Squishing through the mud in his socks and sneakers, 10th-grader Zach Heil didn’t hesitate to wade into the shallow depths of a Lyons-area pond on Tuesday afternoon, as part of a mission to help release young northern redbelly dace fish back into the wild.
Heil, a Lyons Middle/Senior High School student, was one of about seven St. Vrain Valley School District students who cheered as the 3- to 4-centimeter silver-colored fish made their way from a pillowcase-sized plastic bag that Heil gently turned into the cool water, abundant with green algae and surrounded by open space dotted with wildflowers.
“It was pretty cool watching them swim away,” Heil said. “I’ve learned a lot about conservation. Native fish are great for ponds and rivers.”
The release was part of a project partnership formed by the St. Vrain Valley School District, Colorado Parks and Wildlife, Boulder County Parks and Open Space and the Ocean First Institute. Mac Kobza, a wildlife biologist with Boulder County Parks & Open Space, said the northern redbelly dace species has seen a decline in its population, due to habitat loss as human development has reshaped Colorado waterways. The fish, which prefer shallow, spring-fed ponds, are a state-endangered species and are among those listed as a Tier 1 Species of Greatest Conservation Need by Colorado Parks and Wildlife. The northern redbelly dace is found in Colorado in the West Plum Creek drainage, which is south of Chatfield Reservoir, according to Colorado Parks and Wildlife.
About 50 students at Lyons Middle/Senior High School and the Innovation Center of St. Vrain Valley School have been learning about the fish since March, starting with about 40 adults of the species. Due to the coronavirus, the fish had to be transferred from the classroom to the Longmont home of Kobza and his wife, Mikki McComb-Kobza, the executive director of Ocean First Institute. McComb-Kobza was among those wading in the water Tuesday. With an underwater camera, she captured the fish swimming in their new environment. Fish, like the northern redbelly dace can indicate the health of an ecosystem, she said.
“To be able to put these back out into the wild is a big deal, and I think the biggest deal is to get students to see that it has value and to see that conservation, even for a little fish this big, is something worth doing,” McComb-Kobza said.
The adult fish, which were kept in tanks in the couple’s basement, spawned seven times this summer, according to the St. Vrain Valley School District, leading to the creation of 1,000 to 2,000 young fish. Kobza described the fish as “prolific spawners,” capable of laying eggs multiple times over a two-month period. Every day, McComb-Kobza spent an hour or two feeding the young fish live shrimp and watching them grow. Some of the fish, she even named.
“Today is exciting for me, but also a little sad,” McComb-Kobza said. “It’s like sending your kids off to college.”
While not apparent in the young fish during Tuesday’s release, the adult male fish will develop red bellies during their mating season, giving the species its namesake.
The fish were planned for release late this year. Initially, they were going to be released in Webster Pond, which was inundated with sediment during the 2013 flood, creating a wetland habitat and shallow water that is a conducive environment for the fish. The pond is in the county’s most visited park, Pella Crossing, near the intersection of 75th Avenue and Hygiene Road. The coronavirus, however, altered plans to finish eliminating predatory fish that threaten the ability for the northern redbelly dace to thrive. Fortunately, project leaders found another place to release them.
Dubbed by project leaders as Rooney Pond, the northern redbelly dace found a new home on property owned by Lyons resident Matt Rooney. His daughter, Maya Sol Rooney, is a Lyons Middle/High School student who was among those involved in the project. When the school sent out an email looking for parent volunteers and a space to release the fish, Rooney signed up and offered up his family’s pond, which sits on about 9 acres of land on North St. Vrain Drive, near The River Community Church.
The pond was once part of the St. Vrain River, but was separated from the it by the flood. Kobza said the pond is fed by ground water. At its deepest, it is about 6 feet. These traits, combined with the ample green algae, which Kobza said the fish like, made it an ideal environment for the fish.
Students on Tuesday helped to acclimate the fish to the water by holding bags that contained them in the pond for several minutes before their release.
Near the pond Tuesday were Erie High School senior Lucas Pisano, and Sophia Stone, a senior in the Apex Homeschool Program in Longmont.
“It’s a neat experience,” Pisano said. “It’s cool to help restore a species of fish. I learned a lot of new skills, tracking fish and learning how they work and stuff.”
While they didn’t always get to be in the same room with the fish, students helped with other elements of their care.
“We learned a lot about the fish and helped to set up the tank and the environment,” Stone said. “We learned a lot about how important it is to keep the pH and water temperature consistent, which was cool.”
Axel Reitzig, the coordinator of innovation at Innovation Center of St. Vrain Valley Schools, said teaching students to apply classroom knowledge in a broader context was an important part of the project.
“Yes, it’s important that they develop skills and gain knowledge, but part of that is also finding ways to become creative and ethical designers to solve a lot of these problems that we face day-to-day in our society,” Reitzig said.
Kobza said he was also ecstatic to see the fish released Tuesday, which he said complements efforts to restore the environment and river after the flood.
“These fish are part of our native legacy in Colorado and they also play a role in our environment, which we are not totally clear on how that works, but we know they’re a puzzle piece,” Kobza said. “Because they are so threatened, they highlight the urgency of protecting our environment as a community.”
While Tuesday marked a milestone, the project and the northern red belly dace’s journey is far from over.
The young fish will remain in the pond where they will grow to maturity, measuring roughly 2 inches in size. Next summer, the project partners anticipate returning to the water to capture the fish and re-release them into Webster Pond and eventually the St. Vrain River.
Until then, the fish will get the chance to enjoy their new home.
“It’s super awesome,” McComb-Kobza said. “They will be safe here.
"fish" - Google News
September 02, 2020 at 08:56AM
https://ift.tt/32TMzZ8
Endangered fish released into into Lyons-area pond as part of SVVSD partnership - Longmont Times-Call
"fish" - Google News
https://ift.tt/35JkYuc
https://ift.tt/3feFffJ
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Endangered fish released into into Lyons-area pond as part of SVVSD partnership - Longmont Times-Call"
Post a Comment