Science Institute News Recent accomplishments of CDFW's scientific community Scientists Battle Mange Outbreak in Urban Kit Fox Population September 8, 2017 in Wildlife Research Fate has not been kind to the San Joaquin kit fox (Vulpes macrotis mutica). Shrinking habitat caused by urbanization and agricultural expansion landed this Central Valley native on the federal Endangered Species List decades ago. California’s total population of San Joaquin kit foxes may now be down to a few thousand animals. To make matters worse, its favorite food, the kangaroo rat, is likewise endangered as the desert habitat it prefers continues to disappear. Tagged With: Fish and Wildlife, mange, Bakersfield, California, California Living Museum, CALM, CDFW, CSU Stanislaus, CSUB, endangered, infectious, Jaime Rudd, kit fox, mites, outbreak, parasites, San Joaquin, sarcoptic, science, Stanislaus State, T&E, video, WIL, Wildlife Investigations Lab Golden Trout Relocation August 23, 2017 in General This summer marked the end of an incredible journey for four dozen of California’s designated state freshwater fish, the golden trout, as they returned home after 10 months away. The fish traveled more than 500 miles in tanks and buckets, by hand and by mule, en route to their native waters 9,000 feet up in the Sierra Nevada range. Tagged With: American River Fish Hatchery, California, CDFW, drought, Fish and Wildlife, freshwater, golden trout, Kern River, rescue, Sierra Nevada, state fish, threatened species, Tulare County, video, Volcanic Creek Salt Marsh Harvest Mouse Survey June 23, 2017 in Wildlife Research Deep in the pickleweed in the San Francisco, San Pablo and Suisun Bays, the tiny salt marsh harvest mouse (Reithrodontomys raviventris) tries to avoid predators and compete with other species for prime habitat. Food and cover are abundant, but its overall habitat is shrinking as humans encroach upon its home range. In south San Francisco Bay alone, 95 percent of the historic salt marsh has been lost to industrial parks and subdivisions. Annual flooding in the winter can be perilous, too -- when vegetation is topped by rising tides, the mice must scramble to find taller vegetation or into upland habitat (grasses around the wetlands that don’t get flooded by the tides). Tagged With: Fish and Wildlife, California, CDFW, data, endangered, GPS, mammal, pickleweed, Salt Marsh Harvest Mouse, San Francisco Bay, San Pablo Bay, SMHM, Suisun Bay, survey, video Surveying the Sacramento River and Delta March 7, 2017 in Wildlife Research How CDFW uses a combination of scientific techniques to better understand fish populations and the general health of Northern California waterways. (video) Tagged With: fish, State Water Project, California Delta, CDFW, Central Valley Project, fisheries, inland, salmon, science, smelt, survey, tagging, trawling, video, wildlife conservation
Subscribe to receive Science Institute news by email. Email Subscribe Recent Posts Restoring Habitat at Southern California’s Salton SeaJanuary 6, 2021New Issue of CDFW Scientific Journal Focuses on WildfireJanuary 4, 2021Spotlight: Kokanee Salmon Egg Collection from Stampede ReservoirDecember 14, 2020New Issue of CDFW’s Scientific Journal Reviews Environmental Impacts of Cannabis CultivationOctober 30, 2020Endangered Fish Get a Lift to Safety After WildfiresOctober 21, 2020Read More Archives 2021January (2) 2020January (1) February (1) March (2) April (1) May (3) June (3) July (4) August (3) September (2) October (3) November (1) December (1) 2019January (2) February (3) March (4) April (4) May (2) June (2) July (2) August (1) September (1) October (1) December (1) 2018January (5) February (4) March (3) April (5) May (4) June (2) July (5) August (3) September (4) October (4) November (1) December (2) 2017February (2) March (3) April (4) May (5) June (3) July (3) August (5) September (4) October (4) November (4) December (3) Mammals Birds Reptiles and Amphibians Fish Invertebrates Plants Ecosystems Pollution and Water Quality Climate and Renewable Energy