JONESVILLE, La. (AP) - The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries has begun releasing water from Catahoula Lake to provide waterfowl habitat and as part of a management and research program to find ways to control trees in the lake.
If rain and runoff permit, the water level should fall from nearly 32 feet as of Friday to about 31 feet by the end of May and 27.5 feet by June 30, according to a news release sent Friday.
Catahoula Lake, in LaSalle Parish west of Jonesville, provides important wetland habitat for migrating waterfowl, shorebirds, and other wetland birds.
Leaving the water high all the time reduces productivity in wetland systems and may also let swamp privet and water elm trees spread, displacing plants that waterfowl like to eat, according to the department.
Lowering the water levels in summer exposes mudflats which are used extensively by migrating shorebirds of many species. It also stimulates germination and growth of plants that produce seeds and tubers eaten by migrating and wintering waterfowl.
State scientists and researchers at LSU’s School of Renewable Natural Resources are studying water elm and working to relate the encroachment of woody species to past environmental conditions. They’re also looking to see whether the early drawdowns this year and last work better or worse than later drawdowns during the previous two years.. They hope to develop a more comprehensive plan for managing the lake to maintain or improve habitat conditions for migratory waterfowl.
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