Re: NANFA-- River Reef Report 8/28

Rose Lawn Museum (roselawn_at_mindspring.com)
Wed, 28 Aug 2002 10:54:27 -0400

Great report, Kahley! I'd love to see the pics. I think GeoCities has free
webpages, but I haven't tried 'em yet.

Steven A. Ellis
Kennesaw, GA

At 10:38 AM 8/28/02 -0500, you wrote:
>Betcha thought i drowned or sumtin', eh <g>?
>Well it's been a busy time and it's hard to sit down and
>tell memories when it's warm and sunny. Time to make memories!
>Ya'll have been talking lots and I can't wait to get caught up!
>
>The last I remember was being declared Doc Kahley. Not
>a good idea. As it is, I see waaaay too many sick fish.
>It is almost as if the reef is a hospital zone. I should specify
>sick bass as they seem to be the ones with the majority of
>the problems.
>
>I have three theories as to why they come to the reef. Maybe they
>were "raised" there an are somehow drawn back when injured or
>dying. Maybe the reef has become the bass's version of the
>elephant graveyard and all bass come there to die. Of course
>the likely reason is for the shelter. There are TONS of rocks
>there to absorb the energy of the boat wakes so it's probably
>one of the more restful places to recoup or die.
>
>In any case, it's so sad. I hate watching them starve when
>their jaws are broken or they eat a lure. Two big bass, 16-20
>inchers with wounds to the head. The bigger, had the more
>horrific wound, it was round deep ,,,,almost looked like an abscess
>which had opened on the top, behind the eyes. There was a deformity
>of it's back that looked like massive edema,,,swollen till his profile
>more resembled that of a "drum-type" fish instead of the sleek
>profile of a bass. He spent two days and then was gone.
>
>This year, there seems to be a high number of skin infections.
>I first thought these fish were damaged when someone ran into the reef.
>(Yes...despite an orange and white marker, I think someone ran
>into it,,,grrrrrrrrr.......more on that later) but it's only the bass that
seem
>to be affected.
>
>Maybe it was the heat and the lack of flow. The drought has provided me
>with lots of good snorkeling days but the water heated to the point where
>is felt unnatural. We don't generally get weeks of 90 ish weather around
>here. Yesterday, on the radio, I heard the PA drought described as the
>worst in 30 yrs. While the dam is keeping the water level up, the flow
>has been at times, almost non-existent. I monitor the flow and levels
>at the closest USGS survey point upstream. It reached a low of 931
>cu.ft.per sec.last Tues. The median for this time of year is about 2000.
>Aug is usually low flow but it has been running in a range of 35 to 45
>percent of
>median for all of July and Aug. Without the dam, The water would be
>at least a foot lower if you extrapolate the water levels as measured
>at the USGS site upstream. Basically, when it stopped rainning on
>the 18th of June, it stopped rainning. We've had a few T-storms and showers
>but nothing sustaining until recently.
>I noticed the slight increase in flow because the algae began to move.
>Usually, in the heat of late July and earl Aug we get a growth of several
>different types of algae. Some look like sections of fish net stockings,
>tubular and about six ins, in length. Another looks like Troll hair, if
>you remember those dolls that were all the rage in the sixties. That
>type has a bit more structure. Both types cover the bottom to varying
>degrees. I remember one season, about six years ago of prolific
>algae. It grew to a depth of two feet plus, smothering the other
>vegetation. I used an eight foot section of branch to push it away from
>he reef area as it had formed a blanket, four feet deep!
>
>When the water cools and the current picks up even slightly, this stuff
>breaks loose and begins to move, much to the frustration of the nesting
>Sunnies. Even a strand of this intrusion must be picked up and out of
>the nest so you can imagine how busy they get!
>
>Sometimes, if the conditions are right, meaning few boat wakes to
>disrupt things, the algae begins to tumble and roll. Like a snowball,
>it gathers more algae as it moves and forms a cylinder. Just
>yesterday, I looked up and saw one "incoming" that had to be 14
>feet long and headed straight for the reef. Since one of the Sunnies
>has actual fry and the other has eggs hatching, I didn't want these tiny,
tiny
>babies getting wound up in the mass of algae so I ever so slowly nudged
>the mass out past the reef.
>Yes, we have babies! More on that next time. This is the first year
>I have been able to so closely observe the birthin' <g>. Since the algae
>started, the picture taking stopped for the most part. Yes...I have
pictures!
>Not a lot of good ones so far...learning curve is steep. And the best
>pictures,
>I think, were lost when I forgot I had stashed it between the deck of the
boat
>and the pontoon and drove off...aaaarrrgh! But there are some that are
>"OK" I guess and in a couple minutes I will pick up another two rolls worth.
>I have gone thru six cameras this season. I'm need to get a real camera
>with a flash and close-up capabilities if I can find one in my price range
><200.00
>Any advice on that is very very welcome. And I just ordered a snorkeling
skin!
>So I hope to extend my season by a week or so, but I loose the boat dock
>mid Sept so there isn't much time left. It's predicted to be 70 and very
>cloudy
>for the next three days so it's time to_try_and get caught up on my job and
>the house<yeech>work.
>More later, my pictures await me. BTW...do you know if there are free
>hosting spots on the net for personal photos? I guess i'm entitled to
>a home page from my ISP, but I'll have to check on the limitations of
>size. Later!

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/ For more information about NANFA, visit our web page, http://www.nanfa.org