Science news and reports: One fish, two forms, many questions; Mining’s lingering legacy, landscape formation, future of forests, plus ENSO blog says stop obsessing over weekly changes

One fish, two forms, many questions: “Genetically they are the same species, but rainbow trout and steelhead lead very different lives. These fish represent two separate life strategies of the species Oncorhynchus mykiss: a resident form that stays in freshwater (rainbow trout), and an anadromous form that migrates to the ocean (steelhead). For years, researchers have been unable to identify specific traits that will determine whether a given O. mykiss will exhibit anadromy or residency. This lack of definitive evidence has compelled managers to treat the species as a single population. Most management actions on the West Coast focus on the fact that steelhead are threatened or endangered in California, Oregon, Washington, and Idaho; however, most populations of resident rainbow trout are abundant in their native streams. … ” Read more from the FishBio blog here: One fish, two forms, many questions

Lingering Legacy: “The California Gold Rush inspired westward expansion, California’s eventual statehood, the establishment of a transcontinental railroad, and even the development of California’s first fish hatcheries. But this boom also impacted the state’s rivers, waterways, and agriculture – and we are still feeling the effects today. After the initial discovery of gold at Sutter’s Mill in 1848, California’s population swelled from 160,000 to more than 1.5 million in just over 50 years. The burgeoning population created a labor force that permitted industrialization, and hydraulic mining quickly became the most common method to extract gold. … ” Read more from the FishBio blog here: Lingering Legacy

Ridges and valleys: Experiments open window on landscape formation: “University of Oregon geologists have seen ridges and valleys form in real time and — even though the work was a fast-forwarded operation done in a laboratory setting — they now have an idea of how climate change may impact landscapes. On a basic-science front, the findings, which appear in the July 3 issue of the journal Science, provide a long-sought answer to why some landscape features appear so orderly, with distinct and evenly spaced valleys and ridges. … ” Read more from Science Daily here: Ridges and valleys: Experiments open window on landscape formation

Reflections on a really big drought (in Texas): Jake Crouch (NOAA and NCEI) writes, “In the monitoring branch, our temperature analyses garner a lot of attention. We are asked big questions such as: What was the warmest year on record? How fast are global temperatures changing? These are important questions that we work to answer, but our regional-scale data and services also have immense benefits. Someone smarter than me once said, “No one ever died under a global temperature time series.” This is a great way to say that we can report on global average temperatures all we want, but it is the local impacts of change and variability that matter for the average person. At the National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI), we work tirelessly to translate our treasure trove of data into something meaningful, and our work during the Southern Plains drought highlights these efforts. ... ” Read more from Climate.gov here: Reflections on a really big drought

Researchers seek a sneak peak into the future of forests: “In May 2015, scores of scientists from dozens of research institutions descended on a patch of forest in central North Carolina, taking samples of everything from ants and mites to other microbes – samples they hope will offer a glimpse into the future of forest ecosystems. This flurry of data collection represents the largest and most robust warming experiment conducted in a forest ecosystem. The project is supported by the U.S. Geological Survey and the Department of the Interior’s Southeast Climate Science Center, based at North Carolina State University (NCSU). The heart of the experiment is a collection of so-called warming chambers – a dozen octagonal rooms, 5 meters in diameter, scattered throughout Duke Forest, across Durham, Orange, and Alamance counties in NC. … ” Read more from the USGS here: Researchers seek a sneak peek into the future of forests

Keep calm and stop obsessing over weekly changes in ENSO: “We are now nearing 1.5 degrees Celsius in the Niño-3.4 index for a 7-day or weekly average. Among the post-college age crowd who can remember it (yes, this officially means you’re old), the level of warmth in sea surface temperatures this time of year harkens back to 1997-98 El Niño, which ended up becoming a record strength event. Are these weekly numbers impressive? Yes. But when a weekly value hits 1.5°C is El Niño instantly considered strong? I’d argue no. While a short-term (daily or weekly) number might be striking, it shouldn’t be used as an indicator of El Niño strength unless it is carefully placed into a larger context. Here are some reasons to be careful about gauging El Niño strength on a sub-monthly basis: ... ” Read more from the ENSO blog here: Keep calm and stop obsessing over weekly changes in ENSO

Satellites track Earth’s water movements to help complete water picture: “Many pressing questions about Earth’s climate revolve around water. With droughts and flooding an ongoing concern, people want to know how much water is on the move and where it is going. To help answer those questions, a new NASA study provides estimates for the global water cycle budget for the first decade of the 21st century, taking the pulse of the planet and setting a baseline for future comparisons. The water cycle is the catch-all phrase to describe the movement of water—in its different forms, e.g., liquid, gas and solid—around the planet. It includes freshwater used in households and for agriculture, so any changes to the patterns of where rain and snow occur due to the changing climate may have huge impacts for communities worldwide. ... ” Read more from NASA here: Satellites track Earth’s water movements to help complete water picture

Maven’s XKCD Comic Pick of the Week …

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About Science News and Reports: This weekly feature, posted every Thursday, is a collection of the latest scientific research and reports with a focus on relevant issues to the Delta and to California water, although other issues such as climate change are sometimes included. Do you have an item to be included here? Submissions of relevant research and other materials is welcome. Email Maven.

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