Four species of floating plants (Valdivia Duckweed, Lesser Duckweed, Dotted Duckweed, Water Spangles) plus a small amount of Hornwort were introduced to the Freshwater Lake on June 30, 2026, as a deliberate multi-species experiment: which species, if any, can hold the surface against Slough Crayfish and Seminole Ramshorn Snail grazing under strong light, potentially shading the water column enough to reduce the persistent algae bloom while also adding crayfish food and shelter. This was a deliberate departure from an earlier stated plan to change nothing in the lake until the heat exchanger was installed, made because the heat exchanger build will take longer and the floating plants address goals (food, shelter) the heat exchanger does not. A full-day timelapse filmed on day three after introduction shows crayfish and snails already grazing the plants, gaps in surface coverage, and a sharp surge in visible Malaysian Trumpet Snails on the front glass (up to roughly a hundred, versus a historical max of about a dozen), read as a possible sign of reduced dissolved oxygen from surface shading and reduced gas exchange. Whether the plants can grow back faster than they are grazed remains an open question.
