California Fish and Game, Volume 41

California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) | October 1st, 1955

California Salmon Strategy for a Hotter, Drier Future: Restoring Aquatic Ecosystems in the Age of Climate Change

California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) | January 20th, 2024

The infrastructure built generations ago in California continues to limit salmon migration, and some dams that remain on the landscape are well beyond their useful life.

The infrastructure built generations ago in California continues to limit salmon migration, and some dams that remain on the landscape are well beyond their useful life. In the Central Valley, large dams were built starting in the early 1900s on almost all major rivers. Those dams now block salmon access to over 90 percent of their historical spawning and rearing habitat higher in mountain streams.

California Salmonid Stream Habitat Restoration Manual

California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) | August 6th, 2010

The first edition of this manual, written by Gary Flosi and Forrest Reynolds, and published in 1991, formally synthesized and described the Department of Fish and Game's

The first edition of this manual, written by Gary Flosi and Forrest Reynolds, and published in 1991, formally synthesized and described the Department of Fish and Game's approach and technical methods for anadromous salmonid habitat restoration. From 1991 through 1994 the first edition was broadly distributed and used as a "standard methods" text by many habitat restoration and resource inventory workers. As a result, many suggestions for improvement of the manual were received by the authors. The second edition, by Flosi and Reynolds was supported by a team that included the authors of this third edition, and was published in October of 1994. The second edition included a number of revisions: 1) a reorganization of sections for project planning and project implementation; 2) the just then recently revised stream channel classification system developed by David Rosgen; 3) a new monitoring and evaluation section; 4) a listing of all databases used for resource inventory and analysis as presented in the manual; 5) a protocol for a large woody debris inventory; 6) a description of required environmental review processes and permits; 7) an expanded and updated listing of sensitive species; and 8) numerous editorial changes to text and data forms. The third edition, like the second, incorporates changes recently developed in the practice of stream habitat inventory and restoration. The authorship list has changed with this edition to more accurately reflect the contributions of the writing team members. The manual is presented in binder form in this edition to more easily and economically incorporate future additions and developments as they evolve. This fourth edition incorporates all changes, corrections, and revisions of this manual up to July 2010. The manual continues in binder form in this edition to easily and economically incorporate future additions and developments as they evolve. The authors anticipate the continued widespread distribution and use of this manual will promote the implementation of the restoration techniques. Readers should also be aware that computer data entry and data summary programs are available upon request for all data collection protocols presented in this manual. Updates to this manual are available on line at http://www.dfg.ca.gov/fish/Resources/HabitatManual.asp.

California State Wildlife Action Plan 2015 Update, Volume II: Appendices

California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) | September 28th, 2015

Appendices A Required Report Elements and Compliance B California State Wildlife Action Plan 2015 Revision Summary C Species of Greatest Conservation Need D Ranked Li

Appendices A Required Report Elements and Compliance B California State Wildlife Action Plan 2015 Revision Summary C Species of Greatest Conservation Need D Ranked Lists of Vegetation Communities (Macrogroups) by Ecoregion E Conservation Strategies for All Macrogroups in California, Freshwater Aquatic Species Assemblages, Marine Ecosystems, and Anadromous Fishes F Invasive Species in California G Climate Adaptation Strategies Cross-Reference Guide H Offshore Islands I California State Wildlife Action Plan Implementation Evaluation Report 2005 – 2014 J Public Scoping Meeting Materials

California State Wildlife Action Plan: 2015 Update: Volume 1

California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) | September 28th, 2015

SWAP 2015 provides an ecosystem approach for conserving California’s fish and wildlife resources by identifying strategies intended to improve conditions of Species of

SWAP 2015 provides an ecosystem approach for conserving California’s fish and wildlife resources by identifying strategies intended to improve conditions of Species of Greatest Conservation Need (SGCN) and the habitats upon which they depend (see Figure 1 of the Executive Summary). CDFW designed SWAP 2015 to guide resource managers, conservation partners, and the public in how they can directly or indirectly participate in conserving California’s precious natural heritage. This section provides an overview of the structure of SWAP 2015 to help readers navigate through the document and find information. SWAP 2015 is organized as follows: Executive Summary provides a summary of: the vision for wildlife conservation in California; statewide goals; the process used to develop conservation strategies based on an ecosystem approach; conservation targets and strategies for seven provinces and anadromous fish; statewide summary; plans for integration and implementation; and process for adaptive management and monitoring. Chapter 1 provides an introduction to SWAP 2015. The challenge of sustaining biodiversity, a summary of CDFW responsibility, and the vision for California wildlife conservation are described. Chapter 1 also explains the requirements for updating SWAP, summarizes major changes since the original 2005 SWAP, and describes the analytical approach used in the 2015 update. Chapter 2 describes California’s natural diversity, identifies SGCN and the criteria used to evaluate species and habitat conditions, and addresses major pressures and stresses currently affecting the SGCN and their habitats. Chapter 3 describes the existing conservation approaches in the state, including the major regulations protecting natural resources, CDFW planning tools, and major conservation programs. Chapter 4 presents the statewide goals of SWAP 2015 and broad, state-level conservation strategies that will be implemented to achieve the desired conservation outcomes. Chapter 5 is divided into seven sections that describe for each geographic province the conservation targets, SGCN and other focal species, KEAs, stresses, pressures, and conservation strategies, including goals and objectives for the provinces. Chapter 6 focuses on conservation strategies developed for anadromous fish in California. Chapter 7 describes how SWAP 2015 will be integrated with other programs and coordinated with partners for the implementation, including through companion plans. Chapter 8 describes the monitoring plan for the conservation strategies, including the mandate for CDFW to use monitoring and adaptive management. It also presents a summary of the effectiveness evaluation of how SWAP 2005 was implemented. The chapter describes how the recommendations from the SWAP 2005 evaluation have been integrated into SWAP 2015. Rationales for selecting conservation strategies presented in SWAP 2015 and a framework for monitoring the effectiveness of the strategies are also described. Chapter 9 provides the list of preparers of SWAP 2015. Chapter 10 provides bibliographic references used in each chapter. Chapter 11 provides a glossary of major terms used in SWAP 2015. Several appendices accompany SWAP 2015 to provide more detailed information and extensive tables that support the document. Database files created during the development of SWAP 2015 to compile and evaluate ecological information and to create strategies can be accessed at: http://www.dfg.ca.gov/SWAP/.

California’s freshwater fishes: status and management

University of California, Davis (UC Davis) | January 31st, 2015

Fishes in Mediterranean climates are adapted to thrive in streams with dynamic environmental conditions such as strong seasonality in flows. However, anthropoge

Fishes in Mediterranean climates are adapted to thrive in streams with dynamic environmental conditions such as strong seasonality in flows. However, anthropogenic threats to species viability, in combination with climate change, can alter habitats beyond native species’ environmental tolerances and may result in extirpation. Although the effects of a Mediterranean climate on aquatic habitats in California have resulted in a diverse fish fauna, freshwater fishes are significantly threatened by alien species invasions, the presence of dams, and water withdrawals associated with agricultural and urban use. A long history of habitat degradation and dependence of salmonid taxa on hatchery supplementation are also contributing to the decline of fishes in the state. These threats are exacerbated by climate change, which is also reducing suitable habitats through increases in temperatures and changes to flow regimes. Approximately 80% of freshwater fishes are now facing extinction in the next 100 years, unless current trends are reversed by active conservation. Here, we review threats to California freshwater fishes and update a five-tiered approach to preserve aquatic biodiversity in California, with emphasis on fish species diversity. Central to the approach are man- agement actions that address conservation at different scales, from single taxon and species assemblages to Aquatic Diversity Management Areas, watersheds, and bioregions.

Changes in abundance and distribution of native and alien fishes of Suisun Marsh

American Fisheries Society (AFS) | July 29th, 1994

Overall fish abundance, abundance of introduced, native, and seasonal fish groups, and species diversity declined over a 14‐year period in Suisun Marsh, a portion of th

Overall fish abundance, abundance of introduced, native, and seasonal fish groups, and species diversity declined over a 14‐year period in Suisun Marsh, a portion of the San Francisco Bay estuary, and were associated with decreases in freshwater outflow and increases in salinity. Fish groups showed different patterns of abundance; large fluctuations in introduced and seasonal fish groups contrasted with a steady decline in native fish. Native species were found more often in small, dead‐end sloughs, seasonal species were found in larger sloughs, and introduced species were found in both habitats. Fish assemblage structure was less predictable than in an earlier (and shorter) study of the same community. Mixed groups of native and introduced species with similar freshwater and seasonal needs reflected effects of drought and increasing water diversions from the estuary. Chameleon goby Tridentiger trigonocephalus and yellowfin goby Acanthogobius flavimanus, two introduced species, fluctuated greatly in abundance in recent years, whereas other species declined steadily. Changes in fish abundance in the marsh reflect estuary‐wide changes and suggest that environmental disturbances coupled with introduced species are altering fish communities and hastening native fish declines.

Chinook salmon and green sturgeon migrate through San Francisco Estuary despite large distortions in the local magnetic field produced by bridges

PLOS | June 2nd, 2017

Empirical evidence exists that some marine animals perceive and orient to local distortions in the earth’s main static geomagnetic field. The magnetic fields produced b

Empirical evidence exists that some marine animals perceive and orient to local distortions in the earth’s main static geomagnetic field. The magnetic fields produced by undersea electric power cables that carry electricity from hydrokinetic energy sources to shore-based power stations may produce similar local distortions in the earth’s main field. Concerns exist that animals migrating along the continental shelves might orient to the magnetic field from the cables, and move either inshore or offshore away from their normal path. We have studied the effect of the Trans Bay Cable (TBC), an 85-km long, high voltage, direct current (DC) transmission line leading underwater from Pittsburg, CA to San Francisco, CA, on fishes migrating through the San Francisco Estuary. These included Chinook salmon smolts (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) that migrate downstream through the San Francisco Estuary to the Pacific Ocean and adult green sturgeon (Acipenser medirostris), which migrate upstream from the ocean through the estuary to their spawning habitat in the upper Sacramento River and return to the ocean after spawning occurs. Based on a detailed gradiometer survey, we found that the distortions in the earth’s main field produced by bridges across the estuary were much greater than those from the Trans Bay Cable. The former anomalies exceeded the latter by an order of magnitude or more. Significant numbers of tagged Chinook salmon smolts migrated past bridges, which produced strong magnetic anomalies, to the Golden Gate Bridge, where they were recorded by dual arrays of acoustic tag-detecting monitors moored in lines across the mouth of the bay. In addition, adult green sturgeon successfully swam upstream and downstream through the estuary on the way to and from their spawning grounds. Hence, the large anomalies produced by the bridges do not appear to present a strong barrier to the natural seasonal movement patterns of salmonid smolts and adult green sturgeon.

Climate Change and the Delta

University of California, Davis (UC Davis) | October 1st, 2016

Climate change amounts to a fast approaching, “new” stressor in the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta system. In response to California’s extreme natural hydroclimatic

Climate change amounts to a fast approaching, “new” stressor in the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta system. In response to California’s extreme natural hydroclimatic variability, complex water-management systems have been developed, even as the Delta’s natural ecosystems have been largely devastated. Climate change is projected to challenge these management and ecological systems in different ways that are characterized by different levels of uncertainty. Future precipitation changes are less certain, with as many climate models projecting wetter conditions as drier. Warmer temperatures will likely enhance evaporation and raise water temperatures. Consequently, climate change is projected to yield both more extreme flood risks and greater drought risks. Effects on the Delta ecosystem that are traceable to warming include sea level rise, reduced snowpack, earlier snowmelt and larger storm-driven streamflow, warmer and longer summers, warmer summer water temperatures, and water-quality changes. These changes and their uncertainties will challenge the operations of water projects and uses throughout the Delta’s watershed and delivery areas. Although the effects of climate change on Delta ecosystems may be profound, the end results are difficult to predict, except that native species will fare worse than invaders. Successful preparation for the coming changes will require greater integration of monitoring, modeling, and decision-making across time, variables, and space than has been historically normal.

Climate change vulnerability of native and alien freshwater fishes of California: A systematic assessment approach

PLOS | May 22nd, 2013

Freshwater fishes are highly vulnerable to human-caused climate change. Because quantitative data on status and trends are unavailable for most fish species, a

Freshwater fishes are highly vulnerable to human-caused climate change. Because quantitative data on status and trends are unavailable for most fish species, a systematic assessment approach that incorporates expert knowledge was developed to determine status and future vulnerability to climate change of freshwater fishes in California, USA. The method uses expert knowledge, supported by literature reviews of status and biology of the fishes, to score ten metrics for both (1) current status of each species (baseline vulnerability to extinction) and (2) likely future impacts of climate change (vulnerability to extinction). Baseline and climate change vulnerability scores were derived for 121 native and 43 alien fish species. The two scores were highly correlated and were concordant among different scorers. Native species had both greater baseline and greater climate change vulnerability than did alien species. Fifty percent of California’s native fish fauna was assessed as having critical or high baseline vulnerability to extinction whereas all alien species were classified as being less or least vulnerable. For vulnerability to climate change, 82% of native species were classified as highly vulnerable, compared with only 19% for aliens. Predicted climate change effects on freshwater environments will dramatically change the fish fauna of California. Most native fishes will suffer population declines and become more restricted in their distributions; some will likely be driven to extinction. Fishes requiring cold water (,22uC) are particularly likely to go extinct. In contrast, most alien fishes will thrive, with some species increasing in abundance and range. However, a few alien species will likewise be negatively affected through loss of aquatic habitats during severe droughts and physiologically stressful conditions present in most waterways during summer. Our method has high utility for predicting vulnerability to climate change of diverse fish species. It should be useful for setting conservation priorities in many different regions.