LPOHS students get firsthand look at spawning kokanee

SANDPOINT — Lake Pend Oreille High School students were recently treated to an experiential learning opportunity at Trestle Creek to observe the annual spawning kokanee, which turn bright red as they navigate upstream.

The structured educational event centered on the Idaho Fish and Game, as well as some willing volunteers, presenting material at five topical outdoor stations.

At the Tree Identification Station, students were taught to analyze needle arrangements and cone structures to determine local species of coniferous trees. They were tactilely engaged, fondling exemplar branches and sniffing the congealed pitch nestled in each cone.

At the Fish Identification Station, the teenagers were taught a brief but comprehensive lesson on distinguishing between endangered fish — bull and cutthroat trout — and invasive species, such as lake trout, which have a $15 bounty.

“Simply catch one, decapitate it and bring in the frozen head to collect your reward,” an Idaho Fish and Game Officer explained.

Featuring an imposing taxidermied grizzly, the Bear Safety Station was a student highlight. Most of the lesson revolved around how one should approach an encounter with both black and grizzly, an endangered species. The presenter had students hanging on his every word.

At the Kokanee and Water Station, students were taught the four Cs, or conditions needed for successful kokanee migration and spawning. These included “cold,” meaning the river has to remain under 50 degrees Fahrenheit; “clear,” meaning the river has to have minimal pollutants; “complex,” meaning the river has to have a series of obstacles, such as rocks or fallen trees to stir up and oxygenate the water; and “connecting,” meaning the river has to have unimpeded access to the lake it feeds into.

This was the first station that gave students the chance to view the spawning kokanee, which, crimson and decomposing, were soon referred to as “zombie fish.”

Finally, at the Poetry Station, students were asked to compose verse personifying something in nature. Most students chose to write from the perspective of a kokanee, but others chose inanimate objects like rocks or trees. A standout was Keefe Shockey’s poem, which described the undulations of a chainsaw as it chipped and dug into a tree from the chainsaw’s perspective.

Students agreed that it was good to get off campus, to take a break from routine and engage meaningfully with the natural world.

Bret Johnson is an English teacher at Lake Pend Oreille High School.

    Lake Pend Oreille High School students were recently treated to an experiential learning opportunity at Trestle Creek to observe the annual spawning kokanee, who turn bright red as they navigate upstream.
  

    A Lake Pend Oreille High School student holds a kokanee fish during a recent experiential learning opportunity at Trestle Creek to observe the annual spawning kokanee, who turn bright red as they navigate upstream.
  

    Kokanee are seen in the Trestle Creek area during a recent experiential learning opportunity by Lake Pend Oreille High School students to observe the annual spawning kokanee, who turn bright red as they navigate upstream.