Aquatic Invasive Species Update

With grant more boats get aquatic hitchhiker checks

By Linda Szymanski, AIS Team Leader

This has been an interesting and innovative year for Lone Lake and the AIS Inspection Program.  Here are some of the highlights:

1. Lone Lake qualified for a grant from the county to conduct AIS inspections each weekend from the Fishing Opener through Labor Day.  Our one qualifying event is Lone Lake needed to conduct 25% of the county time though in-kind inspections.  Since we already have an inspection program on holiday weekends, this was an achievable task.  The program is going well and owners have commented on the great job the inspectors are doing at the access.  We eagerly wait on statistics from the results of these inspections and will share the results as soon as they become available.

2. For Memorial Weekend, AIS coverage was 92.9% versus 64.3% last year.  Weather the Monday or Memorial Weekend was rained out and there was so little activity on the lake that day, we pulled the inspectors on Monday.  Even with pulling inspectors, the team conducted 31 inspections versus 30 the previous year.

3. The July 4th weekend was wonderful and the AIS team did a great job.  Coverage for the weekend was 80%, with only two open shifts.  Last year the lake hired an intern to cover on the 4th and this year the county covered this shift.  The team conducted 81 inspections versus 99 inspections last year.  This is a result of the holiday calendar shift.

4. In July Lone Lake will be participating in a Veliger testing program along with nine other Lakes in the county.  Veliger’s are the larval form of zebra mussels.  This is an early sampling program to test if lakes may be infested with zebra mussels.

5. We still have three open shifts on Labor Day weekend, two on Saturday and one on Sunday.  We are looking for volunteers to fill these slots.  Contact Linda Szymanski at ljsatthecabin@msn.com if you are willing to volunteer.

---

Meet Tanner

Tanner Sachse is one of the DNR-certified inspectors hired by Aitkin County whose job it is to inform boaters about aquatic invasive species and what boaters must do to clean, dry and drain their craft to prevent its spread.  Tanner, 18, son of Diane and Rick Sachse, has spent many of his summers with his family on Lone Lake.

A 2015 Moundsview High School graduate, he heads to Montana State in the fall, where he plans to major in Mechanical Engineering. Tanner says doing boat inspections “is going to make a difference.  When you see someone checking their boat, they are more conscientious. I like keeping our lake clean for fishing and stuff.”

How to improve Lone’s fishery?

How to improve Lone’s fishery? Keep shoreline natural

By Marty Cook

A few years ago, my wife and I had the good fortune to be relocated to England for a couple of years.  While we were gone, nobody did anything to our shoreline and nature had a chance to take back our shoreline along the lake.  When I got home permanently, I was horrified to see how the shoreline had changed.  No longer was it the nice riprap rocks melting into soft pure sands.  In their place were willow trees growing out of the lake, lots and lots of decaying materials washing against the rocks and the branches…well, you get the picture…nature had made a valiant attempt to reclaim our shoreline!

So what did I do?  I set about reclaiming my nice neat little beach and dock area.  I pulled out all the growing things, cleaned out all the natural debris and made it look nice again.  While I was doing my cleanup, I couldn’t help but notice the myriad of little creatures that occupied the space.  There were small fish, frogs, crawdads, dragonfly larvae and LOTS of other squiggly things and bugs within two feet of shore.  Go down there today and, guess what…..they’re all gone….simply because I took away their natural habitat.  I tell you this not to provide an opportunity for public flogging but rather to let you know that I think in our quest for a nice pristine shoreline, we’re doing our non-human fellow inhabitants a large disservice.   Without the proper habitat, there’s no place for these food chain dependent creatures to go….and with THEM, go the fish of all species.

I recently visited with the local DNR and got an update on the latest fish survey done June 15-18.  I reported about it in the last newsletter.  You can read all about what they found in that newsletter, but here’s the gist of it.  Since the mid 80’s our fish population has been on the decline…all species…bass, pan fish, crappies, walleyes and northern pike.  Although not so easy to detect, the graph on the next page shows the story.

So what can be done about it?  Well, there are a number of things that can be done, but one of the biggest things we can do is to restore the shorelines to their more natural state…or simply let Mother Nature do it for us…albeit it will take longer.

Jack Skrypek, retired DNR Fisheries chief puts it this way, “I believe that one of the primary reasons that fishing has declined on many lakes is because of alterations to lakeshore habitat by shoreline property owners.”  Shoreline habitat is essential to a strong and vibrant ecosystem in a lake.  Native vegetation, bottom materials, and natural debris play essential roles in the lifecycles of fish and other shoreline wildlife.  Shoreline alterations can damage or destroy these habitat components (just like my uneducated actions did) and sever essential strands in the ecosystem web.  As a result, the ecosystem is weakened, wildlife move elsewhere and fish populations decline.

Here are a few tips for preserving (and perhaps even improving?) Lone Lake’s fish and wildlife populations:

Share the Beach:  If you have 100’ of shoreline, consider reverting 75’ back to its natural condition (or let it go wild on its own) while keeping 25’ for boats, dock and swimming areas.

Provide Buffer Strips: You can have a nice yard/lawn and still keep the lake populations flourishing by restoring the last 30 feet or so down to the lake in natural grasses, shrubs and native trees.  You can still have a nice lawn near your house or cabin while providing habitat for songbirds, ducks, butterflies and other wildlife.

Leave Fallen Trees:  Sometimes called “Coarse Woody Habitat,” such habitat is important to fish and wildlife…especially fish.  The wood provides a place for algae production that is a food source for many invertebrate creatures needed in the food chain AND (get this) it provides a natural filtering system for cleaner water!  It also provides cover for spawning and younger juvenile fish.  Ask any fisherperson if they can catch fish around fallen trees and stumps….and they’ll all give you a resounding YES!   Such debris also provides a natural barrier to wind and rain erosion that dumps many unwanted chemicals into our lake.  Wave action and boat wakes stir up sediment, causing the lake water to become murky.  If sunlight cannot penetrate the cloudy water, many healthy and vibrant lakes can begin to become less desirable…..and as you know…our water quality is one of the most attractive features of Lone Lake!

Watch Out for Washouts and Sand Deposits:  NATURAL bottom material, called substrate, is used by all the elements of the food chain and ecosystem.  Changing it by adding sand or other non-natural elements WILL decrease fish populations.  Walleyes use natural rocky, gravel shorelines for breeding and spawning.  If unnatural debris washes into the lake, then these breeding grounds and nurseries WILL disappear…..and the fish will too. Fix washouts right away…and don’t add sand to the bottom.

Understand and Protect the Watershed:  Lone Lake is a basin that collects water from the surrounding landscape that is called a watershed.  Pollutants and eroding soil can easily end up in our lake.  For Lone Lake to stay healthy we all have to be aware and concerned about what is happening to the watershed around us.  Logging, farming, livestock grazing and development can affect our lake’s watershed.  Our lake association works hard to protect our watershed.  When degrading activities occur we need to call upon all the resources at our disposal to find a good solution that allows growth in our region and also protects our watershed.  Keep a keen eye on what’s going on around your part of the lake and watershed and if you’re in doubt, call the DNR or talk to one of your representatives on the Lone Lake Property Owners Association.

Every two years the DNR adds almost 500 pounds (496 pounds to be exact) of walleye fry and fingerlings to Lone Lake.  Yet, the population does not increase.  Could it be, at least to some degree, due to what we’ve unintentionally done to the lake?  For me, I KNOW I did damage to the lake when I cleaned out what mother nature put there to keep the ecosystem in balance and productive.  It won’t happen again on my property!  Sorry mother nature…my bad!

Did you know?

Did you know? In Minnesota is it illegal to:

• Transport watercraft without the drain plug removed.

• Arrive at lake access with drain plug in place.

• Transport aquatic plants, zebra mussels, or other prohibited species, whether dead or alive.

• Launch watercraft with prohibited species attached.

• Transport water from Minnesota lakes or rivers.

• Release live bait into the water.

All DNR-trained watercraft inspectors stationed around the state are authorized to help ensure boats and trailers are clean and free of AIS before entering or leaving a lake, river or other body of water. Whether they work for the DNR, or for a county or other local unit of government, inspectors are there to help make sure boaters are not in violation of AIS laws and protect our lakes and rivers.

4th of July Winners

4th of July Triathlon Participants

Men’s Winners – 1st John Rafferty, 2nd Aaron Ray, 3rd Mare Timgerman | Women’s Winners – 1st Hudson VanSlooten, 2nd Karin Ray, 3rd Ellie Sachse | Team Winner’s – Randy Matthes, Barb Lawson and Jared Zacharias

4th of July Boat Parade and Dock Competition

Dock – Shaun & Liz Hawkinson (Lot 27)

Pontoon – Walt & Dianne Weisser (Lot 2)

Speed Boat – Melissa and Curt Mann (Lot 68)

Leveling with you

June was a busy month at the lake and July promises to be the same.  In this newsletter, we’ve recapped a number of events – the retention pond planting, the River and Lakes Fair, and more.  Plus we look ahead to the 4th of July parade and triathlon and the LLPOA Annual Meeting and Potluck on Saturday, July 25. Read on!

Here, I’d like to talk about something of special interest to lake residents, namely issues about the lake level. At the most recent board meeting, the board authorized the formation of a new committee to deal with questions about the lake outlet, which is on the southwest side of the lake. The purpose of the new six-to-eight member Outlet Committee, consisting of representatives from around the lake, will be to review our current operating policy on the outlet and to make recommendations to the board for a formal written policy.

What is the current operating policy of the LLPOA on the lake outlet?  Our policy is to keep the culvert and the lake outlet open.  This plays out in three ways:  First, the board accepts and supports as correct the elevation where the culvert has been placed, as confirmed by the DNR hydrologist and the Aitkin County Highway Engineering department.  The culvert was set to allow water to flow out before it reaches the Ordinary High Water elevation of 1,264.6 ft.

Secondly, the board has had a long-standing policy to support the removal of beaver if they inhibit outlet flow.  Third, it has been the practice of the board to call for volunteers to watch for and remove any natural, wildlife or man-make obstructions to the water flow. This group of volunteers, called the Ditch Maintenance Taskforce (also known as the Beaver Control Committee), provides this service with members doing daily checks on the outlet.  The LLPOA Board carefully follows the law to maintain the outlet and works closely with the DNR and Aitkin County to be sure all actions are appropriate and without vigilantism.

As you can imagine, this is a slippery slope for the lake association to have a policy that serves the ecology of the lake while balancing the needs of residents with low-lying lots or in shallow bays. And --oh yes-- the unpredictability of Mother Nature!  Long-timers on the lake have said it is a “no win” situation for the lake association to take on but the current board feels that this issue needs an open dialogue in which to examine the policy.  So we as a lake community are either part of the solution or part of the problem!  Let’s work to be part of the solution.

If you are interested in serving on the Outlet Committee, contact Steve Frazier at sfrazier@usjet.net to submit your name to the LLPOA Board for their consideration at their July board meeting on July 12th.  The Outlet Committee and the Ditch Maintenance Taskforce will operate under LLPOA’s Water Quality Team.

Although the Future of Lone Lake Planning Session held June 13 was lightly attended, its recommendations reach far.  The newly revised Lone Lake Management Plan was distributed, reviewed and modified to bring it up-to-date as of June 2015.  Take a moment to look at it, as it is the framework for our actions as an organization.  Members wishing to have a copy should contact me at sfrazier@usjet.net, Jennifer O’Neill at jennyanyspot@gmail.com  or click here to download a copy.

Thank you for your membership and support of LLPOA and your involvement to preserve, enhance and protect Lone Lake for the future! 

We’ll see you on the lake, Steve Frazier – LLPOA President.

Aitkin Rivers & Lakes Fair covers the waterfront: loons, bats and beyond

With over 35 years as a non-game wildlife champion, Carrol Henderson, Minnesota DNR, talked about loon migration patterns at the Aitkin Rivers and Lakes Fair, June 20.

A good crowd turned out for the 19th annual Aitkin Rivers & Lakes Fair on Saturday, June 20. According to event organizer, Diane Weisser, there was something for everyone, whether your interest was loons, wolves, bats or lake-bottom organisms.

DNR's Non-Game Wildlife expert, Carrol Henderson, presented new information gathered from transmitters placed on loons in 2013-2015. Information about their migration and other data can be found on the www.usgs.gov loon tracking website.

The Audubon Center of the Northwoods explored a spectrum of animals found in a north woods ecosystem. Tom Jones, DNR specialist, talked about zebra mussels and their current and potential impact on Lake Mille Lacs; DNR’s Rich Rezenka spoke about invasive species.

The Rivers & Lakes team give special thanks to Lone Lake residents Jerry and Julie Nelson, Dave Scott, and Brian Smeltzer, who volunteered to set up and/or work at the event.

Lone Lake Healthy

Lone Lake healthy; fishery holds its own or in slow decline since mid-1980’s
By Marty Cook

Did you notice the DNR on Lone Lake last week?  During the period June 15 through June 18, DNR representatives were on Lone Lake conducting a fish survey.  This survey was made up of 9 gill nettings and 9 trap nettings in various locations around the lake.  Although the official results will be published later this year, local DNR representative Rick Bruesewitz sat down with me for an early (and unofficial) look at what they found.

First, a few facts about our lake…

Lone Lake has a total water area of 448 acres.  The littoral area (or that area near shore where sunlight penetrates all the way to the sediment and allows aquatic plants to grow; or that area around the lake which is 15’ or less deep) is 148 acres.  That’s about 33% of the entire lake.   The maximum depth is 60’ and there are 5.64 miles of shoreline around the lake.  The fetch (or the longest unbroken stretch of open water on the lake) is 1.67 miles on a 270 degree orientation.  The latest DNR water clarity reading (using a Secchi disk) was 15’ on June 15. (Lake resident Dave Scott regularly evaluates clarity and he reports that it has been as deep as 30’+ at times.  Early June brought some warm weather and with it….algae bloom…which reduces water clarity for a period of time.)

Two important ingredients for healthy fish populations are water temperatures (see chart on this page) and dissolved oxygen.  Dissolved oxygen was (as Rick put it “like a trout lake”) 7.7 parts per million on the surface and 5.0 parts per million at 45’ deep.  This is an excellent rating for any lake.

Now for the fish survey results (unofficial at this time) and what trends they may suggest. The DNR has conducted fish surveys on Lone Lake every five years since 1949.

There are 13 categories of fish registered in the survey.  These include Black Bullhead, Black Crappie, Bluegill, Bowfin (Dogfish), Brown Bullhead, Hybrid Sunfish, Largemouth Bass, Northern Pike, Pumpkinseed, Rock Bass, Walleye, White Sucker, and Yellow Bullhead.  While all of these fish are important to a healthy and balanced lake ecosystem, I’m going to focus my comments on the fish almost everyone is interested in – Crappie, Panfish (Hybrid Sunfish, Green Sunfish, Pumpkinseed and Bluegill), Largemouth Bass, Northern Pike and Walleye.

Black Crappie – The number of fish netted remains relatively consistent over the entire period 1949 til now.   For the 2015 survey, the size ranges from 6” – 11” with the mean length being 7.41” and a mean weight of .41 lbs.  Of the 18 nettings in 2015, the DNR caught 25 Black Crappies.

Panfish – Lone Lake is definitely a panfish lake!  The number of fish netted has remained stable when compared to previous surveys in the last 10 years but has taken a significant drop from the 80’s and 90’s.  In 2015 198 fish were captured in both types of nettings with almost 90% of the fish taken via trap nets in shoreline waters 8’ or less. The size ranges from 4” – 8” with the mean length being 5.76” and a mean weight of…well, we don’t weigh our panfish, we just eat them!

Largemouth Bass – The number of fish netted remains stable when measured against previous surveys.  The size ranges from 8”– 16” with the mean length being 12.53” and a mean weight of almost a pound. Between the 18 nettings in 2015, 12 fish were taken.

Northern Pike – The number of fish netted continue a downward trend when compared to previous surveys in the 80’s and 90’s.  The size ranges widely vary from 12” to 25” with a few in the 30+” ranges.  According to DNR staff, it would appear that Lone Lake is getting fewer, but larger, Northern Pike.  Between the 18 nettings in 2015, 73 Northern Pike were taken, keeping this species a prevalent fish in Lone Lake.

Walleye – The number of fish netted are relatively stable when compared to previous surveys in the last 20 years but down from the 80’s and 90’s.  The size ranges from 12” – 22” with the mean length being almost 19” for the deeper nets and 14” for the shallower nets.  Mean weights varied from 1.01 lbs. in trap nets (shoreline) to 2.44 lbs. in gill nets (deeper water).  Between the 18 nettings, 11 Walleyes were caught.

The graph below illustrates survey data for these particular fish species since 1949.

* Panfish includes Bluegill, Pumpkinseed, Hybrid and Green Sunfish.

One last note on Northern Pike: the DNR is considering some new legislation or regulations for Northern Pike and should have a proposal out in the fall of 2015.  This legislation would cut the state into three zones (Southern, Central and Northern) and would place possession and size limitations on Northern Pike.  These limitations would be different depending upon which zone you are fishing in.  Look for more information in the newspapers and on the DNR website later this summer or early fall.

Residents Dave Scott and Jerry Nelson collect and report precipitation, lake level and water clarity data. They take Secchi disk readings regularly throughout the ice-free season to measure water clarity. Marty Cook provides the graphical representation.

Lakeshore Landscaping Class

Reducing Runoff, Erosion Prevention & Lakeshore Landscaping Design Class
May 30 from 9 a.m. – noon, plus optional activity from 1-3 p.m.
Instructor: Jim Ravis, Minnesota Master Gardener.
At Glory Baptist Church, 28053 360th Ave., Aitkin.

One of the keys to keeping Lone Lake’s water quality high is reducing run-off from surrounding lake home and farm-lot properties. This free class covers how to apply lakeshore-landscaping principles to prevent erosion and reduce run-off. Use of plants and “hard-scaping” materials will be covered. In the afternoon activity, which is optional, participants will stake out the locations for wildflowers, trees and shrubs for the 297th Lane retention pond and hillside planting. Contact Jennifer O’Neill at jennyanyspot@gmail.com.

Welcome friends - it’s summer at the lake

Welcome back to another great summer on Lone Lake. Your lake association has many activities planned for this summer that include something for everyone in your family. Time at the lake is precious and we would like you to become involved in our lake association whenever possible to help enhance, protect and preserve the beauty of Lone Lake.

The summer kicks off with several events in May with the first two happening this weekend. The Spring Road Clean-up is Sat., May 9th at 9:00am at the swimming beach. We’ll have coffee and rolls and time to meet with other lake neighbors before dividing into cleaning teams. This fun activity only takes about an hour to beautify the environment around our lake. Also it’s Fishing Opener this weekend. For the first time, thanks to an Aitkin County AIS grant, DNR-trained AIS boat inspectors will work at the public launch to check boats for compliance to Minnesota regulations. LLPOA is looking for volunteer inspectors for the other big traffic summer weekends, including the Memorial Day weekend. To help protect our lake from invasive species, please consider becoming a certified boat inspector. Plan to attend the training session on May 30th that runs roughly from 9:00am to noon (see details here). Finally, our Membership Drive starts on Memorial Day weekend. Dues are $25 this year. A LLPOA volunteer will call on you for your membership and to update the lake roster.

News about the LLPOA’s Board of Directors: They have been hard at work setting up this year’s programs and activities. They are a great group and I thank them for their service to Lone Lake. This spring Dianne and Walt Weisser retired from the board to care for family. Oh yes, they will still be involved but need to step back a bit from their leadership roles on the association. They have been great and we can never thank them enough for all that they do for our lake and our lake association. So, we have a vacancy for secretary and director’s positions. If you would like to serve please contact me at sfrazier@usjet.net and we’ll get you involved in the Lone Lake Property Owners Association. Thanks for your support, involvement and membership in the LLPOA and we’ll see you on the lake!

Steve Frazier, LLPOA President

Do your bit for Lone’s water quality

Do your bit for Lone’s water quality: Become an Invasive Species Volunteer

LLPOA is happy to announce that it received a grant from the Aitkin County AIS Fund to hire trained inspectors to work on weekends at the Lone Lake public launch this summer. The grant stipulates that the lake association must provide volunteers for 25% of the total days being covered. This is where your support is needed. We must fill the holiday weekend slots to meet this 25% requirement. Will you volunteer for one inspection shift this summer to meet our 25% in-kind requirement Contact Linda Szymanski at ljsatthecabin@msn.com.

What can you do?
Aquatic invasive species still threaten, but there’s plenty we can do to keep them at bay
Spring has arrived. It is time for everyone to be thinking of aquatic invasive species and protecting Lone Lake. You may ask, “What can I do?” Below are a few steps each cabin owner can take to protect the lake this spring.

Service Providers
If you use a service provider to launch your watercraft or put your dock in, remember to ask two questions:
1) Are they a DNR certified service provider
2) have their employees have been through service provider AIS training.
If a service provider is not able to answer these questions, think twice before hiring them.

Trailer Rental / Pontoon Launch
Many users rent trailers to launch their pontoons. While the pontoon may have been out of the water all winter, do you know what lake the pontoon trailer was last in and when? If you rent a trailer to launch your pontoon, please inspect it for invasive species. An additional safety measure, take a few minutes and run the trailer through the car wash at the Aitkin Laundromat.

New/Used Lake Equipment – Boats, Docks, Lifts, Diving Platforms, Water Slides, etc.
Will you be purchasing lake equipment? If you have purchased lake equipment from a private party on another lake allow the equipment dry for two weeks before installing in the lake. Used equipment must be stored for 21 days in a dry environment before placing in the new body of water.