During an educative field trip that aimed to introduce nine interested students to diverse aspects of freshwater ecosystems and the cultural differences in academic work outside of Germany, we travelled last week from the University of Duisburg-Essen (Germany) to Vodňany.
On Monday, the students were presented with various topics by local experts, starting with a general introduction to biological invasions as an active research field, then diving deeper into invasive crustaceans and fish species and the importance of trophic relationships when discussing invasive species. In addition, the students were introduced to the behaviour of aquatic animals and visited the Faculty hatchery with its sturgeon aquaculture. Finally, we attended an electrofishing campaign in the nearby Blanice river to visualize the differences between native and alien species.
On Tuesday, the group drove to Třeboň to observe the process of local aquaculture, starting with a visit to a series of ponds used to culture carp and ending at the facilities for their purging and expedition.
On Wednesday, we were introduced to the river continuum concept with pristine aquatic species and their specific feeding activities in elevated sections to versatile tolerant species in lower stretches. While this trip lasted nearly the entire day, the students highly appreciated it.
Several surprises awaited the students on Thursday. We travelled to a local commercial farm Pstruhařství Mlýny culturing and processing mainly rainbow trout and sturgeons, as well as the hatchery of the National Park Šumava in Borová Lada. Finally, we hiked to a natural refugium to the noble crayfish, one of the last places in the region where it can be found in high abundance. Afterwards, we inspected Křesanovský brook, a site where the highly invasive signal crayfish are replacing noble crayfish.
Overall, this week was a unique experience for the group, benefitting from the deep insights presented and the valuable cultural exchange.
Dr. Phillip J. Haubrock
