Konnevesi Research Station
Konnevesi Research Station is an essential part of the University of Jyväskylä and a significant member of the unique and nationally valuable Finnish network of university-based research stations. Just an hour’s drive from the University of Jyväskylä, Konnevesi Research Station enables field experiments on organisms in their natural environment which would be impossible to carry out on an urban campus. Such research will become increasingly important in the future when looking for solutions to mitigate climate change and prevent biodiversity loss.
The research station provides facilities for field courses, symposiums and seminars. The station also serves as a course and seminar venue for other universities, higher education institutions and research institutes.
In conditions where natural reproduction is not possible, we can help the mussel to reproduce in the laboratory environment. From 2016, individual mussels have been taken to the Konnevesi Research Station of the University of Jyväskylä for a “honeymoon” – with excellent results. This means that mussels in poor condition have been taken from twelve rivers all around Finland to the research station to recover, and the rehabilitated mussels have reproduced swiftly. Tens of thousands of mussel babies are born in the shelter of the research station every year! The first juvenile mussels were taken to their home river in 2021. The cultivation work is based on research, which helps to determine the optimal conditions for freshwater pearl mussels to reproduce and survive in natural conditions.
Now the University of Jyväskylä is inviting everyone to donate to the research. Securing the reproduction of mussels is a lifeline for the survival of the species, as are the reconditioning of rivers and other actions.
The research station was opened in 1983, and it has operated ever since on a cape between the clear and near-arctic Lake Konnevesi and its outlet river Siikakoski. Konnevesi Research Station was established based on educational needs, and it has grown and developed its activities during the past forty years. In the 1980s, teaching activities developed, and modern ecological research started. In the 1990s, ecological research became a leading field of science, while in the 2000s the station’s operations became increasingly international as basic education, doctoral training and research activities achieved their current form. The station is also a part of the extensive nationwide network of university research stations, RESTAT Finland.
The core of the Konnevesi campus comprises the main building with its auditoriums and offices, an office building with a dining hall, a dormitory and an old sauna. Around this original courtyard, there are apartments for researchers, guest houses and a workshop. On the strand, there is a unique research hall with animal facilities. In 2014, the long-awaited lakeside sauna Teerikukko was completed along with the nearby shelter for grilling.
The research station serves as a base of high international standards for biological research, and it is famous for its experimental research in the field of evolutionary and behavioural ecology as well as for its limnology research on mammals, birds, invertebrates and fish. In recent years, Konnevesi Research Station has been noted particularly for research pertaining to the protection of freshwater pearl mussels. Studies that call for a lot of space, such as bird and butterfly experiments or large-scale studies on some fish species or moles, cannot be done elsewhere.
The research station has played an important role in attracting three Centres of Excellence to the Department of Biological and Environmental Science. Konnevesi Research Station is a venue for significant research in the fields of experimental and evolutionary ecology as well as limnology. The research station has played a major role in several doctoral dissertation studies dealing with, for example, reproductive biology and the relationships between predators and prey as well as hosts and parasites.
Comprehensive facilities for researchers
The research station has sampling equipment, workrooms and space for laboratory work as well as follow-up data available to researchers. Our laboratory technicians provide help for the construction of test systems.
Hands-on learning
The research station is also a venue for field training. Students can enter the natural surroundings as soon as they step out of the door, while the station also provides excellent circumstances for developing a sense of community between students and teachers.
Master’s Degree Programme in Biological and Environmental Science
An important part of the station’s activities are national and international conferences, seminars and meetings. The station welcomes visiting researchers from many universities to promote the exchange of ideas, engage in fruitful discussions and build new cooperation networks.
The station also provides science education for groups of children and youth. It is possible to arrange school camps and day trips at the station. The research station is cooperating with schools to develop tailored teaching modules which teachers and classes complete at the station and in its surroundings.
Various events help visitors and local residents learn about the station’s activities. The traditional Luontoilta (Nature evening) is arranged each summer to address nature-related questions and observations coming from the audience. An annual Christmas lecture event is arranged at the local municipal hall.
