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Friday
Concurrent Sessions 2
60 minutes
April 25, 2014
11:00 am - 12:00 pm
Agenda subject to change.
Plants and Animals
Managing Fisheries in Wisconsin's Lakes: What's New?
Friday, 11:00 am - 12:00 pm
Come hear about some of the larger initiatives from DNR Fisheries Management that affect the fish communities and angling in Wisconsin's lakes. We will discuss how lake fish communities may be affected by climate, harvest regulations and habitat management. In particular we will provide updates on fish sticks / woody habitat restoration protocols.
Presenter:
Steve AveLallemantSteve AveLallemant has worked in Fisheries Management for the Wisconsin DNR for over 30 years. His formal education includes a BS in Resource Management (Fisheries emphasis) from UW Stevens Point and a MS in Aquatic Ecology from UW LaCrosse in 1981. He began work with WDNR in 1982 at the Wild Rose State Fish Hatchery and took a job as a Fisheries Biologist in Woodruff in 1984. In 1999 he became the Northern Region Fisheries Program Expert. He has been the Northern District Fisheries Supervisor since 2006., Fisheries Management, Wisconsin DNR
People and Lakes
Legislative Updates
Friday, 11:00 am - 12:00 pm
This session will highlight current legislative activity important to Wisconsin’s lakes. We will review updates on the current status of proposed changes to statewide shoreland management rules, reform of State mining and groundwater laws, and other policies affecting our waters.
Presenter:
John Keckhaver, Government Relations and Analysis LLC and lobbyist for Wisconsin Lakes
Aquatic Invasive Species
Wetland Invasive Species
Wetland Invasive Plant Mapping
Friday, 11:00 - 11:20 am
An improved understanding of where wetland invasive plants are found across the state can help in the strategic planning of control efforts, and the Wetland Invasives Team has been collecting data from many partner organizations to improve this statewide species distribution mapping. There is an emphasis on early detection species and trying to identify what species should be a priority to identify and control when resources are limited. A GLRI funded phragmites control project allowed some details of this mapping effort to be put to the test and is a good lens for examining how to promote mapping wetland invasives plants to different groups.
Presenters:
Stacy SchumacherStacy Schumacher completed her MSc in Edinburgh in Environmental Sustainability and worked in Edinburgh, Scotland as a ranger before returning to WI. She worked for Door County as well as WI DNR on invasive species issues, particularly relating to Phragmites australis.
, Wisconsin DNR
Brock Woods
Brock is part of the UW Extension's AIS Team, and manager of Wisconsin's Purple Loosestrife Biocontrol Program for over 15 years. In recent years he has joined with others at WDNR to broaden the scope of the agency's wetland invasive species control efforts. His undergraduate degree is from Lawrence University and his MS in Plant Ecology from the UW-Madison.
, UW-Extension/Wisconsin DNR
A Citizen-Driven Volunteer-Based Biological Control Program for Purple Loosestrife in Waupaca County
Friday, 11:20 - 11:40 am
Purple loosestrife threatens many wetlands, streams and lakes in Wisconsin. There are multiple approaches to diminishing this threat, with efforts ranging from state-wide initiatives to individual volunteers. An example of a more localized approach is a Waupaca County initiative begun by Jim Hlaban. He partnered with the Department of Natural Resources and organized a volunteer-based program to raise a biological control agent for purple loosestrife. In 2011, Kaycie Stushek with Golden Sands RC&D teamed up with Jim to expand the volunteer base even further, by collaborating with Waupaca County Land and Water Conservation Department.
Presenters:
Jim HlabanJim Hlaban is a retired Senior Research Scientist for Kimberly Clark Corp. Jim always had an interest in fishing, hunting and all things wild. He is a member of Fox Valley Trout Unlimited, having served as Chapter President, and, for the past 30 years, as habitat project coordinator. Jim organized a group of landowners in Waupaca called Friends of the Little Wolf Headwaters. They organize Water Monitoring Efforts, and a land registry of people interested in protecting their lands. He's active in the Northeast Wisconsin Land Trust, and has a Conservation Easement on the Tree Farm he owns near Ogdensburg., Friends of the Little Wolf Headwaters / Fox Valley Trout Unlimited
Kaycie StushekKaycie is the Aquatic Invasive Species Outreach Specialist at Golden Sands Resource Conservation & Development Council, Inc., and covers five counties in Central Wisconsin. She enjoys educating youth and adults about the value of aquatic environments, and how to prevent the spread of invasive species. She received her Bachelor's degree from UW-Stevens Point's College of Natural Resources in 2011., Golden Sands Resource Conservation & Development Council, Inc.
Exploring Aspects of Integral Ecology within the Context of Invasive Species Management
Friday, 11:40 am - 12:00 pm
Small natural areas within urbanized landscapes are often stressed by chronic exposure to invasive plant re-colonization. In some cases, historical and on-going land stewardship practices involving invasive plant (IP) control may compound this stress. As result, the ‘natural’ communities in these areas are often dominated by an assemblage of early invader species (native and non-native) reflective of a dynamic natural and artificial disturbance regime. Invasion ecology, land stewardship practices and predicted climate change impacts require restoration practitioners to consider integrative methods in the management of invasive species. This presentation offers discussion on the potential application of Integral Ecology to explore the social and ecological aspects of integrative IP management drawing examples from a historically disturbed and urbanized park undergoing restoration.
Presenter:
Brick M. FevoldBrick has an M.S. in Wildlife Ecology (2003) and a Graduate Certificate in GIS from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Brick works on issues relating to terrestrial and aquatic ecology, and biodiversity conservation.
, Wisconsin DNR
Lake Science
Wisconsin's Watersheds Ranked by Health and Vulnerability - The Results Are In! How Will You Use Them?
Friday, 11:00 - 11:30 am
Wisconsin has completed a tool for ranking every watershed in the state based on its health and vulnerability to future degradation. This modeling and mapping tool allows users to see a watersheds overall rank as well as many component scores related to water quality, landscape condition, and other categories. Come find out how you can access the modeled scores and maps and use them to target appropriate funding and management practices to specific watersheds in your area.
Presenter:
Kristi MinahanKristi Minahan is a Water Quality Standards Specialist with the Wisconsin DNR. Her work focuses on developing policies related to lake and stream classifications and assessments; previous areas include runoff management, water monitoring, and communications. She holds an M.S. in Conservation Ecology and Sustainable Development from the University of Georgia at Athens, and a B.S. in Biology from UW-Eau Claire.
, Wisconsin DNR
Lake Classification - WI Lake Conservation Portfolio
Friday, 11:30 am - 12:00 pm
Over the past year, The Nature Conservancy has been synthesizing available data for Wisconsin's ~15,0000 lakes to develop a statewide classification and conservation portfolio designed to support lake conservation planning. Conservancy scientists have worked with an array of lake experts and partners, including Wisconsin DNR and the Wisconsin Lakes Partnership, to understand how fish, plants, water quality and aquatic communities vary across the state and how these differences may influence vulnerability of lakes to stressors.
Presenters:
Kristen BlannDr. Kristen Blann has provided technical leadership for The Nature Conservancy for freshwater conservation action planning for over six years, including development of a lake classification and conservation portfolio for the MN, ND, and SD chapter; development of conservation action plans for TNC priorities in the Midwest; participation with the Midwest fish habitat partnerships Science Network; and development of ecological flow and water level criteria., The Nature Conservancy
John WagnerJohn Wagner, Conservation Information Manager, The Nature Conservancy in Wisconsin. John has been involved in all aspects of tabular and spatial data stewardship, creation, analysis and visualization for Conservancy projects and ecoregional plans.
, The Nature Conservancy
Presentation: Lake Classification Conservation Portfolio for Wisconsin
Lake Science
Farmers and Watersheds: Working with the People That Feed You
Friday, 11:00 am - 12:00 pm
The Clark County Land Conservation Department has been implementing the Mead Lake TMDL in the South Fork of the Eau Claire River Watershed for the past five years. The department has developed a unique strategy for the implementation of conservation in the Mead Lake Watershed. Join Matt to discuss the department's approach to developing trust and building relationships with the people that feed you.
Presenter:
Matt ZoschkeMatt has been farming or working with farmers for the past fifteen years. He has a degree in soil science and is a professional agronomist. Before moving to Clark County seven years ago, his family operated a diversified organic farm in southeast Wisconsin. He nows lives on a gravel road five miles from four of the county's largest CAFOs and adjacent to an Amish Community. Each day, the largest tractors imaginable followed by horse and buggys travel down that road. Every day, he hopes the road stays gravel...
, Clark County Land Conservation Department
Lake Science
Climate Change, Water Levels and the Ecology of Northern Wisconsin Lakes
Friday, 11:00 - 11:20 am
In this presentation we focus on long-term patterns in water levels and resulting impacts on the ecology of a set of lakes in the Northern Highland Lake District of northern Wisconsin. We discuss the ecological consequences of low water levels on lakes and what climate models suggest may happen to water level over the next 100 years.
Presenter:
Tim KratzTim Kratz is a Senior Scientist at the University of Wisconsins Center for Limnology and serves as the Director of Trout Lake Station in Vilas County. He is interested in the long-term, regional ecology of lakes, and lake-landscape interactions and has been involved in the North Temperate Lakes Long-Term Ecological Research project since its inception in 1981. He recently served a two-year term as a Program Officer in the Division of Environmental Biology at the National Science Foundation in Arlington, VA. , University of Wisconsin Trout Lake Station
Predicting Water Temperature in Wisconsin Lakes
Friday, 11:20 - 11:40 am
Temperature is a master factor in lakes, influencing all aspects of lake ecology from nutrient cycling to fish populations. At the same time, water temperature in lakes is influenced both by local climate and lake-specific conditions. We developed a physical model to simulate thermal profiles of 2500 Wisconsin lakes from 1979-2011 using downscaled climate data and water clarity, lake size and depth, and forest canopy cover. This model produces temperature data on an unprecedented temporal and spatial scale in limnology. Results show high variability in temperatures among lakes and among years, suggesting that lake-specific variables play a critical role in mediating the effects of climate on lake temperature. Historical temperature data are currently being used to explain the long term climate component of trends in populations of largemouth bass and walleye. Future work will expand this model to project future lake thermal conditions and their effects on Wisconsins fisheries.
Presenter:
im Kratz is a Senior Scientist at the University of Wisconsins Center for Limnology and serves as the Director of Trout Lake Station in Vilas County. He is interested in the long-term, regional ecology of lakes, and lake-landscape interactions and has been involved in the North Temperate Lakes Long-Term Ecological Research project since its inception in 1981. He recently served a two-year term as a Program Officer in the Division of Environmental Biology at the National Science Foundation in Arlington, VA.Gretchen HansenGretchen Hansen is a fisheries research scientist with the Wisconsin DNR. Gretchen attended UW Madison for both her undergraduate degree and Ph.D., with a break in between to get a master's from Michigan State University and chase salmon in the pacific northwest.
, Wisconsin DNR
Presentation: Predicting Water Temperature in Wisconsin Lakes
Projected Climate Change Effects on Cisco, a Keystone Whitefish Species in Deep Wisconsin Lakes
Friday, 11:40 am - 12:00 pm
The cisco (Coregonus artedi), a whitefish requiring cold, well-oxygenated water, plays a key role as a plankton consumer and as prey for gamefish in about 175 of the deepest Wisconsin lakes. As the climate warms and the duration of lake stratification increases, cisco populations are projected to disappear from 30-70% of these lakes by the end of the century. An ongoing WDNR survey of statewide cisco status suggests that some lakes have already lost their cisco. The disappearance of cisco from a lake has the potential to alter the zooplankton community, with implications for water clarity and for the growth and survival of many fish species, and to eliminate an important source of food for large walleyes, muskellunge, and northern pike. Efforts to conserve cisco should focus on reducing nutrient inputs to lakes so that sufficient oxygen will remain in deep cold waters throughout summer stratification.
Presenter:
Tim Kratz is a Senior Scientist at the University of Wisconsins Center for Limnology and serves as the Director of Trout Lake Station in Vilas County. He is interested in the long-term, regional ecology of lakes, and lake-landscape interactions and has been involved in the North Temperate Lakes Long-Term Ecological Research project since its inception in 1981. He recently served a two-year term as a Program Officer in the Division of Environmental Biology at the National Science Foundation in Arlington, VA.John LyonsJohn is a fisheries research scientist and ichthyologist for the Bureau of Science Services of the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, a position he has held for 29 years. He conducts applied research around the state to support WDNR management efforts and to help conserve and improve aquatic ecosystems and fisheries. John has a Ph.D. and M.S. in Zoology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a B.S. in Biology from Union College, Schenectady, NY.
, Wisconsin DNR
Presentation: Projected Climate Change Effects on Cisco in Deep Wisconsin Lakes
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