News and Announcements

Re: Waldo County Tech Center Launches Fish Stocking Study

Mon, 17 Dec 2007 10:57:07 CST

by Patrice Janssen.

What fish are you most interested in putting in the pond?

Waldo County Tech Center Launches Fish Stocking Study

Tue, 04 Dec 2007 15:46:27 CST

by Bill Zoellick.

The pond at the Waldo County Tech Center does not contain fish--at least not any that we know of. Could it be stocked with fish? What kind of fish could the pond support? What is living in the pond now? How would fish change the pond?

Patrice Janssen's natural resource management class at WCTC is launching a study of these questions with the help of Dr Sarah Nelson of the Senator George J Mitchell Center for Environmental and Watershed Research, a scientist who has worked at Acadia National Park for many years.

This first year's work is the start of what will eventually be a multi-year study that will allow the students to begin to answer these questions and, depending on what they learn, perhaps add fish to the pond. Answering questions about fish stocking will require learning about the living systems currently established in the pond, about the chemistry of the water in the pond, and about the surrounding soils, plant, and animal communities that affect the life and the chemistry of the pond. As with all Acadia Learning projects, the approach to the research will engage the students in structured inquiry, using the methods, standards, and discipline of working scientists.

Nokomis Class Begins Nokomis Pond Study

Fri, 09 Nov 2007 12:39:22 CST

by Bill Zoellick.

Lisa Kelley's statistics class at Nokomis Regional High School is inaugurating a study of the interaction of water quality and water temperature in Nokomis Pond. The question of water quality in the pond is important because the pond serves as the public water supply for the town of Newport. Dr Jessica Muhlin, a research scientist and educator who has worked at Acadia National Park and who now teachers at the Maine Maritime Academy, is working with Ms Kelley and the students to help design and execute the research.

As with other projects in the Acadia Learning program, the statistics students in this project will participate in the design, execution, analysis, and presentation of results for this research. We expect this to be a multi-year effort, with the students in this year's class establishing a baseline understanding that can support follow-up work in subsequent years. The research in this first year will concentrate on pond temperature and algae.

Forensics news story

Mon, 05 Nov 2007 10:47:53 CST

by Sarah Nelson.

This was just posted in a UMaine newsletter, for those interested in the forensics work. This is the faculty person who Dianne has been working with on this idea:

SUN JOURNAL FEATURES KORNFIELD, FORENSICS LAB Saturday's Lewiston Sun Journal included a feature story (http://www.sunjournal.com/story/236849-3/MaineNews/Weird_wicked_weird_Weird_science/) about UMaine professor Irv Kornfield and his work managing UMaine's wildlife forensics laboratory for the past ten years.

Searsport High School Starts Sears Island Study

Wed, 24 Oct 2007 11:22:13 CDT

by Bill Zoellick.

Maura DiPrete's environmental studies class at Searsport High School has begun studying the intertidal zone ecology around the causeway leading to Sears Island. (Click here for a satellite photo.) Dr. Jessica Muhlin, of the Acadia Learning project, is working with the class, helping them with setting up their research question and designing their research projects.

The students are doing research to get a better understanding of potential differences between the ecosystems on either side of the causeway. The effects of the causeway are of particular interest to Searsport and surrounding communities because Sears Island has traditionally been an important shellfish harvesting site.

This past Monday Dr. Muhlin accompanied Ms. DiPrete and the class out to Sears Island to conduct a preliminary survey of the research sites.