When the folks at the Ohio Supercomputer Center reached out to see if the AEL could talk about aquatic ecosystems for a group of 6th & 7th graders, we said, ABSOLUTELY! Their annual Youth Watershed Summer Institute is a weeklong camp for middle school students to learn about applying STEM skills to watershed problems.

On July 8, Jenny Pfaff, Neil Hamrick, and Steven Gratz walked next door to the super computer center to meet with the students. Neil gave a great presentation about foodwebs, ecosystems, and some of the work we do at the AEL. After a small activity to show how much more complex foodwebs can be compared to our simplistic ideas of food chains, we led the students back to the AEL for a tour of our labs.

Matthew Sens showed the students how we process samples from watersheds to assess nutrient content. Megan Garvey showed the students Lake Erie zooplankton and explained their role in the ecosystem. Finally, Neil dissected a yellow perch stomach for the students to see! What followed was a great discussion about how we sample the habitats we study, why we have to sample throughout the season, and how we take care to only take the fish we need to answer the questions we are asking.