Henley Middle School science students raise salmon eggs for release in Williamson River
Dec. 8, 2023 / Chinook salmon fry that were hatched and raised by Henley Middle School students were released this week into the Williamson River as part of an experimental salmon reintroduction project.
Henley Middle School science teacher Faryn Knight and principal Kristy Creed with help from Mark Hereford, a fisheries reintroduction biologist with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, on Wednesday (Dec. 6) released about 40 fry into the Williamson near Collier State Park.
During a short break in the rain, Knight carried the bucket of water with the fry and slowly introduced the baby Chinook into their natural habitat.
Knight, a life and earth science teacher at the middle school, worked for three years as a fish biologist with the Klamath Tribes. When she was asked if her classroom could help with the salmon project, she agreed.
At the beginning of November, her science classroom received 200 fertilized eggs, which originated in the Trinity River Hatchery in California before being transferred to the ODFW Klamath Hatchery on Crooked Creek.
“They hatched in early November, and the students watched them grow for about a month,” Knight said.
The hands-on project will be incorporated into seventh- and eighth-grade science natural resources lessons, where students learn about ecosystems and keynote species, and in the eighth-grade also focus on specific issues and how they impact the Basin.
“The Klamath Basin is a pretty interesting place to live. Different issues, different things are always happening,” Knight said. “I think it’s good to see both sides. It’s also good to just see the science of it. Just the black and white, this is what’s happening, and this is how science can help.
“It’s more complex than anyone thinks it is.”
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