Center for Limnology · Trout Lake Station
Lottig Lab
Combining long-term ecological research and innovative sensing technology to understand and protect freshwater ecosystems.
We combine fisheries biology, water quality monitoring, and fundamental aquatic research with cutting-edge technologies to enhance our stewardship of water. We work alongside academic, agency, and lake stakeholders to translate discoveries into real-world, data-driven outcomes.
What we do
Long-term Ecology
We study multi-decadal patterns in lake chemistry, clarity, and biology across north-temperate lake districts — using decades of NTL-LTER field data to understand how freshwater ecosystems respond to climate, land use, and invasive species.
Sensing & Technology
We develop and deploy real-time IoT sensor platforms — including the DockSensIQ system — to make high-quality lake monitoring accessible to researchers, lake associations, and community partners across Wisconsin and beyond.
Data Science & Synthesis
From individual lakes to continental scales, we use large databases, time series analysis, and open-science workflows to answer broad questions about freshwater systems — including contributions to the LAGOS multi-scaled lake database.
Featured project
AquaSens / DockSensIQ
IoT Lake Water Temperature Monitoring
DockSensIQ is a dock-mounted sensor platform that delivers real-time lake water temperature data to lake associations, property owners, and researchers. Built on ESP32 hardware with a cloud backend, it makes high-quality environmental monitoring accessible and affordable for lakes across Wisconsin and beyond.
- Continuous real-time temperature monitoring
- Simple dock-mounted installation
- Data accessible via web dashboard and open API
- Designed for lake associations and citizen scientists