You know spring has arrived when the call goes out to release salmon fry into local rivers and streams.
On Saturday, April 27th, the Coho Society, together with West Vancouver Streamkeepers and Fisheries and Oceans Canada invite everyone to come to West Vancouver Memorial Library to the annual Adopt-A-Fish event. Between 10: 30am and 1pm, children can pick up their adoption certificate at the library, and then proceed to Memorial Park where they are able to release their juvenile salmon into McDonald Creek. It has become a family event, enjoyed by family members of all ages. There is no charge for participating.
This year's event coincides with the official opening of the Centennial Rearing Pond at Memorial Park, a collaborative effort of the West Vancouver Streamkeepers, the District of West Vancouver, together with many sponsors including the Coho Society of the North Shore. The rearing pond will give juvenile Coho Salmon an opportunity to live and grow for a year prior to leaving McDonald Creek on their migration to the Pacific Ocean.
Adopt-A-Fish was conceived some thirteen years ago, when the Coho Society identified an opportunity to create greater public awareness of the diversity and importance of local streams. The event complements the "Salmonids in-the-Classroom" program in which most elementary schools in North and West Vancouver participate.
The Coho Society has been instrumental over the past 30 years in providing chillers to schools to maintain the classroom incubation tanks for salmon fry at a cool seven degrees. North Shore children have learned much at school about both salmon and the importance of protecting salmon habitat in our neighbourhoods. This is a great opportunity for children to explain the life cycle of a salmon, and why it's important to protect the salmon's habitat.
