FISHERIES FISHES

Step into the MHCC hatchery on campus and you’ll be met with calming sounds of rushing water flowing through the room that fosters an environment for young fish.

The Mt. Hood Fisheries Department has been receiving fish eggs as part of the STEP (Salmon and Trout Enhancement Program) with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW).

For at least the past 20 years the program has been receiving eggs, tending to fingerlings, and then releasing those fish into the Mt. Hood campus pond, according to fisheries instructor Todd Hanna.

For those of you who grew up in Oregon, the STEP program also brought fish into the classrooms at your schools.

Students in the fisheries program here tend to these fish every day, rain or shine, even during holiday breaks. Their goal each year is to have roughly 3,000 fish at an 8-inch length by the middle of May. Measurements are taken every two weeks.

These fish are then subject to urban fishing events located at the Mt. Hood pond. One will take place 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. next Saturday, Oct. 20.

This event is hosted by ODFW. Equipment will be lent to people who need it. Children age 11 and younger do not need a fishing license; those ages 12-17 will need a youth license, which cannot be purchased at the event.

Currently the rainbow trout, genetically a type of salmon, are in the “alevin” state, in which each still has the egg yolk below their body, which they use for nutrition.

After the fish are large enough, without the yolk attached, they go into what the fisheries department here calls the “blue ponds,” also known as Canadian troughs, located inside the hatchery building near Mt. Hood’s Southeast Stark Street entrance.

The fish will be checked in a couple weeks (by Halloween) to see if they are ready to be put in the troughs.

The Advocate will be following this process in the fisheries program – stay tuned for more coverage!