Wildlife Articles

Discover the Park through information specific to the wild flora and fauna found in the park.

New research published: Apostle Islands play key role in regional spread of American marten populations

New research published: Apostle Islands play key role in regional spread of American marten populations

Consider yourself fortunate if you've seen an American marten on the Apostle Islands. These small, fur-bearing mammals are hard to spot but fun to watch. The slender-bodied, state-endangered weasels are also the subject of ongoing research by scientists at the University of Wisconsin. Their work was the subject of a session at the 50th Anniversary Research Stewardship Symposium. It's also the basis for a new scientific paper. The researchers used DNA from hair samples to estimate how many animals are in the park and where their relatives live. They published the results of that work in late...

Lakeshore Logbook – Lane Johnson

Lakeshore Logbook – Lane Johnson

Lane Johnson As part of our 50th Anniversary celebration, we are collecting and sharing the stories of people connected to the islands, whether they are park guests, former residents or former park employees. This is the 29th in our series called “Lakeshore Logbook,” a collection of memories provided by former National Park Service employees. Living and working in the park on a day to day basis, they’ve experienced a lot to be sure. We hope you enjoy their perspectives. Lane Johnson worked as an Archaeological Technician with the Resource Management Division with a fair bit of natural...

Lakeshore Logbook – Jennie Nepstad

Lakeshore Logbook – Jennie Nepstad

Jennie staffing the information desk at the park's Bayfield headquarters As part of our 50th Anniversary celebration, we are collecting and sharing the stories of people connected to the islands, whether they are park guests, former residents or former park employees. This is the 26th in our series called “Lakeshore Logbook,” a collection of memories provided by former National Park Service employees. Living and working in the park on a day to day basis, they’ve experienced a lot to be sure. We hope you enjoy their perspectives. Jennie Nepstad worked as a seasonal interpretive park ranger at...

Lakeshore Logbook – Ian Williams

Lakeshore Logbook – Ian Williams

As part of our 50th Anniversary celebration, we are collecting and sharing the stories of people connected to the islands, whether they are park guests, former residents or former park employees. This is the 21st in our series called “Lakeshore Logbook,” a collection of memories provided by former National Park Service employees. Living and working in the park on a day to day basis, they’ve experienced a lot to be sure. We hope you enjoy their perspectives. Ian Williams served as Stockton Island Ranger during the summers of 1988 and 1989.  It’s strange to think that APIS was still a fairly...

Scientists discover tiny new species on Outer Island

Scientists discover tiny new species on Outer Island

You'll never see it without a microscope but a newly-documented species calls Outer Island home. And it's named for a retired water quality specialist from the Great Lakes Inventory and Monitoring Network division of the National Park Service. We're talking about a microscopic species of algae, Semiorbis eliasiae, named after Joan Elias, of the Great Lakes Network. These diatoms have ornate cell walls made of opaline silica, or biologically-produced glass. When the diatoms die, these skeleton-like fragments settle to the bottom of shallow lagoons, including a lagoon on Outer Island, in the...

Lakeshore Logbook – Josh Sweet

Lakeshore Logbook – Josh Sweet

Josh Sweet As part of our 50th Anniversary celebration, we are collecting and sharing the stories of people connected to the islands, whether they are park guests, former residents or former park employees. This is the 17th in our series called “Lakeshore Logbook,” a collection of memories provided by former National Park Service employees. Living and working in the park on a day to day basis, they’ve experienced a lot to be sure. We hope you enjoy their perspectives. Josh Sweet worked as a seasonal Park Ranger at Meyers Beach from May to October of 2014. What is the coolest thing you did in...

Lakeshore Logbook – Tom and Wendy Bredow

Lakeshore Logbook – Tom and Wendy Bredow

Tom Bredow As part of our 50th Anniversary celebration, we are collecting and sharing the stories of people connected to the islands, whether they are park guests, former residents or former park employees. This is the 16th in our series called “Lakeshore Logbook,” a collection of memories provided by former National Park Service employees. Living and working in the park on a day to day basis, they’ve experienced a lot to be sure. We hope you enjoy their perspectives. This week's entry is a father-daughter collaboration. Tom Bredow lived in park housing at Little Sand Bay when he was the...

Resiliency and vulnerability of Apostle Islands coastal wetlands

Resiliency and vulnerability of Apostle Islands coastal wetlands

The Apostle Islands National Lakeshore supports several types of coastal and interior wetlands including lagoons, bogs, freshwater estuaries, marshes and peatlands that provide many important ecological functions. We investigated wetland hydrology, geomorphology, vegetation, macro-invertebrates, and fish to identify communities or wetland types that are most at risk of climate-related impacts. The interaction between Lake Superior water levels and hydrologic connectivity between the wetlands and the lake influence how these wetlands will respond to changing conditions. For example, the...

A Vulnerability Assessment for Terrestrial Ecosystems

A Vulnerability Assessment for Terrestrial Ecosystems

How might climate change affect Apostle Islands National Lakeshore? It’s a simple question with lots of potential answers! This presentation will describe a recently published climate change vulnerability assessment for the terrestrial ecosystems throughout the park. Peggy Burkman will describe why the park felt it was necessary to complete this vulnerability assessment, and she’ll also cover some of the important context of the Apostle Islands landscape that might cause climate change to play out differently than on the mainland. Stephen Handler will explain how the assessment was completed...

American Martens on the Apostle Islands

American Martens on the Apostle Islands

Rapid environmental change is reshaping ecosystems and driving species loss globally. Carnivore populations have declined and retracted rapidly and have been the target of numerous translocation projects. Identifying refuges, locations that are resistant to environmental change, should improve population recovery and persistence. American martens (Martes americana) were extirpated across much of the Great Lakes region by the 1930s and, despite multiple translocations beginning in the 1950s, martens remain of regional conservation concern. Surprisingly, martens were rediscovered in 2014 on...