On Sunday, 6 March, in bright sunshine, a large group of visitors and volunteers helped our Hatchery Manager Bill with the release of the first cohort of Pink salmon raised right here in the Chapman Creek Hatchery this fall and winter.
Yesterday’s Pink cohort of fry/smolt release totaled 25,559 individual fish, each averaging 0.23 grams. These fish were bred from the successful Pink salmon run on the Chapman Creek last fall with the help of numerous volunteers. They are now in the wild, one week after their first feeding, and 18 months before the remaining fish will return to the creek to once again breed.
The event was an amazing success, and demonstrated the resilience of our volunteers and staff in the face of Covid, and the massively impactful atmospheric rivers of last fall. We all hope the hard work put in to raise these lovely Pink salmon will help us in our mission to sustain and develop the salmon presence in our ecosystem here on the coast.
The crowd included 25 children and more than 60 adults who helped carry the salmon from their tank to freedom in Chapman Creek. We thank every one of you who enjoyed the bright sunshine and helped with this wonderful event.
In the coming weeks we’ll be releasing more Pink salmon, as well as our Coho and Chinook fry. Watch for more news on some events where you can come and enjoy our hatchery beside Chapman Creek and help us sustain our coastal salmon stocks.
