Moose Droppings

One of a Kind Lake in North Carolina

Jun 05, 2006 @ 04:07 pm by Moose

Scientists from the University of North Carolina have begun studying Lake Mattamuskeet because its behavior is unlike any other lake they know of in the United States.

Scientists from the University of North Carolina have found what they term a “phenomenon” in the largest natural lake in the state - essentially two distinct habitats functioning in one body of water.

That just doesn’t happen.

“The lake is plant dominated on the east side and algae dominated on the west side,” said Michael Piehler. ” … Truth be told, when we went out there, we never expected this. … To have two different stable states in the same lake is … sort of a dream come true.”

Lake Mattamuskeet is an important habitat for waterfowl as well as for fish and part of the lake is a National Wildlife Refuge.

“Shallow lakes are going to be either clear and plant-dominated,” he said, “or murky with algae_ something like pea soup.

“Mattamuskeet is extremely rare. There’s nothing this distinct that I know of in the country.

“There are plenty of lakes that have patchiness … different plants growing in different sections,” he said. “But there’s nothing like this.”

Waters said there was a lake in Ontario, Canada, that had individually functioning habitats, but those were manmade by using a sheet of plastic.

Highway 94 is the dividing line between the two distinct habitats however they do not believe the highway is the reason for the differences.

“We want to be clear,” Waters said, “that we don’t think the building of the road had this dramatic effect. That’s not even a hypothesis. …

“Once we know the history, we can line it up with historic management practices to be able to understand … when and why the west side changed … and what we can do to keep this lake functioning as a healthy habitat,” he said.

“People certainly hope for a plant-dominated lake because it supports fish communities, it’s aesthetically pleasing and generally considered a healthy lake,” he said.

Hopefully an understanding of how this lake functions will be gained so it can be preserved for many years to come.

Link to News Story