Students from UW-Parkside, UW-Stevens Point and UW-Madison are participating in BenthicNet. The training program includes experts from the three universities as well as the Milwaukee Public Museum. They aim to expand access to collections of insects and other invertebrates that are used for biomonitoring.
Read more about the project in BenthicNet: How an Aquatic Insect Project Is Revitalizing Biomonitoring in Wisconsin
Two of the interns shared their recent experience at the first training weekend at Treehaven in September 2025.
- Skylar Johnston, UW-Parkside, graduate student in studying Biology with a concentration in Ecology, Evolution, and Conservation
- Andrew Malacara, UW-Parkside, undergraduate student with double major in Applied Mathematics and General Biology
Why were you interested in joining this project?
Johnston: I am very interested in museum digitization/curation of specimens and how we can use them for research and outreach. I am also interested in aquatic macroinvertebrates and biomonitoring samples and how we can best use that data in our collections and research.
Malacara: I was interested in this project for a few reasons. Firstly, I had been working under Dr. O. (Jessica Orlofske) as an independent study student for three months and had a great time doing so, making it easy to say yes to a project she was leading. The project itself was a golden opportunity for me. I have an interest in entomology and was looking for any opportunity I could get to learn more about the subject.
What skills have your gained or do you hope to gain?
Johnston: So far, I have expanded my understanding of where to find certain macroinvertebrates in water ecosystems. I would love to keep expanding that so that I am able to understand what macroinvertebrates I can expect to find in those ecosystems and what their presence/absence could tell us from a biomonitoring standpoint. I also want to be able to identify macroinvertebrates to a lower taxa level than I can right now. Being able to identify many of them to genus would be a (very ambitious) dream come true!!
Malacara: We’re still early in the project, but so far, I have worked with a multitude of surveying equipment across various aquatic habitats, learning hands on what works best for which environment. My understanding of the classification of aquatic insects and other aquatic invertebrates has steadily improved since the start of this project. As for things to come, we are having a workshop in Madison where we will learn more about how best to preserve specimens along with proper museum curation.
What has been your favorite or most memorable experience so far?
Johnston: There isn’t one singular moment, but rather the repeated excitement from faculty and students bringing back their sampling gear and finding new or exciting macroinvertebrates. The water systems we sampled on this trip had different macroinvertebrates than the ones in the rivers I regularly sample, so seeing new taxa was so exciting. It was doubly exciting to hear everyone else just as excited as I was to find someone new or big in their nets too (and even better getting to see the bugs they found!).
Malacara: My favorite memory so far is from our first workshop in Treehaven. I had a goal of finding a stonefly, an aquatic insect that we didn’t have many of in our collection. While surveying the Wisconsin River, Cole, a Madison student, and I found one! We were a distance away from everyone, but I screamed at the top of my lungs, “WE FOUND A STONEFLY,” unable to hold my excitement. Little did I know they had already found a few stoneflies, and Coel and I did go on to find around 20 more, but the excitement of that first one will stick with me forever.
What have you enjoyed about working with faculty and students from another university?
Johnston: Every person brings different passions and experiences to this project, and I also think it a project where people are growing new passions. I have loved watching everyone become thrilled when they find certain macroinvertebrates in their sample. I have enjoyed the faculty helping me expand my entomological and water ecosystem knowledge. I have loved being able to sit with faculty who are experts in this field and have the specimens in front of me in the river so they can point out adaptations the macroinvertebrates have to live in these areas and then how they go about identifying them in the lab. I feel like I learned SO MUCH in just one weekend!!!
Malacara: The best part of working with the other campuses is finding people who share an interest and a passion with you, learning more about their favorites, and gabbing about yours. It’s really just nice finding your people!
How do you think this experience help you attain your career goals?
Johnston: A career path I am very interested in is in museum work. I would love to expand my understanding of collecting, identifying, processing, and then connecting other researchers to museum material. This project feels very close to what I would love to see as a larger stronger network across Wisconsin. I would love to be able to use our collections for outreach, research, and display. Aquatic macroinvertebrates are my favorite and I want everyone to see how stunning they are!
Malacara: I think this will be great for my future career. The kind of work we are doing with this project is exactly what I want to be doing with my life. Beyond this, it looks good for a grad school application; the experience is just so much fun that it fuels me to do well in all my academics so I can one day lead projects like this with my own undergrads!