Category Archives: Fish

Striped Bass in the San Francisco Estuary: Insight Into a Forgotten Past

Posted on November 18, 2018 by UC Davis Center for Watershed Sciences

by Dylan Stompe and Peter Moyle Striped bass are well known throughout California as a hard-fighting game fish, excellent table fare, and a voracious predator on other fish. Striped bass were introduced into the San Francisco Estuary in 1879 and … Continue reading →

Posted in Delta, Fish, Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Science, the Delta, and the future of San Joaquin salmon

Posted on August 21, 2018 by UC Davis Center for Watershed Sciences

by Peter B. Moyle I feel fortunate to be a biologist in an era and place, California, where science matters.  Routine scientific studies rarely make headlines but they are relied on by decision makers because they reduce uncertainty, bit by … Continue reading →

Posted in Biology, California Water, Fish, Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, San Joaquin River | Tagged | 6 Comments

Killing Native Fishes for Fun and Predator Control

Posted on August 5, 2018 by UC Davis Center for Watershed Sciences

by Teejay A. O’Rear, John R. Durand, and Peter B. Moyle A recent posting of a short film on a 2017 fishing derby (FISHBIO 2018a) is disturbing to those of us interested in conserving our native fishes.  The film glorifies … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservation, Fish, Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta | Tagged , , , | 10 Comments

Guest Species – What about the nonnative species we like?

Posted on May 28, 2018 by UC Davis Center for Watershed Sciences

by Karrigan Bork, JD, PhD Conservationists worry about a host of nonnative species, and with good reason. Nonnative species cause north of $120 billion per year in damages in North America alone, and they present the primary extinction risk for roughly … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservation, Fish, Stressors | Tagged , | 4 Comments

Habitat Restoration for Chinook Salmon in Putah Creek: A Success Story

Posted on May 13, 2018 by UC Davis Center for Watershed Sciences

by Eric Chapman, Emily Jacinto, and Peter Moyle 2017 was another good year for Chinook salmon in Putah Creek. Putah Creek is just a small stream flowing through Yolo and Solano counties, fed by releases of water from Lake Berryessa. … Continue reading →

Posted in Biology, Fish, Restoration, Salmon | Tagged , , , | 4 Comments

Resurrecting the Delta for Desirable Fishes

Posted on April 29, 2018 by UC Davis Center for Watershed Sciences

by Peter Moyle, Carson Jeffres, John Durand The Delta is described in many ways.  When extolling the Delta as a tourist destination, it is described as a place of bucolic beauty; islands of productive farmland are threaded by meandering channels of … Continue reading →

Posted in Delta, Fish, Restoration, Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, Uncategorized | Tagged , , | 10 Comments

Will Delta Smelt Have a Happy New Year?

Posted on January 14, 2018 by UC Davis Center for Watershed Sciences

by James Hobbs and Peter Moyle The results of 2017 surveys of Delta fishes are coming in. Already, the results are clear:  it was an unhappy year for Delta smelt. The wet year with high outflows should have created an … Continue reading →

Posted in Delta, Delta Smelt, Fish, Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta | Tagged , | 3 Comments

New paths to survival for endangered winter run Chinook salmon

Posted on January 7, 2018 by UC Davis Center for Watershed Sciences

by Anna Sturrock and Corey Phillis Many Californians have seen headlines about endangered Sacramento River Winter Run Chinook salmon (“winter run”) on the “brink of extinction.” But not many people know exactly what winter run are, nor why they are … Continue reading →

Posted in Biology, Fish, Salmon | Tagged , | 5 Comments

Moving Salmon over Dams with Two-Way Trap and Haul

Posted on November 5, 2017 by UC Davis Center for Watershed Sciences

by Peter Moyle and Robert Lusardi Removing Shasta Dam is the single best action we can take to save California’s wild salmon.  Not possible, you say? Then there are two alternatives. One is to provide plenty of cold water and … Continue reading →

Posted in Conservation, Fish, Planning and Management, Salmon, Stressors, Sustainability | Tagged , | 9 Comments

The Spawning Dead: Why Zombie Fish are the Anti-Apocalypse

Posted on October 29, 2017 by UC Davis Center for Watershed Sciences

by Mollie Ogaz   Imagine you are on the bank of a river or stream in California’s Central Valley. It is just past sunset, leaves rustle overhead, and you feel a tingling along your spine. Suddenly a zombie fish leaps … Continue reading →

Posted in Biology, Fish, Halloween, Salmon, Wild and Wacky | Tagged | 2 Comments