Subscribe free to our newsletters via your
. 24/7 Space News .




WATER WORLD
Climate change threatens extinction for 82 percent of California native fish
by Staff Writers
Davis CA (SPX) Jun 04, 2013


Fish biologist Peter Moyle, shown above at Martis Creek in the Sierra Nevada, expects much of the unique California fish will disappear and be replaced by non-natives. (Jacob Katz/UC Davis photo).

Salmon and other native freshwater fish in California will likely become extinct within the next century due to climate change if current trends continue, ceding their habitats to non-native fish, predicts a study by scientists from the Center for Watershed Sciences at the University of California, Davis.

The study, published online in May in the journal PLOS ONE, assessed how vulnerable each freshwater species in California is to climate change and estimated the likelihood that those species would become extinct in 100 years.

The researchers found that, of 121 native fish species, 82 percent are likely to be driven to extinction or very low numbers as climate change speeds the decline of already depleted populations. In contrast, only 19 percent of the 50 non-native fish species in the state face a similar risk of extinction.

"If present trends continue, much of the unique California fish fauna will disappear and be replaced by alien fishes, such as carp, largemouth bass, fathead minnows and green sunfish," said Peter Moyle, a professor of fish biology at UC Davis who has been documenting the biology and status of California fish for the past 40 years.

"Disappearing fish will include not only obscure species of minnows, suckers and pupfishes, but also coho salmon, most runs of steelhead trout and Chinook salmon, and Sacramento perch," Moyle said.

Fish requiring cold water, such as salmon and trout, are particularly likely to go extinct, the study said. However, non-native fish species are expected to thrive, although some will lose their aquatic habitats during severe droughts and low-flow summer months.

The top 20 native California fish most likely to become extinct in California within 100 years as the result of climate change include (asterisks denote a species already listed as threatened or endangered):

1. Klamath Mountains Province summer steelhead

2. McCloud River redband trout

3. Unarmored threespine stickleback*

4. Shay Creek stickleback

5. Delta smelt*

6. Long Valley speckled dace

7. Central Valley late fall Chinook salmon

8. Kern River rainbow trout

9. Shoshone pupfish

10. Razorback sucker*

11. Upper Klamath-Trinity spring Chinook salmon

12. Southern steelhead*

13. Clear Lake hitch

14. Owens speckled dace

15. Northern California coast summer steelhead

16. Amargosa Canyon speckled dace

17. Central coast coho salmon*

18. Southern Oregon Northern California coast coho salmon*

19. Modoc sucker*

20. Pink salmon

The species are listed in order of vulnerability to extinction, with No. 1 being the most vulnerable.

Climate change and human-caused degradation of aquatic habitats is causing worldwide declines in freshwater fishes, especially in regions with arid or Mediterranean climates, the study said. These declines pose a major conservation challenge. However, there has been little research in the scientific literature related to the status of most fish species, particularly native ones of little economic value.

Moyle saw the need for a rapid and repeatable method to determine the climate change vulnerability of different species. He expects the method presented in the study to be useful for conservation planning.

"These fish are part of the endemic flora and fauna that makes California such a special place," said Moyle. "As we lose these fishes, we lose their environments and are much poorer for it."

Co-authors of the study were postdoctoral students Joseph Kiernan, Patrick Crain and Rebecca Quinones of the Center for Watershed Sciences at UC Davis. Funding for the study was provided by the California Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission Instream Flow Assessment Program. Read the study here.

.


Related Links
University of California, Davis
Water News - Science, Technology and Politics






Comment on this article via your Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle








WATER WORLD
British water firm Severn Trent rejects new 5bn pounds bid
London (AFP) June 03, 2013
British water supplier Severn Trent said Monday it had rejected an improved takeover bid of about Pounds 5.0 billion from a consortium including Canadian and Kuwaiti investment companies. "The board of Severn Trent, having consulted its financial advisers, has unanimously concluded that the revised proposal... fails to reflect the significant long term value of Severn Trent or to recognise its fut ... read more


WATER WORLD
NASA's GRAIL Mission Solves Mystery of Moon's Surface Gravity

Moon dust samples missing for 40 years found in Calif. warehouse

Unusual minerals in moon craters may have been delivered from space

Moon being pushed away from Earth faster than ever

WATER WORLD
Leicester Scientist Helps Discover Ancient Streambed On Mars

10 years on, Europe salutes its Martian scout

War Of The Worlds: Looking Back on the Martian Apocalypse

Rounded Stones on Mars Evidence of Flowing Water

WATER WORLD
A certain level of stress is necessary

Northrop Grumman-Built Modular Space Vehicle Nears Completion of Manufacturing Phase

French government posts space counsellor in Bangalore

3D Printing: Food in Space

WATER WORLD
Shenzhou-10 spacecraft to be launched in mid-June

Sizing Up Shenzhou 10

Rollout for Shenzhou 10

Soft Pedal for Shenzhou 10

WATER WORLD
International trio takes shortcut to space station

Science and Maintenance for Station Crew, New Crew Members Prep for Launch

ESA Euronews: Living in space

Next destination: space

WATER WORLD
Rocket Engine Maker Proton-PM to Invest in New Products

Russia Launches European Telecoms Satellite

Ariane poised to launch first 20 ton payload into orbit

SES-6 Proton Breeze M Scheduled For Launch Monday

WATER WORLD
Big Weather on Hot Jupiters

Critical Kepler Reaction Wheel Fails: Mission End In Sight

Sifting Through the Atmosphere's of Far-Off Worlds

New Method of Finding Planets Scores its First Discovery

WATER WORLD
Radiation Exposure Associated with a Trip to Mars Calculated

After factory shutdown, Italian workers 'recycle' jobs

Radiation Measured by Curiosity During Mars Trip Has Implications for Human Missions

NASA, Researchers Use Weightlessness of Space to Design Better Materials for Earth




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2014 - Space Media Network. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement