Thursday Concurrent Session 1
50 minutes
April 2, 2020 ~ 8:00-8:50 am
Agenda subject to change.
A Primer on Fisheries Management in Wisconsin
Fishes are the most diverse vertebrates in the world and the lakes, rivers, streams, and reservoirs of Wisconsin support over 140 native species. Please join DNR Fish Ecologist Paul Cunningham as he characterizes the various families and species of sportfish common to Wisconsin waters. General biology and ecology of sportfish will be addressed and common management strategies for managing Wisconsin’s inland fisheries will be shared. A look to the future including climate change, and Invasive fish species and their impacts on native fishes and food webs in Wisconsin will be projected. We are confident a few stories from one of Fish Management’s senior leads might also be shared.
Presenter: Paul Cunningham, Fisheries Ecologist, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
What’s All the Fuss About Rights to Piers & Lakebeds?: Riparian Rights & Property Rights in the Age of Movrich v Lobermeier
In 2018, a little-noticed Supreme Court decision, Movrich v Loberrmeier, upended a tiny little segment of property law, ruling that the right of an individual landowner, even one whose land is flooded and makes up the lakebed of a flowage, retains the fundamental property right to keep others off their land. This right, said the court, trumped even the presumptive riparian rights of those who own land that abuts navigable water including the right to place a pier. Recently, a bill being backed by a multi-million dollar advertising campaign telling waterfront property owners to “Save Their Piers” would reverse the court’s ruling. So what does all this mean? What’s really going on, and who wins and who loses if the bill passes or the decision is allowed to stand? We’ll take an objective look at the ins and outs of the issue to provide some context and insight behind all the noise.
Presenter: Mike Engleson, Executive Director, Wisconsin Lakes
Native Plant Gardening: Tips and Resources to Help You Garden for Clean Water, Wildlife Habitat, and Beyond
Patrick will share tips and resources to help you utilize native plant gardens within your home or business landscape. He will review the gifts native gardens give us, from more resilient ecosystems to supporting clean water and wildlife habitat. Last, assorted resources will be shared on various native plant gardening topics including: information on why we should use native plants and how to get started with using them; ideas for planning and designing your garden; strategies for supporting pollinators through native plantings; field guides and texts for identifying Wisconsin’s native flora; maintenance of native gardens; natural plant community restoration tips; and leads on folks writing about a new and growing native plant gardening movement.
Presenter: Patrick Goggin, Lakes Specialist, Extension Lakes
A Changing Lake: Addressing Low Dissolved Oxygen and High Phosphorus in Wisconsin’s Deepest Natural Inland Lake, Green Lake
As the deepest natural inland lake in Wisconsin, Green Lake is a unique lake with long-term water quality degradation. In 2014, Green Lake was listed as impaired for its progressively worsening mid-depth dead zone--with dissolved oxygen concentrations annually falling below 5 mg/L--in addition to low dissolved oxygen at its bottom waters. Phosphorus concentrations are also increasing above the lake’s water quality criteria of 15 ug/L. In a public-private partnership, the lake association, USGS, and Michigan Technological University are carrying out a multi-year, WDNR-funded research study based on rigorous data and several lake models. The goals of this study are: 1) better understand the lake’s water quality changes, 2) determine the causes of degradation (for dissolved oxygen and phosphorus), 3) identify and quantify management efforts to improve water quality, and 3) create a more resilient lake able to withstand growing pressures from land use and climate change.
Presenters:
Stephanie Prellwitz, Executive Director, Green Lake Association
Dale Robertson, Research Hydrologist, U.S. Geological Survey Wisconsin Water Science Center
Cory McDonald, Assistant Professor of Environmental Engineering, Michigan Technological University
*Two 25 minute presentations
Wisconsin's Changing Climate and Forecasting Aquatic Invasive Species Spread
In coming decades, Wisconsin's climate is expect to shift with changes in precipitation and temperature. Areas of Wisconsin are expected to resemble the climatic conditions of other US states. As climate shifts ecosystems, there will be an increased strain as community compositions, dynamics, and species-specific responses are altered by novel climates. It is possible, however, to predict how species may respond to future climates using modelling tools including the WICCI Climate Analogue Matching tool and USFWS's Risk Assessment Mapping Program.
Presenter: Jason Granberg, Conservation Biologist, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
Coldwater Trout Streams in Wisconsin: Loss, Recovery, and Building Resilience to Adapt to Climate Change
Water temperature is a key factor in determining where coldwater fish species such as Brook Trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) and Brown Trout (Salmo trutta) live in streams. Our past experiences in losing and restoring coldwater stream habitat can help inform how to address potential losses attributable to climate change. In this presentation I will give a brief overview of the history of coldwater stream loss and recovery in Wisconsin; present empirical data to show how temperatures have been warming in some streams consistent with ongoing changes in climatic conditions; show how projected changes in climate may further change coldwater stream habitat in Wisconsin; and discuss how stream habitat development projects are being used to repair degraded streams and to build resilience to stream warming by helping to keep our cold water cold.
Presenter: Matt Mitro, Fisheries Research Scientist, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
Volunteer Lake Level Monitoring for Management and Research
Volunteers across Wisconsin are monitoring lake levels with help from WDNR, other governmental agencies, non-profits and consultants. A long-term lake level monitoring record gives context to the extreme high and low lake levels we have seen in recent years. It also aids lake level management and research. This talk will describe the ins and outs of lake level monitoring and will give examples of what we are learning from this valuable data set.
Presenter: Katie Hein, Lake Monitoring Technical Lead, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
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