“Cache Slough right here had been known as a hotspot for delta smelt,” he says. Facebook Twitter Pinterest John Durand, a research scientist at the University of California, Davis, cruises the sloughs of California’s delta in search of Delta smelt. Soon after UC Davis researchers first began sampling in the delta, nearly 40 years ago, the delta smelt populations suffered a huge blow: their numbers had suddenly declined by more than 80%. During these dry spells, California’s cities and farms needed to pump more and more delta water – leaving these fish without enough fresh, cold water to survive. Because most Delta smelt live for just one year, even temporary environmental changes can decimate the population.

Source: The Guardian December 22, 2019 06:00 UTC