What are our Goals?
*Study the Common Loon
*Increase chick production
*Find possible causes for failure of nests:
-Shoreline development
-Predation
-Lack of quality nesting sites
-Lake traffic and disturbances
*Present results and gather more information
*What makes a good loon lake?
*How does pH and dissolved oxygen affect loons?
*How do aqueous invertebrates indicate a healthy
lake?
Iron County Loon Project
• Fox
• Deer
• Pardee
• Upson
• Grand Portage
• Gile Flowage
April/ May – Place Platforms, WQ Study,
Watershed & Land Use
June – Check Nest for Eggs, WQ Study,
Shoreline Buffer Transect
July – Check for Young & Behavior, WQ
Study, Littoral Zone
August – Check Lakes for Young,
Remove Platforms
• Watershed, Land Use,
% Development
• Chemical Sampling
• Aquatic Invertebrate
Sampling
• Mapswatersheds
• Aerial photo# homes
% developed
• EnviroscapeImpacts / BMPs
• Sampling Technique
•
•
•
•
•
•
100ft. inland
Hula Hoop Survey
Every 10ft; random
% groundcover
% shrub layer
% canopy cover
Water Quality Measurements
2010
• WQ was sampled on each lake in April, June, & July/August.
• Samples were collected near shore.
• Lake clarity ranged from 4-15ft., DO ranged 6.8-9 & pH ranged 6.3-7.5
Averaged water quality measurements
Lake
D.O.
(PPM)
pH
Secchi (ft)
Owl
7.75
7.56
8.7
Pardee
9.36
8.61
10.0
Grand
Portage
8.74
8.30
11.3
Deer
7.9
5.78
5.1
Fox
8.0
8.26
4.8
Water Quality Measurements
2010
Deer Lake Assessment 2010
6.3
5.6
5.45
4
4
6
5.5
6
7.1
7.98
8
8.7
PPM and FT
10
2
0
DO
Secchi
Methods
PH
4/26/2010
5/25/2010
8/31/2010
Water Quality Measurements
2010
Grand Portage Lake Assessment
15
16
6
8.5
8.42
8
8
4/26/2010
8
10
11
12
9.79
8.45
8
PPM and FT.
14
4
2
0
DO
Secchi
Methods
PH
5/25/2010
8/31/2010
Average pH
8
7
6
5
Average pH 4
3
2
1
0
Gile
Flowage
Pardee
Upson
Grand
Portage
Fox
Deer
Lakes
How does pH affect loon reproduction?
Average Dissolved Oxygen
12
10
Dissolved
Oxygen in Parts
per Million
8
6
4
2
0
Pardee
Upson
Gile
Flowage
Deer
Fox
Grand
Portage
Lakes
How does D.O. affect loon reproduction?
Water Clarity 05’-10’
Grand Portage - Late Summer
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
13
11
9
9
10
10
9
9
7/
21
/2
00
2
7/
21
/2
00
3
7/
26
/2
00
4
7/
25
/2
00
5
7/
10
/2
00
6
7/
9/
20
07
8/
19
/2
00
8
8/
5/
20
09
8/
31
/2
01
0
Feet
Grand Portage Late Summer Secci Disk Reading
2002-2010
Date
8
Water Clarity 02’-10’
Deer Lake- Late Summer
8
8
6.5
6
6.5
6
6
5.5
Date
0
8/
31
/2
01
9
8/
10
/2
00
8
8/
19
/2
00
7
7/
15
/2
00
6
7/
10
/2
00
5
7/
25
/2
00
4
7/
26
/2
00
3
4
7/
21
/2
00
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
7/
1/
20
02
Feet
Deer Lake Late Summer Secci Disk Reading 2002-2010
Chick Production- Platforms
Chick Production 2010
• 5 platforms, loons utilized 4 in 2010
• 4 chicks; end total of 3 (one predated)
• One natural nest, ended up failing
2010 Loon Chick Production (Platform)
Number of Chicks
2.5
2
2
1.5
1
1
0.5
0
0
0
Crystal
Deer
Fox
0
0
Grand
Portage
Lakes
Pardee
Gile
Flowage
Chick Production 2010
Lake Name
Nesting (y/n)
# Chicks;
hatched
# chicks;
survived
Pardee
Y, platform
2
1
Fox
Y, platform
0
0
Grand
Portage
Y, platform
2
2
Deer
Y, natural &
platform
0
0
Owl
Y, natural
0
0
Total
5
4
3
Chick Production 1999-2010
Loon Chick Production (with platforms) 1999-2010
12
12
10
# OF CHICKS
8
7
7
6
6
4
2
0
0
Deer
Fox
Grand
Portage
Pardee
LAKES
Gile
Flowage
0
Owl
Chick Production- Natural Nest
Chick Production 1999-2010
Loon Chick Production (without platforms) 1999-2010
3.5
3
# of Chicks
3
2.5
2
1.5
1
0.5
0
0
0
Crystal
Deer
Fox
0
0
0
Lakes
Grand Pardee
Gile
Portage
Flowage
In Summary:
• Platforms 10x more successful than natural nests
• Grand Portage is our most developed study lake,
yet it has produced the most chicks!
• To address our research ?: How does pH & D.O.
affect loon reproduction, we found that:
• Lakes with high water clarity, basic pH, & higher
D.O. = chicks.
• Lakes with low pH and low clarity =little, or no,
chick production.
• Our study lakes have shown that using artificial
platforms can help increase loon reproduction.
Gregory Nelson