5.0 Submerged Aquatic Plants on Long Point Bay

5.2.2.1 Musk grass (Chara vulgaris)

Figure 5.2 Changes in the Distribution and Abundance of Musk Grass (Chara vulgaris) on Long Point's Inner Bay, 1976-1995.

Table 5.1 Relative abundance of macrophytes in each area of Long Point=s Inner Bay during 1992.

Musk grass is a submerged, perennial algae that grows in dense mats throughout large portions of the Inner Bay (Table 5.1 and 5.2), particularly in areas with sandy or sandy loam substrates and water depths exceeding 24 cm (compare Figures 3.1 and 5.2). Musk grass is absent from the northeast portion of the Bay where Big Creek has deposited fine-grained mud (see Chapter 3). It is by far the most abundant plant in the Inner Bay, comprising 54% of the macrophyte composition in 1976 and 57% in 1992 (Figure 5.2). Neither its distribution or abundance changed substantially from 1976 to 1995 (Table 5.3). Its ready availability and high nutritive value (Uhler 1935) make musk grass an important waterfowl food at Long Point as well as at several other staging areas in North America (Jarvis and Noyes 1986), particularly for diving ducks. As Chara species tend to grow in oligotrophic lakes with fairly clear water, any increase in the phosphorus load or turbidity of Long Point Bay has potential to adversely effect the productivity of this plant. Conversely, an increase in water clarification by zebra mussels may instigate an increase in the abundance of musk grass on the Inner Bay.

Table 5.1 Relative abundance of macrophytes in each area of Long Point=s Inner Bay during 1992.