ARMS organizes an ‘Adopt-an-Alevin’ fundraiser

Alouette River Management Society has put together a fundraising campaign called ‘Adopt-an-Alevin’, fit for the Christmas-giving sentiment.

The society is encouraging people to adopt an alevin and help towards conserving Pink Salmon Alevin. According the society’s Alex Holmes, this is the first time that the society has put together a campaign of this kind.

The idea to adopt an Alevin came from the Pink Salmon eggs hatching right now and the recent flooding events that have impacted the Pacific Salmon in the Alouette River, she said.

“We have seen a lot of damage in and around the hatchery from the high and fast waters as many other areas along the river have experienced. We have had seen the infilling of channels and scouring of the riverbank. We have had sand deposition in the fish troughs, which can be suffocating for the eggs and alevin, decreasing their survivability,” explained Holmes.

For $2, people can help the salmon after the devastating events to wild redds over the past few weeks.

The funds raised through this will be used to help care for the alevin as they develop. It will also be used to help repair and restore habitat areas that have been damaged during the flooding.

The campaign will run until all the alevin are adopted, or Dec. 31 2021, to start following along before they develop into fry.

“However, if you are looking to give an adoption for the holidays you will have until noon on Dec. 24 to adopt and receive an Adoption Certificate,” she said.

To Adopt An Alevin today, people can visit www.alouetteriver.org/donatenow or go to: https://www.canadahelps.org/en/dn/m/46645/donation, select Adopt An Alevin. In the message, people are encouraged to let the society know the name of the adoptee.

This year, the society only has an estimate on the Pink Salmon numbers.

“Between weather events and the fish fence being down a few days, we don’t have a full count how many spawning adults returned this year. We were able to retrieve 41,679 eggs on our Fisheries and Oceans permit. I am not sure how many have hatched yet I would estimate that at this time almost all have either hatched or are about to,” said Holmes.

If people have any questions around the campaign, they can reach out to Holmes at

communications@alouetteriver.org.