June 25, 2008 03:48 pm
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NEOSHO, Mo. — On Tuesday, David Hendrix was out on the sun-drenched grounds of the Neosho National Fish Hatchery with plenty to do.
About 200 children from the Seneca School District are expected on Friday, said Hendrix, hatchery manager. Hatchery workers are beginning to tag endangered pallid sturgeon within the next few weeks. The hatchery also is soliciting design-build bids for construction of a new, 9,500-square-foot visitors center.
But Hendrix and his workers are still finding time to help the state of Iowa rebuild its trout program following severe flooding.
Three of Iowa’s six state hatcheries breed and rear trout. Two of those three — one in Manchester and the Big Spring Hatchery in neighboring Elkader — were hit by flooding. Iowa officials said the state lost 150,000 fingerlings and 20,000 catchable trout.
The Neosho hatchery is donating 10,000 rainbows to the Manchester hatchery to help the latter replenish its stock. Each fish will be up to four inches long and is about four months old, Hendrix said.
The donated fish constitute the Neosho hatchery’s surplus of that size rainbow fish for this year.
“We would give them more if we had more,” Hendrix said.
See Thursday's Globe for more on this story.
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