Tag: cold water

Warming to Change Great Lakes Ecosystem?

Some researchers say global warming will impact fish habitat in the
Great Lakes. Chuck Quirmbach reports:

Transcript

Some researchers say global warming will impact fish habitat in the
Great Lakes. Chuck Quirmbach reports:


Some scientists have projected that more global warming will mean less
rain and snow falling into the Great Lakes and the continuation
of low water levels.


Researcher Brian Shuter is with the Ontario Ministry of Natural
Resources. He says if the projection comes true, there will be
more stress on the millions of Great Lakes fish:


“I mean the space for fish to live in is just gonna shrink and the less
space there is, the less fish there will be.”


Shuter also anticipates higher summertime water temperatures and less
ice cover in the lakes. That’s a change that could lead to more warm
water fish like bass and fewer of the cold water fish like salmon
and trout that people like to eat.


Shuter says the change could also promote the growth of invasive
species that favor warmer water temperatures. So, he encourages tighter
controls on invasives and more water conservation programs.


For the Environment Report, I’m Chuck Quirmbach.

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Species Avoids Being Prey

A new study in the journal Ecology finds that in the animal world,
there are worse things than being eaten alive. Rebecca Williams
reports:

Transcript

A new study in the journal Ecology finds that in the animal world,
there are worse things than being eaten alive. Rebecca Williams
reports:


Getting eaten by a predator might be bad, but it might be just the
beginning of the bad news for prey.


Scientists looked at the effects of an invasive species in the Great
Lakes called the spiny water flea. The water fleas eat tiny creatures
called daphnia. In the study, daphnia swam to deeper, colder water to
get away from the predator.


Scott Peacor is a fisheries scientist with Michigan State University
and the Great Lakes Environmental Research Lab:


“Prey of course do all sorts of things to avoid becoming a meal. In this case,
the daphnia swimming down to colder waters means they reproduce at much
slower rates. So that’s a major cost in this case.”


So instead of one daphnia getting eaten, the entire population is at
greater risk of dying off. And that’s bad because daphnia are a key
food source at the bottom of the Great Lakes food web.


For the Environment Report, I’m Rebecca Williams.

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Mild Weather Poses Danger to Boaters

The Coast Guard says because of the mild winter a lot of people are still kayaking and boating on the water. That’s why it’s warning boaters to remember how cold the water is, even on a warm day. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Lester Graham reports:

Transcript

The Coast Guard says because of the mild winter a lot of people are still kayaking and boating on the water. That’s why it’s warning boaters to remember how cold the water is even on a warm day. The Great Lakes Radio Consortium’s Lester Graham reports.


Even if the temperature reaches into the 60’s, the water is colder, cold enough to cause hypothermia in a couple of minutes. Coast Guard Chief Petty Officer Adam Wine says people fishing or hunting, or those kayaking or even out on jet-skis and the like should dress properly.


“If you’re going to go out on the water this time of year, you should be wearing a personal flotation device that is basically like a suit. It should be similar to either a dry suit or an exposure suit.”


Chief Wine says the personal flotation device suits are about the same price as thermal gear people buy for skiing and snowmobiling, but a lot more safe.


“You know, the thermal gear will drag you right to the bottom, whereas the exposure suit is going to save your life.”


The Coast Guard says if you find yourself in the water the first concern is simple, get out as fast as possible and get help.


For the Great Lakes Radio Consortium, I’m Lester Graham.