Volume LXXV~ June 2024

Lake Sunapee Protective Association

Devoted to the Environmental Quality of the Lake Sunapee Watershed

A Flash Of The Beacon

Welcome to A Flash of the Beacon!

A quick look at what's happening

at the Center for Lake Studies,

highlights of current news and events,

plus what's going on outside in nature.

Photo by Midge Eliassen

Harbor Happenings ~

Summertime is finally upon us! This marks the start of LSPA’s “busy” season. Lake Hosts started their shifts on May 17th and LSPA’s interns started on May 28th. As Sunapee Harbor springs back to life, bustling with activity and boats returning to the water, there's no better time to get involved with LSPA. Whether you're a longtime member or a newcomer, there are countless ways to make a difference and share in our mission of protecting and preserving the Lake Sunapee Watershed for future generations.

Become a member: Membership donations fund the majority of LSPA's work.
Donate: Support our initiatives financially to help us continue our important work.
Visit us: The Center for Lake Studies is open Monday- Friday 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM.
Join us: Attend our events and bring a friend.
Volunteer: We always need helping hands whether it's at the Center for Lake Studies or on the water.
Spread the word: Share LSPA's mission, so we can continue our stewardship for generations to come.

Check out the Events Page on our website and follow us on social media for the latest updates and event announcements. We're excited about what's ahead and hope you are, too!

May Events Recap ~

Gardens as Links to Conserving Future Landscapes

On May 14th, Executive Director, Elizabeth Harper, stepped in as a presenter for the “Gardens as Links to Conserving Future Landscapes" program. The topics covered included: creating gardens that can adapt to changing climate and weather patterns, the value of using native, non invasive plant varieties in our landscape, planting to support biodiversity and how to create areas that create wildlife corridors. Prior to the event, LSPA staff and the Sunapee Gardeners gave a tour of LSPA’s grounds focusing on the rain garden and “Ellie’s Garden”, a joint project between LSPA and the Sunapee Gardeners to honor Ellie Goddard. You can see Elizabeth's presentation slides here along with links to additional resources.

Calls and Songs of Familiar Backyard Birds

Sue Venable, naturalist and long-time LSPA member, delivered a wonderful and very well attended presentation about the calls and songs of familiar backyard birds on May 29th. The presentation included audience participation along with pictures of familiar backyard birds found throughout the United States. The audience learned the calls and songs of many species of birds and stories about sightings were shared. If you want to learn how to recognize the calls of NH birds, try the Cornell Lab of Ornithology's Merlin app.

Join Us for Our Upcoming June Event ~

Why Fish Need Forests

Tuesday, June 18

7:00 PM

LSPA Center for Lake Studies (map)

Join LSPA and presenter Jared Lamy, Fish Habitat Biologist with NH Fish and Game to find out why fish need forests. In this presentation, Jared will discuss aspects of Brook Trout habitat requirements and what NH Fish and Game is doing to protect these habitats to ensure Brook Trout are present long into the future. Click here to register for this event.

Legislative News ~

A huge thanks to all of you who reached out to your representatives in support of reasonable regulations for wake sports on our lakes. Unfortunately, the last of the three wake sport bills in this legislative session died on Thursday May 30th. The NH Senate voted to non-concur with the amended version of Senate Bill 431 which would have extended the setback for wake sports from 150 ft. to 300 ft. This means that the setback for wake surfing will remain at the current 150 ft.

Although the regulations will not change this year, we can all help to promote the importance of responsible wake surfing. Wake sports can be conducted safely and responsibly, but they can also result in unintended negative impacts to our lakes when they take place too close to shorelines or in shallow waters.

LSPA advocates for responsible wakesurfing that minimizes impacts to water quality and lake ecosystems. The best available science supports the following recommendations:

1) Stay at least 500 ft. from shore when wakesurfing. A distance of 1000 ft. is preferable to minimize shoreline erosion.

2) Only engage in wakesports in deep water. A minimum depth of 20 ft. is necessary to avoid uprooting plants and stirring up sediment. This is vital to maintaining fish habitat and reducing the likelihood of toxic cyanobacteria blooms.

3) Keep your boat on a 'home lake' for the season rather than moving between lakes. This reduces the chance of introducing invasive species such as spiny water flea, which can disrupt lake ecosystems.

You can find more information about the impacts of wake sports here on our website.

Cyanobacteria Threatens New Hampshire’s Iconic Lakes. Two Bills Could Help Address the Problem.

The president of NH LAKES and a N.H. state senator say warmer winters show the need for New Hampshire’s business and tourism leadership to start advocating for solutions on climate change.

New Hampshire’s lakes are iconic and pristine, a draw for thousands of visitors, a place to swim, fish and skate, and an economic underpinning for inns, restaurants, marinas and whole communities.

But there’s a growing threat to these treasures: This past winter’s warm temperatures, scarce lake ice, heavy rains and muddy runoff have laid the foundation for a potential fifth consecutive year of record-setting bacteria growth in our ponds and lakes. Cyanobacteria produce toxins that can cause short-term health problems like throat, nose and eye irritation, and long-term exposure has been linked to kidney, liver and central nervous system damage. Once a bloom is in place, people and pets need to stay out of the water.

Since 2003, more than 100 bodies of water in New Hampshire have been affected, last year a record 69 public health advisories were issued for blooms at 47 lakes and ponds. The blooms — usually blue-green but sometimes yellow or even black — thrive on warm water, and they feed on nutrients like phosphorus that are washed into lakes and ponds by heavy rains. In other words, cyanobacteria’s prevalence can be linked to the warm winters, higher lake temperatures and torrential storms brought about by climate change in New Hampshire.

Passage of two bills in front of the New Hampshire Legislature now can help us at least slow the escalation of cyanobacteria.

Click here to read the full OpEd article in the Boston Globe written by David Watters and Andrea LaMoreaux.

New Interns, New Start to Summer 2024 Water Quality Sampling ~

LSPA's 2024 interns started on May 28th. They dove straight into work with training on tributary water sampling on their first day and deep site sampling on Lake Sunapee their second day. The Interns are quickly learning the water quality sampling protocol and equipment use.

Water Quality Volunteer Needed! ~

LSPA is in need of a volunteer to collect samples in Lake Sunapee near Burkehaven on a monthly basis between June and September. You will need access to a boat to take transparency measurements and collect samples which will need to be dropped off at the LSPA Water Quality Lab located on the Colby-Sawyer College (CSC) campus. Please contact Watershed Director, Geoff Lizotte (geoff@lakesunapee.org), if this is of interest to you. LSPA will loan you equipment and provide training and support.

Loon Updates ~

In mid-May, trail cams were installed on two of our loon rafts by Ashley Keenan, Field Program Coordinator with the Loon Preservation Committee. These cameras will take a picture every 3 minutes or when motion-activated. Check out the cool photos one of the cameras captured recently of the loon pair visiting the raft. The banded loon is the female member of the pair and was banded on Lake Sunapee in 2019.

A few days after these pictures were taken, we confirmed there is at least one egg in the nest! The male and female will take turns incubating the egg(s) for approximately 28 days.

The peak of nest initiation for loons in New Hampshire is usually the first week of June so we hope to see more loon pairs establishing a nest in the next week to ten days. We will keep you posted! Please remember to stay at least 150 feet away from loons.

Invasive Species Prevention ~

On May 10th, LSPA staff member Susie Burbidge and Aquatic Invasive Species Committee Chair Dave Beardsley paddled with weed watchers on Otter Pond to look for any signs of the aquatic invasive curly-leaf pondweed which was discovered in Baptist Pond last summer (Baptist Pond flows into Otter Pond which then flows into Lake Sunapee). They paddled to the inlet as that would be the most likely place for the invasive plant to establish first if it traveled downstream from Baptist Pond. The group is happy to report that they did not see any evidence of curly-leaf pondweed that day but volunteers on Otter Pond will continue to keep a close watch. Learn more about invasive species prevention here.

LSPA Education ~

LSPA environmental educators have had a very busy month providing educational programs for area school groups in classrooms, out in the field, and at The Center for Lake Studies. The month of May began with the KRES 4th grades in New London performing The Glacier Play for their school and families. The focus of the play was on the development of the Lake Sunapee Watershed and the steps each of us can take to keep it a healthy, vibrant, balanced ecosystem where all can live and enjoy.

The Trout-in-the-Classroom schools each released their baby trout into local rivers and streams assigned by NH Fish and Game. These specific sites are chosen so that the tank raised trout don’t interfere with the native brook trout populations. Students enjoyed exploring the streams and rivers identifying the important traits of the healthy habitat release sites and looking for other fish. Brook trout are an indicator species, so finding other brook trout let them know that the stream or river they were on had good, cold, moving water.

Kearsarge Regional School District 5th grade students attended Camp Coniston for two days. During that time, LSPA educator Nancy Heckel met with small groups teaching about benthic bugs and macroinvertebrates and which are indicator species of a healthy stream. Kathleen Stowell, Education Director, investigated bog plant life and the unique water absorbing properties of a bog habitat.

LSPA was invited to spend the day with area 4th graders at a School to Farm Day event with the Sullivan County Conservation District. Nancy spent the day teaching about the critical impact clean water has on our farms, food, and environment.

The Richards School’s 4th graders visited The Fells for the first time. LSPA educators guided exploration through three main watershed habitats located there: the meadows, the forest, and the streams. Students were assigned to study specific scientific plots designed to focus on the details within each area. The Fells is a treasure of natural lake shoreline habitats and the students observed, identified and marveled at a wide variety of wildlife.

2nd graders from KRES New London came to the Center for Lake Studies to learn about how water moves through our landscape and the impacts of erosion. Students spent the day studying the area watershed, observing the headwater of the Sugar River, where water flows, and how aquatic habitats are connected. At the start of each of our programs, we ask students to learn something new that day. One student, in his thank you note, wrote, “I learned that the confluence is where a bunch of rivers meet up.”

The culminating program with the 1st Grade from Richards School in Newport was at the Center for Lake Studies. All year long LSPA educators have been going into their classrooms to teach all about New Hampshire animals, their habitats and adaptations. Their visit at the Center focused on loons and bats, migration, their habitats.

And yesterday we met with Mount Royal’s 5th grade class to investigate macroinvertebrates and benthic bugs, plus the varying ways that water moves through the water cycle.

Amidst all the May programs, our monthly visits with Mount Royal 1st and 2nd grades, area preschools, New London Outing Club afterschool program, and Sutton School wrapped up for the school year. This month alone LSPA educators met with over 800 students and 290 adults.

Nature Exploration Story Time (NEST)

Tuesdays, June 4 & June 11*

10:00 AM

Come join LSPA environmental educators for nature themed activities on Tuesday, June 4 & June 11 at LSPA’s Center for Lake Studies. Each Tuesday will offer a different theme and include a story, activities, a craft, and exploration. These programs are designed for young children and their caregivers. They are free and open to all! We look forward to welcoming you in the Discovery Room, a room full of fun ways to investigate the out of doors. In June we will explore Sparkling Rivers and Water, Water Everywhere! We look forward to seeing you!

*We are taking a short break from our NEST programs after June 11 but they will resume on Tuesday, July 9.

National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) Long Island Sound Futures Fund Grant ~

LSPA submitted an application for the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) Long Island Sound Futures Fund grant in May and awards will be decided by November 2024. LSPA’s proposal focused on the Sunapee Harbor Reduction Project which aims to reduce nutrient and sediment loading in Sunapee Harbor, benefitting aquatic habitats and improving water quality in Lake Sunapee and downstream waterways. Through community engagement, site assessments, and conceptual design of stormwater best management practices (BMPs), a plan will be developed to reduce nitrogen loading by an estimated 35 pounds per year (a 40% reduction in pre-BMP load). This plan once implemented will reduce nitrogen and other nutrients thereby contributing to the improvement of the water quality of the Long Island Sound.

Thank you to Blodgett Landing Cottage Owner's Association ~

Kudos to Blodgett Greenthumbs participants, Mary Lee Schott, John Schott, Brad Nichols, Anne Nichols, Nancy Hilton, Bruce MacKenzie, Jim Duffy, Molly Duffy Jackie Duffy and Ali Duffy. These members of the Blodgett Landing Cottage Owner's Association worked hard over the Memorial Day weekend, planting eight blueberry bushes donated by Peter Schiess. These bushes, planted along the lakeshore, are a great way to reduce erosion and improve water quality. Actions like this throughout our watershed benefit everyone who enjoy Lake Sunapee's beautiful waters.

Photo by Kara Obey, Cottage Owner Association President since 1998.

Watershed Wise ~

Have you ever wondered what you can do on your own property to help protect water quality? Your landscaping choices can have a big impact. LSPA’s Watershed Wise Program helps property owners to identify changes that can be made, such as additional plantings near the water’s edge, to improve the water quality of streams, lakes and ponds within the Lake Sunapee Watershed.

LSPA staff provide a free evaluation and consultation. Owners of properties that meet the Watershed Wise criteria are awarded a plaque to display on their property. Owners of properties that don’t yet meet the criteria are provided with detailed recommendations about improvements that can be made.

The water quality of our lakes depends on the decisions and actions of individuals like you. Click here to become a Watershed Wise Partner in 2024.

Caring for Our Watershed ~

Let’s Be Clear!

The chemicals in herbicides, pesticides, and insecticides are harmful to people, pets and wildlife. Look for safe alternatives or use integrated pest management practices which can minimize the environmental harm and risk. Rodenticides can maim or kill non-targeted wildlife and pets that eat poisoned bait or ingest poisoned rodents such as owls, hawks and foxes. Rodenticides can also contaminate ground and surface waters when harmful chemicals get released from animals that die and decompose outside. Chemicals applied on your property for mosquito and tick control are very harmful to birds, frogs and pollinators critical in our food production. Insecticides that wash into the lake’s water systems kill the aquatic bugs that are a key component to the food chain for fish and a host of other animals. To reduce your environmental impact, wear pants, long sleeves, nets and/or apply repellents to your clothing instead of spraying your yard. Consider other non-toxic pest control methods safe for wildlife and water. Click here to learn more about these safer alternatives.

Pollinator Week is June 17th - 23th

National Pollinator Week is an annual opportunity to celebrate pollinators and learn how to support pollinator health in our community! The essential service pollinators provide enable plants to produce fruits and seeds. This process is not just vital for the survival of plant species, but also for the production of a significant portion of the food we consume. Despite their importance, pollinators are facing numerous threats that are leading to declines in their populations. Habitat loss, pesticide use, climate change, and diseases are some of the major challenges. Urbanization and intensive agricultural practices have reduced the availability of wildflowers and nesting sites, while pesticides can harm or kill pollinators.

According to the Xerces Society you can help pollinators by:

Growing Pollinator-Friendly Flowers - Flowers provide the nectar and pollen resources that pollinators feed on. Growing the right flowers, shrubs, and trees with overlapping bloom times will support pollinators, spring through fall.
Providing Nest Sites - It is important to support all pollinator life stages, including eggs and larvae! For bees, you can leave patches of bare ground and brush piles or install nesting blocks, and for butterflies and moths, plant caterpillar host plants.
Avoiding Pesticides - Pesticides, especially insecticides, are harmful to pollinators. Herbicides reduce food sources by removing flowers from the landscape. Fungicides can also have synergistic effects on bees. The good news is that there are alternatives!
Spreading The Word! - Make your commitment both official and visible by signing the Pollinator Protection Pledge! You can also share information about pollinators on social media, or spread the word with a pollinator habitat sign.

To learn more about pollinators, please go to Xerces Pollinator Conservation Program.

Save The Date For These Upcoming July Events:

Utterly Otters

Thursday, July 11

7:00 PM

LSPA Center for Lake Studies (map)

Join naturalist Susie Spikol for a lively talk on the largest member of the weasel family in New England: the bounding, sliding, swimming, charismatic otter! We’ll spend some time getting to know this charming mammal, including learning how to recognize its tracks and sign so you can see if there are otters living near you.

Susie Spikol is the Harris Center for Conservation Educatio n Community Programs Director & Teacher-Naturalist. She was the recipient of the Cheshire County Conservation District’s 2023 Educator of the Year for her extraordinary efforts to cultivate a conservation ethic in both her personal and professional life. Susie has been at the Harris Center – sharing her awe and appreciation for nature with toddlers, retirees, and everyone in between - since 1991. When she’s not catching frogs with preschoolers, tracking bobcats with middle schoolers, or hawkwatching with her own three children, Susie tucks away to time to write.

Please click here to register.

Lake Sunapee Watershed BioBlitz

Saturday, July 13

10:00 AM - 3:00 PM

LSPA Center for Lake Studies (map) and Lake Sunapee's Watershed

Join us for a day of fun events to learn more about the incredible biodiversity of the Lake Sunapee Watershed. Experts, volunteers and members of the public will come together to document the many species found in our very special region - from birds and butterflies to fish and zooplankton and everything in between. Save the date! And stay tuned for more details about how you can participate.

Lake Sunapee's Lighthouse History

Tuesday, July 16

7:00 PM - 8:00 PM

LSPA Center for Lake Studies (map)

Come experience a history of Lake Sunapee’s lighthouses, with photos from the steamboat era presented by Midge Eliassen. This program will also include a historical perspective on LSPA’s commitment to the maintenance of these icons and the latest information on the engineering and construction plans for the new bases for Herrick Cove and Burkehaven lighthouses, both suffering from ice damage.

Please click here to register.

LSPA Annual Meeting

Saturday, July 20

9:30 AM - 11:00 AM

LSPA Center for Lake Studies (map)

Save the Date! Please join us for our Annual Meeting to elect new officers and directors and to welcome new members. Our keynote speaker, Don Kretchmer, of DK Water Resource Consulting will provide an overview of the threats facing New Hampshire lakes and the successes of LSPA’s approaches to maintaining the water quality of the Lake Sunapee Watershed. Join us to learn more about our programs and projects. This event is open to the public.

Indigenous Waterways - Protection, Restoration, and Sustainability

Tuesday, July 23

7:00 PM - 8:00 PM

LSPA Center for Lake Studies (map)

Join us for an Indigenous historical narrative on exploring ways to protect, restore, and sustainably manage waterways through Indigenous knowledge and practices. Denise K. Pouliot, Sagmoskwa (Head Female Speaker), and Artist and Paul W. Pouliot, Sagmo (Head Male Speaker - Chief) and Tribal Historic Preservation Officer (THPO), of the Cowasuck Band of the Pennacook-Abenaki People will discuss their contemporary response about being the continued “Care Takers” of N’dakinna, our homelands and our lakes.

Please click here to register.

Raptor Rapture

Thursday, July 25

6:00 PM - 7:00 PM

LSPA Center for Lake Studies (map)

Get up-close and personal with NH’s birds of prey and meet a live animal ambassador! Look into an owl’s eyes, check out the talons of a Red-tailed Hawk, and discover the biology behind what makes raptors such efficient hunters.

Please click here to register.

Historic Summer Cottages of Lake Sunapee

Tuesday, July 30

7:00 PM - 8:00 PM

LSPA Center for Lake Studies (map)

Join Nancy Dutton and Midge Eliassen as they present historic photos and narrate the history of early Lake Sunapee cottages and their families. This program especially highlights those residents who have been engaged with LSPA, starting in the 1890s.

Please click here to register.

Resources ~

Check out LSPA's Resource Page! This page has resources for teachers, Homeschool groups and remote learners offering access to a myriad of sites all pertaining to outdoor education with science based curriculums and tools. It also has a list of activities for families that encourage, excite and engage in the natural world with all its awe and wonder. There are also maps and historical and current data available to check out!

LSPA's Spring Discoveries page has an abundance of resources for adults to explore the local area during these beautiful spring days. Following LSPA's theme of "discovery, learning, and research" you'll find this page shares information not only on what and where to explore safely, but wildlife links, webinars, courses and much more!

The LSPA Kid's Ecology Corner page highlights a wide variety of spring activities. Find out all about New Hampshire's incredible frogs, salamanders, and vernal pools. What are some of the first spring birds to arrive, and when will they get here? Go to the Kid's Ecology Corner and find out! June is an exciting and wonderful time to explore the outdoors!

Be a Lake Sunapee Watershed Explorer!

Get outside, explore and earn a patch!

This spring is a perfect time to get to know the Lake Sunapee Watershed! LSPA invites you and your family to explore the Lake Sunapee Watershed. Enjoy the lake and the forests of the watershed while you learn a bit about the science and history of Lake Sunapee. Pick 5 activities and when you have completed them fill out the simple documentation form on our website.

You will have good memories, new knowledge and a patch to remember the experience by!

Upcoming Events from Partner Organizations ~

Native Plant Sale & Spring Craft Fair

Saturday, June 2

10:00 AM - 3:00 PM

McLane Center

84 Silk Farm Road

Concord, NH 03301

Join NH Audubon for the McLane Center’s Native Plant Sale. Bagley Pond Perennials will be here with a wide selection of native plants and shrubs for purchase. Bagley Pond is a native perennial farm that follows organic practices. Their goal is to provide home gardeners with pollinator safe, native plants and shrubs to support our native pollinators and wildlife. The Spring Craft Fair features a variety of quality, handmade crafts by local artisans. Click here for more information on this event.

Community Engagement Event for New Hampshire's Updated Climate Action Plan

Wednesday, June 5 - 5:30 PM

Thursday, June 6th - 12:00 PM

Online Event

The New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services and New Hampshire Listens are hosting two online community engagement events where they will share the new New Hampshire Priority Climate Action Plan, discuss readiness for potential implementation grants, and take input to inform the continuing process. Click here to register for the event. Click here to learn more about New Hampshire Priority Climate Action Plan.

Check out the State of the Birds ~

NH Audubon launched their new State of the Birds website, which features all the familiar bird species you might see in your backyard, plus many birds of conservation interest. Currently over 200 avian species are included with more to come. The website addition is the brainchild of Dr. Pamela Hunt, NH Audubon’s senior biologist for avian conservation. “This is the first time that NH specific information on most of the species of birds that occur in NH is accessible in one place,” Hunt explains. “It takes you further than a field guide.”

Outside Observations ~

On June 20th we celebrate the summer solstice, the longest day of the year and the official start of summer! The sun’s influence on animal and plant activity can be noted by the wide variety of animals that are on the move. This time of year, honeybees often swarm, leaving the hive with the old queen and then a new queen emerges from the old hive and begins anew. Hummingbirds have returned and are glorying in the array of flowers and nectar that both humans and nature have provided. These little birds get protein from eating the insects that get trapped in the nectar and have even been known to steal them from spider webs. Beavers, bears, deer (to name a few) send their young, who they have been nurturing for the last 18 months or so, off to venture on their own. These young ones often look a little lost or frightened as they now navigate the world for the first time by themselves. Fawns, which are born without a scent, are left hidden to sleep and grow while their mothers keep watch nearby. Fawns are often mistaken for being abandoned, when, in actuality, they are being protected by the stillness in which they can lie. Their camouflage spots and their scentless bodies act as protection against key predators.

One wildlife officer referred to June as the “fox month.” That's because he gets so many calls about sightings of the normally nocturnal fox who is out hunting during daylight hours to provide food for the new and very hungry kits back in their dens. As you celebrate the month of June, celebrate the arrival of the beautiful dragonflies! These colorful insects are indeed worthy of doing a “happy dance” over! A natural predator, dragonflies can consume hundreds of mosquitoes and black flies each day! Summer blooms are everywhere! Look for gorgeous fields of lupine all along the roadsides as you venture out. Enjoy getting outside during this beautiful month, brave the insects, and marvel at the clear blue waters and the newness and greenery all around you!

To read more about what’s going on during this time of year check out

Prevent Light Pollution! ~

The nocturnal green Luna moths, with their beautiful long tails, can be found drawn to lights left on and can sometimes be seen sleeping on the screen door the next day. Although our days are getting longer, the nighttime, the night sky, and the darkness remain essential to the host of nocturnal animals in the area. Scientists have stated that light pollution is now among the most chronic environmental disturbances on Earth. The good news, according to The International Dark-Sky Association, is that “light pollution, unlike many other pollutions, is reversible and each one of us can make a difference.” We can start by minimizing the light from our homes at night.

Check out these links for more information about the night sky and ways you can prevent light pollution.

International Dark-Sky Association

National Geographic Light Pollution

Globe at Night

Call for photos ~

We’re placing a call for photos! If you have photos from around the Lake Sunapee region that you would like to share, please send them to photos@lakesunapee.org and please include your name in your email so we can give you photo credit.