'No small feat': B.C. fishing guides rescue monster sturgeon stranded in flood-stricken Fraser Valley
A pair of fishing guides are being credited for their work saving an endangered sturgeon trapped by the catastrophic floodwaters in B.C.'s Fraser Valley.
Sarah Schreier, the executive director of the Fraser River Sturgeon Conservation Society, says professional fishing guides Tyler Buck and Jay Gibson have been helping out on the frontlines of the natural disaster.
Buck and Gibson, who are both members of the Fraser Valley Angling Guides Association, shifted their focus to conserving fish stocks and cleaning up riverbeds when the atmospheric river brought heavy floods to the area.
“They’ve been doing a great job and even took a moment to help a really large sturgeon along the way and help sturgeon conservation as well,” Schreier tells CTV News Vancouver. “It’s pretty amazing.”
When the storm hit, the large sturgeon became trapped in a side channel near Herrling Island, which is just outside of Agassiz.
When the guides discovered the fish, it was stuck in only about 20 centimetres of water.
“It could easily be a few hundred pounds and they carried it in a sling for two kilometres to return it to the main part of the Fraser River,” Schreier says. “So this was no small feat to do this.”
Schreier adds that this particular sturgeon had been tagged by the conservation society in 2008 and they have now decided to name it “Lucky.”
“This fish has another chance thanks to the guys helping it out,” she says. “It’s probably in its 20s or 30s…These are the fish that give us hope for the future. So it means a lot that they did this.”
According to the Fraser River Sturgeon Conservation Society, sturgeons are hardwired to survive. But it’s unlikely that this fish would have survived had mankind not intervened.
“What really impacts them is the food supply. So with an event like this, the impact to the habitat they use, where their food grows…so impact to survival would be potentially pretty significant just because of the impact of the habitats that they’re accustomed to finding their food,” Schreier says.
The conservation society has now adopted the sturgeon on behalf of Buck and Gibson, and their names will now be associated with the fish and its tagging information in their database.
“Hopefully the fish continues to be seen and encountered by our volunteers for years to come,” Schreier says.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Grandparents killed in wrong-way crash on Hwy. 401 identified
A 60-year-old man and a 55-year-old woman killed in a wrong-way crash on Highway 401 earlier this week have been identified by the Consulate General of India in Toronto.
Police arrest 3 Indian nationals in killing of B.C. Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar
Three people have been arrested and charged in the killing of B.C. Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar – as authorities continue investigating potential connections to the Indian government.
TD worst-case scenario more likely after drug money laundering allegations: analyst
TD Bank Group could be hit with more severe penalties than previously expected, says a banking analyst after a report that the investigation it faces in the U.S. is tied to laundering illicit fentanyl profits.
Human remains found in rural Sask. possibly a decade old, RCMP say
RCMP say human remains found in a rural area in central Saskatchewan may have been there for a decade or more.
2 charged after police find 'concerning and diverse' explosives at Manitoba home
Winnipeg police say they have arrested two people in their 20s after a large amount of explosives were found in a home outside of Winnipeg, Man.
Canadian doctor concerned new weight-loss drug Wegovy may be used inappropriately
As Wegovy becomes available to Canadians starting Monday, a medical expert is cautioning patients wanting to use the drug to lose weight that no medication is a ''magic bullet,' and the new medication is meant particularly for people who meet certain criteria related to obesity and weight.
Spain abolishes national bullfighting award in cultural shift
Spain scrapped an annual bullfighting award on Friday, prompting a rebuke from conservatives over a backlash against a centuries-old tradition they see as an art form but which has run into growing concern for animal welfare.
Drew Carey is never quitting 'The Price Is Right'
Drew Carey took over as host of 'The Price Is Right' and hopes he’s there for life. 'I'm not going anywhere,' he told 'Entertainment Tonight' of the job he took over from longtime host Bob Barker in 2007.
Police officer hit by driver of fleeing vehicle in Toronto
York Regional Police say they are continuing to search for a suspect in an auto theft investigation who was captured on video running over a police officer in Toronto last month.