South Illinois ; land of heat, humidity, old cemeteries and water snakes!

(Image Left: Kinkaid Lake, Jackson Co. IL)

I haven't posted in a while, but quiet a bit has been happening here in Southern Illinois. Our office base is in Carbondale, home of the Southern Illinois University Carbondale Salukis. We have been busy surveying lakes, both diving and rake tossing. The climate so far has been in stark contrast to the thundering and rumbling rain of Indiana and Michigan. Everyday the sun has been high in the sky and the temperatures have ranged from the low to high 90's (both ambient and surface water). Imagine pulling up to a crystal clear lake, its hot and sweaty outside and you jump out of the van to run to the cool refreshing water - but it's the same dang temperature in the lake as it is outside! Imagine wearing a wet suit and snorkeling at the surface of the lake water. Let's just say that both the kayaker and the diver suffer - AND sweat!

(Kinkaid Lake, north launch) You don't have to be in the gulf to get sludge and grime on the surface of the water. This launch was located in a stagnant cove in the finger of the main lake . It seemed to be utilized fairly often, I don't know why the gunk collected here, and what it was made of either.)

(Horseshoe Lake, Alexander Co. IL) This is an oxbow lake of the ancient Mississippi River. The western edge of the lake was full of bald cypress trees (picture left) and most boat ramp areas where covered by a layer of Azolla, watermeal, and duckweed (picture right). Although we couldn't dive this treacherous lake, the views of the water among the cypress trees with the green living carpet was wonderful. I have not experiences many beautiful sights that compare with water dwelling cypresses and sheets of itsy bitsy plants. I wish to return to this lake in a kayak or canoe and just paddle for hours.

When my boss and I are not swimming, kayaking or scoping out places to throw a rake, we take in the historical sights. Sometimes we read plaques describing civil war battles or historical figures' triumphs, and sometimes we stop and look at old, deteriorating buildings or old cemeteries. I love walking among the manicured grasses, reading the names and dates of people that lived and died in the little towns that we drive through in a matter of minutes. Near, Murphysboro, one family's plot was so decrepit that four members no longer had headstones but four, unmarked rocks. But usually, the granite and sandstone slabs are all that remain in the cemetery next to their kin. It must be soothing somehow to the locals, whose relatives dwell in these plots. What is is like to visit the gravestone of a relative who lived and died in the early 1800's. Perhaps a great-great-great aunt, who only lived a matter of years, or days. They are remembered, even if their name, the numbers marking their lives...or their stone disappears all together.

So yes, the picture on the right (me kissing the fish) was before I dove the lake (below left) in which I found a huge water snake. The underwater environment was murky, with submerged logs and branches, and very few plants. I went towards the shore on my way up from a dive about 6 feet down, and saw this banded and blotchy long body slithering past me from an opening in a log on the right to a pile of branches on the left. It was enough to get me to swim the other way!!
I did freak out, and I did high-tail it outta there! and I did let the jitters get the best of me, but it was my first water snake experience, so I give myself a little slack. I researched what I saw and I think it was a Northern Watersnake, a non-poisonous variety, but apparently, according to Department of Natural Resources Illinois, they like to nip a bit. All in all, it has been a great few days, and we will probably be here until Thursday this week.

I'd take earthquakes any day!

This whole Midwest severe storm and tornado system had me all frazzled and sitting on the edge of my seat. Maybe I should start from the beginning...

It was a beautiful Tuesday in Monroe County, and I had just finished diving beautiful Lemon Lake northeast of Bloomington, IN. The sun was shining, it was warm and there was a slight breeze and we were on our way back into town. All of a sudden, as the sky got slightly dark, a loud, wailing siren about a 100 ft on the left of the road started sounding off. “What is that?” I asked, sitting up, my face showing alarm. My boss answered, with excitement in his eyes and thrill in his voice, “That means we are in a tornado warning! There is going to be a bad storm – let’s go find it!”

Severe thunder storms and tornado conditions are an almost weekly occurrence out in the area of the Midwest where I work, severe thunder storms are common and possible tornado conditions. We were currently in the blunt end of such a storm, and I was not happy realizing that we were stuck in traffic, still several miles from the safety of our hotel.

My boss was trying to explain to me that the cloud formations rapidly engulfing the sky had the utmost potential to create a tornado. The radio ESA seconded him by repeating that the most dangerous zone of the storm was in the northwest of Bloomington to Ellitsville - right where our hotel was!

My co-workers excitement made me second guess my scaredy-cat instinct. Should I have been more excited for some reason? Was I supposed to be happy about this? I remember being little at my aunt’s house in St. Charles, IL and being mesmerized by the lightening and the giant clouds, but I was little, I didn't know any better and if it had got really bad, I could jet down into the basement with my family and I would be safe. Well, here I was on a state road in a flimsy, Ford van sitting in a long line of anxious rush hour traffic definitely NOT being excited about witnessing my first possible tornado.

Obviously, I made it out alive, and although the experience terrified me, I know I have to survive a summer full of these kind of things. I am going to have to embrace the Midwest storms, and maybe someday in August I might look into the sky and see dark blue and grey and actually be excited to see a funnel formation. But until then, if you asked me to choose between Midwest tornadoes or earthquakes in good ol' California - I'd take earthquakes any day!

Another hard day at the office

A day in life: This is quite possibly the best job I have ever had. I wake at 8 AM, dress and get ready. Breakfast is prepared for me by the other crew members and we eat together as we watch news and plan the day. We then drive an average of an hour to one of three or four lake sites. At each sampling site I can choose to either Dive or Kayak.

The dive: consists of zig zagging back and forth along the shoreline and dead zone (where plants no longer grow) along the lake near the boat ramp. We are timed to swim only 30 minutes in the water to gather plants. My goal under the water is to gather every different plant I see, and if I can't ID something- I grab it anyways. The survey we are preforming is designed to identify where the invasive plant populations are occurring, but it is also good to see how many natives are in any particular lake, specifically to get a general idea of the abundance and diversity of that lake's plant biomass.

The Kayak: Being a kayaker is very important. Besides enjoying the sunshine, the water, and working on my arms, when I kayak for another diver I have to make sure they don't get run over by a boat. I also have to be their eyes above the surface. If there is an area that has curious-looking floating plants, or submerged terrestrials, I have to inform the diver so they know to hit that area and gather plants. I also have to preform several measurments. Using a succi disc (it looks like a black and white cookie on a rope) I record the depth of the lake and the general clarity. I take a water temp, a water sample (used for pH and conductivity), note the wind and cloud cover presence. The kayaker also keeps a GPS unit on board in which they track the divers track and their time so we know that they only collected for the allotted time and how much area they covered.

We usually end the day around 4 or 5 and we spend some time playing Frisbee, entering our data, shaking our heads at oil spill news, BBQing, test our water samples, and planning out the rest of the work week. I am very happy in this job so far, and I hope the rest of the summer goes as well.

(Top of page: Me diving in Spring Valley Lake, IN. Middle page: Our trusty steed, the Spitfire kayak, SV Lake IN. Bottom Left: My fins flailing as I go down for a dive. Bottom Right: Me while I kayak for Erick in Lincoln Lake (this lake was GORGEOUS! notice the lotus pads on the surface)

Rake Tossing!

So, when a lake or river is un-divable, because of pollution, minimal clarity, or unsafe currents, we have to rake toss to gather plant samples. A rake toss is literally throwing a rake into the water at a specific interval, and 'soft dredging' it along the bottom as you pull it back to you on the shore (Photo LEFT, Crew leader, Erick tossing a rake into the Ohio River, Kentucky side). The rake method is not the most efficient, but it serves the purpose. When we come up to a boat ramp and we need to perform a rake toss, we will do two rakes tosses at 10 meters for five intervals starting from the boat ramp in both directions. This means we complete 24 rake tosses along each site, which is enough exposure to collect any aquatic plant that may be at a particular boat ramp.

During the past weekend, June 5th and 6th, my boss Erick and I went along the Indiana and the Kentucky side of the Ohio river and preformed rake tosses. The Ohio river is disgusting. It is murky, muddy, foamy, full of trash and pollution. I can't imagine that people actually fish for food in that river. It has been at the center of industry since the birth of industry in the United States and you can tell. When standing on the shore, the river smells of rotting fish and sewage, and I swear my feet tingle after only submerging my toes for the second when I have to take a temperature reading and water sample.

My boss told me that he read about the Ohio river from the Luis and Clark expeditions, in which they described it as 'epitome of wilderness' and wrote of instances where squirrels were swimming from one side of the river to the other right in front of their boats! I am sure the squirrels don't venture near the Ohio river now. Anyone who doubts anthropogenic involvement in the degradation of natural resources; take a wade into the Ohio...I dare you.

(Top: The Ohio in it's fabulous glory ; Middle Left: a alligator gar washed up, this fish was sooo cool ; Middle Right: A pretty park beach on the Ohio, Kentucky side where I know little kids go swimming every summer - so sad the water is probably toxic.

2nd to Bottom : Even the locals know its not safe ; Bottom: Yep, industry has always been apart of the Ohio river. )

First week of sampling in Southern Indiana!

June 4th and 5th

So, this week the team (Erick, Alex, Mike and myself) went to Southern Indiana to sample around 20 or 30 lakes and river boat ramps. We are trying to establish how prevalent invasive species, aquatic and terrerestrial, are to the southern Indiana area. The idea being that the undersides of boats and boat trailers carry invasive species from lake to lake and by surveying the areas around boat ramps, we will pick up on established populations of invasives...such as Eurasian milfoil and hydrilla, and mitigation and removal opportunities can be maximized. Invasive aquatic plants are bad because they can out compete native species, which can serve as food, shelter, and habitat for native aquatic species, such as fish, macrobenthic invertebrates (insects) and some birds. Invasives also tend to be fast growing and reproduce quickly meaning they can grow into large mounds, getting caught in boat propellers, clogging lake connectors, outlet culverts and generally clouding the water and blocking out light for other plant species.

Another species of concern for the areas of the midwest is the Zebra muscle. You know you are swimming in a lake infested with zebra muscles because the water is super clear and purty! The zebra muscle is a filter feeder, so it sucks in water and filters out the suspended goodies, which it eats, and leaves behind crystal clear nutrient-less water. Which is good for me (and my snorkel needs!) but bad for other species in the lake.

There are currently no natural predators for the zebra muscle and it takes just one (that might be a hide-away in the crevice of your fin strap) to re-create a population, this means that every night after being in a zebra muscle positive lake we have to submerge our suits, masks, flippers, snorkels, weight belts, and dive bags in HOT bleach water for 10 minutes. Its a pain in the ass, and you get bleach on all your clothes and the hotel carpet. BUT we have to do it in order to prevent the spread of those little buggers.

I dove my first lake yesterday at Hovey Lake...it was way to murky to get out and see anything, so we ended up preforming a rake toss instead. It was scary because when your in the water and you can't even see your hand in front of you, you don't want to be diving down because you can hit a rock, the bottom or run into a tree stump (yes, Hovey lake had many submerged cypress trees, so pretty but dangerous). I got to do an actual dive on Friday

at the Pit lakes (old coal mine-shafts dug 50 or so years ago that hit the water table and filled to form a lake that is now used for boating and fishing). I found five species of plants, majority of them invasive.

Overall, my first week was productive, exciting and educational. I'll post more photos within the next few days.

(Left:the plants I gathered at the Pit lake

Bottom Left and top of page: Pit lake

Bottom right: Hovey lake with submerged cypress trees,

and I saw a paddle fish jump from the water here too!)

Tuesday June 1st and 2nd, My first and second day at Notre Dame. I went through a orientation (paperwork), driver defense training, a protocol and safety presentation, a method and objective summary presentation and met all my fellow crew members. On Wed we went to a nearby lake and I demonstrated my snorkeling abilities. I collected 20 different species of plants and was given a A on my ability to sample aquatic plant species. I was able to take a brisk walk around campus and snap some photos before we had to pack up and hit the road to Southern IN!

The Lodge Lab, my boss Erick and co-worker Mike (hiding)

The science Lab

The general science hall

Some photos of Notre Dame campus on a beautiful day, wish I could spend more time here!

'Touch-down jesus', the mural on the library wall, its huge and glorious!