It seemed like winter would never end, but here we are! At the beginning of May I attended and presented at the New York State Federation of Lake Associations annual conference. This group consisted of members of various lake associations from across the state. Some people were participants of CSLAP, or the Citizen's Statewide Lake Assessment Program, and here they learned about various topics that could help them serve as volunteer lake monitors. For my presentation, I talked about Lake Ronkonkoma's history, current biological concerns, and discussed management practices. The challenging part of management is that EVERYTHING is connected! It is nearly impossible to address one specific issue without affecting another part of the ecosytem. There are also outside factors that can influence our future management decisions.
Another cool thing to happen, me and another student in my cohort submitted a video to the North American Lake Management Society (NALMS) in May. It was selected to be a part of the student video series! Check it out under the Videos tab.
Meanwhile back at the lake...
There was a bloom in early May that was still affecting transparency and oxygen levels when I visited at the end of May. Though algae be small, they are mighty! DO levels dropped after 4 to 5 meters. Decreases in oxygen following a bloom event occur due to the bacteria that are working overtime (and therefore using a lot of oxygen) to decompose the mass of algae.
Had a short visit this past weekend (June 9th) and completed the usual monitoring and water sample collection. DO levels were still low below 4 meters and the DO was high near the surface. Dissolved oxygen can be added to the water column through photosynthesizing organisms (plants and algae) or through wind diffusion.
After visiting Ronkonkoma, I helped another graduate student conduct a plant survey at his lake that is located west of Buffalo (hard to believe there is more of New York beyond Buffalo!). I will be heading a plant survey during one of my upcoming visits, so stay tuned for a post and pictures!