Advanced search

Jennifer Schmitz

University of Wisconsin
347 Birge Hall
430 Lincoln Dr
Madison, WI 53706
jeschmitz@wisc.edu
(608) 262-2279

Research Projects

Scenarios for the Future of Lake Wingra

Lake Wingra (Madison, Wisconsin) is an urban lake that is used by the public in many ways. The lake adds to the natural beauty of surrounding lands that contain Edgewood College, the University of Wisconsin Arboretum, Vilas Zoo, and public parks. Diverse users enjoy boating, fishing and swimming in the lake. The lake receives runoff waters from an urban watershed. These carry sediments and pollutants, such as nutrients and road salt. Lake Wingra is eutrophic due to excessive phosphorus inputs. The lake harbors some harmful exotic species, including common carp and Eurasian water milfoil.

Response of Phytoplankton Communities to Disturbance and Drought

This research investigates the sensitivity of phytoplankton communities to historical droughts and terrestrial disturbances in northern Wisconsin. Questions that motivate me include: To what extent have disturbances, namely clear-cut logging and forest fire, interacted with droughts over time to influence phytoplankton communities in northern Wisconsin lakes? Did phytoplankton dynamics depend upon site-specific characteristics of the lake, namely the lake's landscape position?  To answer these questions, I have collected sediment cores from six lakes situated along a gradient of landscape position...

more