NALT is spearheading a cutthroat trout monitoring project with several local streamkeepers groups, including Walley Creek streamkeepers.  They've received permits from the Province and DFO, so we are ready to go ahead with selecting monitoring sites and becoming trained to do this work. 

We'll use an app called Survey 123 to record

• Date​
• Time
• Stream Name
• Watershed Name
• Current weather
• Site ID (automatic as you will select your site from a map)
• GPS Location
• Photo
• Surveyors first and last names
• Weather during sample period
• Time/ date when you set trap out
• Time/ date When trap retrieved
• Bait type
• Fish captured – Y/N
• species
  • CTT
  • Rainbow
  • Coho
  • Stickleback
  • Sculpin
  • Other
• # per species
• Fork length (mm) for all
• Photos of all salmonids (clear, in-focus, taken in the viewer)
• Notes/comments

The software will then map the data so that it can be compared between streams and over time. 

​The goal is to determine if there are cutthroat trout in Nanaimo streams, and if so, where are they?  We'll be strategic about sampling where there's an increased likelihood of finding cutthroat.   We plan to continue sampling for at least 2 years, and possibly for as long as 5 years.  We may need to move the traps up or downstream, depending on what we catch, and water levels.  Interestingly, Pete Law did some pit tagging of cutthroat on a small stream in BC, and of the 50 fish they followed, all but 2 stayed within a 10-20m area of the creek over the year of the study.

It's important to note that we're not estimating total population, but recording presence/absence and comparing our results over the years that data is collected.  

A local newspaper covered the story here: https://www.nanaimobulletin.com/local-news/coastal-cutthroat-trout-project-examining-nanaimos-trout-population-7564784

*We're sad to report that as of February 2025, none of the trout traps in Walley Creek have found any cutthroat, only sticklebacks.  It's likely that the loss of surface water in the creek above Shores Drive during the dry summers has had a catastrophic effect on their population.  The pool habitat has become too isolated and the loss of water is too sudden for the fish to find refuge.  
​See our earlier post "Are there any fish in Walley Creek?" (June 2020)

As we reflect on 7 (!) years of restoration work in Walley Creek,
we are looking at priorities for the year ahead.  

When we began to work on restoration, our primary goal was to understand the creek, its past and current threats and places where it's thriving, and how humans can live more gently with this beautiful watercourse, and even enhance its health and ecological function.  Much of our efforts have been focused on salmon, since they are such an important keystone species and receive the bulk of funding and expertise in the stream restoration world.  However, we know that Walley Creek may never support a large population of Coho, and setting that as a goal may be ignoring the overall wetland and swamp characteristics of this watershed.

We do know that Walley Creek supported resident cutthroat trout, from surveys done as part of the 1994 Fish Habitat Assessment, pg. 11 and 12 and the 1995 Nanaimo Urban Stream Enhancement Study, pg. 27 (see Resources).  ​In the future, we're hoping to work with the Province on better understanding  cutthroat trout populations in Walley Creek.  These resident species of salmonid are also threatened or endangered in BC streams.  When we did our initial stream survey in 2016/2017, we found many trout as we poked around undercut banks.  When the creek experienced a disastrous dry spell in 2019, we worried many of the resident cutthroat died.   NALT staff and biologists hope to do electrofishing or pit tagging surveys to estimate present cutthroat populations.

Walley Creek (and all urban streams) experiences extremely high flows during rain events, and times in the dry season when the stream goes subsurface.  These situations are very challenging for fish.  They must find refuge in side channels during high flow events, and find pools that are cold and oxygenated enough for them to survive low and no-flow times.  
In addition, all life in the creek suffers during periods of drought.  Going forward we hope to retain water through rain gardens, swales, and increasing the pervious area in the watershed.  We also hope to learn from work MVIHES has done on Shelly Creek in Parksville that engaged hydrogeologists in creating a water balance model.  A similar tool for Walley Creek would help us mitigate high flows and support the continuous base flows that have characterized this creek from the beginning.

So, in 2024 our priorities will be ongoing flow monitoring with support from Provincial hydrologists and the BCCF flo-mo network,
and water quality monitoring - RDN CWMN and BCCF 6-PPDQ testing. 
We will also continue to engage youth and community members in environmental stewardship through invasive removal and riparian protection and revegetation, in Morningside Park with Ecole Hammond Bay students, and with SD68 staff, students and families at the very top of the watershed, where Walley Creek passes Frank J. Ney school.