Darrin Freshwater Institute
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History
Darrin Freshwater Institute (DFI) was established in the year 1967, and is located nearby Lake George in the state of New York. The area in which the institute is located is owned by the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI).[1][2] Before RPI utilized Darren Freshwater Institute, it was privately owned by Rear Admiral John W. Moore; as he bought the 1.7 acres (0.69 ha) of land in 1894. From 1894-1896, he had three buildings constructed on the property; which are still there to this day. The site was purchased by RPI and is named after David M. Darrin and his family, which help contributed to the funding of a new research site at Bolton Landing. In 1995, the Research and Teaching facility was constructed along with renovations to the original site from 2002-2003. In 2014, the Helen-Jo and John E. Kelly lab was built to help with modernizing lab equipment. Currently, the research station is directed by Kevin Rose.[2]
Location
The location of the research station is nearby Lake George (New York), and is considered to be a temperate dimictic (the water mixes twice a year) oligotrophic lake, with eight notable tributaries and 141 streams that feed into it. These eight tributaries are the Northwest Bay Brook, Indian Brook, Hague Brook, West Brook, English Brook, Shelving Brook, Finkle Brook, and East Brook.[3] The surrounding freshwater environment can be considered temperate.[4]
Research
Effects of Road Salt and Sediment Disturbance on Macrophytes
There are multiple research projects that are being conducted at DFI. One such project is determining human impacts on freshwater bodies in the northeastern region and their surrounding ecosystems. Conducted in 2018, this project specifically observed the impact road salts had on Lake George and how the introduction of chloride specifically had a negative impact on photosynthesis production from the aquatic plants in the area through collecting these plant species and putting them in bottles with three different levels of salinity; along with measuring turbidity from each species. The results showed that net primary production was decreased in certain macrophytes due to increased salt levels, specifically Potamogeton robbinsii and Elodea nuttallii. For gross primary production, P. robbinsii was the species that experienced a decline. In terms of turbidity, certain species like Myriophyllum spicatum and Najas flexilis were able to thrive under turbid conditions with low salt levels. [5]
Road Salts and Abiotic Stressors on Wetlands
Another study published in 2017 observed the wetland dynamics in Rensselaer County to determine any environmental/ecological impacts that may have been affected by the increased salinity of the freshwater environments observed. Specifically, this study was aimed at amphibians that live in these ecosystems and determine if there were any affects of human alterations of the climate through pH, water temperature, and dissolved oxygen levels. In order to conduct this study, the use of Mesocosm were implemented to control the environmental factors as much as possible, and add the road salts as needed (in this case 40 Cl/L). Abiotic factors along with phytoplankton and zooplankton were monitored to determine road salts overall influence on the wetlands response to stressors. The results showed that road salts negatively impacted pH, decreasing levels although still within an acceptable range. Also, the American toad in these mesocosms showed a decrease in activity due to both road salts and biotic factors.[6]
Hydroacoustic Survey of Bolton Bay
Another study that was conducted was the hydroacoustic surveying of Bolton Bay in Lake George to determine the amount of Eurasian watermilfoil (Myriophyllum spicatum) that was in the area; to determine the effectiveness of the conservation strategies implemented in the area, as Myriophyllum spicatum is classified as an invasive species. Published in 2008, the survey looked at 325 acres (132 ha) with the use of hydroacoustic equipment, which determined that conservation efforts were beneficial to removing the Eurasian watermilfoil.[7]
Lay Monitoring at Lake George
In 2007, there was a lay monitoring program conducted to help determine the water temperature and the rainfall observed throughout the year, along with a Secchi disk used to determine the visibility of the water at Lake George. There were 17 different sites monitored during the summer from June-October, with more readings recorded in May and November. Results showed that there was less rainfall—40.8 inches (1,040 mm)—compared to previous years (in 2006 there was 53.6 inches (1,360 mm) of rainfall), but average monthly rainfall was the same compared to previous years (3.4 inches per month). The average surface water temperature was 66.9 °F (19.4 °C), which was a 1.6 °F (0.9 °C) increase compared to the year before. The average transparency that was observed during this time was 30 feet (9.2 m), which was an increase from the 27 feet (8.3 m) observed in 2006.[8]
Plastic Responses to Freshwater Salinization in larvae (Amphibians)
A study published in 2024 reviewed the impacts of increased salinity in lakes and the tolerance of the amphibians in these areas. They observed 9 wetland areas across Rensselaer County that had areas that had a range of 1-744 Cl/L. Once these populations of amphibians were sampled, they would expose these species to different levels of salinity when they were tadpoles to determine the salt tolerances of these species. The results were that if a population was exposed to significant (but not lethal) amounts of salt, they would be less tolerant to salt exposure.[9]
Spatiotemporal Variability of Dissolved Organic Matter and Fluorescence Composition
There was another study published in 2024 that observed the dissolved organic matter (DOM) that is present in Lake George and determine if there is any affect from both biological and man-made structures (sewage, agriculture, etc.) on the levels of DOM. The importance of this study is due to DOM eventually being released into the atmosphere as by-products of biological processes (photosynthesis, respiration, etc.). To conduct this experiment, 213 samples were collected at 12 different locations at Lake George from November 2020-October 2021 and a spectrofluorometer was utilized to determine fluorescence levels in the DOM of the samples.[4]
Aquatic Plant Identification (2010)
In 2010, an aquatic plant survey was conducted to determine what species were living at Lake George. The main purpose of this study was to determine if there were any invasive species, specifically Eurasian watermilfoil and Curly-leaf Pondweed (Potamogeton crispus). The resulting findings were that there were 17 aquatic plant specimens found in the area, which included Eriocaulon aquaticum, Equisetum fluviatile, Carex sp., Hydrocharis morsus-ranae, Trapa natans, Potamogeton crispus, Myriophyllum spicatum, Fontinalis sp., Brasenia schreberi, Nymphoides cordatum, Najas flexilis, and Megalodonta beckii.[10]
External Links
[https://www.obfs.org/field-station/darrin-freshwater-institute/]
[https://lakegeorgeassociation.org/science-protection/citizen-science/lake-george-hydrologic-budget]
References
- ↑ "Darrin Freshwater Institute". Organization of Biological Field Stations. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 "History". Darrin Fresh Water Institute. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
- ↑ "Lake George Hydrologic Budget". Lake George Association. Retrieved 2025-05-01.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Goranov, A. I., Swinton, M. W., Winkler, D. A., Farrell, J. L., Nierzwicki-Bauer, S. A., & Wagner, S. (2024). Assessing the spatiotemporal variability of dissolved organic matter fluorescence composition in the Lake George, NY watershed. Biogeochemistry, 167(6), 849-870.
- ↑ Stoler, A. B., K. Sudol, J. Mruzek, and R. A. Relyea. 2018. Interactive effects of road salt and sediment disturbance on the productivity of seven common aquatic macrophytes. Freshwater Biology 63:709-720.
- ↑ Jones, D. K., Mattes, B. M., Hintz, W. D., Schuler, M. S., Stoler, A. B., Lind, L. A., ... & Relyea, R. A. (2017). Investigation of road salts and biotic stressors on freshwater wetland communities. Environmental Pollution, 221, 159-167.
- ↑ Boylen, C. W., Farrell, J., & Eichler, L. W. (2008). A hydroacoustic survey of the Bolton Bay area of Lake George, New York for the presence of Eurasian watermilfoil.
- ↑ Ahrens-Franklin, L., Eichler, L. W., & Boylen, C. W. (2008). The 2007 Lake George Lay Monitoring Program.
- ↑ Relyea, R. A., Schermerhorn, C. X., Mattes, B. M., & Shepard, I. D. (2023). Phenotypically plastic responses to freshwater salinization in larval amphibians: Induced tolerance and induced sensitivity. Environmental Pollution, 337, 122588.
- ↑ Eichler, L. (2010). Annual report-2010 Darren Freshwater Institute Aquatic Plant Identification Program.
Coordinates: 43°33′49″N 73°39′10″W / 43.56361°N 73.65278°W
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