The ring of life

You know your lake is rich in living things – but the land immediately around it is, too, especially is it’s left natural versus being planted to lawn.

I heard an incredible presentation on this subject at the 2013 Wisconsin Lakes Convention in Green Bay. John Haack, natural resource educator with the University of Wisconsin Extension, talked about “Animal neighbors,” focusing on the 30-foot zone of land around a lakeshore.

Perhaps not coincidentally, 30 feet is with width of the so-called “no cut” zone where shoreland zoning laws and regulations say vegetation is not to be removed. The idea is to preserve the scenic value of the lakeshore as seen from the water, and to protect the abundance of near-shore life.

Haack’s presentation was full of insights about creatures “Cute, slimy, spooky and beautiful,” to use his words, that I had never heard of or did not closely associate with water. Cute? How about the water shrew, a tiny mammal actually able to run on the surface of the water and dive under it.

Slimy? Salamanders, which spend a major part of their lifecycle in water and emerge to make homes in moist places, like under fallen logs.

Spooky? Bats make their homes near the water, coming out at night to hunt for insects (and occasionally echo-locate their way into collisions with my fishing line or slip bobbers).

Beautiful? Loons, of course. They nest right at the water’s edge. And dragonflies qualify as beautiful, although some may put them in a “creepy” category. Next time you head down to your lake, give a moment’s thought to the 30-foot zone of life you pass through and make yourself a promise to take special care of it.