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Lakes as the Müggelsee near Berlin are currently covered with an unusually thick carpet of algae. This algal bloom is primarily a result of the warm summer months, but there are also other reasons...

Scientists from  IGB have analysed long-term data to prove that decreasing nitrogen in Berlin’s Lake Müggelsee is the key to reducing algal blooms in summer.

Fish are an important element in the food web of lakes. This also applies to the experimental enclosures of the LakeLab. However, in this case, the number of fish must be controlled so that the results from the individual cylinders can be compared with each other. Because fish from the lake repeatedly jump into the enclosures, all fish must first be removed with nets from the cylinders before starting a new experiment. Today, 5 small perch were released into each enclosure for this year's LakeLab experiment.

As energy supplier and stimulus of the internal clock, light is of fundamental importance to plants and animals. This also applies to fish and microscopic organisms in lakes. Like other species, they have adapted to the day-night rhythm during evolution. But what happens if a lake is illuminated by artificial lighting at night, or if not enough light penetrates into the water during the day? These questions are examined during this year's summer experiment at the Lake Lab.

Climate change, pesticides and land use changes alone cannot fully explain the decline in insect populations in Germany. Artificial lighting at night could be another reason for declining insect populations.

Dörthe Tetzlaff has been head of IGB’s department of Ecohydrology since August 2017. Time, to make up a first balance. And to talk about research & family, and her future plans.

Rising temperatures are a threat to the balance of lakes. In a new IGB Dossier, researchers provide a summary of the changes that lakes are already undergoing and of the scenarios that are likely to occur.

Researchers warn: the impact of microplastics in soils, sediments and the freshwaters could have a long-term negative effect on terrestrial ecosystems throughout the world.