Fish Ladder Eases Journey to Spawning Grounds
14 August 2008CANADA - Brown trout and salmon were jumping in the Waughs River this week seemingly oblivious to nearby heavy equipment construction.
According to the Truro News, for the past week a work crew with AIC Atlantic Industries in The Falls has been pounding its way deep into a shelf of bedrock to install a permanent fish ladder in the freshwater river allowing fish easy passage to prime spawning pools.
“There are fish coming in trying to jump but they are falling back and can’t make it up over the falls,” Charlie MacInnis, spokesman for the fish ladder project with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, told the news agency. He said there is an unusually high water level for this time of year and salmon are attempting the high jump, going airborne more than five feet, but their attempts at this point are in vain.
“This ladder will be in operation for salmon season this fall,” said the official.
“The water has been consistently coming for the past couple of weeks so it is starting to attract fish.” Once a ladder is established, at least three species of fish will be able to easily access about 11 kilometres of additional habitat, now nearly vacant.
TheFishSite News Desk
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