Author: Tammy Lane • First Posted: Thursday, May 14, 2009

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Third-graders Zach Wilson and Paige Barricklow measured the trout a few days before their release.

Small fry at Liberty Elementary School have big plans this weekend: releasing about three dozen fish they have nurtured in Kentucky’s first-ever Trout in the Classroom program. On Saturday, science club members will trek to the East Fork of Indian Creek in the Daniel Boone National Forest for the culmination of their six-month, hands-on study.

“It’s not just about raising trout. It’s about learning about the environment,” said Kristi Fehr, the science lab teacher. “They’re starting to see their little connections to the rest of the world.”

The 12-member club, which meets on Mondays after school, carefully tended the eggs and growing fish throughout the program, which was sponsored by the Bluegrass chapter of Trout Unlimited.

But, as often happens in the wild, only the fittest fingerling trout have survived.

The students received about 300 fertilized eggs in November from the federal trout hatchery in Russell Springs. About 20 died almost right away.

“We took them out so they wouldn’t spread diseases or sickness to the other eggs,” said third-grader Zach Wilson, who described using a turkey baster to remove the early casualties.

Once the eggs hatched, the kids transferred the tiny trout to a chilled classroom fish tank.

“We tried to keep the temperature in the tank the same as it’ll be in the stream,” explained third-grader Paige Barricklow.

Added Zach: “We have to have the water circulating really hard because the trout live in the river and have to swim against the current.”

However, a filter accident and a problem with the automatic feeder during winter break really thinned Liberty’s population. The science club is now left with roughly 10 percent of its trout, which is about average for this project.

These sturdy, 2-inch fish will find a suitable new home in the national forest.

“They need lots of dissolved oxygen and cooler water. They also are very sensitive to pollution in the water,” said Fehr, who said it was good for the kids to study a local animal.

The science club did everything from testing the pH and adjusting water and chemical levels to creating a decorative foam fish-tank cover to block out the classroom heat. The kids also learned about the trout’s life cycle and kept journals to note such changes as when the trout lost their yolk sacs.

For a bit a fun, the students explored the recreational side of fishing. Among their favorite lessons was when guest experts taught them how to fly cast and tie fly lures.

The kids also discussed harmful changes to the environment, such as mud washing into streams and suffocating trout eggs. And they heard how some creatures like leeches can tolerate pollution, while others like mayflies cannot.

“They’ve really learned about the connection of organisms to their environment,” Fehr said.