Variable Warming Upper Midwest Lakes and Implications for Sport Fish

Climate change is predicted to alter sport fish communities in Midwestern lakes, but managers currently have limited information on individual lakes that can be used to set local expectations or intervene with mitigation strategies. Northeast and North Central CASC supported researchers, with strong participation from the Midwest Glacial Lakes Partnership, have combined existing fish and water temperature observations to build models that estimate daily water temperatures and fish habitat metrics for thousands of lakes in North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Michigan, and Indiana. This presentation will discuss key findings from several studies, including fishery responses to warming and variability in sensitivity to warming across lakes. It will also cover the use of data visualization to reach managers and the general public with the results.