Researchers think salmon recovery must weigh “native” invader…

The Columbia Basin BulletinOctober 12, 2012So-called “invasive” or “nonnative” species – plants and animals that cause disruptions in the natural way of things when introduced to a new environment - have policy makers and scientists struggling for answers.And so do “native invaders,” a term that includes such creatures as northern pikeminnow, Caspian tern and even species of trout Read More…

Fish poop may play critical role in oceans’ carbon cycle

RedOrbitBy Alan McStravickOctober 11, 2012Professor Deborah Steinberg of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) has dedicated her professional life to investigating crustaceans and their role in the “biological pump,” which is the process by which marine life transports carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and ocean’s surface to the deep sea. This cycle removes the carbon to a depth Read More…

Fish stocks’ impending extinction due to overfishing

FISBy Natalia RealOctober 10, 2012Environmentalists have been issuing warnings about dwindling stocks in the West Africa Marine Ecoregion spanning from Mauritania to Guinea as well as in Cameroon due to foreign overfishing.Research shows that six deep-water large fish species, including carp and hake, are gradually approaching extinction, which spells trouble for the estimated 600,000 Senegalese Read More…

Oceana fights plan to let swordfish fishery kill more endangered sea…

FISOctober 9, 2012The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) approved a plan this month to allow the Hawaii-based shallow-set longline fishery to capture and kill more endangered sea turtles when targeting swordfish on the high seas of the North Pacific Ocean.  Current regulations allow the fishery to take, each year, 16 endangered leatherback sea turtles and 17 endangered loggerhead sea Read More…

An anxious wait for fish in the Cowichan River

Times ColonistBy Judith LavoieOctober 12, 2012At the counting fence on the Cowichan River, members of Cowichan Tribes are anxiously watching as salmon make their way through the fish channel and up to spawning grounds that have been painstakingly restored over the past decade.“Some of the fish are pretty big now. Yesterday, there were just over 200 fish,” said fish counter Dan Joe, sitting in Read More…

Klamath Tribes get share of record salmon run

Mercury NewsOctober 11, 2012The Klamath Tribes are getting a share of the record run of chinook salmon coming into Northern California's Klamath River.Tribal members held a ceremony of thanks Thursday at the Iron Gate fish hatchery just south of the Oregon-California border and picked up dozens of fresh salmon that they packed in coolers and took home to their families. Tribal vice chairman Don Read More…

Sockeye regaining ground throughout Columbia region

The Spokesman-ReviewBy Rich LandersOctober 10, 2012More than a century after their runs up the Cle Elum River were wiped out by dams, the sockeye are spawning again this year, thanks to a boost from fisheries programs. Sockeye also are making renewed appearances in the upper reaches of the Deschutes River basin. And there's more hope than ever for re-establishing the legacy of sockeyes making Read More…

Jellyfish in Fresno! rare sighting in San Joaquin River

KMPH NewsBy Nicole GarciaOctober 8, 2012A rare sighting in a Fresno river - jellyfish!A fisherman spotted the creatures in a pond off of the San Joaquin River. "We were right over here, and my dad leaned over and saw these white things and said I bet those are jellyfish, just playing around, and he looked over and he said, oh those really are jellyfish," said Timmy LeBar, who was expecting to Read More…

Ecosystem stressors in the Delta: More than just flow

Mavens ManorOctober 8, 2012For more than two decades, native fishes in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta have been declining at a rapid rate with no single identifiable cause. “Stressors” are broadly defined as those factors that can harm native species, and the Delta has a long list of them that includes agricultural and urban discharges, invasive species, altered flows, loss of habitat, and Read More…

Experts warn China’s fifth Mekong dam will have a “devastating”…

Asia NewsBy Paul N. HungOctober 8, 2012Beijing just finished a plant capable of generating 24,000 GW in Yunnan province. A US study indicates it will cause "huge damages" to agriculture, fishing and human life. The river flow might be altered and seawater might flood its delta. Hanoi (AsiaNews) - China has secretly built its fifth mega hydroelectric dam (Nọa Trác Độ) on the Upper Mekong. Read More…