Rothes Primary School’s primary 7 pupils have taken part in a Salmon in the Classroom project.
The programme has been developed by the Spey Fishery Board and Spey Foundation. It aims to give pupils the opportunity to raise salmon eggs in their classroom until they hatch and develop into alevins.
Once the young fish reached the appropriate stage, pupils were able to release the alevins into Rothes burn, where they could develop in their natural habitat.
Hazel MacDonell, P7 class teacher, said: “This is the second time we have been involved in the Spey Fishery Board Salmon in the Classroom project.
“I think the pupils have got more out of it this year as they understand the implications more.
“The pupils love to see what lives in the wild.
“Just before Easter the pupils released 150 salmon.”
She added: “We took on mink rafts to monitor whether there are mink in the area.
“Through the project they are learning about what is native to the Speyside area.”
Polly Burns, the assistant biologist with the foundation and co-ordinator of the education programme, said: “It’s great to see schools and pupils taking such an active interest in their local environment and putting so much enthusiasm into looking after these salmon.”
Jenna Smith, 11, said: “We learned about the lifecycle of the salmon and how they adapt and the changes that they go through.”
Nathan Scholes, 12, said: “I felt it was a fun experience. I do fishing as a hobby but I didn’t know the names of the fish that I was catching.
“I catch mainly trout and a couple of salmon.
“They (fishery board) do an internship and I might apply for that when I leave school.”
In addition to eggs in the classroom, pupils were given a lesson on salmon, the different stages of their complex lifestyle and the ecosystem of the Spey.