Everything about Mono Lake totally explained
Mono Lake is an
alkaline and
hypersaline lake in
California,
United States that's a critical nesting habitat for several bird species and is an unusually productive
ecosystem.
Geology
Mono Lake is believed to have formed at least 760,000 years ago, dating back to the
Long Valley eruption. Sediments located below the ash layer hint that Mono Lake could be a remnant of a larger and older lake that once covered a large part of
Nevada and
Utah, making it among the oldest lakes in North America.
Mono Lake is a terminal lake in a watershed fed from melting runoff with no outlet. Dissolved salts in the runoff thus remain in the lake and raise the
pH and the salt concentration.
Mono Lake is in a geologically active area at the north end of the
Mono-Inyo Crater volcanic chain of the
Long Valley Caldera. The geological activity is caused by faulting at the base of the
Sierra Nevada, and is associated with the crustal stretching of the
Basin and Range Province.
Volcanic activity continues in the Mono Lake vicinity: the most recent eruption occurred 250 years ago at
Negit Island in Mono Lake.
Panum Crater (on the south shore of the lake) is an excellent example of a combined
rhyolite dome and
cinder cone.
Conservation efforts
In order to provide resources for the growing
Los Angeles area, water was diverted from the
Owens River. In 1941 the
Los Angeles Department of Water and Power extended an
aqueduct system into the
Mono Basin So much water was diverted that
evaporation soon exceeded inflow and the surface level of Mono Lake fell rapidly. By 1982 the lake was reduced to having lost 31 percent of its 1941 surface area. As a result
alkaline sands and once-submerged
tufa towers became exposed and Negit Island became landbridged exposing the nests of
gulls to predators (chiefly
coyotes) and forcing the breeding colony to abandon the site.
In 1976,
University of California, Davis graduate student David Gaines earned his master's degree studying the Mono Lake ecosystem and was instrumental in alerting the public of the effects of the lower water level. Gaines formed the
Mono Lake Committee in 1978 and joined with the
Audubon Society to fight a now famous court battle to protect Mono Lake through state public trust laws. While these efforts have resulted in positive change the surface level is still below historic levels and exposed shorelines are a source of significant
alkali dust during periods of high wind.
Owens Lake, which once sustained a healthy ecosystem, is now a dry lake bed during dry years due to water diversion. Mono Lake was spared this fate when the California State Water Resources Control Board issued an order to protect Mono Lake and its tributary streams on
September 28 1994. Since that time, the lake level has steadily risen. In 1941 the surface level was at above sea level and
as of August 2006 it was at . The lake level of above sea level is the goal, a goal made more difficult during years of drought in the American West.
Limnology
The lake contains approximately 280 million tons of dissolved salts, with the
salinity varying on the amount of water in the lake at any given time. Before 1941, the salinity was approximately 50 grams per liter (g/l) (compared to a value of 31.5 g/l for the world's oceans). In January 1982, when the lake reached its lowest level of, the salinity had nearly doubled to 99 g/l. In 2002, it was measured at 78 g/l and is expected to stabilize at an average 69 g/l as the lake replenishes over the next 20 years.
An important aspect of the end of water diversions was an onset of
"meromixis" in Mono Lake. Prior to the end of water diversions, Mono Lake was typically "monomictic," which means that at least once each year the deeper waters and the shallower waters of the lake mixed thoroughly, thus bring oxygen and other nutrients to the deeper waters. In meromictic lakes, the deeper waters don't undergo this mixing. In meromictic lakes, the deeper layers are more saline than the water near the surface, and are typically nearly devoid of oxygen. As a result, meromixis greatly changes a lake's ecology.
Mono Lake has undergone meromictic periods prior to the one commencing in 1994, and this most recent meromictic period brought on by the end of water diversions ended by 2004.
Ecology
The hypersalinity and high alkalinity (pH=10 or equivalent to 2.5 grams of
NaOH per liter of water) of the lake, means that no fish are native to the lake. An attempt by the
California Department of Fish and Game to stock the lake failed. The lake is famous for the
Mono Lake brine shrimp,
Artemia monica, a tiny species of
brine shrimp, no bigger than a thumbnail, that are found nowhere else on earth. During the warmer summer months, an estimated 4-6 trillion brine shrimp inhabit the lake. The brine shrimp feed on microscopic planktonic algae which reproduce rapidly during winter and early spring after winter runoff brings nutrients to the surface layer of water. By March the lake is "as green as pea soup" with photosynthesizing algae. Brine shrimp has no food value for humans, but is a staple for birds of the region. Also an important food source, alkali flies ("
Ephydra hians") live along the shores of the lake and walk underwater encased in small air bubbles to graze and to lay eggs. The whole food chain of the lake is based on the high population of single-celled
algae present in the warm shallow waters.
Mono Lake is a vital resting and eating stop for migratory
shorebirds and has been recognized as a site of international importance by the
Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network.
Nearly 2,000,000
waterbirds, including 35
species of shorebirds, use Mono Lake to rest and eat for at least part of the year. Some shorebirds that depend on the resources of Mono Lake include
American Avocets,
Killdeer and
sandpipers. Over 1.5 million
Eared Grebes and
phalaropes use Mono Lake during their long migrations.
Late every summer tens of thousands of
Wilson's Phalaropes and
Red-necked Phalaropes arrive from their nesting grounds, and feed until they continue their migration to South America or the tropical oceans respectively. Apparently, "Mono" is a
Yokut term for "fly eater". The Kutzadika'a didn't use the term "Mono".
During early contact the first known chief was Captain John. He was also referred to by the Paiute names of Shibana or Poko Tucket. Captain John was the son of another Paiute named the older Captain John.
The Yosemite-Mono Lake Paiutes would also camp yearly at
Hetch Hetchy,
Yosemite Valley, and along the
Merced River to gather
acorns and different plant species.
Cultural history
In
Mark Twain's
Roughing It (1872),
chapter 38
and
chapter 39 provide a humorous but informative early description of Mono Lake in its natural condition in the 1860s.
The general appearance of the lake and surrounding mountains circa 1973 can also be seen in the film
High Plains Drifter.
The Diver, a photo taken by
Storm Thorgerson for
Pink Floyd's album
Wish You Were Here, features what appears to be a man diving into a lake, creating no ripples. The photo was taken at Mono Lake, and the tufa towers are a prominent part of the landscape. The effect was actually created when the diver performed a handstand underwater until the ripples dissipated.
Cinderella filmed the iconic power-ballad "
Don't Know What You Got (Till It's Gone)" at this scenic spot.
Further Information
Get more info on 'Mono Lake'.
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