The Indiana Department of Natural Resources (DNR) access site on Lake Manitou will be available through the last weekend of April, but will close temporarily for an unspecified length of time, as soon as April 26.  All other public and private access sites remain closed, including the city boat ramp on the northwestern corner of the lake.
The closure will allow for further treatment of hydrilla, an exotic, highly invasive plant first confirmed in the lake in August 2006. Two years ago the DNR relaxed access restrictions at the lake, expecting to have to eventually re-close the area due to the persistent nature of the plant. Last year, the DNR ramp closed April 27 and opened July 1.

“No one should interpret these two closings as a setback in the effort to eradicate hydrilla from Manitou,” said Doug Keller, aquatic invasive species specialist with the DNR Division of Fish and Wildlife. “We suspected that hydrilla tubers (similar to roots) remained in the lake when access restrictions were relaxed at the end of June last year, and that was confirmed in surveys last fall.
“As a result of three years of controls, we have decreased the tuber population 95 percent and through continued efforts, we will eliminate this plant.”

The closure will give the DNR time to apply Sonar, a chemical used to eliminate hydrilla plants, before boats are allowed to come and go. The treatment is expected to be done in mid-May, by which time many of the tubers should have sprouted and emerged through the sediment, making them susceptible to Sonar.
Keller said it’s likely periodic interruptions in the availability of the Manitou access site will continue in future years.

“As long as we know that hydrilla tubers remain in the sediments of Lake Manitou, we will implement periodic access restrictions during periods when there is a risk of movement of the plant,” he said.
The ramp may possibly reopen at the end of June. Before reopening the ramp, the DNR will conduct a plant survey in mid-June. If no live hydrilla plants are found, the ramp will open before the July 4 holiday. If living hydrilla plants are found, opening of the ramp will be delayed until later surveys reveal all dead hydrilla plants.

No matter what the outcome of June’s plant survey, the DNR will maintain chemical concentration up to 5 parts per billion of Sonar through at least the middle of October.

“Hydrilla tubers can sprout at any time water temperature is 55 Fahrenheit or warmer, which requires that a concentration lethal to the plant be maintained throughout its growing season to eliminate newly sprouted plants,” Keller said.

Sonar, with the active ingredient Fluridone, is an aquatic herbicide produced by SePRO Corp. of Carmel, Ind. Humans, fish and other aquatic life are not harmed by Sonar, especially at the extremely low rate being used at the lake, according to Keller.

If and when the risk of hydrilla movement is again low, the DNR will announce the DNR ramp is again available for use and reopen it.

Odd birds at the feeder

During the last two weeks of January and through the month of February, I fed more than 150 pounds of black sunflower seeds through my yard feeder. The demand was heavy this year, and thankfully, my wife bought us a new extended feeder designed to hold almost three gallons of seed.

Even now, I am feeding about a gallon or more of sunflower seed each day. The feeder is still being swarmed by birds, including goldfinch, blue jay, house finch, titmouse, nuthatch, chickadee, dark-eyed junco, red-bellied woodpecker, downy woodpecker, mourning dove and cardinal.

I am surprised to see the dark-eyed juncos are still here. Since they are a “hard winter” bird, I was sure they would be off and gone as soon as the weather broke, but I am still seeing several show up each day.

The goldfinches are now starting to turn to their more recognizable bright yellow. During the height of winter, they are cloaked in dark feathers and resemble common sparrows.

In years past, we had six as a record number of male cardinals at the feeder at one time. This year was a banner year for the cardinals, as my wife counted 13 males at one time and I counted 14.
A few new birds have been rallying around the feeder this year. Lately, I have seen a mockingbird pecking around the ground under it. Although not uncommon, I had an Eastern Towhee show up this year.  It was a new one for me, and I had to break out the bird book to get a positive identification.

A little smaller than a bluebird, the Eastern Towhee sports dark feathers on its back and dull orange feathers on its belly. It almost looks like a miniature robin, but the orange is much darker.
To add a little diversity in the diet for the woodpeckers, I hung a couple of suet cake holders above the sunflower feeder. Sure enough, the downy woodpecker and the red-bellied woodpecker would peck away at the beef suet and birdseed cakes in between pecking out sunflower seeds.

One day, my wife said, “There’s a redheaded woodpecker on the feeder.” Thinking it to be a red-bellied woodpecker, I was surprised to see a pileated woodpecker nagging onto the sunflower feeder and slamming away at the suet cake. Apparently the suet has found some favor with the crow-sized woodpecker, as it stops by the feeder every afternoon.

As the spring progresses, I’ll continue feeding sunflower seed for the birds, as they can use the extra protein while they are raising their young. Within the next few weeks, I’ll need to clean up the hummingbird feeders and get ready for the annual onslaught of Mother Nature’s sugar-water-loving buzz bombs.

The views and opinions expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of Farm World. Readers with questions or comments for Jack Spaulding may contact him by e-mail at jackspaulding@hughes.net or by writing to him in care of this publication.