About Me
How IdentaZoop Began
Hello. My name is Lynne M. Witty. I was bitten by the "taxonomy bug" during my Honours Bachelor of Science (Biology) undergraduate thesis, undertaken at Laurentian University, where I focused on the benthic macroinvertebrates of a local lake. After graduating, I enrolled in an Ecosystem Management program (both Technician and Technology diplomas) at Fleming College. This was followed by an internship at the International Joint Commission, a Canada-USA binational environmental agency.
Upon my return to Greater Sudbury, I was employed as an Aquatic Invertebrate Taxonomist with the Cooperative Freshwater Ecology Unit, now housed in the Living with Lakes Centre. Due to the collaborative nature of this group of researchers, I had the opportunity to provide professional taxonomic services for projects ranging from the Great Lakes regions to the Far North of Ontario and beyond.
From processing zooplankton samples for long-term monitoring programs, to species verification for genetic studies, to participating in Daphnia toxicology research, my focus has always been on producing the highest quality data. My sample processing and zooplankton taxonomy training supported many research projects which led to several peer-reviewed scientific papers. See 'Supported Research' for a selection of these publications.
A significant portion of my time with the Cooperative Freshwater Ecology Unit was dedicated to training graduate students from Laurentian University, Queen’s University, and York University on how to process their own aquatic invertebrate samples. With the goal of making identifications more accessible to novices, I produced two practical guides, one for zooplankton and one for benthos. These guides are designed to complement scientific taxonomic keys, not replace them. See the four pages under 'Zoop Science' for supporting material geared towards novices looking to learn about freshwater zooplankton, including free downloads of both identification guides. To make the material easier to digest for all visitors to this website, I created a 'FAQs' page as well as a 'Glossary' to clarify topics and terminology.
Following my time at the Cooperative Freshwater Ecology Unit, I launched my own consulting business focused on freshwater crustacean zooplankton taxonomy: IdentaZoop (as in "Identify a Zooplankton"). It has now grown to encompass a Canada-wide client base.
I look forward to new challenges and discussing your project to build a customized plan that fits your data needs and timeline.