Thanks to facilitator and current home provider, Hilary Isles, the EnviroSchool kids from Waimataitai, Carew Peel Forest, and Ashburton schools all got together today for a full day of freshwater ecosystem study. Not only did the students do an amazing amount of work on the tapestry (many of them sewing for the FIRST time ever)…
Robert, a patient and environmentally-concerned first-time sewer, inspired us all by working diligently on his fish while everyone else breaked for lunch.
…but they also visited a Fish and Game location and took part in a stream study where we sampled invertebrates and “electric fished” to get an indication of the stream’s health.
Electric Fishing
No fish were harmed, as the electric current only stuns them for just a moment… just long enough for them to pop up and swim toward the net. We found several trout and three shortfin eels. It was cool to get to see eels’ tube nostrils up close. And, the kids had heaps to share about eels after having spent the day learning from Velvet and Elvis!
Look for us all in the local paper…………… and later on TV and at Te Papa!!!