22 Oct Thanks to all who came to Spotlight on Shore spawners !
On October 21, 2019 FOKLSS hosted a workshop on shore-spawning Kokanee with presentations from Joanne Siderius Senior Naturalist of the Kokanee Creek Nature Centre and Jeff Burrows Senior Fish Biologist from Ministry of Forest Lands and Natural Resource Operations
Even though the election was in full swing, over 20 community members came out to the Balfour Community Hall for this evening talk on Kokanee. Camille LeBlanc, Assistant Environmental Manager, started the evening with a quick introduction of FOKLSS and the work we have been doing to raise awareness of shore -spawners and the impacts they face on the lake. Our team has been spreading knowledge on this genetically distinct species through education programs in schools, tabling at community events, such as markets and festivals. This workshop was part of a series of talks that we have offered on the West Arm of Kootenay Lake as part of our Shore-spawning Kokanee Community Education Program. Here, we had the chance to bring in two knowledgeable and passionate advocates for these Kokanee to share their work with interested community members.
Jeff started our workshop with an overview of what shore-spawners are, where we can find them in the lake and what we currently know about thier status in the lake. Through this presentation we learned how important Kokanee are for the lake ecosystem, and we got a better picture of how low Kokanee numbers are currently.
Joanne then shared some ways community members can get involved in helping Kokanee success on the lake. Especially for those who live on the shoreline, or even who visit gravel beaches where Kokanee may have their redds. Attendees walked away with some concrete actions and resources to use as we become community advocates for the Kokanee.
You can find both their slide shows here,
Jeff Burrows
Part 1: Shore spawners: History, biology, distribution and status
Part 2: Conservation and Management
Joanne Siderius:
What you can do to protect shore-spawners
Joannes videos on shorespawners:
Video 1 -Shorespawners inundated and dewatered
Video 2- Dewatered shore-spawners
If you want to know more about this project and learn more about how you can protect Kokanee, contact us at info@friendsofkootenaylake.ca
Click here to donate
For the love of the lake
Additional resources:
Support FOKLSS shore-spawner project
