A new study, lead by SAFS Prof. Tim Essington and published on April 6 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, “implicates fishing in the collapse of forage fish stocks and recommends risk-based management tools that would track a fishery’s numbers and suspend fishing when necessary.” Read the full story on UW Today.
Publishers to Require Lay Summaries
Prof. Julian Olden and SAFS research scientist Lauren Kuehne published an opinion article in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, titled Lay Summaries needed to enhance science communication. This piece promotes the requirement and publication of lay summaries with peer-reviewed research articles.
In the article, Olden and Kuehne outlined the potential for lay summaries to improve transparency, openness, and accessibility of scientific research, particularly in the rapidly changing science media landscape. Olden states that the article has “been been pretty enthusiastically received, and we are planning to follow up with major ecology and conservation journals requesting that they adopt and publish lay summaries as part of the peer-review process.”
Board sets new sockeye escapement goals for 2015
Several in the SAFS community have been working on a management strategy evaluation for Bristol Bay sockeye salmon. Findings were presented to the Alaska Board of Fish resulting in changes to seasonal management targets, reported by The Bristol Bay Times.
Last week the Department of Fish and Game adopted a wider range with raised upper ends for sockeye escapement goals in most Bristol Bay rivers. These new Sustainable Escapement Goals are accompanied by regulatory language that recommends Department of Fish & Game manage for escapement proportional to the size of the run in a given year.
These changes are the result of a study carried out by fisheries biologists and economists following the 2012 Board of Fish meeting in Naknek.
Publication: Viability and infectivity of Ichthyophonus sp. in post-mortem Pacific herring, Clupea pallasii (Kocan)
http://dx.doi.org/10.1645/14-518.1
Establishment of the Lobo Orensanz Endowed Fund for Student Support
Jose Maria (Lobo) Orensanz: 1945-2015
It is with profound sadness that we write to tell that our dear friend and colleague, Lobo Orensanz, died at his home in Puerto Madryn, Argentina on January 5, 2015. If any solace can be found in this tragic news it is to know that Lobo was packing a van for a field trip with his wonderful wife Ana Parma and other family to savor the natural history of their Patagonian coast….that was what Lobo loved so much, and he died anticipating another expedition of science and joy that marked his character and his life. Lobo’s departure leaves us with a void on many levels. Those fortunate to have met Lobo knew him as a brilliant scientist in many aspects of natural history, an insightful and passionate conservationist, a committed friend to fishing communities in support of their industries and livelihood, a mentor of many generations of undergraduate and graduate students, and as a kind and generous friend whose company we sought so often. We are sad but immensely grateful to have known Lobo and we relish his role in our lives, in these memories he will live on with us.
Both Lobo and Ana are alumni of SAFS and received their PhDs in our program. Lobo became the conduit by which many immensely dedicated and passionate students from parts of South America came to our degree programs and then took their skills home to impressive careers. To continue Lobo’s legacy and to reflect his commitment to learning on all levels, the School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences is establishing the Lobo Orensanz Endowed Fund for Student Support to create a permanent funding source for future generations of SAFS students. We invite you to donate to this named endowment in Lobo’s memory and we are committed to reaching a minimum goal of $25K to make this support operational. To make a gift, click here to give online or send a check made out to the “University of Washington Foundation” with “Lobo Orensanz Fund” in the memo line to the address below.
UW School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences (Attn: Kathryn Stout)
Box 355020
Seattle, Washington 98195-5055
For any further information about making a gift please contact David Armstrong, 206-617-7003 davearm@uw.edu; or André Punt, 206-221-6319 aepunt@uw.edu
Please forward this announcement widely to all those Lobo touched professionally and as a friend.
Phenotype flexibility in wild fish: Dolly Varden regulate assimilative capacity to capitalize on annual pulsed subsidies.
| Related Articles |
Phenotype flexibility in wild fish: Dolly Varden regulate assimilative capacity to capitalize on annual pulsed subsidies.
J Anim Ecol. 2013 Sep;82(5):966-75
Authors: Armstrong JB, Bond MH
Abstract
1. Large digestive organs increase rates of energy gain when food is plentiful but are costly to maintain and increase rates of energy loss when food is scarce. The physiological adaptations to this trade-off differ depending on the scale and predictability of variation in food abundance. 2. Currently, there is little understanding of how animals balance trade-offs between the cost and capacity of the digestive system in response to resource pulses: rare, ephemeral periods of resource superabundance. We investigated the physiological and behavioural tactics of the fish Dolly Varden (Salvelinus malma) that rear in watersheds with low in situ productivity, but experience annual resource pulses from the spawning migrations of Pacific salmon. The eggs of Pacific salmon provide high-energy food for Dolly Varden. 3. Dolly Varden sampled 6 weeks prior to the resource pulse exhibited atrophy of the stomach, pyloric caeca, intestine and liver. Throughout the portion of the growing season prior to the resource pulse, fish exhibited empty stomachs, low indices of energy condition and muscle isotope signatures reflecting the previous resource pulse. 4. During the resource pulse, Dolly Varden exhibited large digestive machinery, gorged on salmon eggs and rapidly stored energy in fat reserves, somatic growth and gonad development. Dolly Varden appeared to achieve nearly their entire annual energy surplus during the ∼ 5-week period when sockeye salmon spawn. 5. Digestive flexibility provides Dolly Varden the energy efficiency required to survive and reproduce when resource abundance is concentrated into an annual pulse that is predictable, yet highly ephemeral. Although fish are known to incur extremely variable energy budgets, our study is one of the first to document digestive flexibility in wild fish. Our study emphasizes that fish can rely heavily on rare, high-magnitude foraging opportunities. Human actions that attenuate spikes in food abundance may have stronger than anticipated effects on consumer energy budgets.
PMID: 23510107 [PubMed – indexed for MEDLINE]
via pubmed: school of aquatic an… http://ift.tt/1sSEHP7
Incentivizing the Public to Support Invasive Species Management: Eurasian Milfoil Reduces Lakefront Property Values.
Incentivizing the Public to Support Invasive Species Management: Eurasian Milfoil Reduces Lakefront Property Values.
PLoS One. 2014;9(10):e110458
Authors: Olden JD, Tamayo M
Abstract
Economic evaluations of invasive species are essential for providing comprehensive assessments of the benefits and costs of publicly-funded management activities, yet many previous investigations have focused narrowly on expenditures to control spread and infestation. We use hedonic modeling to evaluate the economic effects of Eurasian milfoil (Myriophyllum spicatum) invasions on lakefront property values of single-family homes in an urban-suburban landscape. Milfoil often forms dense canopies at the water surface, diminishing the value of ecosystem services (e.g., recreation, fishing) and necessitating expensive control and management efforts. We compare 1,258 lakeshore property sale transactions (1995-2006) in 17 lakes with milfoil and 24 un-invaded lakes in King County, Washington (USA). After accounting for structural (e.g., house size), locational (e.g., boat launch), and environmental characteristics (e.g., water clarity) of lakes, we found that milfoil has a significant negative effect on property sales price ($94,385 USD lower price), corresponding to a 19% decline in mean property values. The aggregate cost of milfoil invading one additional lake in the study area is, on average, $377,542 USD per year. Our study illustrates that invasive aquatic plants can significantly impact property values (and associated losses in property taxes that reduce local government revenue), justifying the need for management strategies that prevent and control invasions. We recommend coordinated efforts across Lake Management Districts to focus institutional support, funding, and outreach to prevent the introduction and spread of milfoil. This effort will limit opportunities for re-introduction from neighboring lakes and incentivize private landowners and natural resource agencies to commit time and funding to invasive species management.
PMID: 25333619 [PubMed – as supplied by publisher]
via pubmed: school of aquatic an… http://ift.tt/10mpgFx
Spatial Segregation in Eastern North Pacific Skate Assemblages.
Spatial Segregation in Eastern North Pacific Skate Assemblages.
PLoS One. 2014;9(10):e109907
Authors: Bizzarro JJ, Broms KM, Logsdon MG, Ebert DA, Yoklavich MM, Kuhnz LA, Summers AP
Abstract
Skates (Rajiformes: Rajoidei) are common mesopredators in marine benthic communities. The spatial associations of individual species and the structure of assemblages are of considerable importance for effective monitoring and management of exploited skate populations. This study investigated the spatial associations of eastern North Pacific (ENP) skates in continental shelf and upper continental slope waters of two regions: central California and the western Gulf of Alaska. Long-term survey data were analyzed using GIS/spatial analysis techniques and regression models to determine distribution (by depth, temperature, and latitude/longitude) and relative abundance of the dominant species in each region. Submersible video data were incorporated for California to facilitate habitat association analysis. We addressed three main questions: 1) Are there regions of differential importance to skates?, 2) Are ENP skate assemblages spatially segregated?, and 3) When skates co-occur, do they differ in size? Skate populations were highly clustered in both regions, on scales of 10s of kilometers; however, high-density regions (i.e., hot spots) were segregated among species. Skate densities and frequencies of occurrence were substantially lower in Alaska as compared to California. Although skates are generally found on soft sediment habitats, Raja rhina exhibited the strongest association with mixed substrates, and R. stellulata catches were greatest on rocky reefs. Size segregation was evident in regions where species overlapped substantially in geographic and depth distribution (e.g., R. rhina and Bathyraja kincaidii off California; B. aleutica and B. interrupta in the Gulf of Alaska). Spatial niche differentiation in skates appears to be more pronounced than previously reported.
PMID: 25329312 [PubMed – as supplied by publisher]
via pubmed: school of aquatic an… http://ift.tt/1FvMskx
Incentivizing the Public to Support Invasive Species Management: Eurasian Milfoil Reduces Lakefront Property Values
Olden, Julian D, & Tamayo, Mariana (2014) Incentivizing the Public to Support Invasive Species Management: Eurasian Milfoil Reduces Lakefront Property Values. PLoS ONE 9(10): e110458. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0110458
Abstract. Economic evaluations of invasive species are essential for providing comprehensive assessments of the benefits and costs of publicly-funded management activities, yet many previous investigations have focused narrowly on expenditures to control spread and infestation. We use hedonic modeling to evaluate the economic effects of Eurasian milfoil (Myriophyllum spicatum) invasions on lakefront property values of single-family homes in an urban-suburban landscape. Milfoil often forms dense canopies at the water surface, diminishing the value of ecosystem services (e.g., recreation, fishing) and necessitating expensive control and management efforts. We compare 1,258 lakeshore property sale transactions (1995–2006) in 17 lakes with milfoil and 24 un-invaded lakes in King County, Washington (USA). After accounting for structural (e.g., house size), locational (e.g., boat launch), and environmental characteristics (e.g., water clarity) of lakes, we found that milfoil has a significant negative effect on property sales price ($94,385 USD lower price), corresponding to a 19% decline in mean property values. The aggregate cost of milfoil invading one additional lake in the study area is, on average, $377,542 USD per year. Our study illustrates that invasive aquatic plants can significantly impact property values (and associated losses in property taxes that reduce local government revenue), justifying the need for management strategies that prevent and control invasions. We recommend coordinated efforts across Lake Management Districts to focus institutional support, funding, and outreach to prevent the introduction and spread of milfoil. This effort will limit opportunities for re-introduction from neighboring lakes and incentivize private landowners and natural resource agencies to commit time and funding to invasive species management.
Signals of heterogeneous selection at an MHC locus in geographically proximate ecotypes of sockeye salmon.
Signals of heterogeneous selection at an MHC locus in geographically proximate ecotypes of sockeye salmon.
Mol Ecol. 2014 Oct 5;
Authors: Larson WA, Seeb JE, Dann TH, Schindler DE, Seeb LW
Abstract
The genes of the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) are an important component of the vertebrate immune system and can provide insights into the role of pathogen-mediated selection in wild populations. Here we examined variation at the MHC class II peptide binding region in 27 populations of sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka), distributed among three distinct spawning ecotypes, from a complex of interconnected rivers and lakes in southwestern Alaska. We also obtained genotypes from 90 putatively neutral SNPs for each population to compare the relative roles of demography and selection in shaping the observed MHC variation. We found that MHC divergence was generally partitioned by spawning ecotype (lake beaches, rivers, and streams) and was 30 times greater than variation at neutral markers. Additionally, we observed substantial differences in modes of selection and diversity among ecotypes, with beach populations displaying higher levels of directional selection and lower MHC diversity than the other two ecotypes. Finally, the level of MHC differentiation in our study system was comparable to that observed over much larger geographic ranges, suggesting that MHC variation does not necessarily increase with increasing spatial scale and may instead be driven by fine-scale differences in pathogen communities or pathogen virulence. The low levels of neutral structure and spatial proximity of populations in our study system indicates that MHC differentiation can be maintained through strong selective pressure even when ample opportunities for gene flow exist. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
PMID: 25283474 [PubMed – as supplied by publisher]
via pubmed: school of aquatic an… http://ift.tt/1oMffH3