Cisco Sonar

Sculpin
By Bryce Neilson, The Cisco Sonar

Bear Lake is once again covering the rocks along the shore with water. This will provide much needed spawning habitat for one of the endemic species.

The Bear Lake sculpin (Cottus extensis) during most of the year are scattered throughout the lake on the bottom feeding on midge larvae, nematodes, stray eggs or anything else they can consume.  In early April, they begin to migrate towards shore.  They are poor swimmers and only move in short bursts.  They are the most highly evolved fish in the lake and most of their cousins are marine (ocean) species.  They do not have scales but have a large well developed head and pectoral (front) fins.  They are characterized by opercle (cheek) spines and brilliant blue eyes, the same color as Bear Lake.  The adults average three to four inches but rarely exceed six inches.

They also have another unique characteristic.  They are the chameleons of the lake.  Depending on what color the lake bottom is from white to dark, they will change color to blend in with it.  If it is all one color they will mimic it. If there are gravels, they will be splotchy.  This adaptive characteristic allows them to hide in depressions suckers make when they are feeding.

During spawning, they swim across the lake to find rocks to attach egg masses to.  The males stake out their territory under flat rocks and entice the females with the best spawning habitat.  Typically, the larger the male, the bigger the rock.  As the two fish invert, the female deposits a sticky patch of about 400 eggs on the bottom of the rock and the male fertilizes them.  The female then swims off leaving the male to protect the egg mass until they hatch.  He fans the eggs with his pectoral fins to keep the silt off and oxygenate them while protecting them from crayfish and other egg predators.

Our observations would indicate that the hatching of the eggs is keyed to agitation. The spawning areas(rock covered bottoms) are limited to the east and western shores. When the spring storms arrive, the crashing waves trigger hatch.  The larval fish are dispersed in the epilimnion (upper water column) and are spread throughout the lake.  After they absorb their yolk sack and need to feed they drop to the bottom and being their existence.  This evolutionary trait scatters out the newly hatched fish over a wide area and not just in the nursery area where competition for resources would be limited.   The adult sculpin then go back to their solitary ways in the depths.

Glass Lake

Photo by Dawn Brady

School Fees And New Hires

Bobbie Bicknell Coray, Reporter

Rich Civic Times

RANDOLPH, Utah.  April 19, 2017.  Principal Kip Motta said that it was often difficult to collect the middle school fees.  There is a fee of $25 for books and supplies.  That is the fee that parents sometimes do not pay.  They do pay the $40 computer fee which provides students with IPads.  Motta suggested that they combine the two fees into one and call it a middle school fee.

Motta also said that they would like to get more parents at back to school night.  Last year only three people came to the meeting and two of them were teachers who were also parents.  Motta thinks there needs to be an incentive.  If people come to the Back to School night the middle school fee would then be $20 less.  There are a lot of issues the parents need to know about.  For example there are issues with texting and disturbing apps that are dangerous to the students.  Parents need to be educated. 

High School Principal Rick Larson said that there will be a new teacher, Erin Worthlin, who taught four years at Syracruse Middle School and has a master’s degree in social studies will replace Miss Kennedy. Worthlin is from Montpelier originally.

Jackie Soltes has been hired to be the assistant volleyball coach.  Cody Lundgren the coach for girl’s golf.   Boys’ basketball head coach will be Zach Mckee with Jordan Mckee as assistant coach.

 

The Middle School will play football and volley ball which makes a conflict for wrestling because of change of season so that job needs to be posted.

Principal Kip Motta said that they have finished interviews for two elementary school teachers.  Katy Hoffman and Frank Smith have been hired.  Hoffman comes from Evanston and Smith has taught seven years in Lyman, Wyoming.  Hoffman comes in as a 5^th year teacher.  Smith has a master’s degree and Hoffman is currently working on a master’s degree. 

Ellen Maynes will be driving the bus for the Garden City route. Victoria Johnson has been hired as an aide at South Rich Elementary.

The next board meeting will be May 17. The 2018 budget will be available then.  

Almost May

Photo by Tammy Calder, Calderberry Photography

State Trust Lands

Bobbie Bicknell Coray, Reporter

Rich Civic Times

RANDOLPH, Utah.  April 19, 2017.  Board member Monte Weston asked about state trust lands.  Each school has their own community council.  There are nine people on the  South Rich Elementary and eight at North Rich Elementary council  who decide how the state lands money is spent at the school.  The principal, parents and staff are represented with two more parents than faculty members.  

The councils decide where they want the money and priorities for each elementary school.  Board member Bryce Huefner said is it hard to get parents involved even though it is an important group.  Principal Kip Motta agreed saying most people don’t want more meetings but about  $45-60,000 is available for each school.  It does seem that smaller districts have trouble getting people to be involved. 

State trust lands monies have grown every year.  Sales of state lands revenue are going up with a 30% increase this year.  Weston said that he was concerned that “We are not making more land and sometimes one sale makes money but then future monies won’t be there. 

There were four plans for each of the Rich County schools and all were approved.

Rich Middle School Track Team?

Bobbie Bicknell Coray, Reporter

Rich Civic Times

RANDOLPH, Utah.  April 19 2017.  Rich Middle School students want a girl’s track team.  Principal Kip Motta used it as a learning experience by having student body officers Zoey Dean and McKenzi Smith develop a proposal.  The Student Council got supporters signatures and come with a proposal. 

Smith and Dean said that most of the middle schools in the district have track teams.  A team would give individuals an opportunity to compete when there are no other extracurricular activities during the spring.  They had 96 signatures from the students and teachers. 

Motta said, “Advocating is very important for these students to experience.  They spent a lot of time preparing.  They have a price sheet for uniforms and equipment. There is a cost of coaches, travel and equipment.   As principal the positives are keeping kids involved.  This provides another opportunity to keep academically motivated by athletics.”

“Supporting this could build a foundation for the high school track program.  A negative is that many students are in spring basketball programs and this would compete, dance and cheerleader tryouts are the same time. If you approve the track team, then we might cancel those things. It would be something for next year not this year.  There would have to be scheduling changes for other sports.” 

The School Board will take it under advisement.