Madge Lake
Encyclopedia
Madge Lake is located in eastern Saskatchewan
, 18 km east of the town of Kamsack
and just a few kilometres west of the province's eastern boundary. It is centered near coordinates 51°40′ N, 101°38′ W. Road access to the lake is via Highway 57
, which passes by the south shore of Madge Lake as it connects Highway 5
to Manitoba Highway 83
.
Madge Lake is the largest body of water in Saskatchewan's Duck Mountain Provincial Park
. The lake measures approximately 5 km by 5 km for a total surface area of 21 square kilometres.
's central tourist attraction. Seasonal recreational activities in and around the lake include: fishing
, hunting
, hiking
, bicycling, swimming, boating
, water skiing
, alpine skiing
, cross country skiing, snowmobile
riding, horseback riding, tobagganing
, miniature golf
, and 18-hole golf
. The area also provides abundant wildlife viewing opportunities, especially in the immensely large local breeding flock of duck
s and other waterfowl
. Duck Mountain Lodge operates as a year-round resort hotel near the lake, and a large (summer) seasonal campground and rental cabins are also near its shores. Over 300 private vacation residences (cottages) can also be found around the lake. There are two public swimming beaches (Ministik Beach and Pickerel Point Beach) constructed with artificially supplied sand.
There are four species of game fish
in the lake; walleye
(locally known as pickerel), northern pike
(locally known as jackfish), yellow perch
and burbot
. The lake also has a large population of white sucker
s and many smaller fish species. Fish catches are augmented with the stocking of walleye
. However fishing pressure is high and catches remain moderate by local standards. The lake produces very few trophy fish. Few of the other smaller lakes and ponds that surround Madge Lake support fish populations because of winter dieoff, but Jackfish Lake, 500m south of Highway 57, has been stocked with rainbow trout
and tiger trout
and is aerated in winter to support the oxygen levels under the ice.
weekend (late May), and ends on Canadian Labour Day
weekend (early September). The lake is warm enough for comfortable swimming from early July to late August, although hardy souls may extend this season by several weeks. The spring and fall seasons (March and April, and October and November, respectively) are the quietest times on the lake, as neither summer (water) or winter (snow) recreational activities are practical in those seasons.
Also of concern is the lake's fluctuating water level, which had dropped by more than a metre between the early 1960s and the late 1970s. The lake, being located on a rise of land, has a very small cachement area and so its level is very susceptible to variations in annual rainfall. The lake is also relatively shallow with a largely flat bottom, making even a small change in water level noticeable at the lakeshore. The shoreline had become disagreeably mucky as a result of the decline in water level. And an outlet stream draining the lake to the north ceased flowing in the early 1970s, increasing concerns of eutrophication
and stagnation of the lake water. However, the lake had by the late 1990s risen again by some 60 cm from its lowest levels of the late 1970s. While welcome, this rise drowned many young trees along the water edge, particularly on the north shore which became clothed in dead saplings. Emergent marsh plants (notably Scirpus
, Typha
, and Phragmites
) had also overtaken much shore line with the resubmergence of formerly dry lake bottom. The water level dropped again during the very dry year of 2000, but has since risen again, and had reached very high levels following the very wet summer of 2010 and snowy winter of 2010/2011. Some recreational facilities, such as the boat launch facility on the lake's north-east corner, have been rendered inaccessible by the high water levels, and very little visible beach sand remains at the Pickerel Point or Ministik swimming areas.
The variable water level has also caused other recent changes to the lake. At the time of lowest water level in the late 1970s, the lake's largest island, Spruce Island, was connected by dry land to the mainland, and a large gravel bar in the lake's north basin was exposed. Now, however, the land corridor to Spruce Island is bisected by a stretch of marsh
. The gravel bar has similarly been resubmerged, becoming a hazard to boating
and unfortunately extirpating the colony of common tern
s and herring gulls
that bred there. These two species are no longer commonly seen on the lake now that their breeding site has drowned, but the recent rise in water level is to the apparent benefit of the lake's common loon, red-necked grebe
, and beaver
populations. Ducks are also thriving in the stretches of now-flooded shoreline. And fish catches have improved markedly since the low water days of the late 1970s.
remains fairly isolated even at its current water level. However, a series of ponds and a heavily beaver-dammed creek allows the slow, largely seasonal, drainage of its waters to the north despite the current lack of an obvious drainage outlet. Lake water eventually enters Bear Head Lake at the north-eastern corner of Duck Mountain Provincial Park. Bear Head Lake is then in turn drained by Bear Head Creek, which continues north-east, crossing the Manitoba boundary, to join the Swan River on its journey to Swan Lake. Madge Lake is therefore part of the Swan River drainage basin
, rather than the watershed
of the nearby Assiniboine River
.
The lake water is only very slightly eutrophic (and so can be described as mesotophic), and is also moderately hard and alkaline, with a limestone
-buffered
pH
of about 8.2. The water clarity in summer is limited by phytoplankton
growth and wave-agitation of the calcareous
clay
bottom. A Secchi disk depth of as little as 1 metre is not uncommon after windy days. Water quality, however, is still considered to be good, and in fact, among the best in Saskatchewan's parks.
. White spruce
and balsam fir
are now the dominant tree species on the shores of the lake. The lakeshore population of paper birch
and trembling aspen
is in decline, and deciduous
trees are now fairly inconspicuous except in isolated pockets. This is a fairly recent development, as the deciduous
trees that sprouted after the fires only started dying off in numbers in the 1980s. Before this time, the lake shore forest was dominated by deciduous trees. Therefore, for much of the 20th century, Spruce Island (which had escaped the fires) had a conspicuous evergreen
forest in contrast to the younger deciduous forest of the surrounding shore, and thus the island received its name. However, the aging of the lakeshore forest means Spruce Island's forest is no longer visually distinctive.
species include walleye
, yellow perch
, northern pike
, burbot
and white sucker
.
Saskatchewan
Saskatchewan is a prairie province in Canada, which has an area of . Saskatchewan is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dakota....
, 18 km east of the town of Kamsack
Kamsack
-External links:* * in Encyclopedia of Saskatchewan*...
and just a few kilometres west of the province's eastern boundary. It is centered near coordinates 51°40′ N, 101°38′ W. Road access to the lake is via Highway 57
Saskatchewan Highway 57
Highway 57 is a highway in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It runs from Highway 5 east of Kamsack to the Manitoba border, where it transitions into PTH 57...
, which passes by the south shore of Madge Lake as it connects Highway 5
Saskatchewan Highway 5
This article focuses on the current designated Saskatchewan Highway 5, for Provincial Highway 5, Evergreen route portion, north west of Saskatoon see Saskatchewan Highway 16....
to Manitoba Highway 83
Manitoba Highway 83
Provincial Trunk Highway 83 is a major north-south highway that runs in the far western region of the Canadian province of Manitoba. It travels from the North Dakota border south of Melita, north through Virden, Birtle, Russell, and Roblin to its northern terminus with PTH 10 just east of Swan River...
.
Madge Lake is the largest body of water in Saskatchewan's Duck Mountain Provincial Park
Duck Mountain Provincial Park (Saskatchewan)
Duck Mountain Provincial Park is a Saskatchewan Provincial Park, located 14 km east of the town of Kamsack and stretches some 12 kilometres eastward to the Saskatchewan/Manitoba boundary. It is centered near coordinates 51° 41′N, 101° 38′W...
. The lake measures approximately 5 km by 5 km for a total surface area of 21 square kilometres.
Recreational Opportunities
Madge Lake serves as Duck Mountain Provincial ParkDuck Mountain Provincial Park (Saskatchewan)
Duck Mountain Provincial Park is a Saskatchewan Provincial Park, located 14 km east of the town of Kamsack and stretches some 12 kilometres eastward to the Saskatchewan/Manitoba boundary. It is centered near coordinates 51° 41′N, 101° 38′W...
's central tourist attraction. Seasonal recreational activities in and around the lake include: fishing
Fishing
Fishing is the activity of trying to catch wild fish. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping....
, hunting
Hunting
Hunting is the practice of pursuing any living thing, usually wildlife, for food, recreation, or trade. In present-day use, the term refers to lawful hunting, as distinguished from poaching, which is the killing, trapping or capture of the hunted species contrary to applicable law...
, hiking
Hiking
Hiking is an outdoor activity which consists of walking in natural environments, often in mountainous or other scenic terrain. People often hike on hiking trails. It is such a popular activity that there are numerous hiking organizations worldwide. The health benefits of different types of hiking...
, bicycling, swimming, boating
Boating
Boating is the leisurely activity of travelling by boat, or the recreational use of a boat whether powerboats, sailboats, or man-powered vessels , focused on the travel itself, as well as sports activities, such as fishing or water skiing...
, water skiing
Water skiing
thumb|right|A slalom skier making a turn on a slalom waterski.Waterskiing is a sport where an individual is pulled behind a boat or a cable ski installation on a body of water, skimming the surface.-History:...
, alpine skiing
Alpine skiing
Alpine skiing is the sport of sliding down snow-covered hills on skis with fixed-heel bindings. Alpine skiing can be contrasted with skiing using free-heel bindings: Ski mountaineering and nordic skiing – such as cross-country; ski jumping; and Telemark. In competitive alpine skiing races four...
, cross country skiing, snowmobile
Snowmobile
A snowmobile, also known in some places as a snowmachine, or sled,is a land vehicle for winter travel on snow. Designed to be operated on snow and ice, they require no road or trail. Design variations enable some machines to operate in deep snow or forests; most are used on open terrain, including...
riding, horseback riding, tobagganing
Toboggan
A toboggan is a simple sled which is a traditional form of transport used by the Innu and Cree of northern Canada. In modern times, it is used on snow to carry one or more people down a hill or other slope for recreation. Designs vary from simple, traditional models to modern engineered composites...
, miniature golf
Miniature golf
Miniature golf, or minigolf, is a miniature version of the sport of golf. While the international sports organization World Minigolf Sport Federation prefers to use the name "minigolf", the general public in different countries has also many other names for the game: miniature golf, mini-golf,...
, and 18-hole golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
. The area also provides abundant wildlife viewing opportunities, especially in the immensely large local breeding flock of duck
Duck
Duck is the common name for a large number of species in the Anatidae family of birds, which also includes swans and geese. The ducks are divided among several subfamilies in the Anatidae family; they do not represent a monophyletic group but a form taxon, since swans and geese are not considered...
s and other waterfowl
Waterfowl
Waterfowl are certain wildfowl of the order Anseriformes, especially members of the family Anatidae, which includes ducks, geese, and swans....
. Duck Mountain Lodge operates as a year-round resort hotel near the lake, and a large (summer) seasonal campground and rental cabins are also near its shores. Over 300 private vacation residences (cottages) can also be found around the lake. There are two public swimming beaches (Ministik Beach and Pickerel Point Beach) constructed with artificially supplied sand.
There are four species of game fish
Game fish
Game fish are fish pursued for sport by recreational anglers. They can be freshwater or marine fish. Game fish can be eaten after being caught, though increasingly anglers practise catch and release to improve fish populations. Some game fish are also targeted commercially, particularly...
in the lake; walleye
Walleye
Walleye is a freshwater perciform fish native to most of Canada and to the northern United States. It is a North American close relative of the European pikeperch...
(locally known as pickerel), northern pike
Northern Pike
The northern pike , is a species of carnivorous fish of the genus Esox...
(locally known as jackfish), yellow perch
Yellow perch
The yellow perch is a species of perch found in the United States and Canada, where it is often referred to by the shortform perch. Yellow perch look similar to the European perch, but are paler and more yellowish, with less red in the fins. They have six to eight dark, vertical bars on their sides...
and burbot
Burbot
The burbot is the only gadiform fish inhabiting freshwaters. It is also known as mariah, the lawyer, and eelpout. It is closely related to the marine common ling and the cusk...
. The lake also has a large population of white sucker
White Sucker
The White Sucker is a bottom-feeding freshwater fish inhabiting North America from Labrador in the north to Georgia and New Mexico in the south. It is a long, round-bodied fish with a dark green, grey, copper, brown, or black back and sides and a light underbelly. When fullgrown, it is between 12...
s and many smaller fish species. Fish catches are augmented with the stocking of walleye
Walleye
Walleye is a freshwater perciform fish native to most of Canada and to the northern United States. It is a North American close relative of the European pikeperch...
. However fishing pressure is high and catches remain moderate by local standards. The lake produces very few trophy fish. Few of the other smaller lakes and ponds that surround Madge Lake support fish populations because of winter dieoff, but Jackfish Lake, 500m south of Highway 57, has been stocked with rainbow trout
Rainbow trout
The rainbow trout is a species of salmonid native to tributaries of the Pacific Ocean in Asia and North America. The steelhead is a sea run rainbow trout usually returning to freshwater to spawn after 2 to 3 years at sea. In other words, rainbow trout and steelhead trout are the same species....
and tiger trout
Tiger trout
The tiger trout is a sterile, intergeneric hybrid of the brown trout and the brook trout . The name derives from the pronounced vermiculations, evoking the stripes of a tiger. It is a rare phenomenon in the wild, with the brook trout having 84 chromosomes and the brown trout 80...
and is aerated in winter to support the oxygen levels under the ice.
Climate
The climate of eastern Saskatchewan features extreme seasonal variation, with winter temperatures below −30 °C and summer temperatures above +30 °C not uncommon. The lake therefore has very distinct seasons. It is ice covered in winter, usually from mid November to mid April. And the ice is thick enough to walk on, snowmobile on, and even drive vehicles on, from mid December to early March. During this winter season, snowmobile riding and ice fishing are primary recreations on the lake, while the surrounding park has facilities for both downhill and cross country skiing. Approximately 70 cm of snow accumulates in the area through the winter, slowly building depth until it begins to actively melt in spring, usually from early March through to early April. The lake itself is however usually not completely clear of ice until early May. The "summer season" traditionally starts on Victoria DayVictoria Day
Victoria Day is a federal Canadian public holiday celebrated on the last Monday before May 25, in honour of Queen Victoria's birthday. The date is also, simultaneously, that on which the current reigning Canadian sovereign's official birthday is recognized...
weekend (late May), and ends on Canadian Labour Day
Labour Day
Labour Day or Labor Day is an annual holiday to celebrate the economic and social achievements of workers. Labour Day has its origins in the labour union movement, specifically the eight-hour day movement, which advocated eight hours for work, eight hours for recreation, and eight hours for...
weekend (early September). The lake is warm enough for comfortable swimming from early July to late August, although hardy souls may extend this season by several weeks. The spring and fall seasons (March and April, and October and November, respectively) are the quietest times on the lake, as neither summer (water) or winter (snow) recreational activities are practical in those seasons.
Environmental Concerns
The large amount of tourism development around the lake is the cause of growing environmental concern. Winter-time use of the park has especially increased with the development of the year-round lodge. The lake simply isn't as quiet as it used to be. The lake is now regarded as having reached its development potential and there exists considerable opposition to further development. Some proposed development projects - such as the increase in the number of cottages in Benito subdivision - have been shelved, and probably abandoned.Also of concern is the lake's fluctuating water level, which had dropped by more than a metre between the early 1960s and the late 1970s. The lake, being located on a rise of land, has a very small cachement area and so its level is very susceptible to variations in annual rainfall. The lake is also relatively shallow with a largely flat bottom, making even a small change in water level noticeable at the lakeshore. The shoreline had become disagreeably mucky as a result of the decline in water level. And an outlet stream draining the lake to the north ceased flowing in the early 1970s, increasing concerns of eutrophication
Eutrophication
Eutrophication or more precisely hypertrophication, is the movement of a body of water′s trophic status in the direction of increasing plant biomass, by the addition of artificial or natural substances, such as nitrates and phosphates, through fertilizers or sewage, to an aquatic system...
and stagnation of the lake water. However, the lake had by the late 1990s risen again by some 60 cm from its lowest levels of the late 1970s. While welcome, this rise drowned many young trees along the water edge, particularly on the north shore which became clothed in dead saplings. Emergent marsh plants (notably Scirpus
Scirpus
The plant genus Scirpus consists of a large number of aquatic, grass-like species in the family Cyperaceae , many with the common names club-rush or bulrush . Other common names are deergrass or grassweed.The genus has a cosmopolitan distribution, and grows in wetlands and moist soil...
, Typha
Typha
Typha is a genus of about eleven species of monocotyledonous flowering plants in the family Typhaceae. The genus has a largely Northern Hemisphere distribution, but is essentially cosmopolitan, being found in a variety of wetland habitats...
, and Phragmites
Phragmites
Phragmites, the Common reed, is a large perennial grass found in wetlands throughout temperate and tropical regions of the world. Phragmites australis is sometimes regarded as the sole species of the genus Phragmites, though some botanists divide Phragmites australis into three or four species...
) had also overtaken much shore line with the resubmergence of formerly dry lake bottom. The water level dropped again during the very dry year of 2000, but has since risen again, and had reached very high levels following the very wet summer of 2010 and snowy winter of 2010/2011. Some recreational facilities, such as the boat launch facility on the lake's north-east corner, have been rendered inaccessible by the high water levels, and very little visible beach sand remains at the Pickerel Point or Ministik swimming areas.
The variable water level has also caused other recent changes to the lake. At the time of lowest water level in the late 1970s, the lake's largest island, Spruce Island, was connected by dry land to the mainland, and a large gravel bar in the lake's north basin was exposed. Now, however, the land corridor to Spruce Island is bisected by a stretch of marsh
Marsh
In geography, a marsh, or morass, is a type of wetland that is subject to frequent or continuous flood. Typically the water is shallow and features grasses, rushes, reeds, typhas, sedges, other herbaceous plants, and moss....
. The gravel bar has similarly been resubmerged, becoming a hazard to boating
Boating
Boating is the leisurely activity of travelling by boat, or the recreational use of a boat whether powerboats, sailboats, or man-powered vessels , focused on the travel itself, as well as sports activities, such as fishing or water skiing...
and unfortunately extirpating the colony of common tern
Common Tern
The Common Tern is a seabird of the tern family Sternidae. This bird has a circumpolar distribution, breeding in temperate and sub-Arctic regions of Europe, Asia and east and central North America. It is strongly migratory, wintering in coastal tropical and subtropical regions. It is sometimes...
s and herring gulls
American Herring Gull
The American Herring Gull or Smithsonian Gull is a large gull which breeds in North America. It is often treated as a subspecies of the European Herring Gull but is now regarded as a separate species by some authorities.Adults are white with gray back and wings, black wingtips with white spots,...
that bred there. These two species are no longer commonly seen on the lake now that their breeding site has drowned, but the recent rise in water level is to the apparent benefit of the lake's common loon, red-necked grebe
Red-necked Grebe
The Red-necked Grebe is a migratory aquatic bird found in the temperate regions of the northern hemisphere. Its wintering habitat is largely restricted to calm waters just beyond the waves around ocean coasts, although some birds may winter on large lakes...
, and beaver
Beaver
The beaver is a primarily nocturnal, large, semi-aquatic rodent. Castor includes two extant species, North American Beaver and Eurasian Beaver . Beavers are known for building dams, canals, and lodges . They are the second-largest rodent in the world...
populations. Ducks are also thriving in the stretches of now-flooded shoreline. And fish catches have improved markedly since the low water days of the late 1970s.
Hydrology
Madge Lake's hydrologyHydrology
Hydrology is the study of the movement, distribution, and quality of water on Earth and other planets, including the hydrologic cycle, water resources and environmental watershed sustainability...
remains fairly isolated even at its current water level. However, a series of ponds and a heavily beaver-dammed creek allows the slow, largely seasonal, drainage of its waters to the north despite the current lack of an obvious drainage outlet. Lake water eventually enters Bear Head Lake at the north-eastern corner of Duck Mountain Provincial Park. Bear Head Lake is then in turn drained by Bear Head Creek, which continues north-east, crossing the Manitoba boundary, to join the Swan River on its journey to Swan Lake. Madge Lake is therefore part of the Swan River drainage basin
Drainage basin
A drainage basin is an extent or an area of land where surface water from rain and melting snow or ice converges to a single point, usually the exit of the basin, where the waters join another waterbody, such as a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, sea, or ocean...
, rather than the watershed
Drainage basin
A drainage basin is an extent or an area of land where surface water from rain and melting snow or ice converges to a single point, usually the exit of the basin, where the waters join another waterbody, such as a river, lake, reservoir, estuary, wetland, sea, or ocean...
of the nearby Assiniboine River
Assiniboine River
The Assiniboine River is a river that runs through the prairies of Western Canada in Saskatchewan and Manitoba. It is a tributary of the Red River. The Assiniboine is a typical meandering river with a single main channel embanked within a flat, shallow valley in some places and a steep valley in...
.
The lake water is only very slightly eutrophic (and so can be described as mesotophic), and is also moderately hard and alkaline, with a limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
-buffered
Buffering agent
A buffering agent is a weak acid or base used to maintain the acidity of a solution at a chosen value. The function of a buffering agent is to prevent a rapid change in pH when acids or bases are added to the solution. Buffering agents have variable properties—some are more soluble than others;...
pH
PH
In chemistry, pH is a measure of the acidity or basicity of an aqueous solution. Pure water is said to be neutral, with a pH close to 7.0 at . Solutions with a pH less than 7 are said to be acidic and solutions with a pH greater than 7 are basic or alkaline...
of about 8.2. The water clarity in summer is limited by phytoplankton
Phytoplankton
Phytoplankton are the autotrophic component of the plankton community. The name comes from the Greek words φυτόν , meaning "plant", and πλαγκτός , meaning "wanderer" or "drifter". Most phytoplankton are too small to be individually seen with the unaided eye...
growth and wave-agitation of the calcareous
Calcareous
Calcareous is an adjective meaning mostly or partly composed of calcium carbonate, in other words, containing lime or being chalky. The term is used in a wide variety of scientific disciplines.-In zoology:...
clay
Clay
Clay is a general term including many combinations of one or more clay minerals with traces of metal oxides and organic matter. Geologic clay deposits are mostly composed of phyllosilicate minerals containing variable amounts of water trapped in the mineral structure.- Formation :Clay minerals...
bottom. A Secchi disk depth of as little as 1 metre is not uncommon after windy days. Water quality, however, is still considered to be good, and in fact, among the best in Saskatchewan's parks.
Surrounding Forest
The forest immediately surrounding the lake was last burned over in the mid 1800s, and so is now well over 100 years old and approaching climaxOld growth forest
An old-growth forest is a forest that has attained great age , and thereby exhibits unique ecological features. An old growth forest has also usually reached a climax community...
. White spruce
White Spruce
Picea glauca is a species of spruce native to boreal forests in the north of North America, from central Alaska east to Newfoundland, and south to northern Montana, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, upstate New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine; there is also an isolated population in the...
and balsam fir
Balsam Fir
The balsam fir is a North American fir, native to most of eastern and central Canada and the northeastern United States .-Growth:It is a small to medium-size evergreen tree typically tall, rarely to tall, with a narrow conic crown...
are now the dominant tree species on the shores of the lake. The lakeshore population of paper birch
Paper Birch
Betula papyrifera is a species of birch native to northern North America.-Description:...
and trembling aspen
Populus tremuloides
Populus tremuloides is a deciduous tree native to cooler areas of North America, commonly called quaking aspen, trembling aspen, American aspen, and Quakies,. The trees have tall trunks, up to 25 metres, with smooth pale bark, scarred with black. The glossy green leaves, dull beneath, become golden...
is in decline, and deciduous
Deciduous
Deciduous means "falling off at maturity" or "tending to fall off", and is typically used in reference to trees or shrubs that lose their leaves seasonally, and to the shedding of other plant structures such as petals after flowering or fruit when ripe...
trees are now fairly inconspicuous except in isolated pockets. This is a fairly recent development, as the deciduous
Deciduous
Deciduous means "falling off at maturity" or "tending to fall off", and is typically used in reference to trees or shrubs that lose their leaves seasonally, and to the shedding of other plant structures such as petals after flowering or fruit when ripe...
trees that sprouted after the fires only started dying off in numbers in the 1980s. Before this time, the lake shore forest was dominated by deciduous trees. Therefore, for much of the 20th century, Spruce Island (which had escaped the fires) had a conspicuous evergreen
Evergreen
In botany, an evergreen plant is a plant that has leaves in all seasons. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which completely lose their foliage during the winter or dry season.There are many different kinds of evergreen plants, both trees and shrubs...
forest in contrast to the younger deciduous forest of the surrounding shore, and thus the island received its name. However, the aging of the lakeshore forest means Spruce Island's forest is no longer visually distinctive.
Fish species
FishFish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
species include walleye
Walleye
Walleye is a freshwater perciform fish native to most of Canada and to the northern United States. It is a North American close relative of the European pikeperch...
, yellow perch
Yellow perch
The yellow perch is a species of perch found in the United States and Canada, where it is often referred to by the shortform perch. Yellow perch look similar to the European perch, but are paler and more yellowish, with less red in the fins. They have six to eight dark, vertical bars on their sides...
, northern pike
Northern Pike
The northern pike , is a species of carnivorous fish of the genus Esox...
, burbot
Burbot
The burbot is the only gadiform fish inhabiting freshwaters. It is also known as mariah, the lawyer, and eelpout. It is closely related to the marine common ling and the cusk...
and white sucker
White Sucker
The White Sucker is a bottom-feeding freshwater fish inhabiting North America from Labrador in the north to Georgia and New Mexico in the south. It is a long, round-bodied fish with a dark green, grey, copper, brown, or black back and sides and a light underbelly. When fullgrown, it is between 12...
.