Dale
Bacon reports:
I walk around the lake
at least once a day. During these treks,
I’ve noticed that the cattail and bulrush populations are way down from
previous years. In some spots, all that
is left of cattails is the stubble from last year! I’ve spent some time trying to determine what
caused this. A sudden explosion of
muskrats? Yet another invasive bug?? I
talked with Brian Corcorian of VLAWMO about this and learned that he has also
seen this in other lakes. He feels that
the primary reason for the population decline this year is the higher than
normal water levels we experienced during most of the growing season. High water levels can prevent the growing
tips of the cattail from taking in oxygen needed to support root growth. Lack of oxygen during the growth period kills
the plant. “No need to worry,” he says, “there
are plenty of cattail seeds in the sediment!”
While on the topic of
aquatic plants, I’ve also noticed a lot of water celery plants around the
shoreline. I talked with Steve Enger of
the DNR and learned that in the fall the water celery plants become more buoyant
which, when coupled with wave action, causes them to be uprooted and float to
shore! Another of life’s burning
questions answered!
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