Kokanee: The Redfish and the Kootenay Bioregion

Leila Wallenius is a science librarian in the Leddy Library at the
University of Windsor.

The Kootenays is a region of rivers, lakes, and mountains in
southeastern British Columbia that once gave rise to mining boomtowns
and is now a popular outdoor recreational area. The region is home to
the kokanee (a Native word meaning “red fish”), a type of salmon
that spends its entire life “landlocked” in fresh water. This
well-written book tells the story of the kokanee, from its beginnings
some 10,000 years ago (when it evolved from the sockeye population) to
its current situation as a threatened species. Gayton’s detailed look
at the interplay between fish, humans, and the environment provides a
fascinating look at a complex ecosystem whose delicate balance has been
disrupted, to the detriment of the kokanee.

Author Don Gayton is an ecologist who lives in Nelson, B.C. His book
Landscapes of the Interior won the 1997 National Outdoor Book Award.