What a cool summer we had this year! Fifty-four of our Adopt-a-Stream volunteers have the data to prove it. Every week, these volunteers visited their assigned stream sites to record the weekly minimum and maximum water temperatures.
These measurements were analyzed to produce an average minimum and maximum temperature for the entire summer for each site. Overall, the maximum temperatures at the 21 stream sites were 5 °F colder than they had been in previous summers.
Families found it fun and interesting to visit the stream once a week during July and August. “We had the best time checking the thermometers (often followed by Root Beer Floats). Jack wanted me to tell you that ‘the weather appears to have a dramatic effect on the depth of the water’. We were absolutely amazed at how it fluctuated.” – Lois J.
Next year’s study will be even more interesting as we continue to watch for changes in the temperature of the streams in the Huron River Watershed.