Holding strands of loose native pondweed that floated to the surface, Steve Carpenter, professor of zoology and director of the Center for Limnology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, is pictured in Lake Mendota near the campus shoreline on July 29, 2009. Carpenter says that native pondweed -- an important fish habitat common in the early 1900s and almost lost by 1980 -- is now making a comeback. Most people are less aware of native pondweeds because the species grows far under the surface of the water. Native pondweeds should not be confused with the invasive Eurasian Watermilfoil, which grows on the surface of some Wisconsin lakes and interferes with boating, fishing and swimming.
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