On Sunday, July 31, 2011, seven enthusiastic Wilson Lakers participated in Acton Wakefield Watersheds Alliance’s first “Discovery Cruise” aboard Bill Pimental’s comfortable pontoon boat.The 2 hour floating class was conducted by Linda Schier and Chuck Hodsdon of AWWA on a beautiful sunny morning. Instruction began with learning how to test water temperature at .5 meter intervals to find the Thermocline, the point at which water temperature changes from a relatively constant to a rapid drop. We determined it to be between 5.5 and 6 meters. Each “student” then had an opportunity to use the Secchi Disc and viewscope to measure water clarity. The disc is lowered until it is no longer visible to the viewer, then raised and lowered again as a double check. We determined the clarity to be between 5.8 and 6.0 meters.
The next phase of our lesson was about the tiny “critter”s who inhabit our lake. Linda showed us a chart of the food chain from the minute phytoplanktons and zooplanktons (tiny plants and animals) up to the larger fish. She then used a zooplankton net to draw some samples from the lake water, and using hand held bioscopes, we were very excited to see these tiny zooplankton swimming in the water sample. Some of us wondered if we’d ever be able to go into the water again to swim!
The cruise concluded with an exploration of some of the native aquatic plants which grow in many areas of Wilson Lake. We are very fortunate that we have not been infested with any of the invasive plants which have entered some of our neighboring lakes. It is imperative that we be watchful for these invasives which will hitch rides on boats, trailers and motors and can be devastating to the health of the lake. The Volunteer Lake Monitoring Program offers free training sessions to interested people and are very helpful in this effort. Please consider taking a training class next year and join our effort to be pro-active in protecting our beautiful lake. Some of our native aquatic plants are: Pickerel Weed, Large Leaf Pondweed, Spatterdock, Fragrant Water Lilly, Pipestem Wort, Little Floating Heart, Watershield and Water Lobelia. Can you identify them?
Wilson Lake Associations extends its gratitude to Captain Bill Pimental, Linda Schier and Chuck Hodsdon for donating their time and energy on such a lovely Sunday morning!
Photos by: B. Achille