Virtual Museum of Canada

WATERS OF LIFE

THE WATER MASSES

PORTRAIT OF LAKE SAINT-PIERRE

Top of page Top of page Top of page Top of page Top of pageTop of page
Gulls on a rock at Lake Saint-Pierre

Lake Saint-Pierre, a fluvial lake that is part of the St. Lawrence River, is a vast aquatic ecosystem that stretches from the Berthier-Sorel islands to Trois-Rivières.

Solitary sandpiper walking on the bank.

Solitary Sandpiper

Lake Saint-Pierre’s designation as a Ramsar site in 1998 indicates its significance among wetlands worldwide.

Rising sun in the archipelago

In 2000, UNESCO designated Lake Saint-Pierre as a Biosphere Reserve to highlight the quality of its natural environment and the efforts that have been taken to preserve this unique ecosystem.

Top of page

Measuring the water transparency with a Secchi disk.

Water transparency is measured with a Secchi disk. The greatest depth at which the disk remains visible is recorded.

LI-COR photometer in the lake water

Light penetration of water is measured using a LI-COR photometer.

Measurement of light penetration in water.

The biologists take the measures of the LI-COR photometer.

Top of page

Measurement of dissolved oxygen in water.

An oxygen probe measured dissolved oxygen and water temperature.

Hydrolab multi-meter probe above the water

The Hydrolab multi-meter probe indicates the amount of dissolved oxygen as well as the water temperature, conductivity and pH.

 A biologist handling a Niskin bottle.

The Niskin bottle is used to collect water samples at a specific depth.

Top of page

Niskin bottle and brown container

Samples of algae (phytoplankton) are preserved in a brown container. This avoids exposing the sample to light, which could alter the amount of chlorophyll-a in the algae.

Niskin bottle and transparent container

Transparent containers are used to preserve samples of zooplankton and to collect water for nutrient analysis (nitrogen,phosphorus, carbon).

This page contains videos that require Javascript and Adobe Flash Player to be activated. If you wish not to activate these functions, we offer pictures from the original videos.

Richard Carignan's interview

Get Flash Player Transcription of Richard Carignan's interview VIDEO - 6 min 18 s
Richard Carignan is a tenured professor at the Département de sciences biologiques de l'Université de Montréal. He is part of the Groupe de recherche interuniversitaire en limnologie et en environnement aquatique (GRIL).
WWW | USEFUL LINK - RICHARD CARIGNAN

Top of page

THE WATER MASSES

PORTRAIT OF LAKE
SAINT-PIERRE

WWW | USEFUL LINKS
The Ramsar Convention on Weltlands
Biosphere Reserves - UNESCO
Réserve de la biosphère du Lac-Saint-Pierre