Week 6, June 26th: Growing Out of Control
June 26th, Monday:
Today, despite the wonderful weather, was a rather tame day of sampling. Meeting Alan and Noreen Wilcox again, Emily and I completed the New Milford arm of Candlewood Lake for the third time. As said before, the closest release point for the 50 tagged carp to New Milford was the Candlewood Lake Club, so the fact that we only heard 2 fish today is unsurprising.
With the most recent 2017 release of more Triploid Grass Carp, New Milford actually received some carp. The ones released here were of a larger size (~14 inches), so they would not be slip through the grate to the Housatonic River. So far, Emily and I are on track to finish sampling by the end of the week as Dr. Pinou requested.
June 28th, Wednesday:
Once again blessed with beautiful weather for the day, Emily and I met with another veteran boat captain Len to sample Sherman for the third time. As discussed before, Sherman is a hotspot for our marked carp, as 12 of them were initially released near the Sherman CLA base. Today was no exception, as we did manage to find 12 out of the 48 Triploid Grass Carp. However, not all 12 that we found were originally released from Sherman. This serves as a positive indicator that the carp are alive and well, as well as are staying close to large milfoil beds, as they are supposed to.
Another interesting seen today was a Eurasian Milfoil harvesting boat! Although the one Emily, Len, and I witnessed today was smaller, the idea is the same. The boat seems to trim the milfoil from a region and stores it within the boat. Hopefully the milfoil is properly disposed of afterwards, or else it will simply reroot elsewhere, actually making the milfoil situation worse in Candlewood Lake.
Finally, we have a more unfortunate discovery today. Within the cove near Holiday Point in Sherman, we discovered these peculiar green clouds in the water. Unsure of what it was, we ventured closer in an attempt to collect a sample. Hesitantly, I reached down into the lake and tried to grab a handful of the vegetation. However, we hand passed right through it, and when I removed my hand from the lake, it was covered in a rather nasty green slime. Although this 'plant cloud' is not Blue-Green Algae, rather it is regular algae, it ism recommended to keep your distance regardless. The slimy nature of the algae is unpleasant, as I experienced firsthand. The cloud seemed to use Eurasian Milfoil as an anchor, and stayed within its vicinity. This discovery caused some concern within Emily and I that the plant life in Candlewood Lake is already out of control for the season. Hopefully we can avoid a Blue-Green Algae bloom this summer.
June 30th, Friday:
Today was a day of uncertainty and hesitation by Emily and I. Although the morning was bright and pleasant, the afternoon was forecasted to bring nothing but storms. Fortunately, we were once again scheduled to be working with Len, and with his help, we decided to sample as much as we could. And it is a good thing we did, as we were able to finish the entire Upper-Mid section of the lake before the storm set in!
Sampling was once again successful, having found 11 of the 48 fish that are in Candlewood Lake. Unsurprisingly, we tend to find 2-4 fish in the same testing site, as these carp prefer to school with each other. However, we did find evidence of more fish movement! One fish previously heard by the Brookfield Town Beach has once again disappeared, meaning it has relocated elsewhere. Emily and I are pleased with the results, and are confident the fish are performing the way they are.
A bit more unfortunate was this bed of milfoil, nearly breaching the lake surface. As discussed earlier, many parts of the lake have milfoil this bad. I urge everyone, especially if you live right on the lake, to ensure that you have an adequate buffer garden to reduce run off. By adding vegetation to your yard right before the lake, you can prevent nutrients and any added fertilizers from being swept into the lake. These fertilizers play a hand in both the Eurasian Milfoil and Blue-Green Algae, as the added phosphorous and nitrogen leads to eutrophication (an overgrowth of vegetation in a body of water). Even if you do not live on the lake, many parts of the areas surrounding the lake have their rainwater drain right into the lake. Therefore, having a buffer garden away from the lake is just as critical as those who live right on the lake. Everyone has to do their part if we want to keep this lake healthy and safe!
