The Moose Jaw Wildlife Federation’s (MJWF) annual Fish Fry fundraiser is coming up on March 22 and 23 and will support education programs like Fish in Schools and Classrooms on Ice in local schools.
The MJWF provides opportunities for youth in and around Moose Jaw to learn about and appreciate natural habitats, the life cycles of fish, pheasants, and other wild game, and how they can enjoy outdoor sports such as hunting and fishing while preserving the environment.
There are two sittings per night for the Fish Fry, which is the organization’s biggest yearly fundraiser. It supports all their other programs, including the upcoming Youth & Family Ice Tournament on March 9.
Fish Fry tickets are $30 per person, available from Doreen at 306-692-4148 or Sandra at 306-692-8848.
It will be held at the MJWF building the Town 'n Country mall - 1396 3rd Ave. NE.
MJWF President Todd Smith, who teaches in French and English at L’école Ducharme, said that the Fish in Schools program is currently running swimmingly.
“We’re currently running the Fish in Schools program here at École Ducharme, so we received some rainbow trout eggs from the provincial hatchery, and they’ve hatched out and are now in the alevin stage,” Smith explained.
“We’ll be raising them probably until the end of May, so students learn about the life cycles of the trout, their growth rates, how water temperatures affect them, how human impacts on the environment influence the life cycles of fish and all the other creatures that call our lakes and rivers home. And then the student get to stock the fish into the Buffalo Pound trout pond.”
The rainbow trout aquarium is in the lobby space of École Ducharme. Teachers bring their students to observe the growth and development of the fish, and can do special science lab projects to dig even deeper into biology, ecology, and more.
Another MJWF program, Classrooms on Ice, brings students out to Buffalo Pound for a day as part of their science curriculum.
“Classrooms on Ice is a nationally and provincially recognized education program,” Smith said. “One of the classrooms teaches about fish physiology, food webs, and lake ecology. The second one deals with water quality and macroinvertebrates. And then, the third is an introduction to ice fishing, so students get a chance to try out that sport.”
Pheasants in the Classroom will start in a couple of months. Classrooms in and around Moose Jaw can sign up to receive an incubator and several dozen pheasant eggs. The students become part of raising those birds throughout the summer before the pheasants are released in the fall to supplement wild populations.
Other MJWF initiatives include the Hamilton Flats Reclamation Project, which is restoring a former industrial waste dumping area.
“I’d also like to mention our upcoming Youth and Family Ice Fishing Tournament, coming up on March 9 out at Buffalo Pound Provincial Park,” Smith added. “So, if youth and families want to check out the sport of ice fishing, this would be an excellent time to give it a run.”
Learn more about Moose Jaw Wildlife Federation programs and opportunities by following their Facebook and Instagram feeds, or email mjwildlife.federation@gmail.com with any questions.
Tue, May 14, 6:30 PM
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