Imagine paddling a canoe across a pristine lake, surrounded by boreal forests
and glacial rock deposits. The stillness is broken only by the sound of the
paddle's gentle splash.
For many of us, that's a dream vacation. For a limnologist employed with
the Experimental Lakes Area, it's a typical workday.
John Shearer joined the Experimental Lakes Area when the project
was in its infancy. Now, as the senior biologist with the program, his tasks
are managerial and administrative.
However, his fondest memories are of the times he spent at the project's
facility.
"I've always liked being around water. I feel better near bodies of water.
And I love being in the Shield [Canadian Shield bedrock]. It's such an elemental
part of the world -- you really get down to basics," he says.
"The rock is so stable. It's the core of the continent. When I'm in the
Shield I feel at home, as if I'm where I'm meant to be."
A former elementary school teacher, Shearer left teaching to pursue an
undergraduate degree in biology. While in university, one of his professors
left the university to work with the Experimental Lakes Area. The professor
invited the young man to join him as a summer student.
It's a unique program -- 58 small lakes and their surrounding watersheds
are set aside exclusively for research. Limnologists conduct studies in the
area, manipulating systems in a controlled way.
"When I got my job there, it was the equivalent of a medical student going
to work at the Mayo Clinic. Where else would I go that would be better?"
Marianne Moore began her career doing research in a sewage treatment plant.
"While I was working towards my master's degree at Iowa State, I did research
on the effects of nitrogen-enriched sewage effluent on invertebrates and fish
in the Iowa River. All the while, I was dreaming of more glamorous places
to do research."
Moore's dream came true. After graduation, she wrote a proposal that took
her to New Zealand. She spent a year and a half doing research on freshwater
lakes.
"I was studying the vertical migration of fish food organisms in their
lakes. I worked on a number of lakes while there. It was a spectacular experience
both culturally and scientifically."
Moore is now an associate professor at Wellesley College in Massachusetts.
Days are long for university limnologists. Typically, she begins work at 7
a.m. and works six days a week.
"I'm often working on research, proposals, analyzing data, writing up manuscripts.
I spend a lot of time teaching. I teach two courses a semester. When I'm not
teaching, I'm working on my research projects. That's a fantastic time to
get outdoors and get my feet wet!"
What Karen Kidd likes best about being a limnologist is the opportunity
to work with scientists from different disciplines.
Kidd, who is currently a research scientist, became interested in limnology
as a high school student. After completing high school, she got her bachelor
of science (BS) degree, specializing in environmental toxicology.
"I was looking at the accumulation of pollutants through freshwater food
webs," she says.
After getting her doctorate, Kidd did a post-doctoral fellowship. "My research
was on pesticide contamination in Lake Malawi in East Africa. I went to East
Africa for two months studying the pesticides and mercury in the lake."
Kidd has seen the world through her work. "I have a couple of projects
that are in the planning stages. One is designing an experiment to study fish
reproduction," she says.
"The other will be working with a team of scientists from South America,
Mexico, the U.S. and Canada to examine the ways that pollutants, such as DDT
or mercury, are transported to remote areas."
Perhaps the only thing Kidd enjoys more than seeing the world has been
the opportunity to contribute to it. "There are always a lot of questions
to be addressed, and never enough money to address them all."