June 23

The mid-morning temperatures are in the low 60’s under mostly cloudy skies as Caroline, friend Brenda and dog, Riley join me on a hike along Gull Harbor, on the far northeast tip of Beaver Island. The extra wide rocky beach and acres of dried-up wetlands here are a result of a dramatic drop of 10 inches in the water level of Lake Michigan in the past year. Even more dramatic is a drop in lake level of 40 inches since 2020. Offshore, I spot a breeding pair of Common Mergansers standing on a rock while overhead, a pair of Herring Gulls call out. Scattered among the beach rocks are thousands of small Zebra Mussel shells. Introduced in the 1980s, likely through ballast water from cargo ships, these invasive mollusks have significantly impacted the lake's ecosystem by filtering out large amounts of plankton, affecting food chains and water clarity. Scientists are testing new removal methods near Sleeping Bear Dunes and Muskegon. One method is to anchor large tarps (stock photo) to the lake bottom over infested areas, killing the mussels by preventing oxygen and food from reaching them. Another method is to drag a heavy, plow-like device, called a “mussel masher” (stock photo) through mussel beds, detaching and crushing them. Still exploring the rocky beach, I notice small, yellow blossoms of Silverweed vine and bristly seed-heads of Bottle Brush Sedge. Above my head are swarms of ¼-inch Snipe Flies (stock photo) that have recently hatched from larvae. While pesky, they rarely land on or bite humans. After mating, females deposit eggs on overlying vegetation. After hatching, larvae fall into the water where they develop into flying adults. Both adults and larvae are predatory, feeding on small insects and other invertebrates. Working my way through a dried-up pond, I spot a Northern Water Snake coiled up on the ground. Soon this reptile, common on Beaver Island, slithers away from me so I see its about 4 ft long. These snakes are opportunistic predators, feeding on fish, frogs and crayfish. While they can bite, they are not venomous and not considered dangerous to humans. Since areas like this are often used as nesting sites for Killdeer, I’m not surprised to hear some of them warning me to keep my distance. Looping back, I see a few white blossoms of Ox-eye daisies and lovely red-orange leaves of Indian Paintbrush. The plant’s name comes from its visual similarity to a paintbrush used by Native Americans. Nearing the car, I come upon a dirt mound called a cray-fish chimney created by a burrowing crayfish.  

Wandering tracks

Goose and gull

Shells of a clam

Bones of a skull

Sizes and shapes

Beach of stones

Iron and quartz

Colors and tones

Painting the shore

The artist’s hand

Image of summer

Canvas of sand

 

D. DeGraaf