Cayuga Lake: Past & Present
The south end of Cayuga Lake. Photograph by Jonathan R. Hendricks.
Cayuga Lake—38 miles long, up to 435 feet deep, and covering almost 43,000 acres—is the second largest of Central New York’s 11 Finger Lakes and among the 40 deepest lakes in the United States. The surrounding land surface that drains into the lake, the Cayuga Lake Basin, covers around 785 square miles. Changes in the region’s biota and landscape occurred with the arrival of European settlers in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century. As a result of these changes, the kinds and communities of plants and animals that live in and around Cayuga Lake today are very different than they were just two centuries ago.
Cayuga Lake is currently home to approximately 90 species of fishes, at least nine of which were introduced by humans over the past two centuries. The lake is also home to a growing number of additional introduced and invasive species of plants and animals, many of which have substantial negative environmental, aesthetic, or economic impacts.
We tell this story of 300 years of change in Cayuga Lake through a physical exhibit at the Cayuga Nature Center, as well as an online version of the exhibit that can be accessed below.
Cayuga Nature Center Exhibit
The centerpieces of the physical exhibit at the Cayuga Nature Center are a pair of 650-gallon aquaria that are inhabited by the fishes of past and present Cayuga Lake. This exhibit lets you see into the past by telling the story of one specific site along Cayuga Lake at two different times: today and 300 years ago. One aquarium represents the biota of the Lake today, and the other the biota before the major impacts of European settlers. Learn about life in and around Cayuga Lake, how it has changed in recent history, and the implications of these changes for the future of the lake.
The Cayuga Lake: Past and Present exhibit was made possible by grants from the New York Economic Development Program, the Tompkins County Tourism Program, and the Triad Foundation, with additional support from Cornell University, Incodema, Inc., and individual donors. Acknowledgments and Press coverage associated with the exhibit may be found below.
Join Katie to learn more about the Cayuga Lake exhibit's two tanks. We'll learn about the fish inside the tanks, the background, taxidermy, & why they were chosen for this exhibit.
We installed 2 freshwater aquaria at the Cayuga Nature Center in Summer 2018. One shows the fish species that were found in Cayuga Lake in the Past and the other shows the current fish species found there. This is a timelapse of the construction.
We have also created an online version of the Cayuga Lake: Past and Present exhibit for you to explore from home.
The Cayuga Lake: Past & Present exhibit was made possible by the financial support of the New York State Economic Development Program, the Triad Foundation, the Tompkins County Tourism Program, Cornell University, Incodema, Inc., and Paul Tatar.
Split Rock Studios fabricated the exhibit; the aquaria were fabricated by Reef Craft Aquarium Exhibits.
We also give special thanks to: William E. Bemis, David Brown, Bill Hecht, Nelson Hairston, Bob Johnston, Roxanna Johnston, Clifford Kraft, Phillip Krzeminski, Susan O’Donnell, Patrick Sullivan, and Don Wilson.
The content and design of this exhibit (at CNC and online) was developed by Helaina Blume, Robert Ross, Warren Allmon, Dayna Jorgenson, Leon Apgar, Natalee Wrege, Matt Sacco, and Jonathan Hendricks.
“Nature Center debuting fish tanks dedicated to Cayuga Lake's history” by Chloe Wray, Ithaca Times, August 8, 2018
“Cayuga Nature Center in Ithaca opens new aquaria exhibit” by Jim Harper, Ithaca Journal, August 15, 2018
“Past and present of Cayuga Lake on display in new Cayuga Nature Center tanks” by Kelsey O'Connor, Ithaca Voice, August 28, 2018
“LSS 42: Recording sounds of fish at Lab of O and Cayuga Nature Center "Past and Present" exhibit” by Locally Sourced Science podcast, WRFI/Ithaca Community Radio, September 4, 2018