438 Cahn, The Freezing of Cayuga Lake. \_Oct. 



There seems to be a tradition that Cayuga Lake closes every 

 twenty years, some basis for which appears in the dates of complete 

 freezing. They are: 1796, 1816, 1836, 1856, 1875, 1884 and 1904. 

 The first two dates are approximated,^ but for the year 1836 we 

 find records showing the lake to have been covered by a thin coating 

 of ice for a day or two ; ^ in 1856 the lake was frozen sufficiently 

 to allow teams to cross. ^ A similar hard freezing occurred in 

 1875,* and in 1884 the lake froze over on February 15, and remained 

 in this state until April 4. I am told by several persons in 

 Ithaca that similar conditions obtained for a short time in 1895, 

 but I am assured on very good authority that at no time was it 

 completely closed, there existing an area of several square miles 

 which remained open. In 1904 the surface froze completely 

 about the middle of February,^ but remained so for a short time 

 only. 



It seems evident that this condition of the lake bears a very 

 important relation to bird life, particularly to those species which 

 depend upon the open water for subsistence. So long as a few 

 square miles or even a smaller area remain open, wherein the birds 

 may feed, the effect of the freezing is lost. For this reason, as 

 far as the birds are concerned, the freezing of 1895 may be elimi- 

 nated. Again, the duration of the frozen period bears an important 

 relation to the bird life, and it is to be regretted that there are no 

 records of ornithological observations for the extremely long period 

 occurring in 1884. 



As previously stated, six weeks of excessive cold preceded the 

 freezing during the winter of 1912. Ice twenty- two to twenty-four 

 inches thick formed in the shallows at both ends of the lake, and 

 as the cold weather continued, the frozen area extended outward 

 little by little. During the afternoon and night of February 10, 

 the wind fell, and the morning of the 11th found Cayuga Lake 

 frozen from end to end. On the 12th I made my first visit to the 

 lake about Ithaca to investigate conditions. The air was alive 



1 Reed, H. D., & Wright, A. H. "The Vertebrate Favina of the Cayuga Lake 

 Basin, N. Y." Proc. Amer. Phil. Soc. Vol. XLVIII No. 193, 1909, p. 372. 

 » Ithaca Daily Chronicle, Dec. 22, 1846, Vol. 1, No. 140. 

 3 Ithaca Weekly Journal, March 12, 1856. 

 < Ithaca Daily Journal, March 3, 1875. 

 » Ithaca Daily Journal, Feb. 16, 1904. 



