Walnut Ridge Primary students participate in trout program

VERNON — Walnut Ridge Primary School in Vernon participated in the Trout-in-the-Classroom program again this year, as did Lounsberry Hollow Middle School, Glen Meadow Middle School, and Vernon Township High School.
Co-sponsored by the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife and Trout Unlimited, this program provides classrooms throughout the state with rainbow trout eggs from Pequest Trout Hatchery. Students learn about the development of this environmentally sensitive species as they watch the trout develop.
At Walnut Ridge, the specially chilled tank is in the artroom, offering an opportunity for all of the Pre-K through first grade students to observe the development of the young trout. First-grade students practiced their representational drawing skills as they created books depicting each stage of development that was witnessed. Approximately 350 eggs were delivered in October. Students had an opportunity to view them through a microscope, noting that the eyes and spine were visible in each egg.
In early November, the alevin emerged from the eggs, and the students learned that the yolk sac was still attached to the newly hatched trout which cannot swim at this stage.
In December, the tiny fish called parr began to swim up from the gravel and developed vertical lines which would help them hide in the weeds of a stream. By late spring, the trout were developing beautiful pink stripes along their sides as well as the spots on their backs which provide camouflage among the rocks in the stream. Kindergarten students also observed each stage of development, and are looking forward to creating their own trout booklets during the coming school year. Several trout booklets from Walnut Ridge first grade students have appeared on the New Jersey Trout-in-the-Classroom website and in their monthly newsletters.
Some first-grade students also created a mural depicting the stages of development which was on display for a month at the Vernon Township Board of Education office.
On a recent late spring morning, students and their families were invited to join Denise Docherty, Walnut Ridge art teacher and Trout-in-the-Classroom coordinator, along with physical education teacher Todd Piontkowski, custodian Kevin LePera, and Board of Education member Lori LePera, to the annual Trout Release event.
Following a mini-lesson on trout development in which the students showed off how much they had learned during the year, and a presentation by Rachel Posavetz, an AmeriCorps watershed ambassador, students and their siblings released approximately 85 rainbow trout fry from clear cups into Wawayanda Creek.
Assistance was provided by Trout Unlimited members Richard and Joan Malizia as well. This cross-curricular program connects the visual arts curriculum with language arts, and science, and takes advantage of the beautiful natural environment in Vernon Township.