Great Lakes Echo’s greatest hits of 2018

By Marie Orttenburger

Everyone has their end-of-year lists, and we’re not one to be left out. As 2018 comes to a close, we’re taking a moment to reflect on our year as a whole. The year’s most popular stories provide a snapshot of what struck a chord—whether consonant or dissonant—with our readers in 2018.

Take a walk down memory lane with us. Here are the Echo stories that garnered the most visits, comments and shares in 2018:

Top 10 most visited posts created in 2018

These are the stories Echo writers created in 2018 that drew the most website traffic.

1. People can once again kill cormorants
2. Iconic Michigan lighthouse launches ambitious renovation to ready for overnight stays
3. New research tackles Great Lakes regional problems
4. Pollution changing fish at 16 sites in three rivers reaching the Great Lakes
5. More farmers may lease land for solar projects in Michigan
6. Biodiversity surprise: Scientists puzzled by martens’ return to Isle Royale
7. Fishery managers excited by lake trout’s not-so-picky palate
8. Piping plovers face new threat in the Great Lakes
9. Could hunting or U.P. wolves solve Isle Royale moose problem?
10. Whadayaknow? : What is the largest fish in the Great Lakes?

Top 10 most commented on posts

The posts that sparked the most conversation on our website this year.

1. People can once again kill cormorants
2. Could hunting or U.P. wolves solve Isle Royale moose problem?
3. Author asks why residents don’t help Great Lakes more
4. “Alexis Rockman: The Great Lakes Cycle” debuts in Grand Rapids
5. Fishery managers excited by lake trout’s not-so-picky palate
6. Pollution changing fish at 16 sites in three rivers reaching the Great Lakes
7. Are invasive mussels helping the Great Lakes?
8. Ideal conditions lead to firefly boom
9. Add deposit to water bottles or raise landfill rates: debate is on
10. Former Great Lakes exec campaigns for “holistic” approach to water issues

Top 10 most shared posts

The stories that got the most attention on social media in 2018.

1. People can once again kill cormorants
2. U.S., Canadian coast guards break ice on shared waters
3. Iconic Michigan lighthouse launches ambitious renovation to ready for overnight stays
4. Pollution changing fish at 16 sites in three rivers reaching the Great Lakes
5. Piping plovers return to Lake Erie
6. Biodiversity surprise: Scientists puzzled by martens’ return to Isle Royale
7. Giant owls descend on Grand Rapids, Michigan in “Animal Land”
8. Program boosts health of hives and heroes
9. Small streams have large impact on big lake
10. Toledo zoo announces Maumee River sturgeon program

Top 10 most visited posts created in any year

Some of our stories published in years prior continue to draw attention. Here are Echo’s top ten most visited posts in 2018:

1. People can once again kill cormorants (2018)
2. Great whites in the Great Lakes? Bull shark! (2015)
3. The state of the Great Lakes: What to expect from climate change (2017)
4. Alewives: The trouble they cause and the salmon that love them (2009)
5. Lantern litter threatens livestock, wildlife, environment (2017)
6. The “Best” of the Great Lakes (2012)
7. Environmental education: Problems and solutions (2009)
8. Poisoning Michigan: Author revisits PBB crisis 30 years later (2010)
9. Iconic Michigan lighthouse launches ambitious renovation to ready for overnight stays (2018)
10. New research tackles Great Lakes regional problems (2018)

We wouldn’t have the pleasure of reflecting on our greatest hits if it weren’t for you, our readers. Thank you for reading our stories in 2018. See you in the new year!