Broadalbin-Perth science research students sink fish cribs into Great Sacandaga Lake

Learn more about the science research program at BPHS

As ice clung to the shores of Great Sacandaga Lake this winter, students in the science research class at Broadalbin-Perth Jr./Sr. High School were hard at work — not behind desks, but with saws and hammers in hand.

Under the guidance of science teacher Brian Henry, students constructed and recently deployed 40 wooden “fish cribs,” submerged structures that are designed to enhance the aquatic habitat in the lake’s southern basin. The project marks the beginning of a five-year effort to build 20 artificial reefs and deploy a total of 200 cribs.

“This project has been kicked around for more than two decades, so we are excited to finally make it happen,” Henry said. “The goal of my science research class is to provide my students with meaningful, hands-on experience not found in the traditional classroom, while also helping to improve the fishery of the lake we all love.”

The class partnered with the Hudson River Black River Regulating District to deploy the fish cribs, which were lowered into more than 30 feet of water to ensure they remain well below navigational depth. The cribs, made from rough-cut hemlock, are intended to provide shelter and a breeding habitat for a range of fish species.

The project builds on years of fieldwork by Broadalbin-Perth’s science research program, which has also collaborated with the Great Sacandaga Lake Fisheries Federation and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) on a long-term study of the lake’s walleye population. Students have been tagging and releasing walleye to collect data on migration, growth, and survival rates — work that has earned the class of high school students a reputation for conducting graduate-level research.

With the new reef structures in place, students will use underwater drones to monitor fish behavior and population changes. Their goal is to determine whether the cribs are successfully creating new and sustainable habitats for local fish species.

“It’s a living experiment,” Henry said. “We're not just building the structures — we’re also collecting and analyzing the data to understand their impact. It’s authentic research with real ecological value.”

The findings could guide future conservation efforts across the region while giving students a rare opportunity to engage in meaningful, applied science.

For the students, the construction, deployment, and monitoring of the fish cribs is a hands-on experiment that goes far beyond the classroom. For the fish and other aquatic organisms living in the Great Sacandaga Lake, it may be the foundation of a healthier and safer home.