#225 May 2022 Newsletter

Picture of AWRI summer student interns located on the stairway of the Annis Water Resources Institute.

Students pictured: (top row, left to right) Jacob Yingling, Grayson Kosak, Collin Toth, (second row) Emma Piasecki, Brianne Siple, Colin Assenmacher, (third row) Audrey Whitaker, Sunny Charpentier, (fourth row) Alexis Deephouse, Amelia Heminger, (fifth row) Jillian Green, Colleen McClure, (sixth row) Margaret Evele, Elliott Fair, and Cianna Quattrin.

Students not pictured:  Janelle Cook, Jacquie Molloseau, Carlin Moore, and Allison Passenja.

AWRI SUMMER STUDENT INTERNS

One of the joys of summer at AWRI is our student intern program. This summer, we welcome 19 student interns to the Institute. These students are funded by a variety of sources and work with different principal investigators.

The R.B. Annis Foundation is funding Jillian Greene (working with Bopi Biddanda and Sean Woznicki), Audrey Whitaker (working with Christina Catanese and Rick Rediske), and Elliott Fair (working with Charlyn Partridge).

The Herbert L. VanderMey Endowment is funding Amelia Heminger (working with Rick Rediske) and Alexis Deephouse (working with Ashley Elgin of NOAA).

Fourteen additional interns will be working at AWRI this summer, funded through various research projects: Colin Assenmacher, Sunny Charpentier, Grayson Kosak, Brianne Siple, and  Jacob Yingling (working with Carl Ruetz); Janelle Cook (working with Bopi Biddanda); Margaret Evele (working with Ashley Elgin of NOAA); Colleen McClure, Carlin Moore, and  Cianna Quattrin (working with Charlyn Partridge); Jacquie Molloseau and Allison Passenja (working with Al Steinman); Emma Piasecki (working with Rick Rediske); and Colin Toth (working with Sarah Hamsher).

 A special welcome to all of these bright, young researchers for their hard work and dedication, and a heartfelt thank you to our generous and supportive funders!

 

FACULTY, STAFF, AND STUDENT ACTIVITIES

The W.G. Jackson staff had an intensive week of curriculum training, set up, and drills the week of May 2nd, and started cruises on May 9th. Both boats, the W.G. Jackson and D.J. Angus are now running trips as normal.

The outreach staff held classroom programming for a group of 4th – 6th graders on May 19th. We experimented with a different format, doing many activities outdoors on the AWRI grounds and at Heritage Landing, for enhanced place-based learning opportunities.

The Biddanda lab deployed the Muskegon Lake observatory buoy for the 12th year in a row in early May.

Christina Catanese attended the Groundswell Professional Development Committee meeting on May 10th.

Christina Catanese attended a webinar through University of Wisconsin titled “Weaving Water and the Arts” on May 11th.

Christina Catanese attended the monthly NAML Education Committee webinar on “Minorities in Shark Science” on May 20th.

Sarah Hamsher attended a meeting with the Pentwater Lake Association to learn more about their interests in managing Pentwater Lake.

Charlyn Partridge attended weekly Zoom meetings to discuss the COVID wastewater project and the summer beach sampling project.

Charlyn Partridge’s abstract (which focused on Maggie Petersen’s research) for the joint Ecological Association of America/Canadian Society for Ecology and Evolution meeting was accepted. The meeting is in August in Montreal, Canada.

The Rediske lab tested wastewater samples for the SARS-CoV-2 virus and the levels remain elevated. They obtained permission to send samples to the University of Missouri for sequencing to help resolve some potential hybridization we are seeing in the Omicron variant.

Rick Rediske was EMCEE for the Michigan Environmental Hall of Fame event held in Grand Rapids on May 10th.

Rick Rediske led a discussion reviewing the House Street Disposal Site Capping Plan at the meeting of the Wolverine Community Advisory Group on May 19th.

Science Instructors participated in the STEAM at the Lakeshore event in Muskegon on May 7th.

Al Steinman will be on a NERR science collaborative panel reviewing proposals from June 14th – 16th.

Al Steinman is hosting a CIGLR-funded summit on integrated use of mesocosms in the Great Lakes to be held in Ann Arbor from June 22nd – 24th.

Al Steinman co-chaired the Local Arrangements Committee and served on the Fundraising Committee for the JASM 22 meeting on May 14-20.

Al Steinman served on the Local Arrangements Committee for the AOC conference on May 24-26.

Ian Stone, Nate Dugener, Janelle Cook and Jillian Greene (students from Bopi Biddanda’s lab), attended the AOC Conference in Muskegon, Michigan on May 24th – 25th.

Amanda Syers and Janet Vail conducted a virtual Project WET workshop on May 3rd and 11th.

Janet Vail attended Project WET meetings on conference planning (May 2nd), Water Education (May 18th), and using education standards (May 18th).

Janet Vail attended the monthly Muskegon Lake Watershed Partnership meeting on May 3rd.

Janet Vail facilitated a Groundswell Professional Development Committee meeting on May 10th.

Janet Vail attended a Project WET workshop that was held at the Grand Rapids Water Treatment Plant on May 24th. Eileen Boekestein, EGLE Environmental Education Coordinator, was the facilitator.

Jon Walt, Sean Woznicki’s 2nd year graduate student, has accepted a position with MI EGLE in the Gaylord office as an Environmental Quality Analyst in the Water Resources Division, starting in July.

Presentations and Publications

AWRI staff are bolded, undergraduate students are denoted with a single asterisk*, graduate students are denoted with two asterisks**, and post-doc researchers are donated with three asterisks ***.

Publications:

Bopi Biddanda and others from his lab were among the co-authors of a Postcard from the Field:
Biddanda, B., I Stone, A. Weinke, J. Cook, N. Dugener, D. Fray, S. Hamsher, P. Hartmeyer, S. Gandulla, J Bright, R. Green, T. Smith, and S. Ruberg. As the world turns: Mat microbes dance to the sun’s beat. Postcard from the Field. American Geophysical Union Tumblr, May 2022. https://americangeophysicalunion.tumblr.com/post/684700630946873345/as-the-world-turns-mat-microbes-dance-to-the

Bopi Biddanda was lead author of a Postcard from the Field:
Biddanda, B., T. Roetman, A. Yagiela and D. Burlingame. Retrieving a Great Lakes observing science buoy. Postcard from the Field. American Geophysical Union Tumblr, May 2022, page 49. 

Bopi Biddanda was a co-author of a Postcard from the Field:
Medina-Sanchez, J., M. Villar-Argaiz, P. Carillo and B. Biddanda.  Spain’s Doñana Wetlands: drying and disappearing… Postcard from the Field. American Geophysical Union Tumblr, May 2022. https://americangeophysicalunion.tumblr.com/post/683249120235880448/do%C3%B1ana-wetlands-disappearing-despite-50-years-of

Carl Ruetz was a co-author on an article in Wetland Ecology & Management:
Diller, S.N., A.H. Harrison, K.P. Kowalski, V.J. Brady, J.J.H. Ciborowski, M.J. Cooper, J.D. Dumke, J.P. Gathman, C.R. Ruetz III, D.G. Uzarski, D.A. Wilcox, and J.S. Schaeffer. 2022. Influences of seasonality and habitat quality on Great Lakes coastal wetland fish community composition and diets. Wetland Ecology & Management. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11273-022-09862-8.

 

Presentations - (Presenter listed first):

Several members of the Biddanda lab attended the Joint Aquatic Science Meeting (JASM) held in Grand Rapids the week of May 16th. Presentations from the Biddanda lab were:
Dugener,N.M.**, I.P. Stone, A.A. Weinke, and B.A. Biddanda. Oral. Breathless: Loading and stratification drive hypoxia dynamics in a Great Lakes estuary.
Stone, I.P., B. Biddanda, A. Weinke, and J. Cook. Biochemical duet: Modern day mat world microbes dance to the diel beat of light and biochemicals.

John Hart, graduate student working with Rick Rediske, gave a presentation at the Joint Aquatic Sciences Meeting in Grand Rapids on May 17th titled “Quantifying different microbial source tracking methods in watersheds of the Grand River.”

Kelsey Inman-Carter, undergraduate student, and Davis Fray**, graduate student, (both working with Sarah Hamsher), presented a poster entitled, “The epiphytic diatom communities of the invasive macroalga, starry stonewort (Charales: Nitellopsis obtusa) and its native relative (Charales: Chara contraria) from two drowned river mouth lakes” at the Joint Aquatic Sciences Meeting held in Grand Rapids from May 14-20.

Jim McNair gave an oral presentation at the JASM 2022 meeting in Grand Rapids on Friday, May20th.
McNair, J.N. and J.R. Zuidema. 2022. Estimating habitat-specific metabolic rates in streams with marked longitudinal habitat variation. Oral presentation at the 2022 Joint Aquatic Sciences Meeting, Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Maggie Petersen, Charlyn Partridge’s 2nd year graduate student, presented a portion of her work examining microplastic ingestion in fathead minnows to the Michigan Lakes and Streams Conference on May 7th.

Maggie Petersen presented a portion of her work examining microplastic ingestion in fathead minnows to the Joint Aquatic Sciences Meeting on May 19th.
Petersen, M. and C. Partridge. Microplastics and Microbiomes: Microplastic ingestion by fathead minnows and the impacts on gut microbial communities”. Joint Aquatic Sciences Meeting, May 19th.

Alexis Porter gave a presentation at the Michigan Lake and Stream Association Meeting held at Crystal Mountain, MI on May 7th titled “Beach monitoring surveillance of Michigan beaches and E. coli detection methodology.”

Rick Rediske gave a presentation at the Michigan Lake and Stream Association meeting held at Crystal Mountain, MI on May 7th titled “The use of DNA markers for tracking the source of E. coli in lakes and streams.”

Rick Rediske gave a presentation at the Joint Aquatic Sciences Meeting in Grand Rapids on May 16th titled “The Michigan PCR Network (MiNET): A statewide collaborative platform to address public health and water quality issues.”

Rick Rediske gave a presentation on May 26th at the Great Lakes AOC Conference in Muskegon titled “AOC university partnerships: A summary of AWRI/GVSU collaborations with the Muskegon Lake and White Lake Areas of Concern.”

The majority of the Ruetz Lab attended the Joint Aquatic Science Meeting last week. Attendees included Carl Ruetz, Matthew Silverhart, Nick Vander Stelt, Brandon May, Colin Assenmacher, Brianne Siple, and Jacob Yingling. The lab was involved in three presentations:
Vander Stelt, N**.C.R. Ruetz III, D. Mays, and B. Fessell. Poster. Spatial variation of fish assemblages and habitat in coldwater tributaries of the Boardman-Ottaway River.
May, B.D., and C.R. Ruetz III. Poster. Juvenile largemouth bass population dynamics in Muskegon Lake: preliminary results.
Euclide, P., X. Yin, C.R. Ruetz III, T.O. Höök, and M. Christie. Oral. Genome re-sequencing reveals genetic differences between Lake Michigan and drowned river mouth yellow perch.

Three members of the Steinman lab, Al Steinman, Mike Hassett, and Ellen Foley, each gave a presentation at the JASM conference held in Grand Rapids the week of May 16th.
E. Foley** and A.D. Steinman. Oral Presentation. Rubbing salt in the wound: Chloride impacts on phosphorus in an urban eutrophic lake.
M. Hassett and A.D. Steinman. Oral Presentation. Post-restoration monitoring of a hydrologic reconnection project: Legacy phosphorus restored?
A.D. Steinman. Oral Presentation and Panel Discussion. The case for a community of practice for ecosystem services in the Great Lakes.

Al Steinman gave a presentation and led a boat trip for the AOC conference on May 24th.
A.D. Steinman. Oral Presentation and Panel Discussion. Bear Lake restoration overview.

Ellen Foley gave a presentation at the 2022 Emerging Contaminants in the Environment Conference held in Champaign, IL.
E. Foley** and A.D. Steinman. Oral Presentation. Rubbing salt in the wound: Chloride impacts on phosphorus in an urban eutrophic lake.

Rachel Orzechowski presented a poster at the AOC conference.
R. Orzechowski and A.D. Steinman. Poster. Assessing shoreline restoration in the Muskegon Lake Area of Concern using macroinvertebrates.

Al Steinman was the Keynote Speaker for the annual Project Clarity Early Breakfast on May 24th in Holland, MI.

Jon Walt, Sean Woznicki’s 2nd year graduate student, gave an oral presentation at JASM on May 18th titled “Mapping the spread of invasive plants in Michigan wetlands with remote sensing”.

Sean Woznicki gave an oral presentation to the South-Central European Regional International Network (SCERIN-8) annual meeting on May 30th titled “Water scarcity in the Serbian Danube: Agricultural land use and irrigation”. SCERIN is a NASA affiliated collaborative organization focusing on remote sensing/ecosystem change.

Grants, Contracts, Awards, and Recognition

GRANTS & CONTRACTS:

There are no new grants this month.

AWARDS & RECOGNITION:

John Hart (Rick Rediske’s graduate student), was awarded the West Michigan Air and Waste Management Association scholarship.

AWRI News and Events

AWRI IN THE NEWS

“GV encourages collaboration through scholarship”
Grand Valley Lanthorn, April 11 2022
Bopi Biddanda was highlighted for his Fulbright Scholarship. He was recently in Spain collaborating with researchers at University of Granada.

“AWRI, GVSI ready for conferences on water issues”
GVNext, May 13, 2022
The recent Joint Aquatic Sciences Meeting (JASM) held in Grand Rapids, MI and the Areas of Concern (AOC) Conference held in Muskegon were discussed. AWRI was involved in both events. Al Steinman was involved in planning for both.

“Muskegon Lake cleanup milestone paves way for federal delisting as contaminated area”
MiBiz, May 24, 2022
Al Steinman was interviewed regarding AWRI’s ongoing Muskegon Lake research, and how that data has assisted in the delisting process.

“AWRI’s work helps Muskegon Lake reach pivotal milestone”
GVNext, May 25, 2022
Al Steinman was interviewed regarding AWRI’s ongoing Muskegon Lake research, and how that data has assisted in the delisting process.

“All aboard for the trip of a lifetime: Kelloggsville students take to lakes on the D. J. Angus”
School News Network, May 27, 2022
Pictures and discussion about the trip taken by Kelloggsville High School were shared.

LMC EVENTS

May 6 – GVSU Disability Support Resources Staff Retreat

May 11 – GVSU Housing Department held a planning meeting

May 11 – Pentwater Lake Group meeting

May 21 – JASM Meeting

May 23 – West Michigan Sustainable Business Forum meeting with Consumer’s Energy

May 25 – Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy Meeting

May 26 – EPA – Great Lakes Restoration, Area of Concern Meeting



Page last modified November 16, 2022