Moon Lake Preservation Council

While some non-native species can be harmless to the environment, others can wreak havoc. When a non-native species easily out-competes native species, the non-native species can become invasive. Invasive species choke out native species and can collapse entire food chains if they get out of hand. Aquatic invasive species can impact wildlife, plant life, and our quality of life. Because Moon Lake is small and relatively secluded, our lake is somewhat isolated from many would-be invasive species. However, that doesn't mean it doesn't have any  invasive species. The number and types of invasive species in our lake are important metrics for measuring the health of the lake. The MLPC is working with the New York State Federation of Lake Associations (NYSFOLA) to help figure out what kind of invasive species we have in Moon Lake, but we can't do it alone! We need some citizen scientists to examine the kinds of aquatic plant life they see around the lake and to help report invasi...

One of the most insidious problems on our lake is Harmful Algal Blooms (HABs), which are a kind of algal bloom caused by blue-green algae, or cyanobacteria. Some cyanobacteria release cyanotoxins, which are harmful to other species, including humans and other animals. Cyanotoxins can affect other species simply by coming into contact with them (swimming in contaminated water) or through ingestion (drinking contaminated water, even if it has been treated and filtered). Because of this, it's important that we keep an eye out for HABs in Moon Lake. That's where you come in! HABs can look take on several different appearances. In Upstate New York, they usually look like spilled green paint or pea soup: While green algae algal blooms (shown below) can be gross and a nuisance, they are not dangerous to human health. If you're in doubt over whether something is a HAB or not, report it anyway! The DEC will help make the determination. This season, if you see a suspicious algal bloo...

It's almost lake season! The temperatures are rising, the spring ephemerals are coming up, and soon we'll all be back on the lake! That can only mean one thing...we all have some work to do! Over the next several weeks, we'll be sharing information about different volunteer opportunities with a range of commitment levels. Our first opportunity has the highest commitment level, but it's one of the most important things we can do for our lake (and it doesn't require any special knowledge or training)! One of the tools the Moon Lake Preservation Council uses to guide our efforts is a Lake Management Plan, a comprehensive document with details about our lake, which is required by the state Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) to qualify our lake for various grants and other state aid. The most recent Moon Lake Management Plan was developed in the late 90s, and is in serious need of updating! That's where you come in! To make this task more manageable, we...

 Summer isn't quite over yet, but Labor Day is just around the corner! Join us on September 2nd (the Saturday of Labor Day weekend) for our annual meeting! More details can be found in the flyer below (click to enlarge):