Weekly News & Updates

We want to highlight your lake stewardship activity! 🌊 If you, or someone you know is a current LSM volunteer and have pictures, stewardship stories, or updates to share, we’d love to feature them. 📸🌿

Reach out to us at stewards@lakestewardsme.org (Email Subject: Volunteer Community) and let’s celebrate your dedication to protecting Maine’s lakes!

Water Quality Data Reminder

Water quality data sheets are due on  October 1. Next week!

Please fill out your datasheets entirely and send completed forms to:

Lake Stewards of Maine

24 Maple Hill Rd.

Auburn, ME 04210

Thank you!

Water Quality Technical Support Sessions

Friday, 10/4 at 12:30

Open to certified volunteers and the public. Do you have questions about what you are seeing on your lake or other? Are you curious how the impacts of climate change are being felt? Is your lake experiencing seasonal inversion already? Does your data seem weird this year? These are all excellent reasons to join us and discuss what is happening around the state.

For any questions related to IPP workshops, registration, or the aquatic invasive species program, please email stewards@lakestewardsme.org.

IPP Workshop Evaluation Form

Have you taken an Invasive Plant Patrol (IPP) workshop this season? Let us know how we did! 

If you have participated in a Plant Paddle or Live Plant ID workshop this summer, please consider filling out our 2024 IPP Workshop Evaluation Form. Your input will help us refine and improve future workshops.

You may find the form at the link below. 

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfykXRctqwnIH7rDgJdm5t3JDLzFevU9KiFJCeHpdBeUxHjpA/viewform

2024 Invasive Aquatic Plant Screening Forms

Now Available Online

An updated version of the Invasive Aquatic Plant (IAP) Screening Survey Documentation Form is now available on our website. This useful data form is comparable to the updated fields on the 2024 update for Survey123.

Download the PDF of the 2024 Screening Survey form:

The common name and the Scientific name forms are currently available online.

Volunteer Community

This week’s community update

On Wednesday, September 18, Lake Stewards of Maine staff and volunteers visited Mousam lake for a swollen bladderwort infestation monitoring survey.

Members of the IPP Travel Team, with volunteers from Square Pond, Spaulding Pond, Little Ossipee Lake Association, Lake Arrowhead, Panther Pond and others, assisted Mousam Lake Region Association with the survey. Together the survey team, consisting of 17 staff and volunteers, patrolled high-risk areas of Lower Mousam Lake, marking any occurrences of the invasive plant. Mapping the infestation will help with future management efforts, including hand-pulling and Diver Assisted Suction Harvesting (DASH), which have been underway since its discovery.

Swollen bladderwort, an invasive plant discovered on Mousam in 2023, has been confirmed in seven lakes since its addition to Maine’s aquatic invasive species list last year. It strongly resembles native bladderwort species, but has key morphological distinctions that help it stand out to its native lookalikes.

We thank our volunteers for their hard work during this survey.

To be involved in future opportunities assisting LSM’s IPP Travel Team, or receiving our latest news please use the link below.

To learn more about swollen bladderwort and its native lookalikes, please watch the “Know Your Bladderworts” webinar using the link below.

Office Hours

Monday – Friday

8:30 AM -4:30 PM

We recommend calling ahead,

(207) 783-7733.

If you would like to support Lake Stewards of Maine,

kindly click on the Donate below. Thank you!