The Cayuga Lake Watershed Network will be hosting the Hydrilla in Cayuga Lake 2023 Annual Updates and Panel Discussion via zoom on December 18, 2023 from 12:00-2:00 pm. Please join us to learn and ask questions about Hydrilla and the challenges it presents to Cayuga Lake, as well as the current management strategies. Presenters include Sam-Beck Anderson from the Finger Lakes Partnership for Regional Invasive Species Management, Richard Ruby from the United States Army Corps of Engineers and Cathy McGlynn from the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. To register, click here .
Due to issues with the iMapInvasives app and the smoke from the Canadian wildfires, the iMapInvasives training that was scheduled as part of New York State Invasive Species Awareness week was cancelled. However, Michele Wunderlich was able to provide an impromptu iMapInvasives training earlier in the week to Ann Robson, OWLA president and Ally Berry, Owasco Lake Watershed Inspector. They learned how to use the iMapInvasives app and were given a brief invasive species identification training in the field.
If you would like iMapInvasives app training, please contact Michele Wunderlich at mwunderlich@cayugacounty.us.
Photo is of common buckthorn, an invasive species.
This is an urgent request – please reply if you can assist!
The Cayuga Lake Watershed Network needs your help checking shoreline and dock areas for hydrilla, around Cayuga Lake, from October 19 – 31.
Hydrilla Hunter
In recent weeks, hydrilla infestations have been found at new sites around the southern third of the lake, most recently at the marina in Lansing and near the mouth of Cayuga Inlet in Ithaca.
Right now is the time hydrilla makes its presence known visibly at the water surface. They need a team of people checking the shoreline, around their docks and launches, and in shallow water from October 19-31 (or later, if interested).
Could you help? It would take one to two hours of your time on one or two dates of your choice. The Cayuga Lake Watershed Network will provide you with lake rakes and hydrilla i.d. kits and collection bags and give you simple instructions on how to report suspects to invasive plants experts.
If you are interested, please let them know – quickly! Contact Jenn at programs@cayugalake.org
This is a serious situation – hydrilla is beginning to show up in new and unexpected places. We do not want to it to spread. Help find it early, before it takes hold and expands rapidly.
PLEASE help – just this once, or on a regular basis.
The Finger Lakes Institute and Finger Lakes PRISM have now published an invasive species field guide with over 100 pages of resources to help you identify invasive and native species in the region. This guide was created in response to the growing threat of invasive species in the Finger Lakes region, with the intention of helping members of the public identify local flora and fauna and learn to distinguish between invasive species and native species.
This guide is applicable to the counties within the Finger Lakes Partnership for Regional Invasive Species Management (PRISM): Broome, Cayuga, Chemung, Chenango, Cortland, Livingston, Madison, Monroe, Onondaga, Ontario, Schuyler, Seneca, Tompkins, Tioga, Steuben, Wayne, and Yates.
Hydrilla is an extremely aggressive aquatic plant that has the ability to grow up to a foot a day. The thick, dense mats it forms obstructs boating, swimming and fishing. Its invasiveness growth blocks sunlight that kills native plants and its excessive presence reduces oxygen in the water that can alter fish habitat. Waterfowl feeding areas and fish spawning sites are at risk of elimination with Hydrilla overabundance and water treatment, power generation and industrial facilities can sustain damage when intakes are blocked. Extreme and stubborn Hydrilla in an area can also lower the value of waterfront property.
The on-going fight against Hydrilla growing in Cayuga Lake in areas near Cayuga County has been underway now since 2017. This year’s treatment began in late June 2018. The approximate 60-day treatment plan includes a slow release of the herbicide fluridone through pellets applied below the water surface. The fluridone is absorbed into the plant’s roots and ultimately disrupts the plant’s ability to use light during its photosynthesis process. Throughout the course of treatment, there are no health risks to residents who draw their water from Cayuga Lake. For more information on Hydrilla and Fluridone, please visit the Cayuga County Health Department’s website at: http://www.cayugacounty.us/Community/Health/Environmental-Health/Hydrilla.
The team from the Army Corps of Engineers leading the efforts on Cayuga Lake are reporting success with a noticeably reduced amount of Hydrilla throughout the treatment area. The persistent nature of the plant however will mandate some form of management in the years to come.
Early treatment is necessary in stopping the spread of Hydrilla. In addition to scientific treatment strategies, the public too will be instrumental in identifying Hydrilla before it becomes too widespread making treatment impossible. Residents should learn what the plant looks like and, when in the water, be on the lookout for it. For more information on how to identify and report possible Hydrilla infestations in Cayuga Lake, go to http://www.cayugalake.org/hydrillahunters.html. To report Hydrilla in other County lakes, send an email to isinfo@dec.ny.gov or call 518-402-9405.
In addition, strands of Hydrilla can attach to boats and other equipment and is then transplanted to other areas and lakes if not appropriately cleaned off. Residents should carefully remove any aquatic vegetation, no matter how small, from water crafts when leaving any water body to be sure they are not transporting Hydrilla or other invasive species from one lake to another.
You can also learn more about invasive species here.
Hemlock woolly adelgid is an invasive insect that kills eastern and Carolina hemlock trees. This insect has been found in both the northern end and southern end of Cayuga County. Hemlock trees are important because of the unique ecosystems that they create under their dense canopies. They are important to water quality because they tend to grow on the steep slopes in gorges near streams and above lakes where other things cannot grow. They stabilize shallow soils and provide erosion control. They also provide shade to streams, which helps moderate water temperature which helps cold water species such as trout.
To learn more, please visit the New York State Hemlock Initiative. This website provides information on how to identify hemlock woolly adelgid, how to become a citizen science volunteer, and what you can do to save your trees if you have it.
