Ice volcanoes were visible Wednesday on the Lake Erie shore at Evangola State Park.
© Robert Kirkham/Buffalo NewsIce volcanoes were visible Wednesday on the Lake Erie shore at Evangola State Park.
In a rare March appearance, a phenomenon of nature known as ice volcanoes formed on the shores of a few Great Lakes and began erupting this week in plumes of sand, water, ice and, yes, even fish, according to The Buffalo News.

Dave McCoy, an environmental educator at Evangola State Park in New York, told the News that more than two-dozen ice volcanoes sprung up along Lake Erie's shoreline for the fourth time this winter season.

"I've never seen them form in March," McCoy told the News.

They also formed on Lake Superior and Lake Ontario, the latter shown in video provided by The Weather Network:


According to The Buffalo News, ice volcanoes form when environmental conditions are just right, including ice along the shoreline, on-shore winds about 20 mph and certain wave actions. Those combined with cold water and frigid air help create the cones that become ice volcanoes.

WIVB explained it this way: "They form when ice on the shore begins to crack and piles on top of itself. Water continues to flow in from the lake and with nowhere to go, shoots up the middle of the rare formations, mimicking the look of a volcano with white lava."