SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. — Lake Tahoe is the clearest it’s been in decades, but it won’t last forever. Experts at UC Davis say they’re conducting a study to learn more about the creatures restoring that famous sapphire color to the water.
They say the lake hasn’t been this clear and blue since the 1980s. This is due to the millions of critters in the water too small to see with the naked eye.
Apparently they’ve been making a comeback and keeping scientists on their toes.
“This is almost off the charts," said Geoffrey Schladow, director, UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center. “This whole web of who-eats-who inside the lake has changed."
Underneath the shimmering surface of Lake Tahoe lives a whole universe of life. Back in the 1960s, a certain kind of shrimp was introduced into the lake to help grow the fish populations. Fast forward to today, scientists are seeing some changes.
“What we noticed about two years ago is that these shrimp disappeared,” said Schladow. “In their absence, another zooplankton that had been eaten by them reappeared.”
In other words, the water is so clear because the balance of life beneath the water changed.
That clarity is good for a few reasons.
“It's an important indicator of water quality,” said Schladow. “Lake Tahoe is known around the world for its color, its clarity, its beauty. And tourism is one of the mainstays of the local economy.”
The researchers say the process is still in its early stages and they expect the clarity improvement to continue through 2023, but say it won’t last forever.
“These shrimp have only disappeared temporarily. They will come back, in maybe two years, three years, they will start to eat with Daphne again,” said Schladow .”Then there'll be nothing in the lake clearing out all the very fine particles that impact the clarity.”
To read more about the study, click HERE.
