Story by Judy Pickens
Photos by Dave Gershgorn
For West Seattle Blog

School salmon releases will start soon on Fauntleroy Creek, and student research this week confirmed that coho fry that drift down to the lower creek, as well as “home-hatch” fry from last fall’s spawning there, will likely find food.

Two dozen fourth graders from <strong>Louisa Boren STEM K-8 did the annual count of stonefly exoskeletons in the spawning reach on Tuesday to continue research that’s been going on since 2000. Stonefly larvae crawl out of the creek this time of year, shed their exoskeletons, and fly for a short mating season.

The students’ count suggests how clean the water is and how much food is available for fry. The study also gives young researchers experience in following scientific protocol. They found 25 exoskeletons in the study area, compared with 16 last year. Torso size ranged from 3 cm to 4 cm, which was similar to 2024.

Led by Shannon Ninburg, volunteer educator with the Fauntleroy Watershed Council, the field trip also included a chance to see hundreds of fry from last fall’s spawning, as well as the first smolt documented leaving the creek this spring for saltwater.