Iron
No
No
No
Fish and Aquatic Life
Overview
Virgin Lake is a soft water drainage lake having slightly acid, light brown water of moderate transparency. The inlet stream does not afford any practical boating use nor does the outlet stream, Virgin Creek. The lake is part of the Turtle River drainage and the outlet stream is tributary to Long Lake. A water control structure, having a head of approximately three feet, is located on the outlet. Muck is the predominant littoral material (75 Percent) with sand (20 percent) and some rubble. The shoreline is predominantly upland (80 percent) with the balance being wetland of the meadow type with some shrub and marsh. Present are: muskellunge, northern pike, largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, perch, bluegill, rock bass, black bullhead, white sucker, and redhorse. Waterfowl probably make moderate use of this lake on their migrations and may use it as a nesting site. Floating and submergent plants are sparse with emergent vegetation moderate in density. There is a small cabin located on the shoreline. There is no public access. A temperature profile taken on June 25, 1964 revealed a temperature range of 70 degrees Fahrenheit at the surface to 44 degrees Fahrenheit at the bottom. The upper thermocline occurred at 15 feet from the surface.
Surface Acres = 119.2, S.D.F. = 2.48, Maximum Depth = 45 feet
Source:1970, Surface Water Resources of Iron County,WI:WI-DNR Virgin Lake, T44N, R4E, Section 21
Date 1970
Author Aquatic Biologist
Condition
Wisconsin has over 84,000 miles of streams, 15,000 lakes and milllions of acres of wetlands. Assessing the condition of this vast amount of water is challenging. The state's water monitoring program uses a media-based, cross-program approach to analyze water condition. An updated monitoring strategy (2015-2020) is now available. Compliance with Clean Water Act fishable, swimmable standards are located in the Executive Summary of Water Condition in 2018. See also the 'monitoring and projects' tab.
Reports
Management Goals
Wisconsin's Water Quality Standards provide qualitative and quantitative goals for waters that are protective of Fishable, Swimmable conditions [Learn more]. Waters that do not meet water quality standards are considered impaired and restoration actions are planned and carried out until the water is once again fishable and swimmable
Management goals can include creation or implementation of a Total Maximum Daily Load analysis, a Nine Key Element Plan, or other restoration work, education and outreach and more. If specific recommendations exist for this water, they will be displayed below online.
Monitoring
Monitoring the condition of a river, stream, or lake includes gathering physical, chemical, biological, and habitat data. Comprehensive studies often gather all these parameters in great detail, while lighter assessment events will involve sampling physical, chemical and biological data such as macroinvertebrates. Aquatic macroinvertebrates and fish communities integrate watershed or catchment condition, providing great insight into overall ecosystem health. Chemical and habitat parameters tell researchers more about human induced problems including contaminated runoff, point source dischargers, or habitat issues that foster or limit the potential of aquatic communities to thrive in a given area. Wisconsin's Water Monitoring Strategy was recenty updated.
Grants and Management Projects
| Project Name (Click for Details) | Year Started |
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Monitoring Projects
| WBIC | Official Waterbody Name | Station ID | Station Name | Earliest Fieldwork Date | Latest Fieldwork Date | View Station | View Data |
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| 2304500 | Virgin Lake | 264015 | Virgin Lake | | | Map | Data |
| 2304500 | Virgin Lake | 10002857 | Virgin Lake | 8/29/2000 | 6/15/2021 | Map | Data |
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Watershed Characteristics
Virgin Lake is located in the Flambeau Flowage watershed which is 247.18 mi². Land use in the watershed is primarily forest (56.80%), wetland (28.20%) and a mix of open (14.10%) and other uses (0.90%). This watershed has 190.98 stream miles, 10,199.06 lake acres and 43,978.35 wetland acres.
Nonpoint Source Characteristics
This watershed is ranked Not Ranked for runoff impacts on streams, Not Ranked for runoff impacts on lakes and Low for runoff impacts on groundwater and therefore has an overall rank of Low. This value can be used in ranking the watershed or individual waterbodies for grant funding under state and county programs.However, all waters are affected by diffuse pollutant sources regardless of initial water quality. Applications for specific runoff projects under state or county grant programs may be pursued. For more information, go to surface water program grants.