Volunteers needed to stock salmon in Pequabuck River
Saturday, March 14, 2009 10:23 PM EDT
By JACKIE MAJERUS
Staff writer
BRISTOL — Stocking salmon in the Pequabuck River is fun and open for new volunteers, said the leader of the local river advocacy group.
Mary Moulton, president of the Pequabuck River Watershed Association, said the state’s plan for salmon stocking calls for adding salmon fry, or baby salmon, to the river in Bristol in early May.
A special training session for prospective volunteers is set for Monday night in Avon, Moulton said. She said anyone interested in helping on the Pequabuck — or elsewhere in the area — should try to attend.
“They’re stocking throughout the Farmington watershed,” said Moulton.
The number of volunteers depends on the location.
At the meeting in Avon, there will also be a presentation and update on the state’s salmon restoration program.
Moulton enjoys stocking the river. She said some equipment and some agility are needed. Stocking is generally done on weekdays.
The gravel-bottomed areas where the salmon fry are put into the water are generally not very deep or swift, said Moulton, but it can’t be done from the bank.
“You need to have waders of some sort,” said Moulton. The water is typically ankle to knee deep, she said.
Volunteers must also be able to carry a bucket with a few hundred small salmon — she said it weighs about 15 pounds. The fry are about an inch and a half to two inches long.She said anyone lending a hand will also need to be able to climb up and down the river bank into the stream.
The training is scheduled for 7 to 9 p.m. at the Avon Public Library at 281 Country Club Road.
Stocking can be done in the rain, said Moulton, but not if it’s a pouring rain that is causing the river to rise.
The whole point of the stocking, said Moulton, is to get the very young salmon into the stream so they can start to know the scent of that river.
“The longer that they’re in that place, the stronger the identity is,” said Moulton.
Salmon go out to sea, but return to their native river for spawning.
“They’re imprinting on the chemical make up of the river,” said Moulton. “When they return, they follow their noses to get home.”
In Connecticut, returning salmon are stopped before they could possibly get back to the Pequabuck, however. Moulton said the fish are caught at the Rainbow Fishway on the Farmington River in Windsor.
Anyone who wants to help stock salmon but cannot attend the meeting should contact Bruce Williams at the state Department of Environmental Protection at (860)447-4317 or by email at bruce.williams@ct.gov or the Farmington River Watershed Association at (860)658-4442.
Saturday, March 14, 2009 10:23 PM EDT
By JACKIE MAJERUS
Staff writer
BRISTOL — Stocking salmon in the Pequabuck River is fun and open for new volunteers, said the leader of the local river advocacy group.
Mary Moulton, president of the Pequabuck River Watershed Association, said the state’s plan for salmon stocking calls for adding salmon fry, or baby salmon, to the river in Bristol in early May.
A special training session for prospective volunteers is set for Monday night in Avon, Moulton said. She said anyone interested in helping on the Pequabuck — or elsewhere in the area — should try to attend.
“They’re stocking throughout the Farmington watershed,” said Moulton.
The number of volunteers depends on the location.
At the meeting in Avon, there will also be a presentation and update on the state’s salmon restoration program.
Moulton enjoys stocking the river. She said some equipment and some agility are needed. Stocking is generally done on weekdays.
The gravel-bottomed areas where the salmon fry are put into the water are generally not very deep or swift, said Moulton, but it can’t be done from the bank.
“You need to have waders of some sort,” said Moulton. The water is typically ankle to knee deep, she said.
Volunteers must also be able to carry a bucket with a few hundred small salmon — she said it weighs about 15 pounds. The fry are about an inch and a half to two inches long.She said anyone lending a hand will also need to be able to climb up and down the river bank into the stream.
The training is scheduled for 7 to 9 p.m. at the Avon Public Library at 281 Country Club Road.
Stocking can be done in the rain, said Moulton, but not if it’s a pouring rain that is causing the river to rise.
The whole point of the stocking, said Moulton, is to get the very young salmon into the stream so they can start to know the scent of that river.
“The longer that they’re in that place, the stronger the identity is,” said Moulton.
Salmon go out to sea, but return to their native river for spawning.
“They’re imprinting on the chemical make up of the river,” said Moulton. “When they return, they follow their noses to get home.”
In Connecticut, returning salmon are stopped before they could possibly get back to the Pequabuck, however. Moulton said the fish are caught at the Rainbow Fishway on the Farmington River in Windsor.
Anyone who wants to help stock salmon but cannot attend the meeting should contact Bruce Williams at the state Department of Environmental Protection at (860)447-4317 or by email at bruce.williams@ct.gov or the Farmington River Watershed Association at (860)658-4442.