ST. JOSEPH COUNTY, Ind. -- Students at Notre Dame had the opportunity to spend the summer studying and researching Kettle Lakes Corridor. Their goal was to create a baseline of data to compare as the lakes, bogs, and wetlands continue to develop into the future.
Sophomore Katherine Spiller, senior Isabella Rempel, and other environmental studies undergrad students worked alongside their professor, Dr. Dominic Chaloner, to conduct field work and analyze field data.
The most intriguing part of their discovery was discovering the uniqueness and differences of each portion of the corridor. Each area held its own “chemical fingerprint,” Rempel explained. From the vast species of plants and animals to the different PH levels in the water and soil, each wetland offered a new scene.
Spiller noticed, along with the impressive number of pollinators in amphibian species, the water levels in some lakes were low. Some lakes “almost [had] no standing water anymore,” she explained. Luckily, this summer was the eighth wettest on record, which helped replenish lakes in the corridor.
Both Spiller and Rempel stressed the importance of protecting and conserving the corridor. The first step at conservation, Rempel explains, is appreciation.
You can learn more about the St. Joseph County Kettle Lakes Corridor Research Project on Notre Dame's website.