Wetland Coffee Break

Learn from professor Josh Kapfer some of the more general concepts and approaches that natural resource managers can consider when developing or enacting strategies for amphibians and reptiles in aquatic habitats.

Joshua Kapfer is a Certified Wildlife Biologist and Professor at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. His research interests include vertebrate ecology and conservation, wildlife habitat selection, spatial ecology, population biology, and behavioral ecology. He received Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in biology from UW-LaCrosse and a Ph.D. in ecology and evolution from UW-Milwaukee.

Manoomin (wild rice) occurs throughout the western Great Lakes basin. It played a central role in the Anishinaabe migration story and has long been sacred in sustaining the Anishinaabe lifeway. Abundance of manoomin has declined in recent decades on lakes once supporting major beds in Wisconsin. Manoomin has garnered significant research interest in recent years due to its importance to the identity of Ojibwe and other Indigenous peoples inhabiting the Great Lakes region. Historically, research efforts excluded Traditional Ecological Knowledge; however, with clear alignment of goals, collaborative research can complement tribal interests, strengthen partnerships, and lead to higher impact. Using a co-design approach, researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology and Northwestern University collaborated with Ojibwe nations and the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission to develop a low-cost remote sensor to monitor environmental factors affecting manoomin.

Brandon Byrne is an Inland Fisheries Biologist for the Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission (GLIFWC). His work focuses on assessing inland fish populations in northern Wisconsin and Michigan and assisting GLIFWC member Tribes with the protection of Ceded Territory fish populations and habitat. Brandon previously co-managed GLIFWC’s Manoomin Program as a Wetland Ecologist.

Blaine Rothrock is a Computer Science PhD candidate at Northwestern University. He earned his master’s degree in artificial intelligence from Northwestern University and his bachelor’s degree in informatics from Indiana University. Blaine’s work focuses on novel applications of health wearables and environmental sensors, with the ultimate goal of democratizing access to the development of ubiquitous embedded devices to promote research, creativity, and education.

While working on wetland delineations, environmental scientist Matt Knickelbine has been observing instances of showy lady slipper (Cypripedium reginae) flowers being filled with dead European skipper butterflies (Thymelicus lineola). Showy lady slipper is an inhabitant of a variety of wetland types and is susceptible to many other stressors, including deer browse, habitat destruction, and changes to groundwater processes. European skipper butterflies were introduced to North America by accident in 1910 and require hayfields near nectar sources. Showy lady slipper is a species of special concern in Wisconsin, endangered in Illinois. It is protected by law as the State Flower of Minnesota. Learn about Matt’s observations, past accounts of this phenomenon that Matt discovered in the literature, and ideas for future research.

Matt Knickelbine is an environmental scientist at Stantec and a Wisconsin DNR Assured Wetland Delineator. He mostly works on wetland science and botany projects but also has experience in restoration ecology, wildlife surveys, and landscape-level ecology, to name a few.

Tune in to learn about one of our favorite signs of summer—fireflies! Dan Young, Professor of Entomology at UW-Madison, will describe the critical role wetlands play for these insects. He’ll start by defining what we mean by “firefly” and providing an overview of this group of Wisconsin fauna. He’ll share a quick overview of bioluminescence throughout the greater tree of life, describe how biological light is produced in fireflies, and discuss the evolution and significance of bioluminescence with respect to the biology and natural history of fireflies. Dr. Young will wind up his presentation with comments relating to an observed general decline in firefly populations in many parts of North America and notes on firefly conservation. 

Dr. Dan Young has been directly associated with all aspects of entomological research collections since his first curatorial hourly position as a sophomore undergraduate at Michigan State University. In addition to serving as Director of the Wisconsin Insect Research Collection, he is Co-Chair of the UW Natural History Museums Council and serves as liaison between the internationally recognized Entomological Collections Network and Society for the Preservation of Natural History Collections. He has visited and conducted taxonomic research in entomological research collections across North America and around the world.