Troy students participate in salmon-raising project

TROY — Classrooms from four Troy School District  schools participated in a project that allowed students to assist in taking care of a batch of Chinook salmon before releasing them into the Clinton River at River Bends Park in Shelby Township May 9.

The project is through the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, and the purpose is to give students a unique experience that connects them to their Great Lakes ecosystem. During this procedure of hatching, raising and releasing the salmon, students conducted water testing, fed the salmon and ensured they were well taken care of.

Marie Woodman, a science curriculum and instruction specialist for the Troy School District, said in a press release that the project connected students from elementary to high school, adding that the high school students taught lessons to the middle and elementary students.

This is the second year Troy students have participated in this project, and the classes included Michelle Dodson’s AP environmental students at Athens High School, Nate Reynolds’ seventh grade students from Boulan Park Middle School, Colleen Cain’s seventh grade students from Larson Middle School and Scott Binford’s fourth grade students from Martell Elementary.

“Raising Chinook salmon in the classroom was more than just a project, it was a journey of discovery and connection,” Larson Middle School seventh grader Ian Guilbault said in an email. “From raising them through their life cycles to releasing them into the water, every moment was a step towards helping these salmon in the wild.”

Starting in November, the students harvested eggs from fish in their classrooms, watching as the eggs morphed into the sac stage and hatched. They fed the young salmon, or smolts, and closely monitored their classroom tanks to make sure they were exactly 52 degrees. They then carefully modulated the water temperature to match the Clinton River watershed.

“We were in charge of testing the water leading up to the introduction of the salmon eggs,” Boulan Park Middle School seventh graders Ella Stokes and Erin Christensen said in an email. “It was really fun seeing the changes in the color testing. We were really good at getting a yellow ammonia test. We are very excited for the incoming 7th graders to get to have the same experience.”

Around 250 fish were eventually released into the wild, guided by DNR conservation officers. Guests from the Great Lakes Fishery Commission and the Shadbush-Burgess Nature Center were also present.

The young fish will spend up to two months in the Clinton River before migrating to Lake St. Clair to grow and potentially move on to one of the Great Lakes. The salmon will likely face many challenges and predators, but the ones who make it two years or more could return to the waters of River Bends Park to find their environmental imprint, and to spawn the next generation, which would complete their cycle of life.

For more information, visit troy.k12.mi.us or michigan.gov/dnr.