The Friends of Lake Manawa received questions and concerns about the potential impact of pelicans on the Lake Manawa fishery, so we asked Bryan Hayes, the Fisheries Biologist for the DNR who manages our lake, here is his response: “White pelicans migrate through Iowa every year on the way to nesting locations to the north. Their diet is primary fish. They are part of the food web/nature. The exact impact on local fish populations is unknown. Question about pelican impacts on fish populations are not unique to Lake Manawa. On an annual basis the DNR monitors the fish population at Manawa. By the numbers gizzard shad out numbered the game fish (crappies, bass, walleye, wipers) by far. There was a big shad hatch last year. Shad are the most available fish for the pelicans. Not to say they don’t eat some game fish. They are opportunistic. White pelicans are federally protected migratory birds.” He provided a similar response last year when we reported our membership’s concern about the “midnight raids” by pelicans in the canals....
Learn MorePosting Policy from Board Meeting 03/26/2023: Our mission is to organize a community based approach to preserve and continuously improve Lake Manawa State Park, to educate the public regarding the issues impacting their quality of life, the health of their air, land, and water and encourage participation in achieving the stated goals, and to support the implementation of goals established by the public and the Friends of Lake Manawa committee. Guidelines for posting to Facebook page: 1. This group was created to celebrate the beauty to preserve Lake Manawa State Park. It isn’t a place for promoting your business, or a place to sell equipment, or a place to argue or make fun of others. 2. Please respect the rules and treat people with respect, just like you would if you were standing next to them and not on the internet. 3. No Links, Hashtags, Solicitation, or Illegal Activities. 4. No multiple off-topic posts or repetitive posts that are copied and pasted. 5. Be courteous. Disparaging remarks to Admins or other Members will be means for immediate removal. 6. Any usage of profanity is an automatic removal of a post and block of future posts. 7. No drama. We don’t limit free speech, we limit drama. Treat people with respect. Thank...
Learn MoreWE NEED YOUR HELP! Cleanup day is set for Saturday, September 28, 2024 @ 10:00 am. Please meet at the Dreamland Playground to help us clear YOUR park of all trash. I think you will be very surprised at what the DNR deals with in trash, they cannot do it by themselves! We need as many bodies as we can get. We are the busiest park in Iowa with over 3 million visitors each year. We are asking for as many people as we can possibly get to help out this year. The park is 1,529 acres with 784 acres of lake. The staff to take care of the park is very limited. We have over 60,000 people in Council Bluffs with much of our traffic coming from Nebraska. In the past few years, we have had 20-25 people help us out. This is disturbing since we are the only state park locally that offers the ammenities of Lake Manawa. Humans are literally destroying this park. We welcome anyone and everyone to the challenge. Local organizations looking for community service, what a great opportunity! Volunteers, please print, fill out & sign, and bring this waiver with you to the clean-up day event, as it will greatly help expedite the sign-in process for all of our volunteers! Children volunteering at lake clean-up day will also need a signed form. Adult group leaders may sign as legal guardians if children’s parents are not present at the event. Thank you! Liability Release Waiver...
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