What happens when wild salmon interbreed with hatchery fish?

KTOO – A research project by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game looking at chum and pink salmon runs in Southeast Alaska and Prince William Sound is expanding to help biologists understand the interplay between wild runs and hatchery strays. There is concern that hatchery fish could alter the genetics of wild populations, posing a threat to their survival. Homer-based Fish and Game Read More…

Research ties lake trout to changes in Yellowstone ecosystem

Independent Record – The precipitous decline of Yellowstone Lake’s cutthroat trout population during the past 30 years following the illegal introduction of nonnative lake trout has had impacts on everything from zooplankton and water temperature to grizzly bears and otters, according to a newly published paper. "Our study illustrates the potential impact of a single, invasive Read More…

Completed Drought Contingey Plan called historic

White Mountain Independent – The leaders of Colorado River basin states are asking Congress to approve the newly adopted drought contingency plan that they admit is not a long-term solution to a dryer future and less water in the river. Officials of the seven states on Tuesday signed the request for what Brenda Burman, commissioner of the Bureau of Reclamation called a historic Read More…

Climate change and drought threaten small mountain streams in the…

UC Santa Cruz – Small mountain streams and the vibrant ecosystems they support were hit hard by the historic California drought of 2012 to 2015. Researchers monitoring aquatic life in Sierra Nevada streams observed significant declines in the numbers of aquatic insects and other bottom-dwelling invertebrates during the drought. The most vulnerable species included many of the larger insects Read More…

Salmon advocates see potential for Snake River dam removal

Idaho Mountain Express – Changes in the economics of hydropower generation in the Pacific Northwest are giving anadromous fish advocates optimism that four dams on the lower Snake River could soon be removed. The dams are widely blamed for being the main cause of salmon and steelhead declines in Idaho since they went into operation in the 1960s and ’70s. “The lower Snake River Read More…

Wetland mud is ‘secret weapon’ against climate change

BBC News – Muddy, coastal marshes are "sleeping giants" that could fight climate change, scientists say. A global study has shown that these regions could be awoken by sea level rise. Sea level is directly linked to the amount of carbon these wetlands store in their soil, the team reports in the journal Nature. Researchers studied the carbon locked away in cores of wetland mud from Read More…

Machine learning identifies links between world’s oceans

MIT News – Oceanographers studying the physics of the global ocean have long found themselves facing a conundrum: Fluid dynamical balances can vary greatly from point to point, rendering it difficult to make global generalizations. Factors like the wind, local topography, and meteorological exchanges make it difficult to compare one area to another. To add to the complexity, one would Read More…

Insights from recreational fishers inform salmon escape study

Mirage News – Tasmanian recreational fishers have contributed to an Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS) study of the potential ecological impacts of a salmon escape event in May 2018, when severe storms damaged salmon farming infrastructure off the east coast of Bruny Island. Led by Associate Professor Jeremy Lyle, the IMAS study released today drew on the experiences of Read More…

Like magic, these habitats disappear and reappear each spring

National Geographic – Ponds that vanish and reappear, animals that go dormant and return to life—vernal pools feel a bit like spring magic, but they’re 100 percent real. These ephemeral habitats, found along the U.S. West Coast and throughout the Northeast and Midwest, form in natural depressions that have suitable soil for holding water. (See our beautiful photos of spring Read More…

Tagged by scientists, bluefin tuna passing submerged listening lines…

EurekAlert! – An array of underwater listening lines that detect passing giant Atlantic bluefin tuna previously caught and tagged by scientists has created a new system to monitor these enormous, fast, powerful and lucrative fish in the open ocean. A 10-year research project using the technology sheds light on the species' natural mortality as well as migration, important information for Read More…