This past Saturday’s volunteer workday was the last day of cattail removal for this year. The warm November weather enabled us to get in enough workdays to do the necessary clearing despite the earlier spate of canceled workdays.
The volunteers concentrated on the area near and around the little island in the northeast corner of pHake Lake. This is a favorite spot for collecting water samples and observing waterfowl and other wildlife, so clearing this area is really helpful for classes and researchers.
Here are some of the volunteers adding the last to the cattails to our giant pile:
Volunteers Mike Tschudi and Tim Cox add the last of the cattails to the giant pile. ©Nancy Hamlett.
And here are some before and after photos:
Before: The little island is completely obscured by cattails and bulrushes. ©Nancy Hamlett.
After: The lake can be accessed from the island and the shore. ©Nancy Hamlett.
Before: View from the island in September, before cattail removal. ©Nancy Hamlett.
After: View of the lake (with a coot) from the island. ©Nancy Hamlett.
We also noted the success of one of last week’s deeds. A dead alder had fallen into the cattails on the south shore, and after freeing it from the cattails, the volunteers left in the lake to provide a platform for turtles to bask. And sure enough, this week one was sunning on it:
A Red-Eared Slider basks on the dead alder log. ©Nancy Hamlett.
For the next workday, we will be working on constructing a teaching garden. Join us if you can!