Today we honor Endangered Species Day with stories about our work with schoolchildren in the Greater Portland and Greater Bangor area to raise and release endangered Atlantic Salmon.
FIELDS POND
This story begins back on a chilly February day, when Northern Programs Director David Lamon and Community-Based Education Manager Melissa Gallagher trudged through knee-deep snow, hauling five-gallon buckets of water from Sedgeunkedunk Stream to fill the tank that would soon house endangered Atlantic Salmon eggs in the Fields Pond Nature Center.
Not long after, the eggs arrived through Fish Friends, an educational rearing program coordinated by the Atlantic Salmon Federation in partnership with regional federal hatcheries and agencies. And so, the waiting began.
Over the following months, students participating in our educational programs at Fields Pond Audubon Center watched with curiosity and care as the salmon developed—from tiny eggs, to eyed eggs, to alevin, and finally to fry. They monitored water temperatures, learned about the salmon’s remarkable life cycle, and eagerly anticipated the moment when the fish would be ready for release.
We’re thrilled to share that today [May 15] was that day!
About 20 homeschool students and their families from our Homeschool Naturalist program returned to Sedgeunkedunk Stream—where it all began—this afternoon to complete the salmon’s early journey. After checking farther upstream at Fields Pond for macroinvertebrates that indicate excellent stream health, the young naturalists released around 100 fry into Sedgeunkeunk’s cold, clear water. David and Sarah Raymond-Boyan (Fields Pond’s Camp Manager and Environmental Educator, our newest team member!) explained the importance of releasing the salmon into cold water, and how the fry prefer rocky habitats within the stream where they can hide and stay safe. These fish will remain in the stream for a few years before making their way to the Penobscot River, and eventually, the Atlantic Ocean.
One of the most heartwarming moments of the day for me came when a young naturalist gently released her fry into the stream and waved goodbye, watching it drift in the current until it disappeared under a rock downstream. After months of caring for them, we’re cheering these little salmon on as they begin the next chapter of their adventure to the sea!
—Kayla Gayton, Marketing and Membership Coordinator
GILSLAND FARM
This year marked the fourth year that every third grade student in Portland Public Schools raised Endangered Atlantic Salmon. That’s more than 500 students from 10 elementary schools!
Salmon eggs arrived in classrooms back in February, giving students the winter and early spring to watch them hatch and grow. While observing the salmon, and monitoring the temperature and conditions, students were led through a unit on life cycle, habitat, and morphology.
Lessons complimented and coincided with the third grade Wabanaki Studies & Life Science curriculum, which focuses on the natural and cultural importance of rivers, dams and human impact, and the Presumpscot River watershed. The school year started with a visit to Gambo Dam on the Presumpscot River and now comes to a close with the release of their salmon.
Watch this short video to see us say farewell to the fry raised by Portland students!
Thank you again to the teachers and students at Cliff Island School, East End Community School, Gerald E. Talbot Community School, Longfellow Elementary School, Lyseth Elementary School, Ocean Avenue School, Peaks Island School, Presumpscot Elementary School, Reiche Elementary School, and Rowe Elementary School!
—Jane Affleck Fitz, Community-Based Education Programs Manager
