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Email: communications@alouetteriver.org

Phone: 604-467-6401

Fax: 604-467-6478

Adopt-a-Block: 604-463-9699

Rivers Heritage Centre
24959 Alouette Road, ALLCO Park,
Maple Ridge, BC, V4R 1R8

Report

Poachers & Polluters
Report violations of fisheries & wildlife
to the Conservation Officer Service at
1-877-952-7277

Report Salmon Related Violations
Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO)
at 1-800-465-4336

To Report a Bear Sighting
Conservation Officer Service at
1-877-952-7277

alouetteriverms

Exciting news - A dozen sockeye salmon have return

Exciting news - A dozen sockeye salmon have returned to just below the Coquitlam Dam this summer, matching the total from the past eight years combined!

The Coquitlam River is experiencing its largest yearly return of sockeye salmon in more than a century. Since July 17th, 12 sockeye salmon have been observed in a trap at the base of the Coquitlam Lake dam — including eight that were caught and transported into a reservoir on one day (Aug. 2).

The figure equals the total number of salmon that have returned to the river in the last eight years combined, says Craig Orr, an environmental advisor to the Kwikwetlem First Nation and co-founder of the Watershed Watch Salmon Society.

Sockeye salmon have long been associated with the Kwikwetlem First Nation. The name, Kwikwetlem, refers to the sockeye salmon that used to be seen in abundance throughout the Coquitlam River and Coquitlam Lake. In a direct translation from hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓, the nation’s spoken language, Kwikwetlem means ‘Red Fish Up the River.’

The Kwikwetlem First Nation has been working to reestablish a sustainable run of salmon to the Coquitlam River and Coquitlam Lake watershed for decades — working alongside Fisheries and Oceans Canada, the City of Coquitlam and BC Hydro, among other groups during that time.

News of this year’s return is causing excitement for the nation and conservationists.
“Everybody seems quite thrilled to see the largest return we’ve ever seen since the dam was erected,” Orr said. “There’s hope.”

https://tricitiesdispatch.com/coquitlam-river-records-historic-return-of-sockeye-salmon/

Spawning gravel added to the Trethewy Channel 🪨

Spawning gravel added to the Trethewy Channel 🪨

Today was our last day of machine work (woohoo!) — we were able to deepen the exit channel and add some spawning gravel.

The spawning gravel will provide ideal habitat for pacific salmon. Our next part of the project is removing invasive plants and planting, which is the fun part! Stay tuned for more progress reports.

x̌éc̓ət, also known as Fireweed 🩷 This bea

x̌éc̓ət, also known as Fireweed 🩷

This beautiful plant is known for its bright pink and magenta flowers, which can be seen in bloom during the summer months into late September. When the flowers have died the seeds pop out into a soft feathery fluff that is easily transported in the wind.

These seeds make their way to disturbed soils and are well suited for nutrient poor and ashy soils. It is one of the first plants to come back after a fire, making it incredibly robust.

You can find Fireweed all across BC, up to Alaska, the Yukon, Northwest Territories and down to California. It grows in widespread thickets across meadows, open forests, forest fire sites, roadsides and clearings.

Traditionally this plant was used in Coast Salish blankets, the fluffy seeds were mixed with the wool from mountain goats. The leaves are also edible and were harvested throughout the growing season.

We love to see this plant, not only for its beautiful flowers but also because it is incredibly helpful at preventing erosion and provides food to native pollinators like bees and butterflies.

Join our spawner survey volunteer team this fall!

Join our spawner survey volunteer team this fall! 🍂📋🐟

Count adult salmon that have returned to local streams to spawn. This involves walking the banks of a stream weekly during the spawning season (October - December), counting the fish, and observing their condition. This kind of survey is known as a foot survey.

The volunteer team will complete a data sheet each survey. At the end of the season, volunteers will enter the data into an excel spreadsheet and the Department of Fisheries and Oceans will use all the results to estimate the size of the spawning population.

These numbers will compare with data from previous years and with fisheries management targets. Data collected is used to assess trends in fish populations. Volunteer groups such as ARMS carrying out enhancement or habitat improvement projects can use spawner survey results to assess the success of their projects.

Spots are limited, so if you are interested in being apart of a spawner survey volunteer team this year or would like to learn more about the opportunity email communications@alouetteriver.org

Nature Podcasts we love to listen to (Part 1.) 🌿

There is so much information available to us nowadays, it can sometimes be overwhelming. However, we can use these different platforms and resources as a way to educate ourselves, to hear different voices, perspectives and experts in the field.

With so many topics to unpack and learn about, we love to listen and share podcasts that highlight all things about nature.

@ologies by Alie Ward

Humorist and science correspondent Alie Ward hosts Ologies. Ology, refers to the “study of something”. This podcast deep dives into all things nature. From the study of volcanoes to trees, butterflies, bees, and so much more. Take away a pocket full of science knowledge and charming, bizarre stories about what fuels these professional -ologists’ obsessions.

If you haven’t checked out this podcast, we highly recommend it! 🎧

Pacific Salmon Field Guide 🐟 One of our absol

Pacific Salmon Field Guide 🐟

One of our absolute favourite guides and resources! This field guide is our bread and butter and helps us with identifying species in the field.

Juvenile salmon are incredibly hard to identify and this guide has detailed images of the different life stages, from fry and parr, to smolts, post-smolts, ocean adults and spawners. These detailed illustrations were created by Joseph Tomelleri with the addition of close up photos by Tavish Campbell.

Researchers Sean Godwin and Martin Krkosek created this comprehensive field identification guide for the seven anadromous (sea-run) species across five life stages. Drawn from their extensive field work, this guide presents key characteristics, behaviour and habitat throughout these life stages.

The ethics, practices and principles of indigenous perspectives were included. The concepts and knowledge of the indigenous communities along the Fraser, Skeena and Nass Rivers is shared by Dr.Andrea Reid, who is an Assistant Professor at the Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries at the University of British Columbia and a citizen of the Nisga’a Nation.

“The connection between the health of hoon (meaning fish in Nisga’a, but especially salmon), the health of the people and the health of the river is important. Hoon must be treated with respect if we expect our relationship with them to continue”

This field guide is an essential to add to your wildlife and nature library!

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