River otters are back, and Ohio has led the way. Yes, *that* Ohio:
"Otters are back. And their presence proves something worth remembering. Healing is possible. Ecosystems can recover. The story of the Great Lakes – its waters, its people, its wildlife – is still unfolding."
#wildlife #otter #greatlakes #Ohio #ontario #Michigan #newyork #cleanwater #waterquality #pollution #habitat #ecology #Minnesota
https://www.rewildingmag.com/the-river-otters-remarkable-comeback/
Our primary #DFOscience research vessel for the #GreatLakesLaboratory, the CCGS Limnos, left this afternoon for an 8 day research and monitoring mission to support the #GreatLakes 🇨🇦🇺🇸 Cooperative Science and Monitoring Initiative #CSMI field year for #LakeOntario. This spring cruise is in collaboration with Environment and Climate Change Canada #ECCC, and we are collecting chemical, biological, and contaminants samples for many partners, including #EPA, #Cornell, and others. #plankton
Kuntze says these barriers may provide short-term protection. But they destroy wildlife habitat, and by reducing sandy and marshy areas that absorb waves and water, they often cause more erosion elsewhere.
So her group helps communities design and secure funding to create what are called living shorelines – for example, a buffer of deep-rooted marsh grasses that absorb water, break waves, and stabilize the shore
