Dr. Karen Murchie, director of freshwater research at the Shedd Aquarium, is leading a study tracking suckers in the Great Lakes and helping to figure out what it means.
Shedd researcher Karen Murchie has been singing the praises of suckers for years in service of drawing more attention to the overlooked fish. Now the broader scientific community is taking note.
Michigan Sea Grant recently announced four new research projects with one common goal protecting the Great Lakes. It committed almost $1 million to the projects, including $225,000 from the Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy. In addition, university research partners contributed over $500,000 in matching funds. Their major topics are water use, walleye, invasive mussel larvae and harmful algae blooms.
Hammond Bay Biological Station
The Station
Hammond Bay Biological Station (HBBS), located near Millersburg, Michigan, is a field station of the USGS Great Lakes Science Center (GLSC). HBBS was established by congressional action in 1950 under initial supervision by the Bureau of Commercial Fisheries. HBBS was subsequently supervised by the Bureau of Sport Fisheries and Wildlife (1970) and US Fish and Wildlife Service (1971), finally joining the GLSC in 1993, which transferred to the USGS in 1996.
A sea lamprey (
Petromyzon marinus), one of the most destructive invasive species in the Great Lakes. Hammond Bay Biological Station was established to develop control measures for sea lamprey and conduct research to aid native fish restoration.