Joy Ramstack, Assistant Scientist

M.S., Lehigh University, (Geological Sciences), 2000
B.A., Hartwick College, (Biology), 1996

Phone: 651-433-5953 ext. 24
email:

Research Interests

My research interests revolve around using lake sediments to determine the environmental history of lakes and their watersheds.

I work with diatoms, which are single-celled, microscopic algae that are found in nearly every lake and stream around the world. They form a cell wall made of biologically produced glass, which preserves well in lake-bottom sediments, and different species can be identified by the unique pattern of this glass cell wall. Diatoms are sensitive to changes in their aquatic environment, and the community composition of diatoms in the sediments can tell us about past conditions in a lake or stream. The focus of my master’s work was to determine the environmental preferences and tolerances of different diatom species in Minnesota lakes. We are now using the results of that work to reconstruct water chemistry in Minnesota lakes, as well as in floodplain wetlands of the St. Croix River. Much of our work is focused on the changes that have occurred since the time of European settlement.

The results of our work have important implications for lake and watershed managers. It is important to have an understanding of the variability within a system, as well as knowledge of the timing and magnitude of change, in order to make informed management decisions.

Representative Publications

Bowen, J.L., J.M. Ramstack, S. Mazzilli, and I. Valiela. Submitted. NLOAD: An interactive, web-based modeling tool to estimate nitrogen loads and concentrations, and explore options for nitrogen management in estuaries. Ecological Applications.

Kennish, M.J., S.B. Bricker, W.C. Dennison, P.M. Glibert, R.J. Livingston, K.A. Moore, R.T. Noble, H.W. Paerl, J.M. Ramstack, S. Seitzinger, D.A. Tomasko, and I. Valiela. Submitted. Barnegat Bay-Little Egg Harbor Estuary: Case Study of a Highly Eutrophic Coastal Bay System. Limnology and Oceanography.

Ramstack, J.M., S.C. Fritz, and D.R. Engstrom. 2004. Twentieth-Century Water-Quality Trends in Minnesota Lakes Compared With Pre-Settlement Variability. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 61:561-576.

Downing, J.A., J.M. Ramstack, K. Haapa-aho, and K. Lee. 2003. Iowa Lakes Survey, Summer 2002 Data. Report to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, 394 pp.

Ramstack, J.M., S.C. Fritz, D.R. Engstrom, and S.A. Heiskary. 2003. The application of a diatom-based transfer function to evaluate regional water-quality trends in Minnesota since 1970. Journal of Paleolimnology 29:79-94.