Tribe talks water w/students

The westslope cutthroat trout is recognized primarily by two red slashes on the lower jaw, biologist Jon Firehammer explained to a group of 15 students who gathered closely around him to see the fish Thursday morning. Firehammer, a member of the Coeur d’Alene Tribe and biologist with the Tribe’s fishery, measured the length of a small trout as he prepared to tag it with a microchip called a PIT tag to track the fish and collect data. As the population of the native fish declines, biologists with the fishery are working to re-establish the number of fish in the area. “We know exactly what stream these fish are going up to spawn in,” Firehammer explained to the Coeur d’Alene Charter Academy students. “We know, based on those tags, how many of those fish are returning from the lake and how well they are surviving.”

During the 14th annual Water Awareness Week event hosted by the Coeur d’Alene Tribe, Firehammer and fisheries technician Dan Jolibois explained to students the history, process and importance of tagging the fish/ Mary Malone , Coeur d’Alene Press. More here.