Coho Salmon returning to spawn in Byrne Creek in SE Burnaby, BC.
Coho are usually very shy, and while this one appeared to be pretty fresh and in good condition, it was not hiding. . .
Hmm. In the last photo you can see Yumi has walked past it, and it still hasn’t flushed. You can see the Coho at the bottom left of the photo.
Possibly affected by 6PPD-quinone tire chems off the roads?We have had repeated kills of Coho salmon in Byrne Creek for well over ten years, both at the smolt stage and the spawner stage.
While we were looking for salmon spawning in Stoney Creek in NE Burnaby, BC, today, this Great Blue Heron came gliding in and landed beside the creek.
It was very chill — we followed it around for 10-15 minutes taking photos.
We noticed it was watching both the creek and the bank. It was likely looking for smaller fish like trout that gather to try to steal salmon eggs when salmon are spawning, and perhaps also keeping an eye on the bush anticipating rodents nibbling on salmon carcasses. . .
We had the day off today, so Yumi and I headed up to Stoney Creek and the Brunette River in NE Burnaby, BC, to look for salmon. We saw several chum and a coho.
While we were exploring, a Bald Eagle made a brief appearance. We then heard, and eventually spotted a Belted Kingfisher, but true to form it was exteremely skittish, so I didn’t get very good shots of it.
Chum
Coho
Streamkeeping, sustainability, community, business, photography, books, and animals, with occasional forays into social commentary. Text and Photos © Paul Cipywnyk