The Preeceville School, in conjunction with the Preeceville wildlife club, hosted a fish release party at Lady Lake on June 10.
The school had participated in the Fish in Schools program and successful raised 55 rainbow trout from the egg stage. The fish were released into Lady Lake after reaching the appropriate size.
The Preeceville wildlife club welcomed the public to come out and watch the release and enjoy some fun activities. Some of the activities included a fish pond and a fun duck hunt for prizes and a barbecue hamburger sale.
Ron Waugh and Johnny Petryshyn, both conservation officers at Preeceville, were in attendance with a “Hooked on Fishing not on Drugs” trailer that promoted fishing. The trailer displayed different types of rods, reels and hooks that can be used for fishing. Children had the opportunity to paint their own fish hooks to take home.
"The Fish in Schools program is an incredible program," said Heidi Paterson, biology teacher. "The students had the opportunity to learn the different stages in a fish’s life.
“We will be participating in the program next year, thanks to the Preeceville wildlife club which sponsored the event,” Paterson said. “We hope to be able to use what we learned and apply it towards the next time we have fish.
“We also want to incorporate a trip to the Fort Qu'Appelle hatchery where the fish eggs are shipped from," she said.
Bill Dodge spearheaded the wildlife class in school and was the main caretaker of the rainbow trout.
"When we received the fish they were in the egg stage," said Dodge. "We were responsible for hatching them and hand-raising the fish through the different stages until they reached the correct size to be released.
“It was a great experience for the entire school," he said.
"The rainbow trout eggs arrived at the end of January in a bottle, placed in a cooler and shipped on the STC bus," said Heather Gawrelitza, secretary and treasurer for the wildlife club. Bill Dodge picked them up and sat with the eggs at the school until they were ready to go into the aquarium incubator. The temperature had to be maintained and monitored.
Once the fish eggs hatched they were released into the full aquarium and fed at regular intervals. Heidi Paterson and her biology class at the Preeceville School have also taken an active role in raising the fish.
"I am happy to say that the Fish in Schools program is going to be put into curriculum form so all schools will be able to participate," said Gawrelitza. "This program was developed to provide a first-hand look at fish and aquatic habitat in the classroom.
The Fish in Schools program provided an opportunity for branches of the Saskatchewan Wildlife Federation to get involved with fisheries education at local levels and in that way to give back to the communities.
"Our club members are very happy to be able to offer this program in the Preeceville School,” Gawrelitza said. “We plan on keeping it going for years to come.”
The wildlife club will also be sponsoring Zac Larson and Kate Covlin when they attend the wildlife camp at Hanin Creek over the summer months.
