Berks County Conservation District Sponsors 10 New Trout in the Classroom Aquariums
Conservation District Education & Outreach Coordinator Evan Corondi sorts brook trout eggs received from the PFBC in early November. Photo provided by BCCD.
Last month, the Berks County Conservation District (BCCD) in partnership with the Tulpehocken Chapter of Trout Unlimited (TU) and Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) sponsored 10 new Trout in the Classroom aquarium setups for schools in Berks County. In addition, the BCCD funded two Trout in the Classroom display aquariums, one for the Berks County Agricultural Center Lobby and another for Berks Nature.
Schools that participate in the Trout in the Classroom program received brook trout eggs from the PFBC in early November. Trout eggs have started to hatch in the classroom aquariums, and students will continue to take care of the trout throughout the school year until they are fingerlings (about 2 – 3 inches long). Teachers use the aquarium ecosystem in lesson plans to learn about good water quality, life cycles, and being good stewards of natural resources.
In late April, students get to release the trout fingerlings into a PFBC-approved trout stream. Over 20 Berks County schools, and 16 of 19 Berks schools districts, now have an active Trout in the Classroom program.
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