Shona teaching a class about the salmon lifecycle and anatomy
The last month I have had the great pleasure of being part of the team at Kingfisher Interpretive Centre. I have learnt so much about salmon and its importance from the interpreters at the centre who do a fabulous job of teaching the life cycle and the anatomy of the salmon. Not only that, but they also have a thriving fish breeding program in schools across three school districts. During this fall, around a 1000 people visited the centre to learn about the salmon.
Images starting top left: lens of a chinook salmon, chinook salmon eggs, and chinook salmon spawning
In a few weeks the students will receive the eyed eggs in their school aquariums and will be able to follow the growth of the salmon until their release in spring. During my time out there, we saw large chinook coming to spawn and bright red kokanees among them. It is a true marvel the journey the chinook fish take, they can smell their way down to Vancouver and back. The odds of them surviving are slim, it is estimated that out of every 5000 eggs laid only two fish make it back to spawn. Watching the fish spend their last energy making a redd (their nest), depositing their eggs and then floating off dead you really understand this species’ will to live and procreate, and how much nutrient and food this species provide for all the animals and trees by the river. Adding to all the natural predators of the salmon, such as bear, seal and orcas, the fish now also must deal with climate change added obstacles such as heating streams, shortage of water and landslides due to flash flooding. Salmon is an important keystone species and if we lose salmon, many other species will suffer, 130+ species depend on salmon.
Laureen singing the Salmon Song
Laureen Felix from Splatsin has been sharing her knowledge about the salmon and its role for her people with the kids coming to the centre. Laureen learnt how to spear and harpoon fish from her dad when she was little and is continuing to fish in the way she was taught from her elders. The Secwepemc people have been in this area for 10 000 years and have developed an intimate relationship with the salmon. When Laureen sings the Salmon Song to welcome and call the fish back, when all the school children stand quietly by the riverside ready to give their offering of cedar to the salmon, I am filled with hope. If we can re-learn how to be on the land and show the same reverence and respect for the land that the Secwepemc have done, we can ensure that the salmon survive to feed generations of people, animals and plants. We are a community of so much more than just people. We are a community of all the beings and the waterways, each cog in that wheel serves a purpose and has value.
