Testimonials
What’s Being Said
As an experienced Zooplankton Taxonomist in Canada, I know what it means to provide exceptional service and deliver the highest quality data. For over two decades, I have fulfilled the data needs of a number of research and environmental organizations on time and on budget. See what some of my satisfied clients and past colleagues have to say about the work I’ve done.
Dr. Norman D. Yan, Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada
Senior Research Scholar - York University, Faculty of Science
“In the environmental field there is little that is more important than trustworthy long-term data. I have been very fortunate, over the last few decades, to have Lynne Witty providing just such accurate and consistent data on the dynamics of zooplankton communities in Ontario lakes. Given the quality of Lynne's work, I have been able to collaborate on dozens of projects which came to fruition in scientific publications. I am very happy to recommend Lynne to you for all your zooplankton projects requiring microscopic enumeration. There is no one better.”
Bill Wendel Keller, M.Sc.
Senior Research Fellow, Northern Studies - Laurentian University
“I hired Lynne Witty to process zooplankton and benthic macro-invertebrate samples from aquatic ecosystems all across northern Ontario. Lynne is committed to taxonomic excellence and her work is top notch. She was a key member of our research team at the Cooperative Freshwater Ecology Unit for over two decades.”
Dr. Charles W. Ramcharan
Associate Professor - Laurentian University, School of the Environment
“Lynne is a consummate professional taxonomist. Decades of research on the zooplankton communities of Ontario that led to seminal papers in Science and Nature were based on her technical work: the effects of acidification and industrial damage on zooplankton; recovery of zooplankton communities from industrial damage; the impacts of exotic invaders on lake ecosystems; and the impacts of declining calcium level in lakes. You’ve heard about these issues in the national media, and you’ve seen the lead scientists featured on the news. Lynne is where the data came from.
Lynne’s skills are not just with species identification. She’s an expert in designing sampling programs, including ones with different goals such as characterizing average community composition, or detecting rare species.
I fully endorse Lynne for any project where accurately quantifying zooplankton populations is necessary.”
Dr. John L. Bailey
Deputy Minister of Environment - Yukon Government
Formerly Research Scientist and Adjunct Professor - MECP/Laurentian University
“Lynne is one of the best zooplankton taxonomists in North America. She was key to the programmes I worked on at Laurentian University, when I was her supervisor. Her work provided vital data for countless peer-reviewed papers and aquatic resource management projects across the province of Ontario and beyond.
Lynne is a well-organized, hard working and dedicated scientist who handles demanding workloads and tight timelines professionally and effectively. She would be a strong asset to any aquatic research group and I expect will continue to be a key contributor to our science for years to come.”
Dr. Andrew J. Tanentzap
Head of Ecosystems and Global Change Research Group - University of Cambridge (UK)
“Lynne has provided zooplankton training and identification services for my group over many years. She has helped with difficult projects, such as fish gut analysis, where only a very experienced taxonomist could discern partially digested bodies. These data have helped lead to several major publications.
Lynne has also trained students to work independently and confidently under the microscope. I am not aware of any other training provider that prepares students as well as she does. I'd easily recommend and use her services again."
Dr. John Maxwell Gunn
Canada Research Chair Tier 1 for Stressed Aquatic Systems and
Director of the Living with Lakes Centre - Laurentian University
“Lynne Witty is an expert aquatic taxonomist, with a specialty in freshwater zooplankton of Canadian Shield lakes but also is adept at the accurate identification of benthic invertebrates. She produced two very well written guides to freshwater invertebrate taxonomy and is also an excellent teacher, having trained a number of graduate students at Laurentian University, Queen’s University and York University in her taxonomic field.”
Robert Dallas Linley, M.Sc.
Aquatic Science Technician - Department of Fisheries and Oceans,
Great Lakes Laboratory for Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
“Lynne is an excellent and talented taxonomist with abundant patience which also makes her an exceptional trainer in the skills required to identify zooplankton. The skills I learned while working with her were applicable not only in the Great Lakes region but also provided a basis for working around the world in marine, brackish, and foreign freshwaters."
Aisha Sarah Chiandet, M.Sc.
Water Scientist - Severn Sound Environmental Association
"Severn Sound was de-listed as an Area of Concern by the International Joint Commission in 2003, with the requirement to continue regular monitoring, including zooplankton. Since 2008, Lynne Witty has processed these samples, as she is one of the few remaining taxonomists who still uses the ZEBRA2 counting protocol. Maintaining the quality of our long-term dataset is of paramount importance which Lynne plays a key role in upholding. She also completes contracts in a timely and professional manner, and her attention to detail instills confidence in the data she produces."
Dr. Brie A. Edwards
Research Scientist and Adjunct Professor - MECP/Laurentian University
"I served as Lynne's supervisor at the Living with Lakes Center in the last years of her tenure. She was invaluable to me upon moving into my role in the Northern Lakes Monitoring Program at the Cooperative Freshwater Ecology Unit. She is a great teacher and helped me mentor students who are new to the world of zooplankton community monitoring and taxonomy. Lynne cares deeply for her craft and the projects her work supports."