Biologist Report - Environmental Committee

Biologist Report May 30, 2022

Greetings, Lake Vilbig Residents!

This letter is to talk about my May 2022 management efforts. I came out once in May on the 19th. We finally had a bit of rain in May. Enough to help with the drought and keep the lake level somewhat stable. The lake is still down for the year regarding overall rain levels, and we are about to get into summer. Hopefully, the rain isn’t over, but it isn’t looking great heading into summer. In April and May are any indication, it might be a relatively brutal summer. But only time will tell.

On the 19th, water temperatures are rising now, which is expected since we have ambient temperatures up in the 80s. That and extreme winds can heat water reasonably quickly. Average 79 F. Some spots were a little cooler, and some were a little warmer. This is normal. We aren’t quite at bathtub temperatures, but we are inching closer to the upper 80s. The wind is an annoyance, but it is doing one thing: creating current and keeping the lake moving. Stagnant hot water isn’t great. Warm water that is moving around is okay. We can live with that. Visibility was about 24 inches. pH was still high. 8.4. Water was green bloom, heavy spring bloom color. I like this color, especially for newly hatched fish. Alkalinity was stable at 140 ppm. Again there were a lot of birds in mid-April. Several cormorants, seagulls, and Canada Geese. Plus a few domesticated geese. They seem to have taken over the island near the volleyball area and raised several nests there. Not sure they are going anywhere. But at least there were fewer than observed in the wintertime. We have a small amount of bushy pondweed and chara growing in a few areas around the lake—specifically, the fishbowl. Right now, it isn’t overtaking anything. I will continue to monitor it and keep it in check.

Other than that, everything looks good. Let’s get ready for hot temperatures; summer is here.

Thanks, Vilbig Residents!

Chad Fikes

Fisheries Biologist