For Friday, Oct. 16, 2026
1 – They call them dinosaur fish, and it turns out that lake sturgeon may live much longer than believed.
Longevity research published in the Journal of Fish Biology estimated the life span of lake sturgeon based on the largest recorded sizes from more than 40 years of tagging data from the Great Lakes.
For males, estimated lifespans were 90 to 279 years.
For the ladies, estimates ranged from 99 to 427 years.
Lake sturgeon can grow to up to 6 feet in length.
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2 – Bay City is becoming more resilient. In other words, it’s better equipped to adapt to changing conditions and withstand and recover from hazards like storms and flooding.
The Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative reports that Bay City, along with eight other communities in the basin, are making strides through a federal program.
The effort is called the Initiative for Resilient Great Lakes Coasts.
Projects have been designed to restore habitat, address coastal hazards, and provide benefits through solutions like native plantings, natural shoreline stabilization, and green stormwater infrastructure.
A new group of projects is expected to be announced soon.
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3 – Disposable e-cigarette devices may not only be bad for your health. Researchers say the disposable part is also creating a serious solid‑waste problem.
A team from the University of Illinois estimates that hundreds of thousands of disposable vapes are thrown away every day.
Researchers collected used vapes from a Chicago‑area shop’s waste stream. They found that the vape liquid in the discarded devices contained extremely high levels of lead. They also noted that disposable vapes contain batteries, circuitry, and plastics in a compact package that’s hard to recycle.
Devices that end up in regular trash have the potential to leach contaminants into groundwater. The team says better product design could drastically reduce the problem. The findings are published in the journal Environmental Monitoring and Assessment.
– Mr. Great Lakes is heard at 6:45 and 8:45 Friday mornings on Delta College Public Radio 90.1 FM WUCX in University Center, Michigan, near Bay City (listen live). Follow @jeffkart on Twitter or even Bluesky #MrGreatLakes
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