Restoring Laughlin Lake

At some point in the 1970’s and early 1980’s, beavers (Castor canadensis) returned to the area and began to build dams.  By the late 1980’s, the field was beginning to flood again.  By the 1990’s, the entire field and the gravel pit were fully flooded, creating the coastline of Laughlin Lake that we are familiar with.  Today, the lake is maintained by a series of beaver dams located along its eastern shoreline.

To allow the recovery of the eastern shoreline, massive amounts of Scotch broom needed to be removed.  Galiano Conservancy staff, volunteers, and youth groups all participated in clearing the dense stands of mature broom.  Native trees and shrubs were established with the hope that they would eventually form a canopy to shade out the other introduced species that had become established in this area.

Laughlin Lake is the headwaters of Greig Creek, one of the only creeks on Galiano Island known to be capable of supporting anadromous fish such as salmon.  Since Laughiln Lake was an agricultural field for much of the 20th century, previous fish populations were lost.  Every year, the Galiano Conservancy and students from our local elementary school release chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta) fry as part of Oceans Canada’s “Salmonids in the Classroom” program.  Thus far, these efforts have been unsuccessful in re-establishing a viable salmon run in this small creek, but we remain hopeful that over time a few will return to lay eggs in Greig Creek at the end of their life.  Even those that don’t return will become an important part of the food chain, feeding other fish, marine mammals, eagles, and more.