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Stream water chemistry data for Green Lake 5 Rock Glacier, 1998 - ongoing.

This is a summary of major ion concentrations for stream water samples collected at the Green Lake 5 Rock Glacier, near Green Lake 5 in the Boulder County Watershed Green Lakes Valley.

openCC (other)May 2025View details →

Pika habitat occupancy survey data for Niwot Ridge and Green Lakes Valley, 2016 - ongoing

Long-term monitoring of habitat occupancy can reveal patterns of habitat use, population dynamics, and factors controlling species distribution. The American pika (Ochotona princeps), a small mammal found in rocky habitats throughout western North America, has been targeted for occupancy studies due to its relatively conspicuous behavior and its unusual adaptations for surviving long, cold winters without hibernation. These adaptations include an unusually high resting metabolic rate and maintenance of body temperatures near the lethal maximum for this species, which would appear to compromise the pika's ability to survive warmer summers. Recent monitoring as well as projections based on future climate scenarios have suggested this species is experiencing a period of range retraction due to warming summers and/or loss of insulating winter snow cover. Niwot Ridge is situated ideally to test competing hypotheses about the trajectory and drivers of pika range shift. The pika is still common throughout the Colorado Rockies, but published models differ markedly regarding projections of the pika’s future distribution in this region. Niwot Ridge has experienced warmer summers as well as shorter periods of insulating snow cover in recent years, and there is evidence that pikas are now less common than they once were in at least one area on the ridge. This study is designed to provide robust data on pika population trends through long-term monitoring of occupancy in a spatially balanced random sample of pika habitat patches centered on Niwot Ridge. Survey plots (n = 72) were selected according to a Generalized Random-Tessellation Stratified (GRTS) algorithm, stratified dichotomously by elevation, average annual snow accumulation (SWE), and probabilities of pika occurrence based on previous data. Each plot extends 12 m in radius from a GRTS point. To ensure that each plot contains at least 10% cover of talus, plot coordinates were adjusted (usually less than 50 m) or replaced

openCC (other)Dec 2025View details →

Dissolved oxygen data for the Green Lake 4 buoy, 2018 - ongoing.

High-resolution water quality data are fundamental to observing rapid ecological responses to meteorology, climate, and other disturbance events. Here we describe the deployment of a single buoy line with multiple sensors at fixed-depths from a subsurface float in the water-column of Green Lake 4 (GL4). Sensors on the buoy collect data in both summer and winter, thereby providing valuable insights into lake characteristics beyond our standard sampling period, including key transitional periods such as ice formation and ice break-up.

openCC (other)Mar 2024View details →

Mercury in soil, vegetation, and organisms across Niwot Ridge, Saddle Catchment, and Green Lakes Valley, 2020 - 2023.

This dataset includes soil, vegetation, water, atmospheric deposition, litterfall, incubation, and organism data from the Niwot Ridge, Saddle Catchment, and Green Lakes Valley collected during 2020 and 2021 to investigate the storage, transformation, and mobilization of mercury in the Colorado Rocky Mountains. During Summer 2020, we collected soil cores (10cm x 3cm) across vegetation plant functional groups in wet meadows, moist meadows, dry meadows, krummholz, subalpine forest, shrub areas, as well as at the inlet and outlet of the Green Lakes in Green Lakes Valley. At each of these sites, we collected leaves from forbs, graminoids, and shrubs, as well as litter (and moss if present). For organisms, we sampled pika hairs from nine different pika trapped on the West Knoll, in addition to caddisfly pupae found in wet meadows in the Saddle Catchment. We analyzed hairs from weasel specimens at the CU Boulder Natural History Museum that were trapped either on, or near, Niwot Ridge. Finally, we analyzed dust samples collected by Dr. Ruth Heindel in 2018 and 2019 on Niwot Ridge. We analyzed soil samples for organic matter; pH; water content; percent carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur; stable carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur isotopes; total mercury; and methylmercury. We analyzed vegetation samples for percent carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur; stable carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur isotopes; total mercury; and methylmercury. We analyzed organism and dust samples for total mercury and methylmercury. During Spring 2021, we collected composite snow cores from 4 sites in the Saddle region and 3 sites in the subalpine forest. We measured snow depth and density to calculate snow water equivalent and then analyzed these samples for sulfate, nitrate, chloride, dissolved organic carbon, dissolved organic nitrogen, total mercury, and methylmercury concentrations. During Summer 2021, we collected soil cores (10cm x 3cm) every other week from June through September from a solifluction lobe, alpine wet

Plant species list for Niwot Ridge and Green Lakes Valley, 1970 - ongoing.

A plant species list was created for Niwot Ridge and Green Lakes Valley from species identified in those areas by NWT scientists, working primarily at the Saddle and Martinelli sites. Additions to this list included species identified by Komarkova (1979) in the Indian Peaks Wilderness area but not on Niwot Ridge or in the Green Lakes Valley because of the likelihood that those species might exist within the LTER research area. Additions to the list were also provided by Terry Theodose, Leeanne Lestak, Teresa Nettleton, Susan Sherrod, Laura Mujica-Crapanzano (2004), Hope Humphries (2006), and Jane G. Smith (2019-2025). The list was revised to remove duplicate entries, correct typos, and resolve synonymy problems. Species and non-species categories received USDA PLANTS database names and codes.

openCC (other)Nov 2022View details →

Summer water chemistry; sediment phosphorus fluxes and sorption capacity; sedimentation and sediment resuspension dynamics; water column thermal structure; and zooplankton, macroinvertebrate, and macrophyte communities in eight shallow lakes in northwest Iowa, USA (2018-2020)

The primary aim of this data product is to characterize change in water chemistry, sediment-water interactions, and biological communities in shallow, eutrophic lakes undergoing a fishery biomanipulation. We studied eight glacial lakes located in northwest Iowa, USA, from 2018 to 2020 during the summer season (May to September). A subset of these lakes (n = 4; Center, Five Island, North Twin, and Silver Lakes) were part of a fishery biomanipulation in which the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) incentivized commercial harvest of common carp (Cyprinus carpio) and bigmouth buffalo (Ictiobus cyprinellus). Harvests occurred in Center and Five Island Lakes during 2018-2019 and in North Twin and Silver Lakes during 2019-2020. Between 73 and 373 kg fish biomass per ha were removed each year. The other study lakes (n = 4; Blue, South Twin, Storm, and Swan Lakes) remained unmanipulated during the study period. Over the course of the biomanipulation, we quantified a suite of physical, chemical, and biological parameters across the study lakes. High frequency aquatic sensors were used to measure water column thermal structure, dissolved oxygen concentrations, and algal pigments. Manual water chemistry sampling further quantified suspended solids, total phosphorus and nitrogen, soluble reactive phosphorus, nitrate, and water clarity. We measured flux rates of phosphorus between bottom sediments and the overlying water using ex situ sediment core incubations under both oxic and anoxic conditions. We further quantified sediment phosphorus sorption capacity using equilibrium phosphorus concentration assays. Tiered sediment traps were used to measure sedimentation rates as well as sediment resuspension in bottom waters. We also measured change in zooplankton, macroinvertebrate, and macrophyte community composition and abundance. These data will be used to better understand the mechanisms of internal phosphorus loading in shallow lakes and the ecosystem effects of fisherie

openCC (other)Oct 2023View details →

High-frequency dissolved oxygen, water temperature, wind speed, and radiation data; stream and in-lake nutrient concentration data; and daily metabolism and nutrient loading estimates for 16 lakes in North America and Northern Europe.

In lakes, ecosystem structure and processes are influenced by gross primary production (GPP), ecosystem respiration (R), and net ecosystem production (NEP). The rates of these metabolic processes are often controlled by resource availability, which often reflects catchment loads. Although the relationship between catchment loads and in-lake nutrient concentrations may be well defined in specific lakes, we explored how watershed vs. in-lake predictors of metabolism compare across lake types. To do this, we combined stream loads of carbon (C), nitrogen (N), and phosphorus (P) with high frequency in situ monitoring of lake metabolism and in-lake C, N, and P concentrations from 16 lakes spanning a range of latitudes (39 to 64 degrees N), inflowing stream (0 - 6 streams), and trophic status (oligotrophic to eutrophic). The data package includes high-frequency dissolved oxygen, water temperature, wind speed, and solar radiation data as well as daily estimates of GPP, R, and NEP derived from those data. In addition, the data package includes in-lake and stream concentrations of dissolved organic carbon, total nitrogen, and total phosphorus and stream discharge data. The package also includes estimates of daily carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus loading to each lake derived from the stream concentrations and discharge.

openCC0Aug 2025View details →

Water transparency in the Laurentian Great Lakes

The Laurentian Great Lakes in the mid-east region of North America is one of the largest freshwater ecosystems in the world. This data set contains limnological data, focusing on underwater transparency in this ecosystem and the surrounding region from 1999-2024. Current water transparency data sets highlight the increase in offshore transparency measured by a deepening of average Secchi Disk depth since the invasion of the Dreissenid mussels. However, limited data exists on the Great Lakes to provide insight to the underwater optical environment of the offshore, nearshore, and surrounding water bodies of these lakes. These data illustrate the vertical underwater light environment with data from wavelengths of sunlight including photosynthetically active radiation (400 – 700 nm), UV-A radiation (320 - 400 nm) and UV-B radiation (290 - 320 nm). Understanding the depths to which these specific wavelengths of sunlight reach within a lake, as well as the substances within the lake that may influence the attenuation of sunlight can provide a picture of how habitats within the lake system have been impacted. This data set is a part of a continuous data collaboration among multiple research groups, and will be updated periodically as more data are made available. As such, this data set provides a snapshot of water transparency in the Great Lakes. The data here are contained in four files, including WaterTransparencyData_GreatLakes.csv, SiteInformation_GreatLakes.csv, Methods_GreatLakes.csv, and Variables_GreatLakes. The main data are in WaterTransparencyData_GreatLakes.csv. SiteInformation_GreatLakes.csv, Methods_GreatLakes.csv, and Variables_GreatLakes.csv support the main data file with descriptions of the sampling sites, methods by which samples were processed, and descriptions of variables, respectively.

openCC (other)Sep 2023View details →

LAGOS-US LIMNO: Data module of surface water chemistry from 1975-2021 for lakes in the conterminous U.S.

The LAGOS-US LIMNO data package is one of the core data modules of LAGOS-US, an extensible research-ready platform designed to study the 479,950 lakes and reservoirs larger than or equal to 1 ha in the conterminous US (48 states plus the District of Columbia). The LIMNO module contains in situ observations of 47 parameters of lake physics, chemistry, and biology (hereafter referred to as chemistry) from lake surface samples (defined as observations taken from the epilimnion of a lake) obtained from the Water Quality Portal, the National Lakes Assessment (2007, 2012, 2017), and NEON programs. LIMNO provides 3,511,020 observations across all parameters collected between 1975 and 2021 from 20,329 lakes; the number of observations per lake ranged from 1 to 20,605 with a median of 32. The database design that supports the LAGOS-US research platform was created based on several important design features: lakes are the fundamental unit of consideration, all lakes in the spatial extent above the minimum size must be represented, and most information is connected to individual lakes. The design is modular, interoperable (the modules can be used with each other, as well as other comprehensive lake data products such as the USGS NHD), and extensible (future database modules can be developed and used in the LAGOS-US research platform by others). Users are encouraged to use the other two core data modules that are part of the LAGOS-US platform: LOCUS (location, identifiers, and physical characteristics of lakes and their watersheds) and GEO (characteristics defining geospatial and temporal ecological setting quantified at multiple spatial divisions) that are each found in their own data packages.

openCC (other)Jun 2025View details →

Perry et al. (2025) Data Package: Effects of diluted bitumen and remediation methods on lower trophic levels within boreal lake enclosures. Data were collected during 2019 at the IISD Experimental Lakes Area in Northwestern Ontario.

This data package corresponds to a research study by Perry et al. (2025) titled "The effects of diluted bitumen, the shoreline cleaner Corexit EC9580A, and bio-stimulation on the lower food web of a boreal lake, with a focus on natural phytoplankton communities." The study examines the effect of controlled spills of diluted bitumen and two remediation methods on lower trophic levels (phytoplankton, periphyton, zooplankton). The study was undertaken within shoreline enclosures within Lake 260 at the IISD Experimental Lakes Area during 2019. In addition to primary oil recovery using sorbent pads, the two secondary remediation methods: 1) enhanced monitoring natural recovery (eMNR) that included the biostimulation of microbial communities via a slow release nutrient fertilizer, and 2) a shoreline washing agent (SWA or SCA; Corexit 9580) used to increase oil removal from affected shorelines. This data package includes the response of perphyton and zooplankton.

Long-term record of lake and stream biogeochemistry from the Loch Vale Watershed, Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado, USA: 1981-2024

The Loch Vale Watershed (LVWS) Project is a long-term research and monitoring program that addresses watershed-scale ecosystem processes, particularly as they respond to atmospheric deposition and climate variability. The LVWS is a 7-km2 high-altitude basin located within Rocky Mountain National Park in the Colorado Front Range (Colorado, United States of America). This dataset includes year-round measurements of physical water parameters, nutrients, major ions, trace metals, silica, and chlorophyll collected from lakes and streams within the LVWS basin. Related data entities: Scanned field notebooks from the Loch Vale Watershed Project from 1981-2023 are available via this published data release: https://www.sciencebase.gov/catalog/item/6723cba2d34e4f57573e8e45. Quality assurance reports from the Loch Vale Watershed Project are available for specific time periods and can be found at the following locations: 1983-1987: included in this data release under "Other Entities", file name LWVS_QAreport_1983to1987_Denning 1988: included in this data release under "Other Entities", file name LWVS_QAreport_1988_Denning 1989-1990: included in this data release under "Other Entities", file name LWVS_QAreport_1989to1990_Edwards 1995-1998: https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr99111 1999-2002: https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20041306 2003-2009: https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20111137 2010-2019: https://doi.org/10.3133/tm1D9 The most recent methods manual is included in full in this data release under "Other Entities", file name "LVWS Methods Manual". Please refer to this manual for the detailed methods.

Sub-Alpine Lake (>600 m) High-Frequency Water Temperature, DOC (2007-2021), and Weather Station (Fall 2023) Dataset, Maine, USA.

We collected high-frequency surface and bottom water temperature in a set of nine high-elevation lakes in Maine, USA from 2007-2021. High-elevation is defined >600m above sea level. Dissolved organic carbon concentration data for the same time period and set of lakes is modified from Nelson, S.J., R.A. Hovel, J.F. Daly, A.L. Gavin, S. Dykema, and W.H. McDowell. 2021. Northeastern Mountain Ponds Geochemistry Compilation 1978-2019 ver 1. Environmental Data Initiative. https://doi.org/10.6073/pasta/8b51d651da0e0cff8c6ad853ef69ec3b. Air temperature and precipitation data were collected from a weather station deployed in the Mountain Pond watershed in Fall 2023 to aid comparison with low and high resolution PRISM datasets.

openCC (other)Aug 2025View details →

Data associated with the FLooded Upland Dynamics EXperiment (FLUDEX), conducted at the IISD Experimental Lakes Area 1997 to 2003, investigating reservoir flooding impacts on ecosystems, particularly the release of mercury and greenhouse gases.

The data included in this repository were collected over the course of the FLooded Upland Dynamics Experiment (FLUDEX) conducted at the IISD Experimental Lakes Area (IISD-ELA) from 1997 to 2003. A plethora of data was collected over five years of flooding three upland reservoir sites, in order to examine the relationship between the amount of flooded, and thus decomposed, terrestrial organic matter and the production of methylmercury (MeHg), total mercury (THg), and greenhouse gases (GHGs) in the reservoirs. Findings from this experiment suggest that the amount of organic carbon stored in a flooded site does not directly influence the amount of THg, MeHg, and GHGs produced, but it does affect the persistence of mercury in the reservoir and food web. This version of the repository contains data collected on water chemistry, benthic invertebrate (chironomid) emergence, mercury and methylmercury concentrations in the water and food web, stable isotopes of carbon and nitrogen in emerging insects and zooplankton, and abundance and biomass of zooplankton, phytoplankton, and bacteria. This data package contains only some of the data from the FLUDEX project. IISD-ELA hopes to add more data in subsequent versions.

openCC (other)Aug 2023View details →

Lake Sunapee Instrumented Buoy: High-Frequency Weather Data, 2007-2022

The Lake Sunapee/Global Lake Ecological Observatory Network (GLEON) instrumented buoy, operated by the Lake Sunapee Protective Association (LSPA www.lakesunapee.org), is equipped with meteorologic (weather) sensors. The Lake Sunapee buoy is located near Loon Island Lighthouse (43.391°N, 72.058°W) during the summer months and in the Lake Sunapee Harbor (43.386°N, 72.081°W) (2010-current) from late fall to spring. During the first few years of data collection (2007-2010), the buoy was located near Loon Island year-round. The meteorological sensors include: a LI-COR LI-190R Quantum Photosynthetically Active Radiation (PAR) sensor (May 2018 - present), an air temperature sensor (HMP50 Vaisala, 2010-present), and a wind speed/direction sensor (WXT511 Vaisala, 2009-present) sensor. These sensors are located approximately 1.7 meters above the water's surface. The buoy is also equipped with below-water surface sensors comprised of water temperature thermistors and dissolved oxygen sensors, and as of 2021, a YSI EXO multiparameter sonde. The data from the below water sensors are available in a separate dataset (EDI data package edi.499). All data in this data package have been QAQC'd to remove obviously errant readings, highly suspicious readings, and artifacts of buoy maintenance.

openCC (other)May 2023View details →

Lake Sunapee Instrumented Buoy: High Frequency Water Quality Data - 2007-2022

The Lake Sunapee (Global Lake Ecological Observatory Network—GLEON) instrumented buoy, operated by the Lake Sunapee Protective Association (LSPA www.lakesunapee.org), is equipped with a thermistor chain, one optical dissolved oxygen probe suspended at approximately 10 meters depth (installed in 2013), and a multi-parameter sonde (installed in 2021) at 1 meter depth. An optical dissolved oxygen (DO) probe was located at 1.5 meter prior to the 2021 deployment of the multi-parameter probe from the inception of the buoy and the deep DO sensor was at 10.5 meters depth prior to 2021 since deployment. The number of thermistors and below-surface depth of the thermistors has fluctuated throughout the years and the additional water quality sensors have changed over time. The Lake Sunapee buoy is located near Loon Island Lighthouse (43.391°N, 72.058°W) during the summer months and in the Lake Sunapee Harbor (43.386°N, 72.081°W) (2010-current). During the first few years of data collection (2007-2010), the buoy was located near Loon Island year-round. In two instances, HOBO units were deployed at the buoy's location when sensors failed. This occurred in 2015 (in place of the thermistors) and in 2018 (in place of the shallow DO sensor). All data in this data package have been QAQC'd to remove obviously errant readings, highly suspicious readings, and artifacts of buoy maintenance. Additionally, flags have been added per sensor, to indicate calibration and non-calibration of the optical DO probe, location of the buoy, and to document other potential confounding observations. Dissolved oxygen data and data from the multi-parameter probe are “raw”: they are have not been corrected for calibration issues, drift, or fouling. Additional documentation and data are provided including manual DO measurements, visual comparisons of buoy-recorded DO and manual DO measurements, and an overview of how and where DO offsets applied in the data logger program were removed.

openCC (other)Jun 2024View details →

Missouri Lakes and Reservoirs Long-term Limnological Dataset, 1976-2018.

This data set compiles 43 years of limnological data from Missouri lakes and reservoirs collected by the University of Missouri Limnology Lab. Although the dataset includes information from nine different projects, the bulk of the data (~75%) come from the Statewide Lake Assessment Project and the Lakes of Missouri Volunteer Program, both of them funded primarily by Missouri Department of Natural Resources. The Statewide Lake Assessment Project began in 1978 sampling a small set of reservoirs. In 1989 the assessment expanded to include regular annual summer monthly collections between May and August, though monitoring was extended for some reservoirs in certain years. We monitored 240 lakes to create the dataset, which represents over 2600 lake-years. The Lakes of Missouri Volunteer Program began in 1992 monitoring 5 lakes and reservoirs and has expanded to 121 sites on 65 waterbodies. Volunteer community scientists monitor their respective sites approximately 8 times per season (April through September). This dataset represents over 15,000 sample events. Lake Ozarks is a long-term (1976-2014) spatial examination of a single large reservoir during summer. Table Rock Monitoring is another multi-year (1995-2009) spatial examination of a large reservoir, but includes year-round data. The rest of the projects included in the dataset monitored Missouri lakes and reservoirs at various intervals including daily (Woodrail, Daily), weekly (icubed), and biweekly (High Res).