The Nashwaak Watershed

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Volunteer opportunity with a DFO technician

April 6, 2017

We are seeking volunteers to help out at the Rotary Fish Traps (smolt wheels) on the Nashwaak River. The time commitment is a ½ day, weekend morning and it is a really interesting experience.

Nathan Wilbur, NWAI volunteer and Oromocto First Nations staff

Below is a list of the dates for which volunteers are needed. If you are interested, please e-mail NWAI board member Peter Salonius to let him know on which dates you might be available.

If you volunteer please share your photos by social media or email them to the NWAI office

NOTE: You may not be needed on the day you have chosen if the operation is not taking place due to high water or lack of fish in the days previous. You must wear a personal flotation device / life jacket and waterproof boots. Dress appropriately for the weather.

The Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) technician who will be on duty for your morning will contact you by phone a day or so before to set a time and place to meet. The tech can often pick you up at your residence on the way out to the smolt wheels that are just downstream from Durham Bridge, and drop you back at your residence when the work is completed.

The wheel(s) look like cement mixers with the big end facing upstream — the current makes the wheel rotate and downstream and migrating fish are gently directed by the wheel’s rotation into a holding well at the downstream end of the unit.

You will travel by motorboat upriver to the smolt wheel that is guy-wired in the main current, and tie up the boat to the deck (like a floating dock). The tech will do most of the operation (clearing debris from the wheel and fish well, netting the fish and depositing them in buckets in the boat) but he or she will need you to tally the salmon smolts in groups of five, as well as marking down other species and their sizes on waterproof paper in a log book.

Once back on shore, some of the fish that have been retained in buckets will be anesthetized, measured, weighed and a scale sample will be removed for later analysis to determine how many years they have been in the river since hatching from the egg — here again you will be making entries in the log book and marking lengths and weights on sample envelopes into which the glass slides with the scales are deposited. A certain number of the fish will have a small part of their fleshy adipose fin removed / clipped off, which is an operation requiring both you and the tech. At the end of the morning, the marked fish will be taken several km upstream and placed back in the river.

What we learn from this process

The proportion of the fish that are recaptured on subsequent days will indicate how much (the proportion) of the total population is being captured by the wheel(s) so that the total number of juveniles migrating toward the ocean can be estimated at the end of the season. DFO operates an adult fish counting fence in the same location during the summer so that the numbers of salmon returning from the ocean can be compared to the smolt numbers that migrated to the ocean. This measure gives an indication of marine survival. The Nashwaak River is used as the INDEX river for all salmon streams downstream from the Mactaquac dam.

Thank you!

Planned dates for counts

Saturday, April 22
Sunday, April 23
Saturday, April 29
Sunday, April 30
Saturday, May 6
Sunday, May 7
Saturday, May 13
Sunday, May 14
Saturday, May 20
Sunday, May 21
MONDAY, May 22 (Victoria Day)
Saturday, May 27
Sunday, May 28

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NWAI on Twitter

Today on Endangered Species Day we celebrate and commit to protecting biodiversity. Please consider volunteering with us or one of wonderful NB organizations working to protect species at risk in our province. #endangeredspeciesday #protectbiodiversity #volunteer https://t.co/e68zkeGxNE

- 2 days ago

We took part in a Wilderness First Aid Course this week. Blair Doyle ran us through realistic wilderness scenarios that taught us to keep a cool head and figure it out how to care for injured people in the great outdoors. Special thanks to @MCFTfredericton for hosting us! https://t.co/qUOHs7LYDO

- 8 days ago

World Migratory Bird Day was yesterday, 2022's theme is light pollution. Migratory birds travel throughout the day and night. Consider having your outdoor lighting on a timer and or motion sensor to reduce impact in the evening hours. #migratorybirdday2022 #lightpollution https://t.co/LVB2OR3q3o

- 9 days ago

Bio-diversify your yard like landscape photographer Jason Nugent of Devon, NB! Take the NWAI "Natural Yard Pledge" and commit to 3 of our 10 pledge actions to encourage native flora and fauna on your property and in your neighborhood. #MyNashwaak #NaturalYardPledge #nativespecies https://t.co/F7z5my7hnQ

- 17 days ago

Everyday is a great day for citizen science and yesterday was no exception when Bridgette L'Heureux her daughter partnered with NWAI to install @DucksUnlimited duck boxes on Marysville flats. https://t.co/tycwIAQijn #MyNashwaak #duckboxes #citizenscience #familyvolunteering https://t.co/xI14888UT3

- 17 days ago

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Nashwaak Watershed Association Inc.

Nashwaak Watershed Association Inc.

Nashwaak Watershed Association Inc.

2 days ago

Nashwaak Watershed Association Inc.
Today folks all over the planet are coming together on Endangered Species Day to celebrate biodiversity and further action plans to protect and support endangered species. In New Brunswick we have a growing list of species at risk who warrant our attention. These species are at risk by various combinations of habitat/resource loss and negative human interactions. This list includes but is not limited to Piping plover, Peregrine falcon, Bald Eagle, Harlequin duck, Painted turtle, Eastern leatherback turtle, Maritime ringlet butterfly, Monarch butterfly, American eel, Atlantic salmon and Canada Lynx. Efforts to protect the wild places these charismatic creatures call home is increasingly urgent with the changing climate. We can make an impact by sharing our energy and passion with our communities. Please consider volunteering with us or one of the many wonderful New Brunswick organizations working to protect the threatened habitats these creatures rely on. Nature NB Conservation Council of New Brunswick Canadian Parks and Wilderness Society New Brunswick - CPAWS NB The Nature Trust of New Brunswick Community Forests International #EndangeredSpeciesDay #protectbiodiversity #keepnaturewild #volunteer #MyNashwaak #eauNBwater ... See MoreSee Less

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Nashwaak Watershed Association Inc.

1 week ago

Nashwaak Watershed Association Inc.
Ian, Mariah, Lauren and Marieka took part in a Wilderness First Aid Course in Fredericton this week. Blair Doyle ran us through realistic wilderness scenarios that taught us to keep a cool head and figure out how to care for injured people in the great outdoors. Special thanks to Maritime College of Forest Technology for hosting us! #wildernessfirstaid #eauNBwater ... See MoreSee Less

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Nashwaak Watershed Association Inc.

1 week ago

Nashwaak Watershed Association Inc.
We have been busy this week at the NWAI with training and field work and so we are a day late in celebrating World Migratory Bird Day. All the same, the ways we can help with 2022's theme of light pollution are just as relevant today! Many migratory birds travel continuously throughout the day and night and the decisions we make about lighting our homes and properties matter. Consider having your outdoor lighting on a timer and or motion sensor to reduce the impact of unnatural light in the evening hours. These efforts are important as navigation by way of the stars is key to migrating birds. Tell your neighbors, share with friends, our community efforts have an impact. To learn more visit www.worldmigratorybirdday.org/#migratorybirdday2022 #lightpollution #migration ... See MoreSee Less

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Contact Us

Mail:
Nashwaak Watershed Association Inc.
P.O. Box 314, Station “A”
Fredericton, NB
E3B 4Y2

Office:
181 Westmorland Street
Fredericton, NB
E3B 3L6
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Phone: 506 261-4664
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