Maya Schwehm, a Boothbay native and student at the College of the Atlantic, worked last summer as an intern for the Boothbay Region Water District. Among her accomplishments for the season, Schwehm completed an aquatic plant screening survey of Knickerbocker Lake.

Aquatic invasive species, such as Eurasion water-milfoil and hydrilla, are non-native plants that once introduced to a lake can overwhelm native species and quickly take over lake bottoms. Once established, invasive species can be extremely difficult to remove and can cause declines in other aquatic communities and in water quality. Fortunately, Schwehm found no aquatic invaders in her survey of the entire nearshore zone of Knickerbocker Lake.

In her report, Schwehm documented and mapped the native aquatic plant species present in the lake. Her report not only provides assurance that no invasive species are currently established in Knickerbocker Lake, it also provides a baseline for future surveys.

The report can be found on the Boothbay Region Water District’s website, bbrwd.org, under Projects and Updates/Watershed Program or by contacting Sue Mello at 633-4723 x111 or suembbrwd@gmail.com.