Habitat – Minnesota Trout Unlimited

The Tiny Winter Black Stonefly: A Cold-Weather Clue to Water Quality: February Macro of the Month

https://www.youtube.com/watch?si=e2h6Bqc4S0LIyQhC&embeds_referring_euri=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bing.com%2F&embeds_referring_origin=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bing.com&source_ve_path=Mjg2NjQsMTY0NTA2&v=JfhFGzSBFxk&feature=youtu.be For many anglers, winter means tying flies, maintaining gear, and daydreaming about warmer days on the water. But, those that do brave the frigid winter air to chase trout on Minnesota streams are sometimes rewarded with a mid-winter hatch of the tiny winter black stonefly (Allocapnia spp). Although trout feed...

Macro of the Month January 2025: Scuds

Scuds are freshwater shrimp (bottom right) – a crustacean that lives among benthic invertebrates in the stream.

Winter Habitat Preferences of Trout in the Driftless Area

By Dr. Jennifer Biederman The Driftless Area, spanning parts of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, and Illinois, is renowned for its spring-fed streams, cold water, and limestone geology. These unique environmental factors create ideal year-round conditions for trout. In streams with the most groundwater influence, both flows and water temperatures remain fairly constant...

Habitat Spotlight: Why Riffles Matter So Much

By Dr. Jennifer Biederman If there is one thing that many degraded streams across Minnesota have in common, it’s a lack key habitat types that support trout of all stages and ages. Many degraded streams lack riffle habitat. These shallow, fast-flowing sections of a stream, characterized by their choppy water surface...

Riffles: Essential Habitat for Healthy Macroinvertebrate Communities (Also, Trout Food!)

by Dr. Jennifer Biederman Riffle habitats in trout streams are essential little ecosystems that provide an ideal environment for aquatic macroinvertebrates, which are small, aquatic organisms that play a crucial role in freshwater ecosystems – and the most important food source of stream dwelling trout in Minnesota. What is a riffle?...

How do Macroinvertebrates Fare Following Stream Improvement Projects?

By Dr. Jennifer Biederman The sight of an in-stream habitat improvement project in progress can be a bit eye-opening – heavy machinery, including large excavators are working along the banks and in the stream, often moving large amounts of soil to slope the banks while digging out silted in pools and...

Electrofishing Insights: Tracking Stream Restoration Success in Northeast Minnesota

Standing by a newly restored stream, the benefits are often clear: the eroding banks, invasive plants, and barren channels have been replaced with gently sloped banks, deep pools, spawning riffles, and thriving native vegetation. It’s easy to see how these improvements boost fish populations by creating better habitat for food...

Program Spotlight: Fall 2024 Habitat Project Tour

On October 5 close to 40 individuals joined us for a day-long behind the scenes tour of sites where MNTU has completed habitat improvement projects. Our Executive Director John Lenczewski and Habitat Director, Jennifer Biederman led the trip, sharing their knowledge of how a project is planned, executed and monitored....

Macro of the Month: Late Summer Fly Fishing: The Magic of Tricos

By Dr. Jennifer Biederman As summer begins to wind down, July, August and early September bring a special treat for fly anglers in Minnesota: the trico hatch. Tricos, short for Tricorythodes mayflies, are a small-bodied but super important part of many trout streams' ecosystems, and they offer some of the best...

Monitoring Macros with the TCTU’s Streamkeepers and Save Our Streams (SOS) Community Science

On August 4,2024 twenty conservation-minded folks gathered on the banks of Eagle Creek in Savage, MN to become certified Save Our Streams (SOS) community scientists – learning the techniques for biological and chemical water testing in streams. The effort was led by the Twin City Trout Unlimited (TCTU) Streamkeepers...