Lake Merritt

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Lake Merritt is a large tidal lagoon that lies just east of downtown Oakland, California. It is surrounded by parkland and city neighborhoods. A popular walking and jogging path runs along its perimeter.

Looking west across Lake Merritt. In the distance are the Rene C. Davidson Alameda County Court House and Henry J. Kaiser Convention Center. At the right is the Bellevue-Staten Building.

1 History
2 Jogging path
3 Necklace of lights
4 Birds of Lake Merritt
5 Cleanup and Restoration of Lake Merrit
6 References
7 External links

[edit] History

A view looking west toward the Tribune Building and downtown Oakland.

In 1867, Dr. Samuel Merritt donated 155 acres (627,000 m²) of dammed tidal water from the headwaters of Indian Slough; it became known as "Merritt's Lake" and later Lake Merritt.

Originally the "lake" was a tidal estuary formed where several creeks empty into San Francisco Bay. It has always attracted migratory birds, and in order to protect the birds from duck hunters, in 1869 the body of water was declared a National Wildlife Refuge, making it the first such refuge in North America.

The Lake Merritt Wild Duck Refuge became a National Historic Landmark on May 23, 1963.

Children's Fairyland is on the lake's shore in Lakeside Park.

[edit] Jogging path

A popular 3.5-mile jogging path surrounds Lake Merritt.

[edit] Necklace of lights

The necklace of lights around Lake Merrit.

A "necklace of lights" encircles Lake Merritt. Featuring 126 lampposts and 3,400 "pearly bulbs", the necklace was first lit in 1925. In 1941 the lights were dimmed to comply with World War II blackout conditions. After a decade-long campaign, the lights were again illuminated in 1985.

[edit] Birds of Lake Merritt

A view looking east toward man-made islands of the Lake Merritt Bird Sanctuary. The Bellevue-Staten apartment building is in view, and the Oakland/Piedmont Hills are in the background.

The lake features a healthy year-round population of birds. It does see seasonal fluctuations in the types of birds that call the lake home.

[edit] Year round

All year round, the lake is home to moderate Canada Goose, Black-crowned Night Heron, Great Egret, Cormorant, American coot, and Western Gull populations. There are also small Mallard Duck and Pelican populations.

[edit] Rainy season

From November through March, the lake plays host to a very large population of Greater Scaup and Lesser Scaup, which spend most of their time floating on the water, mostly just sleeping. Smaller numbers of Canvasback, Bufflehead, and other migratory diving ducks are also present during the cold season.

[edit] Dry season

From June until the end of September, the lake's Canada Goose population increases significantly; Canada geese become nearly ubiquitous around the perimeter of the lake. In late summer and early fall, a moderate pelican population also arrives.

[edit] Cleanup and Restoration of Lake Merrit

Lately, Lake Merritt has been having problems with the parts per million (PPM) of oxygen compared to water. For a while, the fountains that using generate a lot of oxygen by moving the water around were shut off due to electrical engineering problems. The fountains are now back online, but they have also been circulating the garbage in Lake Merritt. The lake is constantly filled with garbage, and the canadian geese poop makes Lake Merritt's density it's usual murky brown color. A few people have started to clean the trash, such as the St Paul's Episcopal School, where the 6th graders along with their science teacher and Dr. Bailey clean up the lake using fish nets on Thursdays.