Muskrat

From this vantage point, the land formations seen around the Oakwood Lakes are those described by explorer Joseph N. Nicollet and John Fremont when they camped there in 1838. Nicollet observed that wood was less scarce there and stood on the tongues of land separating the lakes from one another. The point due west across Johnson Lake lies near the boyhood home of Paul Errington, a nationally famous wildlife management teacher and author of books on muskrat management. His writings often referred to his younger days researching the life and habitat of muskrats near Goodfellow Island, the closest land to the west. The lakes in the Oakwood group average from 7 to 10 feet deep, and this shallow depth often results in winterkill because deep snow accumulates on the ice and retards the sunlight needed to produce oxygen for the fish.

South Dakota · United States