I tried my luck to see if I could sneak onto the water before I lost the sun to the wispy clouds and get caught in the frequent uptick of wind that often happens in the afternoons. I lost on both counts after an hour, but I certainly did manage to get a looksee.
The water was difficult to see through due to the tannins in the water after the heavy rains we have had lately. That said, there were the wide variety of lake grasses, a lot of yellow lilies with their large leaves covering the lake’s surface, and bladderwort of all types lurking underneath; also found a few Water marigolds and the usual large patch of Water naiad just before the area where Snow brook enters the bottom of the cove. As I entered Smith Cove the tannic water persisted throughout the area. Nothing unusual to report other than a LOT of yellow and white lilies and a good number of long thick bladderworts that had several long (~6”) white stalks emerging along the length of the plant, each one with small yellow buds on their ends. Referring to the Maine Field Guide to Aquatic Plants (excellent reference I have in stock) it was confirmed that all 4 bladderworts we’ve found in Conway Lake produce several stalks along the length of each plant’s main stem. There may be 4-20 flowers per stalk, some are yellow (particularly on the Common, Floating and Northern bladderworts) and some may be purple (particularly on the Large Purple bladderwort.)
In this photo I found a Common bladderwort, aka Utricularia vulgaris.
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