Patrollers of Arrowhead's Littoral Zone (PALZ) - an informal group of volunteers who are committed to monitoring our lake for the presence of invasive aquatic plants. We are citizen scientists who have received aquatic plant ID training from the Lake Stewards of Maine, and offer plant ID help to residents.
We kayak together each week to keep track of plant communities and report our findings to the Maine DEP.
Our plant patrol team on Lake Arrowhead, PALZ (Patrollers of Arrowhead's Littoral Zone) decorated a pontoon for the 2025 July 4th boat parade using the theme of "Where the Wild Weeds Are" based on Maurice Sendak's 1963 book.
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| Photo: D Holabaugh |
We opted to use discarded, second hand, or discarded items for our weeds - a weathered tarp, stained green sweatshirts, and leftover yarns and fabric remnants produced the weedy look we were aiming for.
Our artist 'in residence,' Dina, used discarded latex house paints to create the artwork on a piece of plywood that was sanded and trimmed by Mark. Dina included native and invasive plants that are found in Lake Arrowhead in her fantastic illustration. Look at this beautiful mess of weeds!
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| Photo: D Schultz |
Our successful rendition of showing what we focus on as a plant patrol team earned us 3rd place in the award ceremony!
At the community BBQ, we manned display tables about protecting Loons
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| The PALZ group in March 2024 |
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| July 4th, 2024 boat parade crew |