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Rescuers help airlift thousands of salmon to safety

Salmon - Level 0

Rescuers are moving thousands of salmon to safety. The salmon got trapped in a river in Canada after a landslide. They cannot swim upriver to lay their eggs. Rescuers decided to fly the fish to the other side of the landslide by helicopter. The fish can then swim upriver. Rescuers are "working around the clock" to help.

If the salmon do not lay their eggs, their future will be in danger. This will affect the way of life of Canada's First Nations people. They need the salmon for food. Salmon has been important in their culture and traditions for hundreds of years. Three million salmon want to swim north. The rescuers need many ways to help the fish.

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Salmon - Level 1

Rescuers are working to move thousands of salmon to safety. The salmon are trapped in a river in Canada. They got trapped after a landslide. Now the salmon cannot swim upriver to lay their eggs. Conservationists are looking at how to help the fish. They decided to fly the fish to the other side of the landslide by helicopter. The fish can then swim upriver to breed. Rescuers are "working around the clock" to help the salmon.

If the fish do not lay their eggs, the salmon population will fall to dangerously low levels. This will affect the way of life of many of Canada's First Nations people. They need the salmon for food. Salmon has played an important role in their culture and traditions for hundreds of years. Rescuers are looking at other ways to help the fish. Three million salmon want to swim north, so rescuers need other ways to help the fish.

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11 online activities    |    8-page printable   (PDF)

Salmon - Level 2

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Rescuers are working hard to airlift thousands of salmon to safety. The salmon are trapped in part of the Fraser River in British Columbia, Canada. They have been trapped since a landslide in June. The landslide means the salmon cannot swim upstream to spawn (lay their eggs). Conservationists have spent several weeks looking at how to help the fish. They decided the best way was to fly the fish to the other side of the landslide by helicopter. The fish will then be free to swim up to their breeding ground. Rescuers have been "working around the clock" to help the salmon.

If the fish cannot lay their eggs, the local salmon population will be at risk. Salmon numbers will fall to dangerously low levels. This will impact many of Canada's First Nations indigenous people. They need the salmon for food. Salmon also play an important role in the culture and traditions of these people, who have lived along the river for hundreds of years. Their way of life will continue thanks to the rescuers. The rescuers are looking at other ways to help the fish. Rescuers said three million salmon want to swim north of the rockslide, so they need alternate methods to help the fish.

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11 online activities    |    8-page printable   (PDF)

Salmon - Level 3

A team of rescuers is working hard to help airlift thousands of salmon in Canada to safety. The salmon are trapped in a section of the Fraser River in British Columbia, Canada. They have been trapped in that part of the river since a landslide in June. The landslide blocked off the section of the river, which meant the salmon could not swim upstream to spawn (lay their eggs). Rescuers and conservationists have spent several weeks looking at ways to help the fish. They decided the best way was to fly the fish to the other side of the fallen rocks by helicopter. The fish will then be free to swim up to their breeding ground. Rescuers have been "working around the clock" to help the salmon.

Conservationists warn that if the fish cannot lay their eggs, the entire local salmon population will be at risk. Future numbers of the fish will drop to dangerously low levels. This would have an impact on many of Canada's First Nations indigenous people. They need the salmon for food and for cultural reasons. Salmon play an important role in many traditional ceremonies of people who have lived along the Fraser River for hundreds of years. Their way of life will continue thanks to the rescuers' help. The rescuers are also looking at other ways to help the fish. One said: "We expect over three million [salmon] to migrate north of that rockslide. With that number of fish, you have to find alternate methods."

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25 online activities    |    27-page printable    |    2-page mini-lesson