Volunteer Weed Monitors Needed

According to the King County Noxious Weed Locator Map, Angle Lake is fortunate not to be witnessing rampant growth of Purple Loosestrife; Tansy Ragwort; or Giant Hogweed like other neighboring lakes are experiencing however monitoring for Knapweed in the Spotted; Meadow; Diffuse; and/or Bighead varieties is still needed.

What the heck is a Knapweed?

No, this isn't something that may make you sleepy when consumed! But if you really have an interest in learning more about noxious weeds impacting the water quality of Angle Lake – we have the perfect opportunity for you!

Please consider this post as your personal invitation to participate in a volunteer-based aquatic weed monitoring program. The Lake Weed Watcher Program trains volunteers to survey for aquatic weeds in small lakes in King County, Washington. Volunteers are taught to identify both native and non-native aquatic plants. The goal of the project is to watch for populations of invasive weeds that are not currently known to occur in King County or have a very limited presence but have the potential to spread and cause significant damage. Detecting these weeds early allows us to stop them before they get too entrenched to eradicate or remove.

2013 Training and Orientation

Saturday, June 29

10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Lake Desire Clubhouse

18118 172nd Ave SE Renton, WA 98058

The program provides:

• Training in survey methodology and plant identification
• All necessary survey equipment (other than that mentioned below)
• Plant identification materials

Volunteers will need:

• A small boat (e.g. canoe) and a place to launch it (if you don't live on a lake we can help you choose a lake with a public boat ramp)
• Personal flotation device (PFD) and any other required water safety equipment
• Ability to attend one training session in late June
• Approximately one field day in early July and one field day in late August or early September

For more information or to sign up, contact Sasha Shaw at 206-263-6468 or sasha.shaw@kingcounty.gov.

Be Alert To Criminal Activities

A reminder, the welcomed rising temperatures also means an unwelcome rise in crime…  Email regarding criminal activity is already being received at the ALSC blog and the descriptions indicate that these criminals are becoming even more brazen.

The latest report was sent from the Mark Eleven Condo HOA President Marge Murtha indicating that in less than a forty minute span two commercial leaf blowers and two commercial weed eaters were stolen from the contracted gardeners truck/trailer.  This is estimated to be about a $2,000 dollar loss and is very disturbing to both the victim and the residents.  

Marge was informed by Brian, the owner, that it's happened at other job sites but never here in the last eight or nine years that they have been the Mark Eleven gardeners. A police report was made and the dispatched Officer collected the serial numbers for identification in the attempted recovery effort.

The truck/trailer was parked very close to the street and the opportunity presented itself all too well. No one saw anything that we spoke to. The gardeners have since been instructed to pull completely down into the parking lot and face the truck outwards toward the street, making it much more difficult for future thefts to occur as the robbers would have to come down in and could be easily seen.

In hind sight, this seems like a very easy solution – and it is – however, most of us don’t think like criminals and we should!  Simple things like leaving your windows open to allow for a cool breeze through your house while you’re cooling off in the lake also make it a breeze for criminals to also enter your house!  Make sure your doors and windows are locked before heading down to your beach…  Make sure you chain your boats, kayaks, and other valuables to a secured and anchored post when not in use.  While this will not  completely prevent theft, the goal is to make things more difficult for the thieves – discouraging them from even attempting or creating a greater opportunity to be noticed.

As an additional feature to the blog, a new Crime Reports page has been created and will be accessible from the home page by clicking on the link listed above.  Each week as new reports are released, a new link will be added to the list for our residents and members to view and become informed about the type of nefarious activity occurring within our neighborhood.  Also, keeping an eye out on your neighbors is always a good thing, too.  You know who belongs and who doesn't.  Even making an effort to say hello to 'strangers' will let them know that they've been seen and can be described should something end up being reported missing. 

Loss of Life on the Lake

As you may have learned through an earlier post that an Eagle was discovered incapacitated due to unknown reason and was resting on the ground. It was assumed that due to the lack of any evidence indicating a struggle with another predator that the bird may have recovered on its own and returned to flight…  unfortunately that assumption may have turned out not to be the case.

The saga picks up again the following late Saturday evening on April 27th when an email is received from the same neighbor that had been responsible for the original sighting that prior Sunday, April 21^st.  The email indicated that while out walking her dog, they discovered the carcass of an adult bald eagle deeper into the bushes approximately 25 feet from the first encounter.  It is assumed to be the same eagle that was previously encountered.

Be warned the image of the deceased animal may be disturbing to our more sensitive visitors. The photo may be viewed by clicking on the following LINK. 

The next day on April 28^th while at the Angle Lake Fishing Derby, I shared the unfortunate news with Shore Club President Lonnie Goulet, his brother Bruce.  It wasn't until a couple hours later that Bruce’s wife Sandy informed me that she had received a call from her neighbors John and Sheri Kuglar indicating that they had just witnessed an Eagle fall dead to the ground from the nesting tree above their property. Also shared in the report was the comment that they had discovered earlier a partially consumed rat that came to rest on the top of their car.

John placed a call into Fish and Wildlife Service and was requested to collect the bird and store it in a freezer until their resources could come to claim it.  John also informed them that a second adult bald eagle was found and they requested the same so that a forensic investigation could be performed to determine cause of death.  After the derby I contacted my neighbor who then showed us where the bird was resting and with the help from Lonnie and Bruce, we bagged the bird and delivered it to the Kuglar resident for keeping with the other bird.

The following afternoon I received a call from Amanda Crook of Fish and Wildlife Services requesting additional detail regarding the original sighting as reported in the blog and asking for additional information leading up to the recovery of the second bird.  Amanda verified that it may be several weeks until the results of the autopsy were learned and confirmed that the results would be shared with the community through the Kuglar’s.

At this point we can only speculate what the cause was attributable to the death of these two eagles, but with the evidence available the assumption is that accidental poisoning occurred from consumption of a tainted rat. Once the true cause has been verified it will be reported via the blog.

As for now, while writing this post on Sunday morning, May 5^th from my manchair, I am happy to report that another bald eagle had twice passed by outside my window with what I assume to be a Great Blue Heron, also witnessed in flight off in the distance. It is my hope that we humans will take particular care and restraint when using household chemicals and poisons as to have prevent any unexpected unfavorable consequences on our other natural inhabitants.

And So It Begins...

The first official construction alert for S. 200th Link Extension has been released and can be viewed HERE!

This is notification for the closure of “little 28th Ave S.” for utility relocation starting on May 7, 2013.  The road will remain closed for the duration of the project until approximately mid-2016. Traffic will be detoured 1 block west to the main section of 28th Ave S.

It’s a very small stretch of roadway, but it might be a shortcut for some.

Meet Your New Neighbors

DINOFLAGELLATE

(Greek dinos "whirling" and Latin flagellum "whip, scourge")

While out selling derby tickets, Lonnie Goulet paid a visit to the Montry home where Ed had shared a printout he’d rec’d from Sally Abella of King County.  Sally is Ed’s contact relative to his volunteer duties for water quality control testing that he and Jeanie perform throughout the year.   In response to Ed’s inquiry about the current algae bloom we are currently experiencing (the lime green slime that is about 10’ - 15’ off shore and in a depth of water about 6’ 10’ in depth) she wrote him with the following explanation: 

Hi Ed and Jeannie,

Chris (King County Water and Land Resources Division Field Engineer) did come take a quick look yesterday and took a phytoplankton sample off your dock.  The lake water was clear, but he did see a fair amount of filamentous green algae growing on the lake bottom.  Was that what you were reporting? 

While not dangerous, it can be a nuisance. If it gets thick enough, you might be able to rake it out and use it as fertilizer on your garden.    Luxuriant filamentous algae growth may be a signal that nutrients are seeping into the lake along your shoreline.  They can come from recently applied lawn or garden fertilizers (especially if followed by a good rain storm), septic systems needing maintenance, etc.  Keep an eye on it and let me know how it’s doing! Do you think it is growing all around the edges of the lake?  Is so, it may just be climate-related rather than an unusual source of nutrients.

The Phyto plankton was sparse, but was dominated by dinoflagellates and small green algae colonies with just a few diatoms.   The spring diatom bloom should be on its way soon.

Regards,

Sally

Sally Barley Abella

Science and Technical Support Section

King County Water and Land Resources Division

201 S. Jackson St, Suite 600

Seattle, WA  98104-3855

Phone:  (206) 296-8382

Fax:  (206) 296-0192

E-Mail Address:  Sally.Abella@kingcounty.gov

It seems from the letter above that the appearance of Dinoflagelate algae maybe climate related and will soon  be replaced by the usual Diatom Spring Bloom.  Please contact the Montry's with any questions you may have regarding water quality concerns.  If they don't have the answers, they certainly know where they can go to get them.

More Wild Things at Angle Lake

Sunday night as my wife and I were starting to settle into our usual end of weekend routine, she on the bed with her book in hand and me planted on my man-chair poised with the remote in hand ready to tune into the latest news, our neighbor from a couple lots over came to our back door distraught and asking for help.  We invited her to come in and after a couple minutes catching her breath we were informed that there was a full grown, adult bald eagle that appeared to be injured and unable to fly.  Her request was for assistance in caging the animal so that she could bring it somewhere for medical attention.

When Julie and I arrived, it appeared mildly agitated with our approach but did not move. We quickly determined judging from the size and alertness of the bird clear that it was still quite able to cause some serious harm if handled and that allot more assistance would be needed to avoid additional injury to the animal, let alone our selves!

A call was placed into King County dispatch and was informed that wildlife concerns are the responsibility of the Washington State Patrol and was then connected through. However, the WSP could only provide us a couple numbers to call which ultimately resulted in being greeted with phone recordings only... I called dispatch again requesting to be connected with SeaTac Fire and eventually they dispatched the Battalion Chief to the site.  After assessing the situation and a couple more calls to wildlife experts it was determined that our best approach would be to leave the bird in place, recheck it in the morning and to retry the assistance numbers again if the situation had not changed.

The next morning at dawn I returned to the site to discover the bird was gone!  I returned at day break and did not detect any disturbance in the landscaping that would indicate a struggle, nor were any feathers or such found in the area to warrant concern for a misfortunate encounter with raccoon or coyote… it was just gone. 

Later that day, I received a call from a Sarvey Wildlife Organization Director and was able to describe my experience to her.  Possible causes could have been an encounter with a building or tall object that stunned the bird (in my opinion, not likely in this case), could be a mild poisoning (please do not use poisons for rodent control), or as I was surprised to learn, it is not an uncommon occurrence for an Eagle to overeat and become temporarily unable to fly!  I was informed that Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife get calls all the time about eagles that eat too much and can’t fly for 2-3 days. Even though an average American Bald Eagle wingspan can measure up to seven and a half feet (90 inches) their lifting power is only about 4 pounds. 

According to the chart above, an 18” Triploid Rainbow Trout would weigh an average of 2.5 lbs. Consuming just two fish in a short span could easily put the bird at over capacity, leading me to believe that a case of over consumption is the most likely root cause for the bird’s distress last night and the explanation for its mysterious disappearance the next morning.

Although it was difficult to accept the night before that our only resolve was to walk away and wait until the morning, in this particular case it turned out to be the best choice and proved that wild animals  don’t always need our help and it’s generally best to let wild things in nature take care of themselves.

This Otter Be Interesting...

If a North American River Otter is different from a Sea Otter, then when a River Otter takes up residence in a lake, is it still a called a River Otter?  Or does it become known as a Lake Otter? Or is it just known as an Otter at that point?  These are the types of questions that are starting to being asked more frequently as the number of sightings of a North American River Otter in Angle Lake have increased. Sightings have been reported from the Anderson (post 52) and Hill (post 33) properties on the east side of the lake.

The northern river otter or the common otter is the largest member of the weasel family. This is a semi aquatic mammal equally versatile in the water and on land. River otters generally feed on prey that is in larger supply and easier to catch. Fish is a favored food among the otters, but they also consume various amphibians, turtles, and crayfish.  Generally, slow-swimming fish are consumed more often than game fishes when both are equally available. Slow-moving species include suckers, sunfish and bass.

As part of the Living with Wildlife series, Washington State Fish and Wildlife offer a publication featuring information on river otters and a copy is available for download HERE.

An adult river otter can weigh between 10 and 30 lbs. While not normally considered dangerous to humans, they are also not known to be shy either!  Never instigate a close encounter with a river otter. As with any wild animal possessing razor sharp teeth and dagger like claws, it is well advised to keep at a safe distance from the animal.

Name the Otter! 

What name would you suggest best fits our Angle Lake Otter?  Leave your comment here.  The individual suggesting the most popular name won’t receive any significant cash reward, but maybe we can present you with an Angle Lake Shore Club T-shirt and bragging rights – which in my opinion can both be considered priceless gifts! 

2013 ALSC Fishing Derby

Mix one part Sunday morning, one part Angle Lake stocked with over 2,400 fish, fold in a large portion of moms and dads, grandmas and grandpas, kids of all ages, blend thoroughly with prizes, good food and add a huge dash of community spirit. What do you have? You have the perfect ingredients to cook up some great times at the annual Angle Lake Shore Club Fishing Derby!

This long time favorite annual event kicks off on Sunday, April 28 at 7:00 AM on the shore of Shirley Steven’s place with an offering of warm drinks and muffins. When you’re finished fueling up on the morning refreshments it will be game on from 7 am until Noon for participants to compete in their respective age category where the largest fish will be eligible for a merchandise reward. All fish must be measured before the Noon Cut off to be entered into the contest. Landing the largest fish overall will net you 113 mackerels in cold hard cash!  Only one winner will be awarded per category prize.

Steven's Beach - Post 60

Fishing Contest 7:00 AM - 12 Noon. 

Lunch, Awards and Raffle Drawings 11:30 – 1:30 PM

If Lady Luck wasn't kind to you in helping you claim the biggest fish prize, no worries because your derby ticket or tickets will also be used as your entry into the prize rich raffle drawing. After recognition has been given to the fishing competition winners for the biggest fish in each age group, we’ll break for a Barbecue Lunch after which time we’ll hold a raffle for all ticket holders for a chance to claim one of two Grand Prizes – a Kayak or a Barbecue Grill! or win another item from a sea of prizes! We’ll also be selling and renewing Shore Club Membership at the event. Please refer to the FLYER for additional information.

Tickets will be sold on the following sliding scale:

• Tadpole: 1 ticket -   $5
• Minnow: 3 tickets - $10
• Trout:     6 tickets - $15
• Whaler: 10 tickets - $20

The bearer of a Raffle Ticket(s) is entitled to: admission into the fishing derby; light breakfast refreshments; barbecue lunch and entry into the raffle prize drawing. Tickets can be purchased via our door to door sellers this week or at the event. The more tickets you buy, the better your chance to win one of the fabulous prizes offered!

IT'S GO TIME!

S. 200th Link Extension Groundbreaking Ceremony

Friday, April 26, 2013

11:00 a.m.

19863 28th Avenue S., SeaTac

(South 200th Street and 28th Avenue South)

It's time to celebrate! Please join the Sound Transit Board and special guest U.S. Senator Patty Murray to celebrate the start of construction for Link light rail service to the new Angle Lake Station in SeaTac. Come learn about the construction schedule, view 3D animations of the project, and see the latest station and public art designs.

The S. 200th Link Extension includes a 1.6-mile elevated guideway and station along with garage parking, bicycle and pedestrian improvements, a plaza area and public art. Service is scheduled to begin in late 2016, at the same time as service begins to the University of Washington.  

To get a glimpse of what the South 200th link extension and future Angle Lake Station will look like when in full operation, view the 3D animations at the following links:

• So. 200th Street Link Extension
• Angle Lake Station 

This groundbreaking ceremonial event is made possible thanks to the generous support of HDR Inc., PCL Civil Constructors, Parsons Brinckerhoff and VIA Architecture. Interested attendees are request to please RSVP via email to: events@soundtransit.org

Get Ready to Get Dirty!

Join us for the South King County Flower and Garden Show! Become a garden guru with tips on design, plants, container gardens and more.  Enjoy all-day entertainment and family fun while cultivating your creativity, health, friendships, and your community! Grow your expertise to make this year’s flower beds, vegetable gardens and herb gardens your best ever! Tour the Highline Botanical Garden, talk to experts and just have fun! 

Guest speakers and topics include:

• Nitajo Roundtree, NW Horticulture Society, Amazing Annuals
• Greg Butler, landscape designer and horticulturist, Gardening for Wildlife
• Graham Kerr, the Galloping Gourmet, The American Dream and Ethic in the Garden
• Christina Salwitz, the Personal Garden Coach, Confessions of a Foliage-a-Holic
• Joe Grienauer, Emerald City Orchids, Orchid Basics
• Bill Grassie, WSU Master Gardener, Roses / Growing and Care
• Bill Vingelen, Head Farmer at the Herb Farm, Preserving Seeds and Tubers

Saturday, April 13 – 10 AM until 5 PM

North SeaTac Community Center

13735 24th Ave S

This is a Rotary Charity Benefit where all proceeds go directly back into our community. Entrance is Free to 12 years of age and under. Seniors & Students $5.00. Adults $7.00 Parking is Free! 

First 100 participants get a raffle ticket for a gift basket full of gardening goodies!  Additional tickets may be purchased at the door.

More information can be found on the group page on Facebook at: www.facebook.com/skcflowerandgardenshow