Academics
Japan Super Science Fair Profile: Foxton, Adison and Nolan
Shawnigan has a long-standing relationship with the Japan Super Science Fair, hosted by Ritsumeikan Junior and Senior High School in Nagaokakyo City, Kyoto. The School has participated in the highly regarded student science fair for the last 11 years, a streak that no other Canadian school can match. Six students and one staff member will be travelling to Japan this year for the fair that runs from October 31 to November 6, joining their peers from 55 schools in 20 countries.
The trio of Foxton T., Adison L. and Nolan B. worked together on the project “Evaluating SLS Hatchery vs. Wild Juvenile Coho Salmon Impact Using GEE Traps,” in which they attempted to compare the behaviour of coho salmon fry raised in Shawnigan’s Mark Hobson Hatchery with that of fry that hatched in the wild.
“We all grew up fishing,” Foxton related. “We’re all super passionate about the environment, and we want to make a difference.”
The three students met in Environmental Science 11 class last year and realized they had a shared interest in fishing, so they wanted to study something related to the hatchery, which is a space unique to Shawnigan among secondary schools in BC. They decided to investigate how the hatchery-raised coho salmon interacted with wild salmon.
Tiny clippings are taken out of the hatchery-raised minnows’ adipose fins (between the dorsal fin and tail) before they are released, making it possible to differentiate between them and the wild fry. Foxton, Adison and Nolan had hoped to use PIT tags (small, battery-free electronic tags) to track specific minnows, but when funding wasn’t available, they chose to use Gee traps – wire traps with small opening – to follow their behaviour. They moved the traps around Hartl Creek, where fry from the Hatchery are released into the wild, and compiled data to compare things like numbers, weight, and size in the separate populations.
Unfortunately, a drought this past summer prevented the students from getting any conclusive results.
“There wasn’t a huge impact (whether the fish were hatchery-raised or wild),” Adison noted. “All the fish were just trying to survive. They weren’t really competing with each other.”
Dismayed though they may have been with the results of their study, the students are still looking forward to visiting Japan and attending the science fair.
“None of us have been there before,” Adison said. “We’re excited to see the culture and what other groups bring from around the world.”
We acknowledge with respect the Coast Salish Peoples on whose traditional lands and waterways we live, learn and play. We are grateful for the opportunity to share in this beautiful region, and we aspire to healthy and respectful relationships with those who have lived on and cared for these lands for millennia.
Shawnigan Lake School is an independent co-educational boarding school for ages 13 –18 on Canada’s beautiful Pacific Coast. Our diverse, interdisciplinary and innovative programming helps shape the next generation of global leaders.
