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49-513: The Turtle-Flambeau Flowage is a 12,942 acres (52.37 km) lake in Iron County, Wisconsin . It has a maximum depth of 15 meters and is the seventh largest lake in the state of Wisconsin by surface area. The flowage is home to unique wetland patterns and plant species as well as several species of sport and game fish, including musky , panfish , largemouth bass , smallmouth bass , northern pike , walleye and sturgeon . The lake's water clarity

98-568: A , indicators of elevated algal growth. The Mercer wastewater treatment plant , which discharges into the Little Turtle River, may provide some of the phosphorus input; nearby Mercer Lake suffers from algal blooms during periods of high discharge from the plant. However, tannin -stained runoff from surrounding wetlands decreases light penetration in the flowage, reducing the potential impact of harmful algal blooms in comparison to other area lakes. The faucet snail ( Bithynia tentaculata )

147-443: A discontinuity in the acoustic impedance of water created by the sudden change in density. In scuba diving , a thermocline where water drops in temperature by a few degrees Celsius quite suddenly can sometimes be observed between two bodies of water, for example where colder upwelling water runs into a surface layer of warmer water. It gives the water an appearance of wrinkled glass, the kind often used in bathroom windows to obscure

196-509: A fifth at the nearby Lake of the Falls impoundment. Reptiles include snapping turtles and painted turtles . The Turtle-Flambeau Flowage is also prime habitat for loons and features the largest concentration of eagle and osprey breeding pairs in Wisconsin. Mammal species found living in and around the flowage include river otter , beaver , black bear , and white-tailed deer . Deer grazing in

245-536: A general fertility rate of 46.1 births per 1000 women aged 15–44, the 2nd lowest rate out of 72 Wisconsin counties. 13 of the births were to unmarried mothers, 21 were to married mothers. Additionally, there were no reported induced abortions performed on women of Iron County residence in 2017. The National Register of Historic Places lists the following historic sites in Iron County: From 1928 to 1996, Iron County voted Democratic in presidential elections,

294-571: A grant to assess flowage water quality. Additionally, the Iron County Land and Water Conservation Department monitors, reports, and takes action against invasive species. At the flowage, the department has performed biological control of purple loosestrife with Galerucella calmariensis beetles and conducted surveys of boating practices at landings. The lakes that would make up the Turtle-Flambeau Flowage all originally fell with in

343-468: A phenomenon called stratification . During the summer, warm water, which is less dense, will sit on top of colder, denser, deeper water with a thermocline separating them. The warm layer is called the epilimnion and the cold layer is called the hypolimnion . Because the warm water is exposed to the sun during the day, a stable system exists and very little mixing of warm water and cold water occurs, particularly in calm weather. One result of this stability

392-408: A semi-permanent feature of the body of water in which they occur, or they may form temporarily in response to phenomena such as the radiative heating/cooling of surface water during the day/night. Factors that affect the depth and thickness of a thermocline include seasonal weather variations , latitude, and local environmental conditions, such as tides and currents . Most of the heat energy of

441-549: A unique recreational resource. The flowage's watershed covers nearly 640 square kilometers in Iron and Vilas Counties. 47% of the basin is forested, with another 33% covered by wetlands (including the Turtle-Flambeau Patterned Bog State Natural Area) and 19% covered by open water. Human land use is relatively sparse; agriculture, urban, and suburban areas combined make up less than 1% of the land use in

490-425: Is 20 cubic meters per second; however, it varies greatly based on lake water levels and the energy company's hydroelectric needs. While the flowage's irregular nature makes it difficult to determine an average depth or volume, these determinations can be made for some of the old lake basins flooded by the dam. Former lakes that were inundated during the flowage's formation include: The inundation of these lakes gives

539-567: Is a drainage lake (a lake where the majority of discharge is to outgoing rivers). It is fed by several rivers including the Flambeau River and Turtle River . The flowage discharges at the Turtle Dam into the Flambeau River . Discharge from the dam is monitored by Xcel Energy , which operates several power stations on the Flambeau River downstream of the flowage. The dam's average discharge

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588-474: Is a major destination of summer tourism. Visitors have access to the lake from four public boat landings. Camping, hunting, and fishing are also popular activities. The Turtle-Flambeau Scenic Waters Area offers 60 remote campsites accessible by water only. These sites are available year-round on a first-come, first-served basis. There is no camping fee, but camping on the flowage is restricted to designated sites. Historically, many lakeside resorts have existed in

637-457: Is a productive and healthy lake with a water visibility going down approx. 1.5 m (5 feet) in the summer. The flowage is a holomictic lake which develops a single thermocline of productive with productive water above and depleted water below. While trees surrounding a body of water may not live in the lake: they may still affect lake levels. Through the process of transpiration , tree roots pull water found in moist shoreline : lowering

686-512: Is an invasive aquatic snail from Europe. It outcompetes local species of snail throughout the Great Lakes region. This snail has been observed in Spider Lake, a tributary of the Turtle-Flambeau Flowage. Purple loosestrife , native to Asia, Europe, northwest Africa, and southeastern Australia, is an invasive species in Wisconsin. It has been observed in 445 lakes and rivers in Wisconsin, including

735-446: Is low, but can vary in different locations. Fishing, camping, boating, and hunting are popular activities on the flowage, and Ojibwe people traditionally harvest fish and game on the lake. Environmental concerns on the flowage include mercury contamination, algal blooms, and several types of invasive species. The region which became the Turtle-Flambeau Flowage was originally a mix of forest, glades , kettle lakes , and rivers. The area

784-440: Is rare in Wisconsin. Rare plant species present in the bog include sparse-flowered sedge ( C. tenuiflora ), dragon's mouth orchid ( A. bulbosa ), and white bog orchid ( P. dilatata ). The lake is home to a wide variety of animals. Native fish include musky , panfish , largemouth bass , smallmouth bass , northern pike , walleye and sturgeon . Four water access points on the flowage also serve as fish stocking sites, with

833-409: Is that as the summer wears on, there is less and less oxygen below the thermocline as the water below the thermocline never circulates to the surface and organisms in the water deplete the available oxygen. As winter approaches, the temperature of the surface water will drop as nighttime cooling dominates heat transfer. A point is reached where the density of the cooling surface water becomes greater than

882-581: The Bad River and Lac du Flambeau Indian reservations. According to the U.S. Census Bureau , the county has a total area of 919 square miles (2,380 km ), of which 758 square miles (1,960 km ) is land and 161 square miles (420 km ) (18%) is water. As of the census of 2020 , the population was 6,137. The population density was 8.1 people per square mile (3.1 people/km ). There were 5,523 housing units at an average density of 7.3 units per square mile (2.8 units/km ). The racial makeup of

931-629: The Lac Court Oreilles v. Voigt, et al. case. This led to a backlash from white residents; rocks were thrown at Ojibwe spearfishers on the flowage, and groups such as Stop Treaty Abuse-Wisconsin confronted Ojibwe at boat landings across the area. Additionally, then-governor Tommy Thompson attempted to roll back the Ojibwe treaty rights, first through the court system and then by offering payments to different bands to suspend their harvest. Rep. Jim Sensenbrenner also introduced (unsuccessful) legislation in

980-509: The census of 2000, there were 6,861 people, 3,083 households, and 1,960 families living in the county. The population density was 9 people per square mile (3.5 people/km ). There were 5,706 housing units at an average density of 8 units per square mile (3.1 units/km ). The racial makeup of the county was 98.28% White , 0.09% Black or African American , 0.60% Native American , 0.13% Asian , 0.04% Pacific Islander , 0.06% from other races , and 0.80% from two or more races. 0.66% of

1029-495: The 'spring turnover,' which occurs after the ice melts and the surface water temperature rises to 4 °C. During this transition, a thermal bar may develop. Waves can occur on the thermocline, causing the depth of the thermocline as measured at a single location to oscillate (usually as a form of seiche ). Alternately, the waves may be induced by flow over a raised bottom, producing a thermocline wave which does not change with time, but varies in depth as one moves into or against

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1078-615: The Northern hemisphere, the maximum temperatures at the surface occur through August and September and minimum temperatures occur through February and March with total heat content being lowest in March. This is when the seasonal thermocline starts to build back up after being broken down through the colder months. A permanent thermocline is one that is not affected by season and lies below the yearly mixed layer maximum depth. Thermoclines can also be observed in lakes. In colder climates, this leads to

1127-543: The Turtle-Flambeau Flowage, the waterflea has been observed in nearby lakes such as Butternut Lake ( Forest County ) and the Gile Flowage ( Iron County ). This species could be unintentionally spread to the Turtle-Flambeau Flowage by way of contaminated hulls or bilge tanks from boats, or on contaminated fishing line . Some lake management activities are undertaken by the Turtle-Flambeau Flowage & Trude Lake Property Owners Association, Inc.; in 2010, this group sponsored

1176-605: The Turtle-Flambeau Flowage. The Turtle-Flambeau Flowage & Trude Lake Property Owners Association monitors purple loosestrife around the flowage. They conduct annual surveys and maintain a map displaying locations where the plant has been spotted. The spiny waterflea ( Bythotrephes longimanus ) is a prodigious arthropod predator that is a concern in much of the Great Lakes region. The spiny waterflea eats many native zooplankton , competing with native fish larvae; however, due to their large spined tails they are less often consumed by larger fish. Although it has not been identified in

1225-640: The U.S. House of representatives to ban tribal hunting and fishing on non-reservation lands. Tribal walleye spearfishing on the Turtle-Flambeau flowage accounts for 25% of the total harvest in ceded territory, and overall impact on the fishery is minimal (3.6% of total walleye harvest on the flowage). Many of the species of fish endemic to the Turtle-Flambeau Flowage are popular with anglers . Species including Walleye , Northern pike , and Muskellunge are popular trophy fish and therefore have an annual season to protect these species. Other fish commonly found on

1274-435: The amount of water available in lake. This rate of water collection is not even across all Wisconsin species. Trees endemic to wetlands such as the white cedar are more efficient at transporting water in their sap than upland trees such as the red pine or sugar maple . The patterned bog in the southeast of the lake is a minerotrophic peatland with peat ridges separating water-filled hollows. This type of string bog

1323-513: The area is heavy enough to threaten the regeneration of the area's conifers . Significant levels of methylmercury have been found in walleye tissue in both the Turtle-Flambeau Flowage and other reservoirs in Oneida , Sawyer , and Vilas counties. Walleye are harvested as a traditional food source for the Lake Superior Chippewa , and the bioaccumulation of mercury in these fish increases

1372-640: The county was 95.0% White , 1.1% Native American , 0.3% Black or African American , 0.2% Asian , 0.7% from other races , and 2.8% from two or more races. Ethnically, the population was 1.2% Hispanic or Latino of any race. As of the 2010 United States Census , there were 5,916 people living in the county. 97.9% were White , 0.6% Native American , 0.3% Asian , 0.1% Black or African American , 0.2% of some other race and 0.9% of two or more races . 0.6% were Hispanic or Latino (of any race). 22.9% were of German , 13.7% Italian , 12.6% Finnish , 8.2% Polish , 6.6% American and 5.4% Irish ancestry. As of

1421-418: The county with 59.2% (the first time a Republican had won an outright majority in the county since 1920), and in 2020, he increased his vote share to 60.8%, and further expanding it to 62.7% in 2024. 46°20′N 90°16′W  /  46.33°N 90.26°W  / 46.33; -90.26 Thermocline Depending largely on season , latitude , and turbulent mixing by wind , thermoclines may be

1470-556: The density of the deep water and overturning begins as the dense surface water moves down under the influence of gravity. This process is aided by wind or any other process (currents for example) that agitates the water. This effect also occurs in Arctic and Antarctic waters, bringing water to the surface which, although low in oxygen, is higher in nutrients than the original surface water. This enriching of surface nutrients may produce blooms of phytoplankton , making these areas productive. As

1519-413: The flow. The thermal boundary between the troposphere (lower atmosphere) and the stratosphere (upper atmosphere) is a thermocline. Temperature generally decreases with altitude, but the heat from the day's exposure to sun is released at night, which can create a warm region at ground with colder air above. This is known as an inversion (a further example of a thermocline). At sunrise, the sun's energy warms

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1568-447: The flowage include smallmouth bass , rock bass , bluegill , black crappie , and bullhead catfish. The walleye population is especially robust, although estimated numbers declined from 72,967 fish ≥ 38 cm in 1989 to 54,208 fish ≥ 38 cm in 2009. While most individuals are only allowed to use rod and reel for fishing, members of Ojibwe people have the right to spearfish walleye (see above). The Turtle-Flambeau Flowage

1617-521: The flowage its irregular shape, with a shoreline development index of 12.91. Roughly 35% of the reservoir's surface area is made up of former lake basins; the rest is made up of shallow riverine and transition zones. Water quality varies among the flowage's several basins (former lake beds), with Baraboo having the best overall water quality and Townline the worst. While some basins (including Townline) resemble eutrophic lakes , others such as Baraboo are more accurately defined as mesotrophic . The reservoir

1666-428: The only exception being Richard Nixon 's landslide in 1972. In 2000, George W. Bush became only the second Republican since 1920 to carry Iron County despite narrowly losing the national popular vote, and the county remained a competitive county for the next three elections, narrowly voting for Kerry in 2004 and for Romney in 2012. Recent elections have seen the county trend solidly Republican however; in 2016, Trump won

1715-473: The polar regions, where the water column is cold from the surface to the bottom. A layer of sea ice will act as an insulation blanket. The first accurate global measurements were made during the oceanographic expedition of HMS Challenger . In the open ocean, the thermocline is characterized by a negative sound speed gradient , making the thermocline important in submarine warfare because it can reflect active sonar and other acoustic signals. This stems from

1764-530: The population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 20.9% were of German , 18.6% Italian , 15.2% Finnish , 9.3% Polish and 6.4% Irish ancestry. 97.1% spoke English as their first language. There were 3,083 households, out of which 22.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 53.00% were married couples living together, 7.00% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.40% were non-families. 32.00% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.30% had someone living alone who

1813-554: The risk of harmful exposure to humans. Wetlands are a major source of methylmercury in boreal forest environments, and the variable discharge from flowage dams can increase methylmercury exposures in reservoirs. The Turtle-Flambeau Flowage was declared impaired due to mercury contamination by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources in 2002, and a fish consumption warning has been in effect since 2009. Additional impairments include high levels of phosphorus and chlorophyll

1862-452: The state are considered public highways. In this case the Flambeau River (and any land it floods) remain a matter of public trust . Businesses and property owners such as the Chippewa and Flambeau Improvement Company: the company responsible for the damming of the Turtle-Flambeau Flowage, do retain riparian rights . While the Turtle-Flambeau flowage post-dates the ceding of Ojibwe lands to

1911-414: The state of Wisconsin, it and the surrounding waterways have been the source of many treaty disputes. While the 1854 treaty allowed the Ojibwe to hunt and fish on ceded territory, the state of Wisconsin attempted to regulate these activities both on and off reservations. In 1983, the U.S 7th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the tribes' right to fish and hunt in all ceded territories, not just reservations, in

1960-525: The sunlight that strikes the Earth is absorbed in the first few centimeters at the ocean's surface, which heats during the day and cools at night as heat energy is lost to space by radiation. Waves mix the water near the surface layer and distribute heat to deeper water such that the temperature may be relatively uniform in the upper 100 metres (330 ft), depending on wave strength and the existence of surface turbulence caused by currents. Below this mixed layer ,

2009-407: The temperature continues to drop, the water on the surface may get cold enough to freeze and the lake/ocean begins to ice over. A new thermocline develops where the densest water (4 °C (39 °F)) sinks to the bottom, and the less dense water (water that is approaching the freezing point) rises to the top. Once this new stratification establishes itself, it lasts until the water warms enough for

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2058-455: The temperature remains relatively stable over day/night cycles. The temperature of the deep ocean drops gradually with depth. As saline water does not freeze until it reaches −2.3 °C (27.9 °F) (colder as depth and pressure increase) the temperature well below the surface is usually not far from zero degrees. The thermocline varies in depth. It is semi-permanent in the tropics, variable in temperate regions and shallow to nonexistent in

2107-697: The territory of the Ojibwe . The band now living in Lac du Flambeau settled the area in 1745 under the leadership of Azhedewish (Bad Pelican). It is mostly like the first Europeans in the region were French fur traders and trappers otherwise known as Coureur de Bois . In the Treaty of 1854 the Ojibwe officially ceded several territories in modern day Minnesota and Wisconsin including Iron County . The Wisconsin State Constitution holds that all navigable waters in

2156-430: The thermocline to drop to further depths and warmed summer temperatures bring the thermocline back to the upper layer. In areas around the tropics and subtropics, the thermocline may become even thinner in the summer than in other locations. At higher latitudes, around the poles, there is more of a seasonal thermocline than a permanent one with warmer surface waters. This is where there is a dichothermal layer instead. In

2205-500: The vicinity of the flowage. However, today much of the shoreline remains sparsely developed. Iron County, Wisconsin Iron County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin . As of the 2020 census , the population was 6,137, making it the third-least populous county in Wisconsin. Its county seat is Hurley . It was named for the valuable iron ore found within its borders. The county overlaps with small parts of

2254-461: The view, and is caused by the altered refractive index of the cold or warm water column. These same schlieren can be observed when hot air rises off the tarmac at airports or desert roads and is the cause of mirages . The thermocline in the ocean can vary in depth and strength seasonally. This is particularly noticeable in mid-latitudes with a thicker mixed layer in the winter and thinner mixed layer in summer. The cooler winter temperatures cause

2303-532: The watershed. The Turtle-Flambeau Flowage, like much of Iron County lies on top of a large granite formation from the Archean eon. Soils are generally sandy , due to the presence of post-glaciation old growth coniferous forests . The majority of exposed rock formations in the area were either gouged, carved, or deposited by receding glaciers . The flowage's basin is made up of approximately 45% sand, 30% gravel, 15% muck, and 10% rock. The Turtle-Flambeau Flowage

2352-473: Was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.19 and the average family size was 2.74. In the county, the population was spread out, with 19.40% under the age of 18, 5.90% from 18 to 24, 24.70% from 25 to 44, 26.80% from 45 to 64, and 23.20% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females there were 96.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 96.80 males. In 2017, there were 34 births, giving

2401-632: Was originally part of the drainage system for the Flambeau River . The Turtle-Flambeau Flowage was created in 1926 when the Chippewa and Flambeau Improvement Company built a dam on the Flambeau River downstream from its confluence with the Turtle River. The dam flooded 16 natural lakes and formed an impoundment of approximately 14,000 acres (57 km). The flowage was constructed as a reservoir to augment river flows and sustain hydroelectric plants operated downstream by electric utilities and paper mills. The dam also provided flood protection and created

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