Ruthven, IA--Those interested in improving water quality and enhancing fish and wildlife habitat in the Lost Island Lake Watershed can attend an upcoming meeting hosted by the Lost Island Protective Association (LIPA), the Lost Island-Ruthven Betterment Association and the DNR.
The meeting to discuss preliminary improvement plans will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. Dec. 10 at the Lost Island Nature Center near Ruthven.
The Lost Island Lake Watershed – which is the area of land that drains into Lost Island Lake – covers parts of Palo Alto and Clay counties in northwest Iowa. It includes Lost Island Lake (1,170 acres), Barringer Slough (800 acres), Blue Wing Marsh (125 acres), DU Marsh (90 acres) and other smaller bodies of water.
A recent water quality study by the DNR’s Watershed Improvement Program and additional surveys by DNR Fisheries revealed what many already suspected – carp dominate Lost Island Lake and other waterbodies connected to the lake.
“Carp are very detrimental to water quality and the native plants, fish and wildlife that need clean water to survive,” said Mike Hawkins with DNR Fisheries. “Through their feeding activity, which consists mostly of rooting along the bottom of the lake, carp dislodge existing plants and create water too cloudy for new water plants to grow. Once these beneficial plants are gone, water quality deteriorates further, and the native fish and wildlife that depend on these plants for food and cover also disappear.”
The goal of the locally-driven Lost Island Lake Watershed Enhancement Project is to restore ecological health to the area so that these basins contain cleaner water and diverse plants, sustain a sport fishery, attract migrating waterfowl and water birds, and provide improved recreational and educational opportunities for citizens.
The proposed management involves removing carp from much of the watershed, using strategically placed fish barriers to prevent carp from reaching breeding areas, and stocking predatory fish to further control the carp population.
Aggressive commercial harvesting will remove most carp from Lost Island while temporary water level draw-downs will eliminate problem fish from Barringer Slough, Blue Wing Marsh and DU Marsh. The draw-downs will also expose and consolidate bottom sediments, thereby allowing beneficial aquatic plants to regrow. Project partners plan to initiate the Lost Island Lake Watershed Enhancement Project late this fall and winter by dewatering Barringer Slough and begin removing rough fish from Lost Island Lake. Construction of multiple water control structures and fish barriers and the temporary dewatering of Blue Wing and DU Marshes are scheduled for fall and winter 2010.
For additional information on the Lost Island Lake Watershed Enhancement Project, please contact Jim Neighbors (LIPA) at (712) 837-4806, Mike Hawkins (DNR Fisheries) at (712) 336-1840 ext. 116 or Bryan Hellyer (DNR – Wildlife) at (712) 837-4850.
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