Mountain Times: Volume 49, number 10: March 4-10, 2020

Columns
40 • The Mountain Times • Mar. 4-10, 2020
On a picture-perfect winter morning last year, 20 Saint
Michael’s College students and I visited Vermont Fish and
Wildlife scientists for ice fishing at Knight’s Point on Lake
Life at 39 degrees
Champlain. We drilled holes, baited hooks, learned about
ice safety, identified fish – and
even caught a few.
The ice we tentatively walked
on provides unshakably constant
temperatures for those living
in the water below. Burlington’s
February 2019 air temperature
ranged from 72 degrees to negative
30, but water temperatures
The Outside
Story in Lake Champlain fluctuated a
By Declan mere seven degrees, from 32 just
beneath the ice to 39 degrees at
McCabe
depth. This aspect of the underice
environment never changes; 39-degree water remains
a winter constant unless lakes freeze solid or stop freezing
altogether.
Water is most dense at 39 degrees. When it cools below
that temperature, it expands, which is why ice floats. In
frozen lakes, the coldest water remains just beneath the
ice, where on very cold days that water freezes, adding to
the thickness of the ice. Meanwhile, the denser, 39-degree
water sinks below this near-freezing layer and extends all
the way to the lake floor. Fish, insects, amphibians, and a
few brave mammals are exquisitely attuned to this winter
reality.
The creatures who survive under the ice have evolved
over eons, fine-tuning their physiology and behavior to
thrive at that specific 39-degree mark, which remains a
winter constant from year to year and lake to lake. Just as
our enzymes work best at a body temperature of 98.6 degrees,
fish enzymes work best at fish body temperatures,
which change with the season. As lake water cools, fish
stop making enzymes that worked in summer temperatures
and start producing winter versions.
Different fish species take different measures to
survive this chilly winter water. Some, like yellow perch
and large-mouth bass, adjust by slowing their activities,
metabolisms, and need for food. Others, like northern
pike, remain more active. But even less lively fish can
still be tempted by a tasty morsel; ice fishing in the North
Country may yield yellow perch, salmon, trout, walleye,
and rainbow smelt.
Smelt have an unusual ace up their fishy sleeves for
survival at low temperatures: antifreeze. As temperatures
cool, smelt produce increasing quantities of glycerol.
Combined with antifreeze proteins, glycerol keeps smelt
moving, even at temperatures below 32 degrees. This trait
is useful for smelt populations that migrate to sea, where
the saltwater freezes at 28 degrees. It also explains why a
baited hook dropped through a hole in lake ice can land
smelt in even the coldest conditions. And for those lucky
to catch enough smelt for a meal, the glycerol contributes
to the sweet taste of this fish.
Many of New England’s frogs also overwinter under
ice. Contrary to popular belief, few frogs hibernate
buried in mud. These amphibians absorb oxygen directly
through their skin, an impossible feat in anoxic mud.
Frogs are typically found on top of the lake or pond floor,
and often near inflowing streams and seeps, where currents
deliver oxygenated water. Although frogs in winter
cease feeding and slow down to conserve energy, if stimulated
they can still move and swim.
Springtime melt brings a gradual transition from ice to
open water at a rate that allows organisms to adjust. Once
water warms from near freezing to 39 degrees, density
differences disappear, resulting in a fleeting uniformly
warm water column. Gradually, the surface water will
warm even more, but there will still be plenty of cold places
at depth. Life within the lake adjusts to the changes.
As the water warms, frogs stretch their legs once more,
surface for air, and return to full activity. Fish stop making
cold-optimized enzymes and switch to summer equivalents,
and they increase their foraging.
Some fish, however, continue to seek cooler waters
even in the heat of summer. Rainbow smelt eschew warm
shallow water and migrate to deeper, cooler haunts. More
than 90 percent of the 1,600 smelt University of Vermont
researchers netted during a 2007-2008 study came from
60 feet below the surface or deeper, where the water temperature
was 45 degrees and cooler, even in mid-summer.
And what of our winter ice fishing adventure? Twenty
students fishing for two hours yielded three yellow perch,
none of edible size and all dutifully returned from whence
they came. It seems we are little threat to Lake Champlain
fish stocks, and should be grateful for a well-stocked
cafeteria.
Declan McCabe teaches biology at Saint Michael’s
College. His work with student researchers on insect communities
is funded by Vermont EPSCoR’s Grant NSF EPS
Award #1556770 from the National Science Foundation.
The illustration for this column was drawn by Adelaide
Tyrol. The Outside Story is assigned and edited by Northern
Woodlands magazine and sponsored by the Wellborn Ecology
Fund of New Hampshire Charitable Foundation.
Investing: simple,
yet difficult
Warren Buffett said, “Investing is simple, but not
easy.” Sounds like a contradiction, but in real life simplicity
has little to do with ease. Take losing weight. Very
simple. Burn more calories than
you take in. Not so easy!
The path to our long-term
goals is often filled with conflicting
short-term desires. As investors,
we want to achieve good
returns with minimal fluctuation.
We want to maximize return
Money
Matters
By Kevin Theissen
in good times and prevent the
chance of loss in the short term.
This desire is heightened even
more during periods of crisis and
uncertainty.
We have the best of intentions. We want to provide for
our family and not have to worry about money so our
efforts can be on those
Uncertainty and
discomfort are
the price we
pay to achieve
greater longterm
returns.
things that matter most
to us. But our emotions
can get in the way.
Sometimes we make
financial decisions that
satisfy our short-term
emotional urges at a
significant long-term
cost.
Markets can move
quickly in both directions.
Did you know that over the past 20 years six of the
10 best days occurred within two weeks of the 10 worst
days? Just missing a few days in the market can be very
costly.
• S&P 500 returns from Jan 1999 – Dec 2018
• Fully Invested Entire Time 5.6%
• Missed 10 Best Days 2.0%
• Missed 20 Best Days -0.3%
• Missed 30 Best Days -2.3%
There is a cost to feeling comfortable. Uncertainty
and discomfort are the price we pay to achieve greater
long-term returns. We may understand this, but it still
doesn’t make it easy. We cannot predict the market, but
we can counsel together to ensure your decisions are
made with the correct perspective and in line with your
long-term goals.
Kevin Theissen is the owner of HWC Financial in
Ludlow.
Did you know that you
could receive tax help?
Some taxpayers may
be eligible for free tax
help through a program
offered by the United
States Internal Revenue
Service. The Volunteer
Income Tax Assistance
(VITA) program offers
free tax help to people
who generally earn
$56,000 or less, as well as
persons with disabilities
and people who are not
fluent in English. People
who are 60 years of age or
older also are eligible for
free tax help through the
Tax Counseling for the
Elderly (TCE) program,
which specializes in
questions about pensions
and retirement-related
issues. The availability of
volunteers that work with
these programs can vary
based on the amount
of certified individuals
with tax law expertise in
a given area. As a result,
anyone hoping to
take advantage of these
services should consider
contacting these programs
well in advance of
the deadline to file their
returns. The deadline to
file tax returns is Wednesday,
April 15, 2020.