Superior Rivers summer events: aquatic bugs, piping plovers, restoration review

Superior Rivers Watershed Association is kicking off summer with opportunities to learn more about the Lake Superior watershed.

Aquatic bugs, sometimes called macroinvertebrates are an important environmental indicator that help identify potential threats to water quality and provide a report card for our waters. Spring volunteers are wrapping up May’s sampling efforts, but people can learn about these organisms and their critical role in the food chain at one of two “macro” sorting and identification training events.

On May 25th from 10 a.m. to noon and/or May 30th from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m., volunteers can tap into expert help at the Center for Science and the Environment’s Lab 125 on the campus of Northland College.

Interested in seeing a success story in person? Join a field trip with retired US Fish and Wildlife Biologist Tom Doolittle and WDNR Fisheries Biologist Nate Thomas to visit a “Case Study in Watershed Restoration” along 20 Mile Creek. The field trip will explore the creek and learn how restoration work there has enhanced fish passage, mitigated flooding, and improves climate resiliency for its watershed. The trip will explore several sites including a bird’s eye view, stream mediation sites, conversations about beaver, and culminate at an old growth wooded site. Field trips are free and open to the public: no experience necessary with moderate hiking abilities. Boots and bug spray are recommended. For more information, directions, or to view additional monthly field trips, visit https://www.superiorrivers.org/events/.

On Tuesday, May 21, join the fun at 6:30 p.m. at the Deep Water Grille in Ashland with Science on Tap. This month features “Piping Plovers on the Point” with Ornithology Specialist Elle Lozinski from the Mashkiiziibii Natural Resource Department. She will share how endangered Piping Plovers are doing in our back yard on Chequamegon Point, their challenges, and what is being done to help them bounce back.

Information provided by the Superior Rivers Watershed Association.