News
August 2026
Lake Country Clean Waters held an on-the-water seminar in July. Thirty-four lake leaders from the Oconomowoc River watershed (our watershed, 17 lakes) learned from Jayne Jencks, conservation specialist with Waukesha County Dept of Parks and Land Resources how riparian shorelines function and contribute overall to lake health. Beautiful natural shorelines and planned/planted native buffer zones were viewed. Pine Lake neighbors were kind enough to share their native plant lists. So many best practices were seen: no mow areas of grass, the value of mature trees staying, the role of overhanging shoreline plantings in keeping water temps cool and mitigating waves, no rip rap so native plants could take up water, excess nutrients and combat erosion with deep root systems. She emphasized the effect impervious surface over 8% has on fish populations and the beneficial effect of coarse woody habitat (fallen trees and logs) at the shore acting as fish nurseries and hotels. Party headphones kept noise to a minimum and whether a silent disco party ensued shall remain confidential. All were grateful to their west side hosts and lake neighbor boat drivers.
📸: Brian Sichi
July 2026
As you enjoy the water this month remember there are good “weeds” in there! The functions of native aquatic plant species are so many! They produce oxygen through photosynthesis so oxygenate water, they anchor sediment with their root systems and utilize excess phosphorus and nitrogen so algae can’t. Many fish species prefer them as spawning grounds and safe cover for young fry to hide from predator fish. A healthy diverse stand can make it harder for invasives like EWM or starry stonewort to move in. Our most populous one is chara (muskgrass), the low, gritty, smelly one, actually a non-filamentous algae. Plants that “top out”, sitting on the surface like lily pads help mitigate wave action on your shoreline. Great books for plant identification of aquatic plant species: Through the Looking Glass or Aquatic Plants of the Upper Midwest.
June 2026
Riparian owners have a special responsibility to help protect the health of the lake. Lakefront properties include impervious surfaces: roofs, patios, decks, walkways, driveways, parking areas and accessory structures. Impervious surfaces lead to straight overland runoff into the lake: warm polluted water filled with debris, sediment, excess nutrients of phosphorus and nitrogen, bacteria from leaking septics or pets. Unless permeable surfaces are used or infiltration is planned for, during our heavy rain months this contributes to pollution of the lake. Options to promote infiltration include heading downspouts to rain gardens and having a full lot width buffer zone planted to absorb stormwater. Rain barrels can collect usable rainwater for nearby gardens. More engineered solutions include rock infiltration areas, buried infiltration tanks and bioswales. Healthy Lakes and Rivers WI is a DNR initiative promoting best practices in the shoreline zone by owners. Not only do they provide helpful management information, funding is available for individuals and organizations, including neighbors joining together. A plan must be submitted as part of the grant request, the best practices they support are: 350 square foot shoreline plantings, creation of rock infiltration areas, stormwater diversion and placement of fish sticks for habitat. They accept grant proposals year-round. Plants must be from the suggested DNR list.
https://healthylakeswi.com/best-practices/
May 2026
Another metric of lake health is the health of the fishery. As of 2021 Pine Lake was still categorized as a two-tier fishery, capable of supporting cold water species at depth, and warm water species at levels near the surface. Out of our 15,000 WI lakes, only 200 are supporting a two story fishery. Cisco, trout, whitefish prefer the cooler deeper water. Largemouth bass, crappie, and bluegill prefer warmer temps. We still had a few cisco in 2021, but declining numbers. Cold water species also need good oxygen levels at depth, and all WI lakes are becoming more anoxic at depth due to less mixing from chloride, eutrophication from excessive nutrients and decaying algae from blooms. As lake temperatures warm and development deposits sediment onto spawning grounds the species ratio in WI lakes are changing. This spring the DNR will conduct a fishery survey with Fyke nets and electro-fishing (non-lethal) to update our fishery data on relative populations of cool water and warm water species. A couple of great photos from the Fyke nets, and the electrofishing rig on a nighttime survey.
27 inch walleye, 41 inch pike and an 18.5 inch cisco, electrofishing rig, live well
April 2026
Time to walk the woods for the spring ephemerals. Now through mid-May these native spring favorites show up, especially if you have removed your buckthorn and invasive honeysuckle. Learn to identify Virginia bluebells, mayapple, trout lilies, Dutchman’s breeches, trillium. Also seen are hepatica, jack-in-the-pulpit, bloodroot, wood violets, and Jacob’s ladder. Bees are the early pollinators of these plants as butterflies, hummingbirds and moths are not out yet. Dutchman’s breeches are exclusively pollinated by bee queens.
March 2026
Time to plan your plantings for spring! Those of you who have read Dr. Doug Tallamy’s books know that he is fundamentally a bug guy (Professor of Entomology at the University of Delaware), endorsing ways to keep food webs intact. His promotion of the idea of keystone plants, and their critical place in supporting the most wildlife species has changed the way many think of their native planting areas. Attached are the keystone species lists for our area (eastern temperate forests - ecoregion 8) from the National Wildlife Federation. The idea is to choose keystone plants from each group trees/shrubs/perennials/grasses/sedges as you design your areas. Non-natives, and cultivars usually support dramatically less species, though there are a few exceptions. Mt Cuba plant trials will compare species vs cultivars for pollinator visits-yes, they count. If you care about the birds you haveto care about the bugs. The native oak is king!
February 2026
Given that chloride levels have doubled in the lake since 2006 there are many things you can do to help:
-
Use less de-icing salt. Create less impervious surface on your property that needs to be salted. Shovel, sweep, and plow as much snow up as you can. Use the absolute minimum of salt. Use sand especially if traction is the issue.
-
Use less salt through your water softener. There are several ways to do this. First many older water softeners re-charge on a timer regardless of of how much water has been used. Switch over to an “on-demand” system that re-charges based on volume used. Have your water hardness actually tested so you are tailoring salt use to that. Adding a “blending valve” can customize how much of the water is softened. It allows you to introduce a stream of non-softened hard water to the water exiting the water softener.
January 2026
Lake ice performs many functions. Those of us who enjoy winter recreation are out skating, ice boating, playing hockey and ice fishing. At the same time this surface ice is providing protection for the aquatic life below, insulating fish, turtles, frogs, invertebrates and plankton from extreme temperatures. Ice helps maintain thermal stratification in lake water by preventing mixing by the wind. The metabolism of many aquatic organisms slows down during this period. The lower water temps and ice prevent earlier algal blooms in the spring- a longer ice season means a shorter algal season.
Some fish species rely on ice for safe spawning. If there is less ice, eggs can be destroyed altering the species present in our lake. Earlier ice-off leads to earlier stratification, altering nutrient cycles and the timing of food sources e.g. plankton that fish depend on. Pine Lake is scheduled for a fishery survey in 2026 by the DNR, comparisons to past surveys should be revealing. If there is less ice in winter, shorelines may be more exposed to erosion with winter storm wave action.
Sadly the number of ice days has been decreasing for decades. Rob Manegold has excellent ice on/ice off data for Pine since 1949. The average number of ice days in the 1950s was 101, in the 2020s it is 71. This reflects similar data followed on Mendota/Monona as far back as the 1850s. We are losing ice days on both sides of the season-later ice on, earlier ice off. This has tremendous implications for algae growth, plankton, turnover, and fish species selection.
All data and graphs, R. Manegold
December 2025
Winter is here with the need for snow and ice removal. Chloride levels in southeast WI lakes have been rising steadily for decades from urban development and the attendant increase in roads, driveways and parking lots. The use of rock salt and other chloride containing de-icers (calcium chloride, magnesium chloride) to melt ice and snow leads to storm runoff into the lakes. Pine Lake’s chloride levels have doubled since 2006. (See graph under Property Management). The Village has worked to steadily decrease it’s salt use on our Village roadways and will only salt on hills and turns, not flat straightaways. Normal background lake chloride levels are 10- 15 mg/L. Our current level at the deep hole off the island is 53 mg/L measured in June 25 - it was 60 at the Beaver Lake inlet, Why do these level matter? Because this is where lake chemistry starts to affect lake biology. Chloride liberates heavy metals from soil as it runs through our yards. As it hits the lake the saltier water is denser, sinks to the bottom and disrupts the critical mixing/lake turnover. The presence of higher chloride levels in sediment liberates phosphorus, fueling more algae. Diatoms and daphnia are affected at levels lower than this, wetland plants are affected at 55 mg/L and at higher levels plankton and fish diversity are reduced. Other sources of chloride are older water softeners which run off timers instead of volume used and fertilizer runoff. For residents, plow/shovel/sweep the most you can and use the least amount of any de-icer. If traction is required use sand. Learn your de-icing alternatives and use the minimum you can.
November 2025
Late autumn is a good time to work at removing your woodland invasive species. They are easier to spot since many stay green longer (buckthorn, garlic mustard, honeysuckle) or retain their fall color longer (euonymus, oriental bittersweet). Moist soil in between rains may make it easier to hand pull smaller plants and herbicide is more effective this time of year- you can use much less on stump applications with less over spray. Plants are moving nutrients to their root zone so the chemical is carried more effectively to the roots of the plant, with a higher kill rate, lower re-sprout rate. The invasive shrubs like buckthorn and honeysuckle prevent the regeneration of native trees and have fundamentally changed what the understory looks like.
October 2025
Fall North American bird migration is an extraordinary time across Wisconsin. It runs roughly August 15th to November 30th . Timing depends on species and location. Waterfowl and songbirds will cross the state in the millions. On a single night this year, September 17, 52 million birds crossed Wisconsin. Our diverse state habitat (forests, marshes and grasslands) and our site between the Atlantic and Mississippi flyways helps the birds find shelter and food as they move south. We provide a welcome stopover, just another reason to be planting native plants for them to use. The majority will move in darkness.
The Lights Out! Message emphasizes the risks posed to birds by light pollution aka ALAN: artificial light at night. The birds are both attracted and disoriented by artificial light, leading to millions of unnecessary collisions. Turn off non-essential exterior lights form 11 p.m. to 6 a.m.
The Cornell Lab of Ornithology has created a brilliant website, BirdCast, with live migration and forecast tools by state and county. The numbers are staggering and fun to watch as to species, speed, number and heights flown.
BirdCast Migration Dashboard - Wisconsin
BirdCast Migration Dashboard - Waukesha County
September 2025
Unfortunately a new aquatic invasive has been identified on Pine Lake. Amanda Schmitz, AIS Coordinator for Waukesha County was performing an early detection survey and found starry stonewort (Nitellopsis obtusa) in the northeast bay. This highly invasive freshwater alga is native to Eurasia but invasive in Midwestern waters. It can create dense surface mats obstructing boating and overtake habitat by crowding out native aquatic species. It is a distinctive lime green when growing with single cell stems and whorls of branches. It’s submerged star- shaped bulbils are distinctive. It is almost always a hitchhiker, so please when returning your boat to Pine always inspect your boat, trailer, anchor and lines for fragments. If the lake you depart has a cleaning station always take advantage of that. Watch for this on your shoreline and around your pier. It can grow to 2 feet. Familiarize your self with this alga and be looking for it at the landing and your pier, or obstructing navigation.
August 2025
Since inception the Pine Lake Preservation Committee has sought to quantify erosion control around the lake roughly by neighborhood. The scoring is based on the presence of 35 foot buffer zones along a shoreline and tree canopy. Below is the graphic from 2024:
If your neighborhood score is low, talk to your neighbors about planting buffers around your bay etc, increasing shoreline vegetation as a group to limit nutrient and pollutant runoff. DNR grants are available for group shoreline planting projects: Healthy Lakes WI Grants