BIWC Salmon Monitoring Program
The Bainbridge Salmon Monitoring Program has been conducting monitoring for returning spawning adult salmon and instream juvenile salmon every fall since 2005. This citizen science program trains volunteers to observe and collect data on abundance, distribution, and species of salmon that are returning to our Island streams to spawn.
Salmon monitoring streams
This program typically monitors four streams on Bainbridge Island – Cooper Creek at the head of Eagle Harbor; two segments of Springbrook Creek; Manzanita Creek; and Murden Creek- for returning adult spawning and juvenile salmon. Volunteers conduct fish and redd (the nests in which salmon lay their eggs) surveys weekly for a two-month period each fall.
Interested in volunteering?
Citizen volunteers are placed in teams of three or four individuals depending on their schedule, who agree to visit their designated stream once per week between October and early December. You do not have to have expertise to volunteer- we will train you! You do need to be at least 14 years of age, and be in physical condition to hike 1-3 miles over uneven surfaces in a variety of weather conditions. We are underway with our 2022 monitoring season and not currently accepting new volunteers. Please join our newsletter, link at the bottom of this page, if you’d like to be notified of future opportunities.