Salmon news for the new year
A small group from Mossom went up to Squamish in September to assist in a Pink salmon egg take. Pink salmon spawn once every two years, and this is the year. Our portion of the eggs was determined to be 50,000 and these eggs remained in Squamish until they became eyed in December, at which […]
100,000 Hungry Little Fish
Thanks to Cecily Baptiste and Neil Laffra for putting this article together. Mossom Creek Hatchery released over 100,000 fry this spring: – 31,000 Pinks were released in February – 76,600 Chum were released in April – 3,500 Coho will be released in May Numerous volunteers participate in the “egg takes” when […]
Fall egg take!
Photographs and Story by Brian Henke The following story and photographs are from an egg take at the Alouette River, followed by pictures of the subsequent egg fertilization at Mossom Creek Hatchery on October 28th, 2015.
New Spawning Pools – Just in Time!
The season’s first salmon were spotted at the estuary of Mossom Creek on September 1st. This year’s return is especially exciting as they arrived about a week after the completion of new spawning pools! In August, a core group of amazing volunteers worked hard on a project that has been a long time in […]
Fin Clipping – What’s It All About?
A group of Mossom Creek volunteers spent Thursday morning (June 25th) clipping very tiny adipose fins from the hatchery’s coho fingerlings. It is one of those tasks that requires very close attention, yet the rewards are many. For the volunteers, it is an opportunity to support the hatchery’s work, socialize with other people, and engage […]
Egg Take and Centennial Salmon Club
‘Twas a busy day at Mossom yesterday. Not only did we put 56,000 pink salmon eggs into our incubation system, but we spawned one of our Mossom cohos. The Centennial School Salmon Project club was there for its regular after school Wednesday work party. The students got a lesson from our DFO community advisor Sandie […]
Leeches from coho spawners
Mossom Creek Hatchery volunteers discovered a great many salmon leeches crawling about in the aluminum Capilano trough in which coho spawners are being held until they are ready to have their eggs and milt taken. The distinct movement of these annelids can be seen as they stretch and contract, attaching alternately with their anterior and […]
Mossom Creek Estuary at Dusk
After an extended dry spell, an overnight has attracted many chum salmon to Mossom Creek in Port Moody, BC. Perhaps 100 have moved in so far on the high tide to spawn and they are still coming on low tide at dusk. This is two weeks later than normal.
The Chum Are Back. Egg Take Planned!
The wait is over. Chum have returned to Mossom Creek, no doubt encouraged by recent rain events and the consequent higher water level in the stream. Only a few spawners have been spotted in the lower reaches of the creek so far. Yet we have had encouraging reports of some chum venturing much farther upstream than we have hitherto seen them do […]