Quaboag Quacumquasit Lake Association

MAY 2017

W W W. Q Q L A . O R G

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P . O . B O X 3 7 0 E A S T B RO O K F I E L D , M A 0 1 5 1 5

“Do not tell fish Stories where the people know you …

but particularly, don’t tell them where they know the fish.”

— Mark Twain

Quaboag Quacumquasit Lake Association, Inc.

2017 Calendar

Opening Day Picnic – Sat May 27

Boat Parade – Sunday, July 2

Annual Meeting & Breakfast

== Sunday, August 27 ==

Illumination Night Sat 9/2

Paddle Poker Run Sat 9/9

Board of Directors Meetings

Board meetings are open to all QQLA members and we encourage you to attend. Please check FaceBook Page, or contact any Board member to verify the date, time and location of

the next Board meeting. Anyone interested in serving on the QQLA Board of Directors or on a com-mittee please contact Doug Vizard or any Board Member.

Officers

President - Doug Vizard

Vice President - Bill Seabourne Treasurer– Mary Lou Knight Corresponding Secretary– Vacant Recording Secretary- Judy Nielsen

== Contact Us == QQLA.org ==

Fundraising >> Bill Seabourne Email: seabbill@yahoo.com Tel: 508-867-9074

Environmental Issues >> Don Taft Email: dtaft9492@verizon.net Tel: 508-637-1458

Environmental Issues >> Skip Nielsen / cnielsen@worcesterelevator.com / 508-726-8618

Membership >> Meg Noyes Email: Mmnoyes@gmail.com Tel: 508-347-3201

Newsletter >> Randy Weiss Email: RanWiz@aol.com Tel: 781-608-6363

Board of Directors Brookfield

Mary Lou Knight Annette Lazili Peter Levine Beverly Lund Don Taft

East Brookfield Dan LaPorte

Cindy LaPorte Scott Peckins Sue Sasdi Bill Seabourne Randy Weiss Carrol Yorzyk

Sturbridge Brian McCleary Judy Nielsen Skip Nielsen Margaret Noyes Howard Ser Marita Tasse

Doug Vizard

Welcome Packages If you know of a new property owner on North or South Pond please contact us and we will get them a QQLA Welcome Package.

COVER PHOTOS: LEFT = “Big Girl on Quaboag” - Angler: Andrew DelMastro

RIGHT: Chain Pickerel — Also caught on North Pond — Angler: Eden Weiss

Message From Our President

QQLA.org 2017 Calendar Notes

“Opening Day” Picnic at the South Pond Beach & Boat Ramp –

Saturday, May 27 (rain date 28).

Boat Parade on South Pond – Sunday, July 2.

Annual Meeting & Breakfast (Camp Frank A. Day YMCA

Camp) Food, Raffle, Speakers, Elections — Sunday, August 27.

Illumination Night Saturday September 2 = Light Candles

Along Your Shoreline At Dusk — BOTH Lakes.

Paddle Poker Run — 4th Annual Paddle To Prizes Starts At

North Pond Boat Ramp. Paddle BOTH Lakes. Sat Sept 9.

Check Out Our FaceBook Page Or Website [QQLA.org] For

Details In The Week(s) Before An Event –or– Call For Details

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The much-anticipated start of a new summer season is at hand. The traditional spring flood has subsided (See more information on “Lake Levels” on page 6) without any high

water damage … and the long– anticipated spring flowers seem to be on schedule.

The forsythia and rhododendron are having a particularly good year.

We started this year’s activities as always with our “EARTH DAY CLEANUP” Here’s the

shout-out to the participants who endured hours of hard labor on a cool and misty

morning — thanks for the effort! It’s a good feeling to accomplish the cleanup along with

the bad feeling of how abusive the general public can be to the environment. Perhaps Mother Nature is getting a cleaner start now, but she is about to turn around and give

us an enhanced dose of ticks and Gypsy Moths.

We’ve included some advice to help you reduce the impact of the Gypsy Moths to the trees around the ponds: please see the info on the next couple of pages.

On the brighter side, we look forward to a new season of friends, family and guests on

our lakes. We would like to reach out to all newcomers to enjoy our yearly activities – please bring somebody along and introduce them to our extended family.

Below is a review of the main events the QQLA has planned for this summer. Greater

detail can be found on our website [ QQLA.org ] or our FaceBook page.

See you Around the Lakes ! — Doug Vizard, President

≈≈ Gypsy Moth Control Measures ≈≈

The history of the Gypsy Moth infestation of the United States is unique in that the exact date and place of the origin is known: Medford, MA, 1869. Since then the moths (and their caterpillar larvae) have spread as far as Wis-consin. The Massachusetts Department of Energy and Environmental Affairs [ Mass EEA ] connects the current outbreak to the 2015-16 regional drought. For a complete history of the infestation see their web page [ link to which is on our website, QQLA.org ]

Rhode Island, especially hard hit in 2016, is debating the widespread use of aerial spraying of insecticides. Ecologists are resisting this proposal, claim-ing that natural defenses can curb the infestation. Here are some ways to re-duce the impact to YOUR trees this spring (see websites for actions you can take is summer / fall) —

LATE APRIL / MAY: Place barrier bands on tree trunks. METHOD #1 — Burlap Trunk Traps With Insecticide:

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mass.gov/eea/agencies/dfg/dfw/publications/gypsy-moth-outbreak-of-2016.html

METHOD #2 — Burlap Trunk Traps With Sticky Stuff:

Just after the caterpillars have hatched, when they are small and young, barrier bands will prevent them from climbing back into trees after ballooning or when they have fallen. Barrier bands can be made using duct tape or other nonporous material that can be wrapped around a tree trunk and coated with a commercially available sticky material such as TangleFoot® or Vase-line®. NEVER put sticky material directly on the tree trunk. On thin-barked trees, tie butcher paper or paper bags around the trunk before using the duct tape. The sticky material may need to be re-applied periodically due to rain and other environmental conditions as well as when the bands are covered with caterpillars.

A 12-inch piece of burlap is tied around this tree. The burlap is then sprayed with the insecti-cide Deltamethrin, or BT-Kurstaki ( Bacillus thur-

ingiensis, var. kurstaki (a bacterial parasite specific to Gypsy Moth Caterpillars) or other insecticide. When the caterpillars walk across the burlap, the insecticide gets on their feet. As the insecticide gets absorbed into their bodies, it kills them.

≈≈ Gypsy Moth Control Measures ≈≈

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METHOD #3 — FOLDED Burlap Trunk Traps [ No Chemicals ! ]

more info: http://gypsymothalert.com

Many birds are known to feed on gypsy moth larvae or adults. Nuthatches, chickadees, towhees, vireos, northern orioles, catbirds, robins and blue jays are probably more important in sparse gypsy moth populations. During infestations Cuckoos and flocking species such as starlings, grackles, red-wing blackbirds and crows may be attracted. Several rodent predators are known including the white-footed mouse, shrew, chipmunk, vole and squirrel. Shrews, which are often mistaken for mice, are voracious insect feeders that consume their weight in prey each day. There are many diseases caused by bacteria, fungi, or viruses that kill gypsy moth larvae. The nucleopolyhedrosis virus (NPV) has a dramatic effect on gypsy moth popu-lations, frequently resulting in the total collapse of outbreaks. Virus-killed larvae are commonly seen hanging in an inverted V-shaped form from trees. Unfortunately the virus can not spread widely until an outbreak is well underway.

== PREDATORS & PARASITES ==

The CALOSOMA family of beetles

are ‘Caterpillar Hunters”. These

green or black forest floor dwellers

are mostly nocturnal. They climb

trees to feed on a wide range of insect

larvae, but particularly love Gypsy

Moth and Tent Caterpillars.

“DON’T STEP ON THAT BUG !!”

Newly hatched gypsy

moths feed day and

night. But when they

get to about ¾ inch in

length, they feed

mainly at night. They

crawl down the tree in

the early morning and

< < A DISCUSSION OF LAKE LEVELS > >

Lake Quaboag (North Pond) is a natural body of water, with no ‘dam’ or other level control device. Approximately 75-80 sq mi of ‘watershed’ contribute runoff to the lake, but rain takes many hours to trickle down. Quaboag ‘crests’ about 48 – 54

hours after a strong rain event. We’ve noticed that the lake rises about 6” for each 1” of rainfall – prior ‘ground saturation’ can increase this ratio. The prior two QQLA newsletters have discussed details about the ‘Flow Barrier’ between North and South pond, and how the levels of the two ponds are related. Reading those will remind you that the barrier is NOT (and cannot be) used to con-trol the level of either lake to any appreciable degree.

The level of North Pond is ‘self regulated’ by the shape of the outflow channel – this is the beginning of the Quaboag river, at the northwest corner of the lake. There is a wide, but shallow entrance to the river, which allows large amounts of water to flow when the lake is high. There is also one deep channel there which al-lows some flow from the lake even when the level is quite low. The ‘absolute’ level of the lake is reported variously as 596’ – 601’ above sea level. The QQLA uses the top of the flow barrier as the ‘ZERO Datum’ … this is ex-actly 599.5’ … and we refer to + levels or – levels. The level of the road above the barrier is about 608’. Federal flood insurance uses a statistic called the ‘100 year flood zone’ to mean that only once in one hundred years will the water reach this level [Technical definition: “a 1% chance of flood at this level”]. Their 100 year number for our lakes is 606’ [ +6.5’ ]. However, many of us can recall SEVERAL times when the lakes exceeded this level. Historic floods during the hurricanes of 1938 and 1955 have left marks on structures 3 - 6 feet above this level. (Please share any stories of these floods for inclusion in a future newsletter!)

The most recent ‘high water’ mark was in September, 2011 which occurred a week or two after hurricane Irene passed, there being heavy rains falling on ground already saturated by the hurricane. The height of that flood reached just above the “100 Year Level” by my reckoning. During that event water entered several lake front homes, and several roads were closed. There is no easy way to gauge the lake level accurately ‘from home’. Most prop-

erty owners have their own specific gauge, such as: “when the lake gets over that stump – look out!” Numerical readings can be taken with a quick visit to the flow barrier where there is a gauge on each side of the barrier (one for each pond). Note that these are graduated in ‘tenths of a foot’ rather than inches, this makes calculat-ing pond VOLUME easier in the units of ‘acre feet’.

When away from the lakes I use the US Geological Survey website to monitor the lake levels. There are two pertinent gauges that upload data in real time. The catch is neither are ON the lake. The best one is on the Quaboag river a few miles west (downstream). Higher lake level results in higher river levels and more flow. The other gauge is above the lake, on the 7-Mile River a few miles north-east, which helps monitor rainwater running into the lake system.

— Randy Weiss

Quaboag River: waterdata.usgs.gov/ma/nwis/uv?site_no=01176000 7-Mile River: waterdata.usgs.gov/ma/nwis/uv?site_no=01175670

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WINTER PHOTO CONTEST

The QQLA winter PHOTO CONTEST drew a total of 24 entries. The three—judge panel poured over the beautiful field of photos for quite a while, and have decided on the winners!

Check out the COLOR versions of the winners at our website.

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<< FIRST PLACE >>

Sunset Through

Trees

By

Barbara Klimavich

(Photo looking West

On South Pond)

<< SECOND PLACE >> “Ice Out”

By Doug Vizard

( southern end of South Pond )

<< THIRD PLACE >>

“Ice Boats”

By Randy Weiss

(North Pond Boat Launch—facing North)

<< NOTICE >> With Increasing Interest The QQLA will hold photo contests for each

season. As with the Winter contest, winners receive their choice of a QQLA Hat or Tee-

Shirt. Look for an E-Mail announcing the Spring / Summer contest –OR– check us out on

FaceBook to receive updates on this (and other ) QQLA.org activities.

MÂCHE Salad w/Blood Orange & Pistachio

. Mâche greens are a cold weather salad green akin to Tatsoi. Shaped somewhat like spinach,

with a leaf texture a bit ‘furry’. Mâche has a delicate flavor, which resembles a nutty, concen-

trated butterhead lettuce. It is also known as “lamb's lettuce”, “nut lettuce”, “fetticus” or

“rapunzel”. Grocery stores often carry 4oz packages.

== I N G R E D I E N T S ==

2 Tbs fresh blood orange juice (regular OJ if need be)

1 Tbs unseasoned rice vinegar (or any ‘light vinegar’)

1 Tbs minced shallot

½ tsp honey

3 Tbs pistachio oil

2 Blood oranges (or regular oranges)

1) 4oz package Mâche

¼ cup shelled natural pistachios, roasted

¼ cup pomegranate ‘cells’ or dried cranberries

Whisk orange juice, vinegar, shallot &

honey in small bowl. Gradually whisk in pistachio oil.

Season dressing to taste with salt and pepper.

Using small sharp knife, cut off peel, white pith from

oranges. Working over small bowl, cut between mem-

branes to release orange segments.

Divide mâche among 4 plates. Divide orange segments, pistachios & pomegranates among

plates. Drizzle dressing over salad and serve. —Recipe courtesy of Epicurious.com & M. Tasse

Sponsors and Friends of QQLA.org

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Sponsors and Friends of QQLA.org

QQLA SPONSORS/FRIENDS A “Friend and Sponsor” business would have a business card advertisement in the three (3) QQLA newsletters

that are sent out to 250 families around both North and South Ponds. Your business card will appear on our WW.QQLA.ORG website with a direct link to your business. The cost for

becoming a “Friend and Sponsor” is fifty dollars ($50.00) for one year. If you want to participate or have any questions please feel free to contact Randy Weiss:

♦ RanWiz@aol.com ♦ 781—608—6363 ♦ PAGE 9

Quaboag Quacumquasit Lake Association ♦ QQLA.org

Quaboag Quacumquasit Lake Association, Inc.

PO Box 370 East Brookfield, MA

GET YOUR QQLA.org GEAR HERE

T– Shirts … $12 to $15 Depending on size Colors: Gray / Teal / Moss Green / Orange Caps - - Baseball Hats w/ Logo … $15 One size fits all … adjustable back bands. QQLA Bumper Stickers … $3 ea … 2 for $5 See them in color on our website or facebook page.

To Order: email or call Marita Tasse ♦ Maritatasse@gmail.com ♦ 508-347-2464 ♦

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Find us on FACEBOOK—search for “QQLA”