and their impacts. This helps to ensure drinking water safety and a healthy environment for lakeshore residents by connecting the dots between many of HABs’ potential causes and effects.
Ohio Sea Grant Releases Summary of First Year of ODHE Harmful Algal Bloom Research Initiative
Ohio Sea Grant, on behalf of The Ohio State University, the University of Toledo and the Ohio Department of Higher Education, has released the annual report for the first year of funding for the Harmful Algal Bloom Research Initiative (HABRI), which seeks solutions for harmful algal blooms in Ohio.
The first 18 projects funded under this initiative have already provided needed answers that have helped water treatment operators, regulators, farmers and legislators deal with harmful algal blooms, predict future scenarios and lay a foundation for long-term bloom mitigation and prevention.
Stone Lab Students Participate in ODNR Fisheries Research
For about six years, students in Stone Lab’s Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) Scholarship Program have participated in a multi-state Walleye movement and mortality study in Lake Erie.
If Not By Sea, Then By Air
Water sampling on Lake Erie in the summer is pretty simple: check for decent weather, find a boat, cruise to the sampling locations, take samples, bring them home.
In winter, things get a bit more complicated: winter storms on Lake Erie can be frequent, so even if the lake isn’t frozen, chances for sampling trips are likely limited. A frozen lake means needing to recruit an ice breaker to get to sampling locations, and sometimes, even those winter-ready ships aren’t quite able to travel as freely as a research project may require.
The Ohio Clean Marinas Program Expands
Boating plays an integral part in Ohio recreation. On Lake Erie, boaters can explore the coastline, visit the islands and fish for Walleye. And on inland lakes and rivers, paddling and pontoon opportunities give people a chance to experience Ohio’s waterways up close. But with outdoor tourism come potential problems, such as oil and gas pollution, littering and other environmental damage.
Ohio Sea Grant Knauss Fellow Champions Ocean Education
The first comment Erin Sams Cooper usually has to address when she talks about her employer, the education non-profit Teens4Oceans, is “but… you’re based in Colorado.” And while the Rocky Mountains around Boulder were covered by an ocean a few million years ago, it’s not the first place most people would think of when asked where to start an ocean education program.
Researchers Explore New Avenues With Help From Ohio Sea Grant Small Grants
Often in academic research, it seems that all that matters is the big numbers: press releases report on hundreds of thousands of dollars in funding for multi-year projects with large research teams. But small grants can be equally as important to an area of study, first and foremost because most scientists don’t start out by winning those highly competitive large grants.
Ohio Sea Grant’s Small Grants Program allows researchers to submit funding proposals at any time, for up to $10,000. While that generally does not cover a full project, it allows researchers to explore new aspects of their areas of interest, to potentially expand on in future investigations.
Ohio Board of Regents Funding Tackles Harmful Algal Blooms
A two-million dollar initiative funded by the Ohio Department of Higher Education (formerly the Ohio Board of Regents) brings together scientists from a number of Ohio universities to address HABs in Lake Erie.
Ohio Sea Grant Director Ends Tenure on a High Note
If you live in the Great Lakes and pay attention to the news on a semi-regular basis, you’ve probably seen, heard or read about Dr. Jeff Reutter, Director of Ohio Sea Grant and Stone Laboratory at The Ohio State University. After 42 years at Ohio Sea Grant and Stone Lab, as a researcher, educator and administrator, Reutter stepped down from his position on March 31, 2015.
Ohio Sea Grant Director Retires After 42 Years of Service
Ohio Sea Grant and Stone Laboratory, The Ohio State University’s island campus on Lake Erie, say a heartfelt “thank you” to Dr. Jeffrey Reutter, who is retiring from his position as Ohio Sea Grant Director today.
Algae Through The Ages
When toxins from a harmful algal bloom (HAB) caused the City of Toledo to issue a “Do Not Drink Advisory” to 400,000 people, Ohio Sea Grant was on the case as soon as the phone started ringing.
While Stone Lab staff carried boxes of toxin analysis supplies to the City of Toledo offices, which were on the brink of running out, Ohio Sea Grant director Dr. Jeff Reutter and research coordinator Dr. Justin Chaffin were on the phone with the U.S. and Ohio Environmental Protection Agencies (EPA) as well as city officials from Toledo to help inform their management of the issue.
But August 2014 was far from the first time Ohio Sea Grant worked on the front lines to restore the health of Lake Erie.
And Dirt Goes Flying at the Speed of Sound
Wouldn’t it be nice if you could just shout at the mess in your kitchen and have it disappear? While that’s still a pipe dream, researchers at The Ohio State University are taking steps in the right direction, working to use sound waves to remove contaminants from Lake Erie sediment.
Giving Back
Stone Lab students always maintain a special connection to their time on the island. Many will return as Friends of Stone Lab to help with annual events, or they support the lab through donations. And then there are a few alumni who go the extra mile and include Stone Lab in their estate, contributing to Lake Erie research and education long after they themselves are gone.
The Great Lakes’ Guardian Angel
Every summer, one of the Great Lakes receives a visit from a white ship bearing the mark of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The Research Vessel (R/V) Lake Guardian is tasked with monitoring the conditions in the Great Lakes, from water temperatures to aquatic organisms.
Once a year, the Guardian, as it’s often called, also takes on a group of about 16 educators from around the Great Lakes region to allow them to learn about current Great Lakes research and bring that knowledge back to the students in their classroom
Discover Lake Erie Birding
Each summer, locations along the Lake Erie coastline fill with visitors, cameras and bird guides in hand, ready to discover that next rare bird on their must-see list. Birding contributes $30 million to northern Ohio’s economy every year, and the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Wildlife and Ohio Sea Grant have partnered in an effort to support and expand that contribution.