Ruben Sommaruga @rsommalab - Bluesky Profile

A person stands on a boat in a lake, raising a hand holding aquatic plants, with mountains in the background and playful line drawings of birds, fish, and a palm tree overlaid. Large white text reads “LET’S REVIVE OUR LAKES” with “Join #GenerationRestoration” beneath, and the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration 2021–2030 logo appears in the bottom left corner.

Lakes contain most of the liquid fresh water on the planet, but they are also among the most rapidly degrading ecosystems.

Ahead of #WorldLakeDay on August 27, see how you can take #GenerationRestoration action to safeguard these vital freshwater bodies: www.decadeonrestoration.org/lakes

08.08.2025 06:11 — 👍 41 🔁 11 💬 0 📌 0

Air pollution and warming are changing Colorado’s remote alpine lakes The Oleksy lab has taken over a 42-year-old monitoring project in Rocky Mountain National Park. Their investigations reveal how remote alpine watersheds are

Isabella Oleksy's Mountain Limnology Lab has taken over a 42-year-old monitoring project in Rocky Mountain National Park. Their investigations reveal how remote alpine watersheds are changing in the Anthropocene www.colorado.edu/instaar/2025...

@isabellaoleksy.bsky.social & @jbaron4.bsky.social

04.08.2025 22:11 — 👍 24 🔁 11 💬 0 📌 0

Unexpected survival strategies of plankton in alpine lakes have global relevance Alpine lakes are among the most harsh aquatic environments on Earth. Located at high elevation, they are exposed to intense ultraviolet radiation (UVR), wide temperature and light fluctuations, and low nutrient availability.

Plankton in alpine lakes use dynamic photoprotection, versatile energy strategies, and virus-mediated stability, offering insights into resilience under environmental stress in aquatic ecosystems worldwide. doi.org/g9v7nz

05.08.2025 11:23 — 👍 6 🔁 2 💬 0 📌 0

Small lakes are suffocating as winters warm | PNAS Small lakes are suffocating as winters warm

Our overview of the impressive paper by Jensen et al in PNAS about under-ice oxygen levels is out.

"Small lakes are suffocating as winters warm"

www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...

04.08.2025 19:09 — 👍 27 🔁 13 💬 1 📌 0

Lago Nero, one of the more accessible mountain lakes on our tour.

Impressive backdrop, but we had little time to admire it.

Millions of microscopic algae turned the waters green.

What species will it be once we analyze the filters in the lab?

Lago Nero (black lake) di Cornisello at 2240 m was rather green when we sampled it. An algal bloom!! This meant changing filters every few minutes.
That night, our faces were of similar color (stomach bug) and we skipped the last lake.
#CAPSOLUTION
@mpimarinemicrobio.bsky.social @erc.europa.eu

03.08.2025 15:42 — 👍 10 🔁 2 💬 1 📌 0

I think they are right…time matters

31.07.2025 20:36 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

Reconsidering space-for-time substitution in climate change ecology - Nature Climate Change Ecologists often leverage patterns observed across spatial climate gradients to predict the impacts of climate change (space-for-time substitution). We highlight evidence that this can be misleading n...

doi.org/10.1038/s415...

31.07.2025 20:31 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 1 📌 0

31.07.2025 16:46 — 👍 0 🔁 0 💬 0 📌 0

With the Brenta Dolomites in view, it's a two-hour hike to the Serodoli/Gelato lakes.

Lago Serodoli

Lago Gelato, icy cold even in late July!

Sampling polar waters can't be that different

Our next set of mountain lakes is located in Italy's Adamella Brenta Nature Park. Lago Serodoli (2370 m elevation) is just downstream of Lago Gelato (2388 m), which lived up to its name and made us shiver with ice-cold winds.
#CAPSOLUTION
@mpimarinemicrobio.bsky.social @erc.europa.eu

28.07.2025 17:09 — 👍 11 🔁 3 💬 0 📌 0

This graphic from the SDG Report 2025 shows that 2024 was the hottest year on record, with global temperatures reaching 1.55°C above pre-industrial levels. It features a rising temperature graph from 1850 to 2024 and includes SDG 13: Climate Action.

🔥 2024 was the hottest year on record.

Decision makers must prioritize #ClimateAction for both people and the planet. The window to secure a livable future is rapidly closing.

Report: unstats.un.org/sdgs/report/... #SDGReport #SDGs #GlobalGoals

23.07.2025 19:37 — 👍 35 🔁 21 💬 1 📌 4

Oberer Plenderlessee in the Stubai Alps

Catching a break from the rain at Mittlerer Plenderlessee

Testing if the pumps are waterproof

Dinoflagellates and other protists

The next two lakes on the sampling tour were Upper and Middle Plenderlessee in Austria. We got lots of water from the lakes, and also from the skies... Dinoflagellates live here!
#CAPSOLUTION
@mpimarinemicrobio.bsky.social @erc.europa.eu

20.07.2025 10:56 — 👍 14 🔁 5 💬 0 📌 0

The immeasurable value of plankton to humanity Abstract. Plankton, a diverse group of aquatic organisms, make Earth livable, regulate aquatic life, and provide benefits to human societies such as access

immeasurable value of plankton to humanity url: academic.oup.com/bioscience/a...

17.07.2025 09:19 — 👍 3 🔁 2 💬 0 📌 0

Sampling Blaue Lacke

Grünausee with @lqueiss.bsky.social and @drjmpetersen.bsky.social

Freiger See with its muddy shores

High above Grünausee

The weather improved for our next tour in the Stubai Alps to Blaue Lacke (2287 m), Grünausee (2335 m), and Freiger See (2500 m), three mountain lakes above the treeline. Strenuous hikes alternated with wet & cold weather during filtration. #CAPSOLUTION
@mpimarinemicrobio.bsky.social @erc.europa.eu

16.07.2025 20:17 — 👍 12 🔁 4 💬 1 📌 0