Rare Devils Hole Pupfish Offers Inspiring Story of Survival in Death Valley
Celebration and Concern: Hetch Hetchy Reservoir Turns 100, But Climate Change Complicates its Future
Big Wildfires Can Devastate California’s Fish. But They Thrive With Frequent, Small Burns
Saving Salmon: Chinook Return to California's Far North — With a Lot of Human Help
California Floater Mussels Take Fish for an Epic Joyride
Farmers Flood Fields to Give Beleaguered Salmon a Boost
This Saturday Is Free Fishing Day Throughout California
Trump's California Water Order Rushes Science and Cuts Out Public, Emails Show
Odd-Looking Razorback Sucker Fish Pulled Back from Extinction
Sponsored
window.__IS_SSR__=true
window.__INITIAL_STATE__={"attachmentsReducer":{"audio_0":{"type":"attachments","id":"audio_0","imgSizes":{"kqedFullSize":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/themes/KQED-unified/img/audio_bgs/background0.jpg"}}},"audio_1":{"type":"attachments","id":"audio_1","imgSizes":{"kqedFullSize":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/themes/KQED-unified/img/audio_bgs/background1.jpg"}}},"audio_2":{"type":"attachments","id":"audio_2","imgSizes":{"kqedFullSize":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/themes/KQED-unified/img/audio_bgs/background2.jpg"}}},"audio_3":{"type":"attachments","id":"audio_3","imgSizes":{"kqedFullSize":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/themes/KQED-unified/img/audio_bgs/background3.jpg"}}},"audio_4":{"type":"attachments","id":"audio_4","imgSizes":{"kqedFullSize":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/themes/KQED-unified/img/audio_bgs/background4.jpg"}}},"placeholder":{"type":"attachments","id":"placeholder","imgSizes":{"thumbnail":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/01/GettyImages-896326950-160x96.jpg","width":160,"height":96,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"medium":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/01/GettyImages-896326950-800x478.jpg","width":800,"height":478,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"large":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/01/GettyImages-896326950-1020x610.jpg","width":1020,"height":610,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"fd-lrg":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/01/GettyImages-896326950-1920x1148.jpg","width":1920,"height":1148,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"fd-med":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/01/GettyImages-896326950-1180x705.jpg","width":1180,"height":705,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"fd-sm":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/01/GettyImages-896326950-960x574.jpg","width":960,"height":574,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"post-thumbnail":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/01/GettyImages-896326950-672x372.jpg","width":672,"height":372,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"twentyfourteen-full-width":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/01/GettyImages-896326950-1038x576.jpg","width":1038,"height":576,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"xxsmall":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/01/GettyImages-896326950-240x143.jpg","width":240,"height":143,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"xsmall":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/01/GettyImages-896326950-375x224.jpg","width":375,"height":224,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"small":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/01/GettyImages-896326950-520x311.jpg","width":520,"height":311,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"xlarge":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/01/GettyImages-896326950-1180x705.jpg","width":1180,"height":705,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"full-width":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/01/GettyImages-896326950-1920x1148.jpg","width":1920,"height":1148,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"guest-author-32":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/01/GettyImages-896326950-32x32.jpg","width":32,"height":32,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"guest-author-50":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/01/GettyImages-896326950-50x50.jpg","width":50,"height":50,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"guest-author-64":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/01/GettyImages-896326950-64x64.jpg","width":64,"height":64,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"guest-author-96":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/01/GettyImages-896326950-96x96.jpg","width":96,"height":96,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"guest-author-128":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/01/GettyImages-896326950-128x128.jpg","width":128,"height":128,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"detail":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/01/GettyImages-896326950-150x150.jpg","width":150,"height":150,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"kqedFullSize":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/01/GettyImages-896326950-e1514998105161.jpg","width":1920,"height":1148}}},"science_1983284":{"type":"attachments","id":"science_1983284","meta":{"index":"attachments_1591205162","site":"science","id":"1983284","found":true},"title":"4593caa1-3c94-4b23-88a8-20a05cfb10fboriginal_custom-84b087b516fb580a31a1861dcdf880b15d2f42c0-s1600-c85 copy","publishDate":1688755173,"status":"inherit","parent":1983280,"modified":1688755304,"caption":"Devils Hole pupfish gather on the precious rocky shelf that supports their entire fragile existence in the wild.","credit":"Olin Feuerbacher/NPS","altTag":"Small blue fish swim over a rocky surface.","description":null,"imgSizes":{"medium":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/4593caa1-3c94-4b23-88a8-20a05cfb10fboriginal_custom-84b087b516fb580a31a1861dcdf880b15d2f42c0-s1600-c85-copy-800x567.jpg","width":800,"height":567,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"large":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/4593caa1-3c94-4b23-88a8-20a05cfb10fboriginal_custom-84b087b516fb580a31a1861dcdf880b15d2f42c0-s1600-c85-copy-1020x722.jpg","width":1020,"height":722,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"thumbnail":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/4593caa1-3c94-4b23-88a8-20a05cfb10fboriginal_custom-84b087b516fb580a31a1861dcdf880b15d2f42c0-s1600-c85-copy-160x113.jpg","width":160,"height":113,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"medium_large":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/4593caa1-3c94-4b23-88a8-20a05cfb10fboriginal_custom-84b087b516fb580a31a1861dcdf880b15d2f42c0-s1600-c85-copy-768x544.jpg","width":768,"height":544,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"1536x1536":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/4593caa1-3c94-4b23-88a8-20a05cfb10fboriginal_custom-84b087b516fb580a31a1861dcdf880b15d2f42c0-s1600-c85-copy-1536x1088.jpg","width":1536,"height":1088,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"post-thumbnail":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/4593caa1-3c94-4b23-88a8-20a05cfb10fboriginal_custom-84b087b516fb580a31a1861dcdf880b15d2f42c0-s1600-c85-copy-672x372.jpg","width":672,"height":372,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"twentyfourteen-full-width":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/4593caa1-3c94-4b23-88a8-20a05cfb10fboriginal_custom-84b087b516fb580a31a1861dcdf880b15d2f42c0-s1600-c85-copy-1038x576.jpg","width":1038,"height":576,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"kqedFullSize":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/4593caa1-3c94-4b23-88a8-20a05cfb10fboriginal_custom-84b087b516fb580a31a1861dcdf880b15d2f42c0-s1600-c85-copy.jpg","width":1600,"height":1133}},"fetchFailed":false,"isLoading":false},"science_1982570":{"type":"attachments","id":"science_1982570","meta":{"index":"attachments_1591205162","site":"science","id":"1982570","found":true},"title":"027_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023","publishDate":1683071044,"status":"inherit","parent":1982551,"modified":1683071284,"caption":"San Francisco Mayor London Breed speaks during a centennial celebration of the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir in Yosemite National Park on May 2, 2023. The reservoir – San Francisco's main water source – may not be as reliable a tap of Sierra Nevada snowmelt in the coming century.","credit":"Beth LaBerge/KQED","altTag":"A Black woman speaks at a podium in the middle distance as others listen to her, in a space bounded by a large concrete barrier with sweeping views of mountains rising from a massive lake in the background","description":null,"imgSizes":{"medium":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/027_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-800x533.jpg","width":800,"height":533,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"large":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/027_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-1020x680.jpg","width":1020,"height":680,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"thumbnail":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/027_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-160x107.jpg","width":160,"height":107,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"medium_large":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/027_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-768x512.jpg","width":768,"height":512,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"1536x1536":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/027_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-1536x1024.jpg","width":1536,"height":1024,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"post-thumbnail":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/027_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-672x372.jpg","width":672,"height":372,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"twentyfourteen-full-width":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/027_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-1038x576.jpg","width":1038,"height":576,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"kqedFullSize":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/027_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023.jpg","width":1920,"height":1280}},"fetchFailed":false,"isLoading":false},"science_1982488":{"type":"attachments","id":"science_1982488","meta":{"index":"attachments_1591205162","site":"science","id":"1982488","found":true},"title":"Exploring the Eastern High Sierra Mountain Range","publishDate":1682700080,"status":"inherit","parent":1982486,"modified":1682726557,"caption":"Convict Lake is a popular trout-fishing hole near Mammoth Lakes. ","credit":"George Rose/Getty Images","altTag":"A boat floats in the middle of a lake with steep mountains surrounding it.","description":"A boat floats in the middle of a lake with steep mountains surrounding it.","imgSizes":{"medium":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1162213575-800x533.jpg","width":800,"height":533,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"large":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1162213575-1020x680.jpg","width":1020,"height":680,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"thumbnail":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1162213575-160x107.jpg","width":160,"height":107,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"medium_large":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1162213575-768x512.jpg","width":768,"height":512,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"1536x1536":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1162213575-1536x1024.jpg","width":1536,"height":1024,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"2048x2048":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1162213575-2048x1365.jpg","width":2048,"height":1365,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"post-thumbnail":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1162213575-672x372.jpg","width":672,"height":372,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"twentyfourteen-full-width":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1162213575-1038x576.jpg","width":1038,"height":576,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"full-width":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1162213575-1920x1280.jpg","width":1920,"height":1280,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"kqedFullSize":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1162213575-scaled.jpg","width":2560,"height":1707}},"fetchFailed":false,"isLoading":false},"science_1981049":{"type":"attachments","id":"science_1981049","meta":{"index":"attachments_1591205162","site":"science","id":"1981049","found":true},"title":"A collection system is set up at Dekkas Rock at Shasta Lake. The pilot project will evaluate the viability of collecting juvenile salmon as they migrate out of the McCloud River upstream of Shasta Dam.","publishDate":1671476425,"status":"inherit","parent":1981041,"modified":1671583351,"caption":"A collection system is set up at Dekkas Rock at Shasta Lake. The pilot project will evaluate the viability of collecting juvenile salmon as they migrate out of the McCloud River upstream of Shasta Dam.","credit":"Florence Flow/California Department of Water Resources","altTag":"Brown dried lake bed rises up out of green water.","description":"A collection system is set up at Dekkas Rock at Shasta Lake. The pilot project will evaluate the viability of collecting juvenile salmon as they migrate out of the McCloud River upstream of Shasta Dam. ","imgSizes":{"medium":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/102622-Shasta-Salmonid-Collection-CDWR-CM-01-800x533.jpg","width":800,"height":533,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"large":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/102622-Shasta-Salmonid-Collection-CDWR-CM-01-1020x679.jpg","width":1020,"height":679,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"thumbnail":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/102622-Shasta-Salmonid-Collection-CDWR-CM-01-160x107.jpg","width":160,"height":107,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"medium_large":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/102622-Shasta-Salmonid-Collection-CDWR-CM-01-768x512.jpg","width":768,"height":512,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"post-thumbnail":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/102622-Shasta-Salmonid-Collection-CDWR-CM-01-672x372.jpg","width":672,"height":372,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"twentyfourteen-full-width":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/102622-Shasta-Salmonid-Collection-CDWR-CM-01-1024x576.jpg","width":1024,"height":576,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"kqedFullSize":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/102622-Shasta-Salmonid-Collection-CDWR-CM-01.jpg","width":1024,"height":682}},"fetchFailed":false,"isLoading":false},"science_1962412":{"type":"attachments","id":"science_1962412","meta":{"index":"attachments_1591205162","site":"science","id":"1962412","found":true},"title":"DEEP_708_TN_California-Floater-Mussels-Take-Fish-For-An-Epic-Joyride_shield","publishDate":1587279497,"status":"inherit","parent":1961648,"modified":1587279602,"caption":"The California floater mussel (Anodonta californiensis) plays a key role in maintaining water quality for all the life that depends on it.","credit":"Josh Cassidy/KQED","description":"The California floater mussel (Anodonta californiensis) plays a key role in maintaining water quality for all the life that depends on it.","imgSizes":{"thumbnail":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DEEP_708_TN_California-Floater-Mussels-Take-Fish-For-An-Epic-Joyride_shield-160x90.jpg","width":160,"height":90,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"medium":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DEEP_708_TN_California-Floater-Mussels-Take-Fish-For-An-Epic-Joyride_shield-800x450.jpg","width":800,"height":450,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"medium_large":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DEEP_708_TN_California-Floater-Mussels-Take-Fish-For-An-Epic-Joyride_shield-768x432.jpg","width":768,"height":432,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"large":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DEEP_708_TN_California-Floater-Mussels-Take-Fish-For-An-Epic-Joyride_shield-1020x574.jpg","width":1020,"height":574,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"post-thumbnail":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DEEP_708_TN_California-Floater-Mussels-Take-Fish-For-An-Epic-Joyride_shield-672x372.jpg","width":672,"height":372,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"twentyfourteen-full-width":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DEEP_708_TN_California-Floater-Mussels-Take-Fish-For-An-Epic-Joyride_shield-1038x576.jpg","width":1038,"height":576,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"full-width":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DEEP_708_TN_California-Floater-Mussels-Take-Fish-For-An-Epic-Joyride_shield-1920x1080.jpg","width":1920,"height":1080,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"kqedFullSize":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DEEP_708_TN_California-Floater-Mussels-Take-Fish-For-An-Epic-Joyride_shield-e1587413627273.jpg","width":1920,"height":1080}},"fetchFailed":false,"isLoading":false},"science_1951230":{"type":"attachments","id":"science_1951230","meta":{"index":"attachments_1591205162","site":"science","id":"1951230","found":true},"title":"RS40322__20190326_A_0809_full-qut","publishDate":1575498256,"status":"inherit","parent":1951205,"modified":1575498323,"caption":"Carson Jeffries and Jacob Katz examining a salmon fry taken from a cage in the floodplain near Knaggs Ranch on the Sacramento River.","credit":"Jak Wonderly/bioGraphic","description":null,"imgSizes":{"thumbnail":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/RS40322__20190326_A_0809_full-qut-160x113.jpg","width":160,"height":113,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"medium":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/RS40322__20190326_A_0809_full-qut-800x565.jpg","width":800,"height":565,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"medium_large":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/RS40322__20190326_A_0809_full-qut-768x542.jpg","width":768,"height":542,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"large":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/RS40322__20190326_A_0809_full-qut-1020x720.jpg","width":1020,"height":720,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"complete_open_graph":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/RS40322__20190326_A_0809_full-qut-1200x847.jpg","width":1200,"height":847,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"post-thumbnail":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/RS40322__20190326_A_0809_full-qut-672x372.jpg","width":672,"height":372,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"twentyfourteen-full-width":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/RS40322__20190326_A_0809_full-qut-1038x576.jpg","width":1038,"height":576,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"full-width":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/RS40322__20190326_A_0809_full-qut-1920x1355.jpg","width":1920,"height":1355,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"kqedFullSize":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/RS40322__20190326_A_0809_full-qut.jpg","width":1920,"height":1355}},"fetchFailed":false,"isLoading":false},"science_1937209":{"type":"attachments","id":"science_1937209","meta":{"index":"attachments_1591205162","site":"science","id":"1937209","found":true},"title":"IMG_4172","publishDate":1548444942,"status":"inherit","parent":1937108,"modified":1548445049,"caption":"The McCloud River is a legendary trout-fishing stream and sacred grounds for the Winnemem Wintu tribe. It's protected under state law.","credit":"Craig Miller/KQED","description":"The McCloud River is a legendary trout-fishing stream and sacred grounds for the Winnemem Wintu tribe.","imgSizes":{"thumbnail":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/01/IMG_4172-160x120.jpg","width":160,"height":120,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"medium":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/01/IMG_4172-800x600.jpg","width":800,"height":600,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"medium_large":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/01/IMG_4172-768x576.jpg","width":768,"height":576,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"large":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/01/IMG_4172-1020x765.jpg","width":1020,"height":765,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"complete_open_graph":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/01/IMG_4172-1200x900.jpg","width":1200,"height":900,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"post-thumbnail":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/01/IMG_4172-672x372.jpg","width":672,"height":372,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"twentyfourteen-full-width":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/01/IMG_4172-1038x576.jpg","width":1038,"height":576,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"full-width":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/01/IMG_4172-1920x1440.jpg","width":1920,"height":1440,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"guest-author-32":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/01/IMG_4172-32x32.jpg","width":32,"height":32,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"guest-author-50":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/01/IMG_4172-50x50.jpg","width":50,"height":50,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"guest-author-64":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/01/IMG_4172-64x64.jpg","width":64,"height":64,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"guest-author-96":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/01/IMG_4172-96x96.jpg","width":96,"height":96,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"guest-author-128":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/01/IMG_4172-128x128.jpg","width":128,"height":128,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"detail":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/01/IMG_4172-150x150.jpg","width":150,"height":150,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"kqedFullSize":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/01/IMG_4172.jpg","width":1950,"height":1463}},"fetchFailed":false,"isLoading":false},"science_1938773":{"type":"attachments","id":"science_1938773","meta":{"index":"attachments_1591205162","site":"science","id":"1938773","found":true},"title":"FL_Aqueduct_Y_Split-8042-web","publishDate":1551916125,"status":"inherit","parent":1938750,"modified":1551937430,"caption":"Under a presidential memo, federal biologists are under unprecedented time pressure to make key water decisions that control how much flows through the California Aqueduct.","credit":"Florence Low / California Department of Water Resources","description":null,"imgSizes":{"thumbnail":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/FL_Aqueduct_Y_Split-8042-web-160x90.jpg","width":160,"height":90,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"medium":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/FL_Aqueduct_Y_Split-8042-web-800x450.jpg","width":800,"height":450,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"medium_large":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/FL_Aqueduct_Y_Split-8042-web-768x432.jpg","width":768,"height":432,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"large":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/FL_Aqueduct_Y_Split-8042-web-1020x574.jpg","width":1020,"height":574,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"complete_open_graph":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/FL_Aqueduct_Y_Split-8042-web-1200x675.jpg","width":1200,"height":675,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"post-thumbnail":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/FL_Aqueduct_Y_Split-8042-web-672x372.jpg","width":672,"height":372,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"twentyfourteen-full-width":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/FL_Aqueduct_Y_Split-8042-web-1038x576.jpg","width":1038,"height":576,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"full-width":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/FL_Aqueduct_Y_Split-8042-web-1920x1080.jpg","width":1920,"height":1080,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"guest-author-32":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/FL_Aqueduct_Y_Split-8042-web-32x32.jpg","width":32,"height":32,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"guest-author-50":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/FL_Aqueduct_Y_Split-8042-web-50x50.jpg","width":50,"height":50,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"guest-author-64":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/FL_Aqueduct_Y_Split-8042-web-64x64.jpg","width":64,"height":64,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"guest-author-96":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/FL_Aqueduct_Y_Split-8042-web-96x96.jpg","width":96,"height":96,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"guest-author-128":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/FL_Aqueduct_Y_Split-8042-web-128x128.jpg","width":128,"height":128,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"kqedFullSize":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/FL_Aqueduct_Y_Split-8042-web.jpg","width":1920,"height":1080}},"fetchFailed":false,"isLoading":false},"science_1932303":{"type":"attachments","id":"science_1932303","meta":{"index":"attachments_1591205162","site":"science","id":"1932303","found":true},"title":"Xyrauchen_texanus","publishDate":1538663543,"status":"inherit","parent":1932298,"modified":1538663651,"caption":"The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service plans to announce that it will recommend reclassifying the razorback sucker from endangered to threatened.","credit":"U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service","description":null,"imgSizes":{"thumbnail":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2018/10/Xyrauchen_texanus-160x106.jpg","width":160,"height":106,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"xxsmall":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2018/10/Xyrauchen_texanus-240x160.jpg","width":240,"height":160,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"xsmall":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2018/10/Xyrauchen_texanus-375x249.jpg","width":375,"height":249,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"guest-author-32":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2018/10/Xyrauchen_texanus-32x32.jpg","width":32,"height":32,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"guest-author-50":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2018/10/Xyrauchen_texanus-50x50.jpg","width":50,"height":50,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"guest-author-64":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2018/10/Xyrauchen_texanus-64x64.jpg","width":64,"height":64,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"guest-author-96":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2018/10/Xyrauchen_texanus-96x96.jpg","width":96,"height":96,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"guest-author-128":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2018/10/Xyrauchen_texanus-128x128.jpg","width":128,"height":128,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"detail":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2018/10/Xyrauchen_texanus-150x150.jpg","width":150,"height":150,"mimeType":"image/jpeg"},"kqedFullSize":{"file":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2018/10/Xyrauchen_texanus.jpg","width":504,"height":335}},"fetchFailed":false,"isLoading":false}},"audioPlayerReducer":{"postId":"stream_live"},"authorsReducer":{"byline_science_1983280":{"type":"authors","id":"byline_science_1983280","meta":{"override":true},"slug":"byline_science_1983280","name":"\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/people/4494969/nell-greenfieldboyce\">Nell Greenfieldboyce\u003c/a>","isLoading":false},"byline_science_1981041":{"type":"authors","id":"byline_science_1981041","meta":{"override":true},"slug":"byline_science_1981041","name":"Alastair Bland","isLoading":false},"byline_science_1951205":{"type":"authors","id":"byline_science_1951205","meta":{"override":true},"slug":"byline_science_1951205","name":" Robin Meadows \u003cbr />bioGraphic\u003cbr>","isLoading":false},"byline_science_1932298":{"type":"authors","id":"byline_science_1932298","meta":{"override":true},"slug":"byline_science_1932298","name":"Dan Elliot\u003cbr />The Associated Press","isLoading":false},"laurensommer":{"type":"authors","id":"239","meta":{"index":"authors_1591205172","id":"239","found":true},"name":"Lauren Sommer","firstName":"Lauren","lastName":"Sommer","slug":"laurensommer","email":"lsommer@kqed.org","display_author_email":false,"staff_mastheads":[],"title":"KQED Contributor","bio":"Lauren is a radio reporter formerly covering environment, water, and energy for KQED Science. As part of her day job, she has scaled Sierra Nevada peaks, run from charging elephant seals, and desperately tried to get her sea legs - all in pursuit of good radio. Her work has appeared on Marketplace, Living on Earth, Science Friday and NPR's Morning Edition and All Things Considered. You can find her on Twitter at \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/lesommer\">@lesommer\u003c/a>.","avatar":"https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/33aa3772bb86c6ad45b8aca6a238bbdf?s=600&d=blank&r=g","twitter":null,"facebook":null,"instagram":null,"linkedin":null,"sites":[{"site":"news","roles":["author"]},{"site":"science","roles":["editor","manage_content_types","manage_taxonomies"]},{"site":"quest","roles":["editor"]}],"headData":{"title":"Lauren Sommer | KQED","description":"KQED Contributor","ogImgSrc":"https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/33aa3772bb86c6ad45b8aca6a238bbdf?s=600&d=blank&r=g","twImgSrc":"https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/33aa3772bb86c6ad45b8aca6a238bbdf?s=600&d=blank&r=g"},"isLoading":false,"link":"/author/laurensommer"},"dventon":{"type":"authors","id":"11088","meta":{"index":"authors_1591205172","id":"11088","found":true},"name":"Danielle Venton","firstName":"Danielle","lastName":"Venton","slug":"dventon","email":"dventon@kqed.org","display_author_email":true,"staff_mastheads":["science"],"title":"Science reporter","bio":"Danielle Venton is a reporter for KQED Science. She covers wildfires, space and oceans (though she is prone to sea sickness).\r\n\r\nBefore joining KQED in 2015, Danielle was a staff reporter at KRCB in Sonoma County and a freelancer. She studied science communication at UC Santa Cruz and formerly worked at CERN in Geneva, Switzerland where she wrote about computing. She lives in Sonoma County and enjoys backpacking.","avatar":"https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/ebaf11ee6cfb7bb40329a143d463829e?s=600&d=blank&r=g","twitter":"DanielleVenton","facebook":null,"instagram":null,"linkedin":null,"sites":[{"site":"arts","roles":["contributor"]},{"site":"news","roles":["editor"]},{"site":"futureofyou","roles":["editor"]},{"site":"science","roles":["editor"]}],"headData":{"title":"Danielle Venton | KQED","description":"Science reporter","ogImgSrc":"https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/ebaf11ee6cfb7bb40329a143d463829e?s=600&d=blank&r=g","twImgSrc":"https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/ebaf11ee6cfb7bb40329a143d463829e?s=600&d=blank&r=g"},"isLoading":false,"link":"/author/dventon"},"mseely":{"type":"authors","id":"11095","meta":{"index":"authors_1591205172","id":"11095","found":true},"name":"Mike Seely","firstName":null,"lastName":null,"slug":"mseely","email":"mseely@kqed.org","display_author_email":false,"staff_mastheads":["science"],"title":"Producer","bio":"Mike is a Digital Media Producer for KQED Science and Post Production Coordinator for \u003ca class=\"c-link\" href=\"https://www.youtube.com/user/KQEDDeepLook\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" aria-describedby=\"slack-kit-tooltip\">Deep Look\u003c/a>. Prior to his work at KQED, he worked independently for 15 years as a director, producer and cinematographer of documentary films about art, science, and social issues, collaborating with independent directors, corporate clients, non-profits, digital and broadcast networks. Previous to filmmaking life, he majored in biology as an undergrad at Oberlin College, and worked as a wildlife biologist on bird and seal population studies in California. He also holds an M.A. in Documentary Film Production from Stanford University.","avatar":"https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/53f7588ae9da24f7246d0b20e9015521?s=600&d=blank&r=g","twitter":null,"facebook":null,"instagram":null,"linkedin":null,"sites":[{"site":"arts","roles":["contributor"]},{"site":"science","roles":["editor"]}],"headData":{"title":"Mike Seely | KQED","description":"Producer","ogImgSrc":"https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/53f7588ae9da24f7246d0b20e9015521?s=600&d=blank&r=g","twImgSrc":"https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/53f7588ae9da24f7246d0b20e9015521?s=600&d=blank&r=g"},"isLoading":false,"link":"/author/mseely"},"jmejiamunoz":{"type":"authors","id":"11616","meta":{"index":"authors_1591205172","id":"11616","found":true},"name":"Jazmine Mejia-Muñoz","firstName":"Jazmine","lastName":"Mejia-Muñoz","slug":"jmejiamunoz","email":"jmejiamunoz@kqed.org","display_author_email":false,"staff_mastheads":[],"title":null,"bio":"\u003cem>KQED Science Fuhs Fellow- Summer 2019\u003c/em>","avatar":"https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/bbfd276dfdd4279114cadd5ffe3e4c14?s=600&d=blank&r=g","twitter":null,"facebook":null,"instagram":null,"linkedin":null,"sites":[{"site":"science","roles":["author"]}],"headData":{"title":"Jazmine Mejia-Muñoz | KQED","description":null,"ogImgSrc":"https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/bbfd276dfdd4279114cadd5ffe3e4c14?s=600&d=blank&r=g","twImgSrc":"https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/bbfd276dfdd4279114cadd5ffe3e4c14?s=600&d=blank&r=g"},"isLoading":false,"link":"/author/jmejiamunoz"},"eromero":{"type":"authors","id":"11746","meta":{"index":"authors_1591205172","id":"11746","found":true},"name":"Ezra David Romero","firstName":"Ezra David","lastName":"Romero","slug":"eromero","email":"eromero@kqed.org","display_author_email":true,"staff_mastheads":["news","science"],"title":"Climate Reporter","bio":"Ezra David Romero is a climate reporter for KQED News. He covers the absence and excess of water in the Bay Area — think sea level rise, flooding and drought. For nearly a decade he’s covered how warming temperatures are altering the lives of Californians. He’s reported on farmers worried their pistachio trees aren’t getting enough sleep, families desperate for water, scientists studying dying giant sequoias, and alongside firefighters containing wildfires. His work has appeared on local stations across California and nationally on public radio shows like Morning Edition, Here and Now, All Things Considered and Science Friday. ","avatar":"https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/9c15bb8bab267e058708a9eeaeef16bf?s=600&d=blank&r=g","twitter":"ezraromero","facebook":null,"instagram":null,"linkedin":null,"sites":[{"site":"news","roles":["editor"]},{"site":"science","roles":["editor"]}],"headData":{"title":"Ezra David Romero | KQED","description":"Climate Reporter","ogImgSrc":"https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/9c15bb8bab267e058708a9eeaeef16bf?s=600&d=blank&r=g","twImgSrc":"https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/9c15bb8bab267e058708a9eeaeef16bf?s=600&d=blank&r=g"},"isLoading":false,"link":"/author/eromero"}},"breakingNewsReducer":{},"campaignFinanceReducer":{},"firebase":{"requesting":{},"requested":{},"timestamps":{},"data":{},"ordered":{},"auth":{"isLoaded":false,"isEmpty":true},"authError":null,"profile":{"isLoaded":false,"isEmpty":true},"listeners":{"byId":{},"allIds":[]},"isInitializing":false,"errors":[]},"navBarReducer":{"navBarId":"news","fullView":true,"showPlayer":false},"navMenuReducer":{"menus":[{"key":"menu1","items":[{"name":"News","link":"/","type":"title"},{"name":"Politics","link":"/politics"},{"name":"Science","link":"/science"},{"name":"Education","link":"/educationnews"},{"name":"Housing","link":"/housing"},{"name":"Immigration","link":"/immigration"},{"name":"Criminal Justice","link":"/criminaljustice"},{"name":"Silicon Valley","link":"/siliconvalley"},{"name":"Forum","link":"/forum"},{"name":"The California Report","link":"/californiareport"}]},{"key":"menu2","items":[{"name":"Arts & Culture","link":"/arts","type":"title"},{"name":"Critics’ Picks","link":"/thedolist"},{"name":"Cultural Commentary","link":"/artscommentary"},{"name":"Food & Drink","link":"/food"},{"name":"Bay Area Hip-Hop","link":"/bayareahiphop"},{"name":"Rebel Girls","link":"/rebelgirls"},{"name":"Arts Video","link":"/artsvideos"}]},{"key":"menu3","items":[{"name":"Podcasts","link":"/podcasts","type":"title"},{"name":"Bay Curious","link":"/podcasts/baycurious"},{"name":"Rightnowish","link":"/podcasts/rightnowish"},{"name":"The Bay","link":"/podcasts/thebay"},{"name":"On Our Watch","link":"/podcasts/onourwatch"},{"name":"Mindshift","link":"/podcasts/mindshift"},{"name":"Consider This","link":"/podcasts/considerthis"},{"name":"Political Breakdown","link":"/podcasts/politicalbreakdown"}]},{"key":"menu4","items":[{"name":"Live Radio","link":"/radio","type":"title"},{"name":"TV","link":"/tv","type":"title"},{"name":"Events","link":"/events","type":"title"},{"name":"For Educators","link":"/education","type":"title"},{"name":"Support KQED","link":"/support","type":"title"},{"name":"About","link":"/about","type":"title"},{"name":"Help Center","link":"https://kqed-helpcenter.kqed.org/s","type":"title"}]}]},"pagesReducer":{},"postsReducer":{"stream_live":{"type":"live","id":"stream_live","audioUrl":"https://streams.kqed.org/kqedradio","title":"Live Stream","excerpt":"Live Stream information currently unavailable.","link":"/radio","featImg":"","label":{"name":"KQED Live","link":"/"}},"stream_kqedNewscast":{"type":"posts","id":"stream_kqedNewscast","audioUrl":"https://www.kqed.org/.stream/anon/radio/RDnews/newscast.mp3?_=1","title":"KQED Newscast","featImg":"","label":{"name":"88.5 FM","link":"/"}},"science_1983280":{"type":"posts","id":"science_1983280","meta":{"index":"posts_1591205157","site":"science","id":"1983280","score":null,"sort":[1688759803000]},"guestAuthors":[],"slug":"rare-devils-hole-pupfish-offers-inspiring-story-of-survival-in-death-valley","title":"Rare Devils Hole Pupfish Offers Inspiring Story of Survival in Death Valley","publishDate":1688759803,"format":"standard","headTitle":"Rare Devils Hole Pupfish Offers Inspiring Story of Survival in Death Valley | KQED","labelTerm":{},"content":"\u003cp>Have you ever felt stuck in a bad situation that you couldn’t get out of, through no fault of your own, and all you could do is just make the best of it?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Such is the life of the Devils Hole pupfish.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This small, iridescent blue-or-green fish swims in the hot waters of an inhospitable fishbowl made of rock in a Nevada section of Death Valley National Park, where it somehow got trapped thousands of years ago.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The deep cavern that is this fish’s only home is surrounded by a chain-link fence, razor wire, and other security measures designed to protect this incredibly rare endangered species.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2013, its population hit a low of only 35 fish. But over the last couple of years, the Devils Hole pupfish has bounced back, thrilling and somewhat baffling wildlife managers who still are trying to figure out how this tough little fish manages to make a go of it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last year, in the spring, they counted 175 observable fish. This spring, the count was the same, which means that the population has been holding steady.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983286\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1600px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983286\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/f6ca782c-7d40-4426-8926-dc06ef0d54d8original-b4059656b9c178f2224e8c099a46cbde2ee3b125-s1600-c85-copy.jpg\" alt=\"Small blue fish in greenish water.\" width=\"1600\" height=\"1200\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/f6ca782c-7d40-4426-8926-dc06ef0d54d8original-b4059656b9c178f2224e8c099a46cbde2ee3b125-s1600-c85-copy.jpg 1600w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/f6ca782c-7d40-4426-8926-dc06ef0d54d8original-b4059656b9c178f2224e8c099a46cbde2ee3b125-s1600-c85-copy-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/f6ca782c-7d40-4426-8926-dc06ef0d54d8original-b4059656b9c178f2224e8c099a46cbde2ee3b125-s1600-c85-copy-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/f6ca782c-7d40-4426-8926-dc06ef0d54d8original-b4059656b9c178f2224e8c099a46cbde2ee3b125-s1600-c85-copy-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/f6ca782c-7d40-4426-8926-dc06ef0d54d8original-b4059656b9c178f2224e8c099a46cbde2ee3b125-s1600-c85-copy-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/f6ca782c-7d40-4426-8926-dc06ef0d54d8original-b4059656b9c178f2224e8c099a46cbde2ee3b125-s1600-c85-copy-1536x1152.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1600px) 100vw, 1600px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Devils Hole pupfish are about an inch long. \u003ccite>(Olin Feuerbacher/NPS)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>A wild population of just 175 fish doesn’t sound like a lot. But this is the best the Devils Hole pupfish has been doing in about two decades.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Times are good now with Devils Hole pupfish, compared to how they’ve been in the past,” says \u003ca href=\"https://www.gummlab.org/\">Jenny Gumm\u003c/a>, a fish biologist with the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Exactly how the pupfish have recovered to this point is a bit of a mystery.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The question that I receive and my colleagues receive is, ‘Why?’ And you know, we’re trying to answer that,” says Kevin Wilson, an aquatic ecologist at the National Park Service.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>A fish that’s able to cope\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Wilson first learned of this iconic fish as a kid back in the 1970s, when he tagged along with his geologist mom on a field trip that stopped by Devils Hole.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I just remember as a young lad just laying down on this wooden observation deck, looking down into this immense hole in the ground and was fascinated,” says Wilson.[pullquote align=\"right\" size=\"medium\" citation=\"Steve Beissinger, conservation biologist, UC Berkeley\"]‘You’ve got to admire that, something that can cling on and adapt to such a difficult environment — with nowhere to go.’[/pullquote]At the bottom of the hole is the pool where the fish swim. No one knows how deep it is — scuba divers have explored to a depth of over 400 feet.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The pupfish, which are only about an inch long, have no natural predators. Without fear, they’ll curiously swim up to inspect divers or anything else that enters their isolated world.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The fish tend to hang out near the top of the pool, swimming around in the shallow water that covers a rocky ledge. There, they feed on algae and spawn.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The water isn’t exactly cozy. “It’s 93 degrees fahrenheit all the time,” says Wilson, and its oxygen levels are low.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Plus, for about four months in winter, the pool remains entirely in shadow, which is not good for the tiny plants that the fish eat.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s not a great place to live if you’re a fish, that’s for sure,” says Gumm.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The reduced amount of food in winter is thought to be why spring counts of this fish have historically been lower than counts done in the fall. Last fall, researchers \u003ca href=\"https://www.nps.gov/deva/learn/news/devils-hole-fall-2022.htm\">observed\u003c/a> 263 fish. The next count will come in September.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’m hoping that we cross the threshold of 300,” says Wilson.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Earthquakes and flash floods\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Part of this fish’s recent revival may be due to some dramatic events that have shaken up life in Devils Hole.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In July of 2021, a rare flash flood poured in an enormous amount of muddy water.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The volume of water that went into the habitat was just so much,” says Gumm, who worried the fish would die from a change in water chemistry — or even just the sheer violence of the flood and its churning debris.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It was the first time Gumm felt like these fish really might go extinct on her watch. She recalls going to the hole just after the flood.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Walking into it, we just weren’t sure what was going to be there,” she recalls. “And the water looked like chocolate milk. You couldn’t see any fish.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She mentally prepared for the worst. But then she saw a few fish, and then a few more the next day.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It turns out that the flood may ultimately have helped the species, by bringing new nutrients into their environment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And a couple of days after that flood, the fish got hit by another unusual whammy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A magnitude 8.2 earthquake struck Alaska. Even though the epicenter was more than 2,000 miles away, it created a mini-tsunami inside Devils Hole.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Video cameras \u003ca href=\"https://www.nps.gov/media/video/view.htm?id=1c1d516b-b49c-474e-83d6-0a4b9cac5479\">caught\u003c/a> the water sloshing around. All that sloshing may have helpfully redistributed materials brought in by the flooding.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Another mini-tsunami \u003ca href=\"https://www.nps.gov/deva/learn/news/9-19-2022.htm\">happened\u003c/a> last year, when a magnitude 7.6 earthquake in Mexico caused 4-foot waves inside Devils Hole.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983285\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1018px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983285\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/ap871232091047_custom-5c4f1c435df84409cda59da136e4918f6d7fc4c0-s1600-c85-copy.jpg\" alt=\"A man stands above a water hole surrounded by rocks with a woman by the water's edge looking up at him.\" width=\"1018\" height=\"692\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/ap871232091047_custom-5c4f1c435df84409cda59da136e4918f6d7fc4c0-s1600-c85-copy.jpg 1018w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/ap871232091047_custom-5c4f1c435df84409cda59da136e4918f6d7fc4c0-s1600-c85-copy-800x544.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/ap871232091047_custom-5c4f1c435df84409cda59da136e4918f6d7fc4c0-s1600-c85-copy-160x109.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/ap871232091047_custom-5c4f1c435df84409cda59da136e4918f6d7fc4c0-s1600-c85-copy-768x522.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1018px) 100vw, 1018px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">This 2006 photo shows biologist Mike Bower, left, with the National Park Service, and Fish and Wildlife Service field supervisor Cynthia Martinez, as they peer down into Devils Hole. \u003ccite>(JAE C. HONG/The Associated Press)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Wilson says that these kinds of disturbance events can clean off the precious rocky shelf that the fish depend on, benefiting the fish by basically hitting the reset button for the whole system.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Video from one earthquake shows pupfish streaming past the camera, as if the fish knew what was happening and where to go to be safe, says Gumm.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They’ve been living here for a lot longer than we really comprehend,” she says, with the best estimates suggesting they’ve been in the hole for about ten thousand years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They are used to it. And they know what to do.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘It’s had a huge impact’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The fish have gotten some help from humans. Wilson says they’re now fed supplemental food, since at one point they looked emaciated.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It was somewhat controversial to start feeding the fish,” says Wilson.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The pupfish also enjoy the extra shelter of some plant material that wildlife managers attached to their rocky ledge, to give them increased shade and more options for hiding — because the older fish aren’t above eating the young’uns.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I think society has a duty to protect species that humankind has negatively impacted,” says Wilson. He points out that groundwater pumping lowered the water level in Devils Hole, and the top of the pool is about six or eight inches below the historical pre-pumping level.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Devils Hole pupfish is famous in conservation circles. It was one of the first species to be listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act. After nearby development threatened to siphon water away from its lonely refuge, lawsuits aimed at saving it went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983287\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1065px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983287\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/usfws-public-domain-image-captive-dh-pupfish_custom-78ec476fa00ab80e0d3ad3f1f7764bc27e55d564-s1600-c85-copy.jpg\" alt=\"A man observes a fish in a bowl in a lab.\" width=\"1065\" height=\"713\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/usfws-public-domain-image-captive-dh-pupfish_custom-78ec476fa00ab80e0d3ad3f1f7764bc27e55d564-s1600-c85-copy.jpg 1065w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/usfws-public-domain-image-captive-dh-pupfish_custom-78ec476fa00ab80e0d3ad3f1f7764bc27e55d564-s1600-c85-copy-800x536.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/usfws-public-domain-image-captive-dh-pupfish_custom-78ec476fa00ab80e0d3ad3f1f7764bc27e55d564-s1600-c85-copy-1020x683.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/usfws-public-domain-image-captive-dh-pupfish_custom-78ec476fa00ab80e0d3ad3f1f7764bc27e55d564-s1600-c85-copy-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/usfws-public-domain-image-captive-dh-pupfish_custom-78ec476fa00ab80e0d3ad3f1f7764bc27e55d564-s1600-c85-copy-768x514.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1065px) 100vw, 1065px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A biologist with the US Fish and Wildlife Service observes captive Devils Hole pupfish. \u003ccite>(Ryan Hagerty/USFWS)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“It’s had a huge impact on water conservation and water rights throughout the western United States,” says \u003ca href=\"https://ourenvironment.berkeley.edu/people/steven-beissinger\">Steve Beissinger\u003c/a>, a conservation biologist with the University of California, Berkeley.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over the decades, several efforts have been made to set up a captive population of these fish in a separate tank, as a back-up insurance policy in case the wild fish met an untimely end. Past attempts all failed for various reasons, such as mechanical issues.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The approach that we take now for the refuge population is a much larger scale,” says Gumm, who manages a fish conservation \u003ca href=\"https://www.nps.gov/deva/learn/nature/devils-hole.htm\">facility\u003c/a> located near Devils Hole. There, its unique ecosystem has essentially been recreated in a 100,000-gallon tank.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Most of it is actually underground, simulating that cave environment of Devils Hole,” she says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The fish’s all-important rocky shelf was faithfully copied by the tank’s designers. “They actually went out and 3-D scanned the shallow shelf of Devils Hole and carved it out of styrofoam,” she says. “It is an exact replica of the habitat at Devils Hole.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The refuge tank has a population of about 300, created from eggs taken from the wild. An additional 100 or so fish live in smaller tanks that are kept for breeding.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Climate change could make Devils Hole even hotter, and that’s a concern for the future. Still, Beissinger thinks the fish could keep on keeping on, as long as they continue to get help.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“You can never relax with a small population like that,” he says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Not everyone thinks that so much time and money should go into safeguarding these fish. Once someone told Wilson that “they should just drown those fish.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Drown the fish?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I had to shake my head,” he recalls. “You know, it’s tough, and it’s about water.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But love them or hate them, Beissinger thinks everyone should at least respect the tenacity of these beleaguered fish.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s certainly, in many ways, an inspiring story of survival,” says Beissinger. “You’ve got to admire that, something that can cling on and adapt to such a difficult environment — with nowhere to go.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n","blocks":[],"excerpt":"Estimated to have inhabited Devils Hole in Death Valley for the last 10,000 years, the Devils Hole pupfish is an endangered species that has proven incredibly resilient.","status":"publish","parent":0,"modified":1704845968,"stats":{"hasAudio":false,"hasVideo":false,"hasChartOrMap":false,"iframeSrcs":[],"hasGoogleForm":false,"hasGallery":false,"hasHearkenModule":false,"hasPolis":false,"paragraphCount":54,"wordCount":1673},"headData":{"title":"Rare Devils Hole Pupfish Offers Inspiring Story of Survival in Death Valley | KQED","description":"Estimated to have inhabited Devils Hole in Death Valley for the last 10,000 years, the Devils Hole pupfish is an endangered species that has proven incredibly resilient.","ogTitle":"","ogDescription":"","ogImgId":"","twTitle":"","twDescription":"","twImgId":""},"source":"NPR","sourceUrl":"https://www.npr.org/","sticky":false,"nprByline":"\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/people/4494969/nell-greenfieldboyce\">Nell Greenfieldboyce\u003c/a>","excludeFromSiteSearch":"Include","showOnAuthorArchivePages":"No","articleAge":"0","path":"/science/1983280/rare-devils-hole-pupfish-offers-inspiring-story-of-survival-in-death-valley","audioTrackLength":null,"parsedContent":[{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Have you ever felt stuck in a bad situation that you couldn’t get out of, through no fault of your own, and all you could do is just make the best of it?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Such is the life of the Devils Hole pupfish.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This small, iridescent blue-or-green fish swims in the hot waters of an inhospitable fishbowl made of rock in a Nevada section of Death Valley National Park, where it somehow got trapped thousands of years ago.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The deep cavern that is this fish’s only home is surrounded by a chain-link fence, razor wire, and other security measures designed to protect this incredibly rare endangered species.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2013, its population hit a low of only 35 fish. But over the last couple of years, the Devils Hole pupfish has bounced back, thrilling and somewhat baffling wildlife managers who still are trying to figure out how this tough little fish manages to make a go of it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last year, in the spring, they counted 175 observable fish. This spring, the count was the same, which means that the population has been holding steady.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983286\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1600px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983286\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/f6ca782c-7d40-4426-8926-dc06ef0d54d8original-b4059656b9c178f2224e8c099a46cbde2ee3b125-s1600-c85-copy.jpg\" alt=\"Small blue fish in greenish water.\" width=\"1600\" height=\"1200\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/f6ca782c-7d40-4426-8926-dc06ef0d54d8original-b4059656b9c178f2224e8c099a46cbde2ee3b125-s1600-c85-copy.jpg 1600w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/f6ca782c-7d40-4426-8926-dc06ef0d54d8original-b4059656b9c178f2224e8c099a46cbde2ee3b125-s1600-c85-copy-800x600.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/f6ca782c-7d40-4426-8926-dc06ef0d54d8original-b4059656b9c178f2224e8c099a46cbde2ee3b125-s1600-c85-copy-1020x765.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/f6ca782c-7d40-4426-8926-dc06ef0d54d8original-b4059656b9c178f2224e8c099a46cbde2ee3b125-s1600-c85-copy-160x120.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/f6ca782c-7d40-4426-8926-dc06ef0d54d8original-b4059656b9c178f2224e8c099a46cbde2ee3b125-s1600-c85-copy-768x576.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/f6ca782c-7d40-4426-8926-dc06ef0d54d8original-b4059656b9c178f2224e8c099a46cbde2ee3b125-s1600-c85-copy-1536x1152.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1600px) 100vw, 1600px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Devils Hole pupfish are about an inch long. \u003ccite>(Olin Feuerbacher/NPS)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>A wild population of just 175 fish doesn’t sound like a lot. But this is the best the Devils Hole pupfish has been doing in about two decades.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Times are good now with Devils Hole pupfish, compared to how they’ve been in the past,” says \u003ca href=\"https://www.gummlab.org/\">Jenny Gumm\u003c/a>, a fish biologist with the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Exactly how the pupfish have recovered to this point is a bit of a mystery.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The question that I receive and my colleagues receive is, ‘Why?’ And you know, we’re trying to answer that,” says Kevin Wilson, an aquatic ecologist at the National Park Service.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>A fish that’s able to cope\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Wilson first learned of this iconic fish as a kid back in the 1970s, when he tagged along with his geologist mom on a field trip that stopped by Devils Hole.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I just remember as a young lad just laying down on this wooden observation deck, looking down into this immense hole in the ground and was fascinated,” says Wilson.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}},{"type":"component","content":"‘You’ve got to admire that, something that can cling on and adapt to such a difficult environment — with nowhere to go.’","name":"pullquote","attributes":{"named":{"align":"right","size":"medium","citation":"Steve Beissinger, conservation biologist, UC Berkeley","label":""},"numeric":[]}},{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>At the bottom of the hole is the pool where the fish swim. No one knows how deep it is — scuba divers have explored to a depth of over 400 feet.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The pupfish, which are only about an inch long, have no natural predators. Without fear, they’ll curiously swim up to inspect divers or anything else that enters their isolated world.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The fish tend to hang out near the top of the pool, swimming around in the shallow water that covers a rocky ledge. There, they feed on algae and spawn.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The water isn’t exactly cozy. “It’s 93 degrees fahrenheit all the time,” says Wilson, and its oxygen levels are low.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Plus, for about four months in winter, the pool remains entirely in shadow, which is not good for the tiny plants that the fish eat.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s not a great place to live if you’re a fish, that’s for sure,” says Gumm.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The reduced amount of food in winter is thought to be why spring counts of this fish have historically been lower than counts done in the fall. Last fall, researchers \u003ca href=\"https://www.nps.gov/deva/learn/news/devils-hole-fall-2022.htm\">observed\u003c/a> 263 fish. The next count will come in September.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I’m hoping that we cross the threshold of 300,” says Wilson.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Earthquakes and flash floods\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Part of this fish’s recent revival may be due to some dramatic events that have shaken up life in Devils Hole.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In July of 2021, a rare flash flood poured in an enormous amount of muddy water.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The volume of water that went into the habitat was just so much,” says Gumm, who worried the fish would die from a change in water chemistry — or even just the sheer violence of the flood and its churning debris.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It was the first time Gumm felt like these fish really might go extinct on her watch. She recalls going to the hole just after the flood.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}},{"type":"component","content":"","name":"ad","attributes":{"named":{"label":"fullwidth"},"numeric":["fullwidth"]}},{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Walking into it, we just weren’t sure what was going to be there,” she recalls. “And the water looked like chocolate milk. You couldn’t see any fish.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She mentally prepared for the worst. But then she saw a few fish, and then a few more the next day.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It turns out that the flood may ultimately have helped the species, by bringing new nutrients into their environment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And a couple of days after that flood, the fish got hit by another unusual whammy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A magnitude 8.2 earthquake struck Alaska. Even though the epicenter was more than 2,000 miles away, it created a mini-tsunami inside Devils Hole.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Video cameras \u003ca href=\"https://www.nps.gov/media/video/view.htm?id=1c1d516b-b49c-474e-83d6-0a4b9cac5479\">caught\u003c/a> the water sloshing around. All that sloshing may have helpfully redistributed materials brought in by the flooding.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Another mini-tsunami \u003ca href=\"https://www.nps.gov/deva/learn/news/9-19-2022.htm\">happened\u003c/a> last year, when a magnitude 7.6 earthquake in Mexico caused 4-foot waves inside Devils Hole.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983285\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1018px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983285\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/ap871232091047_custom-5c4f1c435df84409cda59da136e4918f6d7fc4c0-s1600-c85-copy.jpg\" alt=\"A man stands above a water hole surrounded by rocks with a woman by the water's edge looking up at him.\" width=\"1018\" height=\"692\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/ap871232091047_custom-5c4f1c435df84409cda59da136e4918f6d7fc4c0-s1600-c85-copy.jpg 1018w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/ap871232091047_custom-5c4f1c435df84409cda59da136e4918f6d7fc4c0-s1600-c85-copy-800x544.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/ap871232091047_custom-5c4f1c435df84409cda59da136e4918f6d7fc4c0-s1600-c85-copy-160x109.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/ap871232091047_custom-5c4f1c435df84409cda59da136e4918f6d7fc4c0-s1600-c85-copy-768x522.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1018px) 100vw, 1018px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">This 2006 photo shows biologist Mike Bower, left, with the National Park Service, and Fish and Wildlife Service field supervisor Cynthia Martinez, as they peer down into Devils Hole. \u003ccite>(JAE C. HONG/The Associated Press)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Wilson says that these kinds of disturbance events can clean off the precious rocky shelf that the fish depend on, benefiting the fish by basically hitting the reset button for the whole system.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Video from one earthquake shows pupfish streaming past the camera, as if the fish knew what was happening and where to go to be safe, says Gumm.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They’ve been living here for a lot longer than we really comprehend,” she says, with the best estimates suggesting they’ve been in the hole for about ten thousand years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They are used to it. And they know what to do.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>‘It’s had a huge impact’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The fish have gotten some help from humans. Wilson says they’re now fed supplemental food, since at one point they looked emaciated.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It was somewhat controversial to start feeding the fish,” says Wilson.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The pupfish also enjoy the extra shelter of some plant material that wildlife managers attached to their rocky ledge, to give them increased shade and more options for hiding — because the older fish aren’t above eating the young’uns.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I think society has a duty to protect species that humankind has negatively impacted,” says Wilson. He points out that groundwater pumping lowered the water level in Devils Hole, and the top of the pool is about six or eight inches below the historical pre-pumping level.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Devils Hole pupfish is famous in conservation circles. It was one of the first species to be listed as endangered under the Endangered Species Act. After nearby development threatened to siphon water away from its lonely refuge, lawsuits aimed at saving it went all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1983287\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 1065px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1983287\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/usfws-public-domain-image-captive-dh-pupfish_custom-78ec476fa00ab80e0d3ad3f1f7764bc27e55d564-s1600-c85-copy.jpg\" alt=\"A man observes a fish in a bowl in a lab.\" width=\"1065\" height=\"713\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/usfws-public-domain-image-captive-dh-pupfish_custom-78ec476fa00ab80e0d3ad3f1f7764bc27e55d564-s1600-c85-copy.jpg 1065w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/usfws-public-domain-image-captive-dh-pupfish_custom-78ec476fa00ab80e0d3ad3f1f7764bc27e55d564-s1600-c85-copy-800x536.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/usfws-public-domain-image-captive-dh-pupfish_custom-78ec476fa00ab80e0d3ad3f1f7764bc27e55d564-s1600-c85-copy-1020x683.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/usfws-public-domain-image-captive-dh-pupfish_custom-78ec476fa00ab80e0d3ad3f1f7764bc27e55d564-s1600-c85-copy-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/07/usfws-public-domain-image-captive-dh-pupfish_custom-78ec476fa00ab80e0d3ad3f1f7764bc27e55d564-s1600-c85-copy-768x514.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1065px) 100vw, 1065px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">A biologist with the US Fish and Wildlife Service observes captive Devils Hole pupfish. \u003ccite>(Ryan Hagerty/USFWS)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“It’s had a huge impact on water conservation and water rights throughout the western United States,” says \u003ca href=\"https://ourenvironment.berkeley.edu/people/steven-beissinger\">Steve Beissinger\u003c/a>, a conservation biologist with the University of California, Berkeley.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over the decades, several efforts have been made to set up a captive population of these fish in a separate tank, as a back-up insurance policy in case the wild fish met an untimely end. Past attempts all failed for various reasons, such as mechanical issues.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The approach that we take now for the refuge population is a much larger scale,” says Gumm, who manages a fish conservation \u003ca href=\"https://www.nps.gov/deva/learn/nature/devils-hole.htm\">facility\u003c/a> located near Devils Hole. There, its unique ecosystem has essentially been recreated in a 100,000-gallon tank.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Most of it is actually underground, simulating that cave environment of Devils Hole,” she says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The fish’s all-important rocky shelf was faithfully copied by the tank’s designers. “They actually went out and 3-D scanned the shallow shelf of Devils Hole and carved it out of styrofoam,” she says. “It is an exact replica of the habitat at Devils Hole.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The refuge tank has a population of about 300, created from eggs taken from the wild. An additional 100 or so fish live in smaller tanks that are kept for breeding.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Climate change could make Devils Hole even hotter, and that’s a concern for the future. Still, Beissinger thinks the fish could keep on keeping on, as long as they continue to get help.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“You can never relax with a small population like that,” he says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Not everyone thinks that so much time and money should go into safeguarding these fish. Once someone told Wilson that “they should just drown those fish.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Drown the fish?\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I had to shake my head,” he recalls. “You know, it’s tough, and it’s about water.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But love them or hate them, Beissinger thinks everyone should at least respect the tenacity of these beleaguered fish.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s certainly, in many ways, an inspiring story of survival,” says Beissinger. “You’ve got to admire that, something that can cling on and adapt to such a difficult environment — with nowhere to go.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}},{"type":"component","content":"","name":"ad","attributes":{"named":{"label":"floatright"},"numeric":["floatright"]}},{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}}],"link":"/science/1983280/rare-devils-hole-pupfish-offers-inspiring-story-of-survival-in-death-valley","authors":["byline_science_1983280"],"categories":["science_2874","science_30","science_40","science_4450","science_98"],"tags":["science_261","science_248","science_813","science_804"],"featImg":"science_1983284","label":"source_science_1983280"},"science_1982551":{"type":"posts","id":"science_1982551","meta":{"index":"posts_1591205157","site":"science","id":"1982551","score":null,"sort":[1683074185000]},"guestAuthors":[],"slug":"celebration-and-concern-hetch-hetchy-reservoir-turns-100-but-climate-change-complicates-its-future","title":"Celebration and Concern: Hetch Hetchy Reservoir Turns 100, But Climate Change Complicates its Future","publishDate":1683074185,"format":"standard","headTitle":"Celebration and Concern: Hetch Hetchy Reservoir Turns 100, But Climate Change Complicates its Future | KQED","labelTerm":{},"content":"\u003cp>[dropcap]S[/dropcap]an Francisco Mayor London Breed and a gaggle of water officials gathered in the northwest corner of Yosemite National Park on Tuesday to celebrate the centennial of the creation of the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir and the O’Shaughnessy Dam.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Hetch Hetchy is one of the reasons why San Francisco is such a resilient city,” said Mayor London Breed with a sweeping view of mountains soaring above the water behind her, their reflections mirrored on the reservoir’s surface.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This [dam] was created and is a testament to the creativity, and the innovation of San Franciscans,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The water system, San Francisco’s main water source, provided a stable supply of pristine Sierra Nevada snowmelt for city residents through most of the 20th century. But as human-caused climate change worsens, some water experts say the stability of San Francisco’s mountain tap is losing its surety for the 21st century and beyond.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I no longer think it will be a reliable water system,” said Samuel Sandoval Solis, an expert in water management at UC Davis. He said the ping-pong of drought and deluge are challenging the current system and will require alterations to the water system in the future.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It is a privilege that San Franciscans have this high-quality water,” he added.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hetch Hetchy was a glacier-carved valley located 15 miles north of Yosemite Valley until the dam project was completed in 1923. Now it’s a massive reservoir that holds 117 billion gallons of water. A true triumph of engineering, the system relies on a 167-mile pipeline and gravity to push water down the height of Sierra Nevada, through the Central Valley, over the golden hills and into the Bay Area.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We do shoot it with ultraviolet light to kill the bugs,” said Christopher Graham, Hetch Hetchy water operations and maintenance manager with the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission. “We don’t have to filter out the dirt from the water because it’s so clean.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1982574\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64952_042_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A white man in a bright yellow jacket descends concrete stairs, surrounded by metal pipes, with more concrete and a few trees visible in the far distance across the unseen water surface\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1982574\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64952_042_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64952_042_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64952_042_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64952_042_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64952_042_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64952_042_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">San Francisco Public Utilities Commission Manager Christopher Graham descends into the O’Shaughnessy Dam at the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir in Yosemite National Park on May 2, 2023. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>This year he said 1.4 million acre-feet of water is likely to melt into into the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir, but only a fraction of that will remain at the end of the dry season.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The water passes over three faultlines and is used for about 85% of the water needs for 2.7 million people in San Francisco and parts of Santa Clara, San Mateo and Alameda counties.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[pullquote size=\"medium\" align=\"right\" citation=\"Christopher Graham, Hetch Hetchy water operations and maintenance manager, SFPUC\"]‘All I’m trying to do is maximize what we got and the storage capacity we have. Climate change is going to make managing this water supply much more difficult.’[/pullquote]But water experts believe the next 100 years of supplying a finite resource to millions of people will be much more complicated than storing water in a mountain bathtub and piping it to the bay. Water officials will need to conserve more and might need to make engineering upgrades so that the system can store more water.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Hetch Hetchy system has been able to handle recent severe droughts and this winter’s powerful storms, but Newsha Ajami, the president of the SFPUC, said “part of that has been driven by luck.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We have some of the lowest water use in the state,” she said. “San Franciscans use about 40 gallons per person daily, which is very low.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The SFPUC operates the reservoir and expects the Hetch Hetchy system will be tested by even more extreme drought and deluge.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This year was one of the wettest years we’ve ever seen. Right before we had the driest three-year sequence we had ever seen,” said Graham. “We are seeing what the climate change models are forecasting, wetter wet periods and drier dry periods, which makes managing all this quite a bit more difficult.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The water supply may seem stable in a wet year, Graham said, but managing the runoff from a massive Sierra snowpack takes constant attention, especially with no guarantee future years will also be wet. Come August, he said, the reservoir will remain glassy and brimming.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“For now, all I’m trying to do is maximize what we got and the storage capacity we have,” he said. “Climate change is going to make managing this water supply much more difficult.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1982577\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64922_014_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A smiling Black woman speaks while gesturing with one hand, wearing a fingerless glove and gray jacket, as the curving concrete arc of a massive dam spreads out at eye level behind her\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1982577\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64922_014_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64922_014_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64922_014_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64922_014_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64922_014_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64922_014_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">San Francisco Mayor London Breed looks out from the O’Shaughnessy Dam at the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir during Tuesday’s centennial celebration. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>While San Franciscans don’t use much water, other parts of the Bay Area overuse the resource. Laura Feinstein with the non-profit public policy group SPUR analyzed water use within the system and found that communities like Hillsborough in San Mateo County that receive water from the Hetch Hetchy system use 190 gallons of water per person per day.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They use water generously even in the winter when it rains,” she said of residents who continue to water large yards and landscapes regardless of season. “Those types of inefficiencies put a lot of pressure on the system. Making communities like that more water-efficient would mean a lot of savings and make the whole system more climate resilient.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Hetch Hetchy’s success will depend on rethinking its use\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Susan Leal wants to ensure that Hetch Hetchy exists as a thriving water resource in the face of human-caused climate change. She is a former general manager of the SFPUC.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She sees three possibilities for the future of water originating from Hetch Hetchy: it will become more expensive over time, officials begin to recycle it on a large scale or they raise the reservoir level.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Regarding recycling water, Leal said there is “no alternative,” and city officials must give serious thought this year to creating more recycled water plants. Recycled water, she said, costs more but could relieve pressure on the system.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“To get people off bottled water, we kept telling them how good their Hetch Hetchy water is,” she said. “We have to let people understand that recycled water is like distilled water. It’s very pure water.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1982582\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64915_004_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut.jpg\" alt=\"the concrete top of a dam stretches away at odd angles into the distance on a cloudy day as dark water can be seen far below, with mountains in the background\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1982582\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64915_004_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64915_004_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64915_004_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64915_004_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64915_004_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64915_004_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The O’Shaughnessy Dam holds back the Tuolumne River, forming Hetch Hetchy Reservoir in Yosemite National Park. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Another option for increasing the water supply is to raise the dam to hold more water. In 1938, officials raised it from 227 feet to 312 feet. Leal said O’Shaughnessy Dam, which holds back the Tuolumne River, could be built 55 feet taller than its height today.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We may need to build the dam higher to impound more water,” she said. “We have to consider this because we never planned for the extreme storms.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Raising the dam and increasing the holding capacity of the reservoir would likely come with substantial pushback from environmentalists and would likely be tied up with lawsuits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I don’t know if it’s being considered, but whether it’s recycling or impounding more water at Hetch Hetchy or other dams, all these things you have to start thinking about yesterday,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>100 years marks the ‘sacrifice of the environment’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The story of Hetch Hetchy isn’t all about free flowing, pure drinking water, and its construction kicked off one of the first major U.S. fights over land use and conservation. When officials constructed Hetch Hetchy, the reservoir cut off waterways to the fish, flora and other fauna that relied on flowing water that is now largely stored behind a cement wall deep in the Sierra Nevada.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>UC Davis’ Sandoval Solis said the building of the reservoir, while good for many people in the Bay Area, has devastated riparian freshwater ecosystems.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The environment has been compromised already for 100 years,” said Sandoval Solis. “The centennial also marks the centennial of the compromise of the environment or the sacrifice of the environment, and some of the native communities displaced for the sake of the well-being of people living in San Francisco.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hetch Hetchy is the ancient homeland of as many as a dozen Indigenous peoples; across Yosemite many were forcibly removed or killed in the mid-1800s.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1982585\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64931_019_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A sweeping panorama photograph shows a massive lake reflecting the shapes of steep rounded granite peaks rising above it, with alpine forest also visible\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1982585\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64931_019_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64931_019_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64931_019_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64931_019_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64931_019_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64931_019_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Hetch Hetchy Valley has been inundated with water since the construction of the O’Shaughnessy Dam 100 years ago. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Damming rivers across the Sierra Nevada, like the Tuolumne River at Hetch Hetchy, have ramifications on the river systems that unite in the San Joaquin River, flow into the San Joaquin-Sacramento Delta and push into the bay.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The large amounts of freshwater that once flowed helped mix natural algae into the salty water. Still, lesser flows into the bay mean the algae sits on top of the water, creating the perfect habitat for toxic algae blooms. Olivia Yip, an associate professor at San Jose State University who studied algae blooms, said the last outbreak that killed thousands of fish was partly due to decreased freshwater flows.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Imagine a little algae floating around in the bay,” said Yip. “If there’s more mixing, then it’s less likely that it can just sit there on the top and grow like crazy.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>The future of the system must include equitable use of water, say advocates\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The Hetch Hetchy pipeline runs through communities that need clean drinking water themselves in the Central Valley and the Bay Area. UC Davis’ Sandoval Solis said access to clean drinking water should “not be a luxury because it is a human right.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The pipes are passing through the middle of their communities, but they cannot use it,” he said. “I don’t think there should be a problem with providing clean water to disadvantaged communities.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Around two-thirds of the pure Hetch Hetchy water in the Bay Area is used outside San Francisco’s bounds.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[aside label='Related Coverage' tag='climate-change']The pipeline travels across the Dumbarton Bridge and emerges right next to the community of East Palo Alto, which \u003ca href=\"https://www.ci.east-palo-alto.ca.us/publicworks/page/utilities\">gets around 80% of its water from the source\u003c/a>. The other 20% comes from local sources, and residents question its purity, said Miriam Yupanqui, executive director of the local advocacy group Nuestra Casa de East Palo Alto.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Yupanqui dreams of the day when 100% of the water for this town of more than 90% people of color is pure piped in mountain fresh. She said many of the more than 15,000 residents her agency represents want all of the city’s water sourced from Hetch Hetchy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Our community members want quality water,” she said. “They want to feel comfortable drinking the water. Many of our community members feel that our neighbors in Palo Alto and Menlo Park are not receiving second-rate water. So why should they?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Palo Alto and Menlo Park receive all of their water from the SFPUC.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the meantime, groups like Climate Resilient Communities in East Palo Alto are working to provide hyper-local water sources, like cisterns connected to gutters to catch rainwater.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That’s a practice that should be used here with the uncertainties of rainfall patterns and extreme events,” said Violet Wulf-Saena, founder and executive director of the nonprofit. “Every home should have a water tank to capture and hold the water that will reduce not only the flooding but also help conserve and use it when there are droughts.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But to have any real impact on water conservation, reducing flooding risk and increasing water supply, Wulf-Saena said they “need thousands of rain gardens.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n","blocks":[],"excerpt":"San Francisco's main water source may not be as reliable a tap of Sierra Nevada snowmelt in the coming century.","status":"publish","parent":0,"modified":1704846023,"stats":{"hasAudio":false,"hasVideo":false,"hasChartOrMap":false,"iframeSrcs":[],"hasGoogleForm":false,"hasGallery":false,"hasHearkenModule":false,"hasPolis":false,"paragraphCount":46,"wordCount":2041},"headData":{"title":"Celebration and Concern: Hetch Hetchy Reservoir Turns 100, But Climate Change Complicates its Future | KQED","description":"San Francisco's main water source may not be as reliable a tap of Sierra Nevada snowmelt in the coming century.","ogTitle":"","ogDescription":"","ogImgId":"","twTitle":"","twDescription":"","twImgId":""},"source":"Water","sticky":false,"excludeFromSiteSearch":"Include","articleAge":"0","path":"/science/1982551/celebration-and-concern-hetch-hetchy-reservoir-turns-100-but-climate-change-complicates-its-future","audioTrackLength":null,"parsedContent":[{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003cspan class=\"utils-parseShortcode-shortcodes-__dropcapShortcode__dropcap\">S\u003c/span>\u003c/p>\u003cp>an Francisco Mayor London Breed and a gaggle of water officials gathered in the northwest corner of Yosemite National Park on Tuesday to celebrate the centennial of the creation of the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir and the O’Shaughnessy Dam.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Hetch Hetchy is one of the reasons why San Francisco is such a resilient city,” said Mayor London Breed with a sweeping view of mountains soaring above the water behind her, their reflections mirrored on the reservoir’s surface.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This [dam] was created and is a testament to the creativity, and the innovation of San Franciscans,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The water system, San Francisco’s main water source, provided a stable supply of pristine Sierra Nevada snowmelt for city residents through most of the 20th century. But as human-caused climate change worsens, some water experts say the stability of San Francisco’s mountain tap is losing its surety for the 21st century and beyond.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I no longer think it will be a reliable water system,” said Samuel Sandoval Solis, an expert in water management at UC Davis. He said the ping-pong of drought and deluge are challenging the current system and will require alterations to the water system in the future.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It is a privilege that San Franciscans have this high-quality water,” he added.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}},{"type":"component","content":"","name":"ad","attributes":{"named":{"label":"fullwidth"},"numeric":["fullwidth"]}},{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hetch Hetchy was a glacier-carved valley located 15 miles north of Yosemite Valley until the dam project was completed in 1923. Now it’s a massive reservoir that holds 117 billion gallons of water. A true triumph of engineering, the system relies on a 167-mile pipeline and gravity to push water down the height of Sierra Nevada, through the Central Valley, over the golden hills and into the Bay Area.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We do shoot it with ultraviolet light to kill the bugs,” said Christopher Graham, Hetch Hetchy water operations and maintenance manager with the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission. “We don’t have to filter out the dirt from the water because it’s so clean.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1982574\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64952_042_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A white man in a bright yellow jacket descends concrete stairs, surrounded by metal pipes, with more concrete and a few trees visible in the far distance across the unseen water surface\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1982574\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64952_042_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64952_042_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64952_042_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64952_042_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64952_042_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64952_042_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">San Francisco Public Utilities Commission Manager Christopher Graham descends into the O’Shaughnessy Dam at the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir in Yosemite National Park on May 2, 2023. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>This year he said 1.4 million acre-feet of water is likely to melt into into the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir, but only a fraction of that will remain at the end of the dry season.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The water passes over three faultlines and is used for about 85% of the water needs for 2.7 million people in San Francisco and parts of Santa Clara, San Mateo and Alameda counties.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}},{"type":"component","content":"‘All I’m trying to do is maximize what we got and the storage capacity we have. Climate change is going to make managing this water supply much more difficult.’","name":"pullquote","attributes":{"named":{"size":"medium","align":"right","citation":"Christopher Graham, Hetch Hetchy water operations and maintenance manager, SFPUC","label":""},"numeric":[]}},{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>But water experts believe the next 100 years of supplying a finite resource to millions of people will be much more complicated than storing water in a mountain bathtub and piping it to the bay. Water officials will need to conserve more and might need to make engineering upgrades so that the system can store more water.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Hetch Hetchy system has been able to handle recent severe droughts and this winter’s powerful storms, but Newsha Ajami, the president of the SFPUC, said “part of that has been driven by luck.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We have some of the lowest water use in the state,” she said. “San Franciscans use about 40 gallons per person daily, which is very low.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The SFPUC operates the reservoir and expects the Hetch Hetchy system will be tested by even more extreme drought and deluge.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“This year was one of the wettest years we’ve ever seen. Right before we had the driest three-year sequence we had ever seen,” said Graham. “We are seeing what the climate change models are forecasting, wetter wet periods and drier dry periods, which makes managing all this quite a bit more difficult.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The water supply may seem stable in a wet year, Graham said, but managing the runoff from a massive Sierra snowpack takes constant attention, especially with no guarantee future years will also be wet. Come August, he said, the reservoir will remain glassy and brimming.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“For now, all I’m trying to do is maximize what we got and the storage capacity we have,” he said. “Climate change is going to make managing this water supply much more difficult.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1982577\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64922_014_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A smiling Black woman speaks while gesturing with one hand, wearing a fingerless glove and gray jacket, as the curving concrete arc of a massive dam spreads out at eye level behind her\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1982577\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64922_014_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64922_014_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64922_014_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64922_014_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64922_014_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64922_014_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">San Francisco Mayor London Breed looks out from the O’Shaughnessy Dam at the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir during Tuesday’s centennial celebration. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>While San Franciscans don’t use much water, other parts of the Bay Area overuse the resource. Laura Feinstein with the non-profit public policy group SPUR analyzed water use within the system and found that communities like Hillsborough in San Mateo County that receive water from the Hetch Hetchy system use 190 gallons of water per person per day.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They use water generously even in the winter when it rains,” she said of residents who continue to water large yards and landscapes regardless of season. “Those types of inefficiencies put a lot of pressure on the system. Making communities like that more water-efficient would mean a lot of savings and make the whole system more climate resilient.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Hetch Hetchy’s success will depend on rethinking its use\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Susan Leal wants to ensure that Hetch Hetchy exists as a thriving water resource in the face of human-caused climate change. She is a former general manager of the SFPUC.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She sees three possibilities for the future of water originating from Hetch Hetchy: it will become more expensive over time, officials begin to recycle it on a large scale or they raise the reservoir level.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Regarding recycling water, Leal said there is “no alternative,” and city officials must give serious thought this year to creating more recycled water plants. Recycled water, she said, costs more but could relieve pressure on the system.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“To get people off bottled water, we kept telling them how good their Hetch Hetchy water is,” she said. “We have to let people understand that recycled water is like distilled water. It’s very pure water.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1982582\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64915_004_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut.jpg\" alt=\"the concrete top of a dam stretches away at odd angles into the distance on a cloudy day as dark water can be seen far below, with mountains in the background\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1982582\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64915_004_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64915_004_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64915_004_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64915_004_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64915_004_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64915_004_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The O’Shaughnessy Dam holds back the Tuolumne River, forming Hetch Hetchy Reservoir in Yosemite National Park. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Another option for increasing the water supply is to raise the dam to hold more water. In 1938, officials raised it from 227 feet to 312 feet. Leal said O’Shaughnessy Dam, which holds back the Tuolumne River, could be built 55 feet taller than its height today.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We may need to build the dam higher to impound more water,” she said. “We have to consider this because we never planned for the extreme storms.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Raising the dam and increasing the holding capacity of the reservoir would likely come with substantial pushback from environmentalists and would likely be tied up with lawsuits.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I don’t know if it’s being considered, but whether it’s recycling or impounding more water at Hetch Hetchy or other dams, all these things you have to start thinking about yesterday,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>100 years marks the ‘sacrifice of the environment’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The story of Hetch Hetchy isn’t all about free flowing, pure drinking water, and its construction kicked off one of the first major U.S. fights over land use and conservation. When officials constructed Hetch Hetchy, the reservoir cut off waterways to the fish, flora and other fauna that relied on flowing water that is now largely stored behind a cement wall deep in the Sierra Nevada.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>UC Davis’ Sandoval Solis said the building of the reservoir, while good for many people in the Bay Area, has devastated riparian freshwater ecosystems.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The environment has been compromised already for 100 years,” said Sandoval Solis. “The centennial also marks the centennial of the compromise of the environment or the sacrifice of the environment, and some of the native communities displaced for the sake of the well-being of people living in San Francisco.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hetch Hetchy is the ancient homeland of as many as a dozen Indigenous peoples; across Yosemite many were forcibly removed or killed in the mid-1800s.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1982585\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 1920px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64931_019_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut.jpg\" alt=\"A sweeping panorama photograph shows a massive lake reflecting the shapes of steep rounded granite peaks rising above it, with alpine forest also visible\" width=\"1920\" height=\"1280\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1982585\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64931_019_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut.jpg 1920w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64931_019_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64931_019_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64931_019_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64931_019_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/05/RS64931_019_KQED_HetchHetchyCentennial_05022023-qut-1536x1024.jpg 1536w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1920px) 100vw, 1920px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Hetch Hetchy Valley has been inundated with water since the construction of the O’Shaughnessy Dam 100 years ago. \u003ccite>(Beth LaBerge/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Damming rivers across the Sierra Nevada, like the Tuolumne River at Hetch Hetchy, have ramifications on the river systems that unite in the San Joaquin River, flow into the San Joaquin-Sacramento Delta and push into the bay.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The large amounts of freshwater that once flowed helped mix natural algae into the salty water. Still, lesser flows into the bay mean the algae sits on top of the water, creating the perfect habitat for toxic algae blooms. Olivia Yip, an associate professor at San Jose State University who studied algae blooms, said the last outbreak that killed thousands of fish was partly due to decreased freshwater flows.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Imagine a little algae floating around in the bay,” said Yip. “If there’s more mixing, then it’s less likely that it can just sit there on the top and grow like crazy.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>The future of the system must include equitable use of water, say advocates\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The Hetch Hetchy pipeline runs through communities that need clean drinking water themselves in the Central Valley and the Bay Area. UC Davis’ Sandoval Solis said access to clean drinking water should “not be a luxury because it is a human right.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The pipes are passing through the middle of their communities, but they cannot use it,” he said. “I don’t think there should be a problem with providing clean water to disadvantaged communities.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Around two-thirds of the pure Hetch Hetchy water in the Bay Area is used outside San Francisco’s bounds.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}},{"type":"component","content":"","name":"aside","attributes":{"named":{"label":"Related Coverage ","tag":"climate-change"},"numeric":[]}},{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>The pipeline travels across the Dumbarton Bridge and emerges right next to the community of East Palo Alto, which \u003ca href=\"https://www.ci.east-palo-alto.ca.us/publicworks/page/utilities\">gets around 80% of its water from the source\u003c/a>. The other 20% comes from local sources, and residents question its purity, said Miriam Yupanqui, executive director of the local advocacy group Nuestra Casa de East Palo Alto.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Yupanqui dreams of the day when 100% of the water for this town of more than 90% people of color is pure piped in mountain fresh. She said many of the more than 15,000 residents her agency represents want all of the city’s water sourced from Hetch Hetchy.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Our community members want quality water,” she said. “They want to feel comfortable drinking the water. Many of our community members feel that our neighbors in Palo Alto and Menlo Park are not receiving second-rate water. So why should they?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Palo Alto and Menlo Park receive all of their water from the SFPUC.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the meantime, groups like Climate Resilient Communities in East Palo Alto are working to provide hyper-local water sources, like cisterns connected to gutters to catch rainwater.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“That’s a practice that should be used here with the uncertainties of rainfall patterns and extreme events,” said Violet Wulf-Saena, founder and executive director of the nonprofit. “Every home should have a water tank to capture and hold the water that will reduce not only the flooding but also help conserve and use it when there are droughts.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But to have any real impact on water conservation, reducing flooding risk and increasing water supply, Wulf-Saena said they “need thousands of rain gardens.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}},{"type":"component","content":"","name":"ad","attributes":{"named":{"label":"floatright"},"numeric":["floatright"]}},{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}}],"link":"/science/1982551/celebration-and-concern-hetch-hetchy-reservoir-turns-100-but-climate-change-complicates-its-future","authors":["11746"],"categories":["science_35","science_40","science_4450","science_98"],"tags":["science_1195","science_4417","science_248","science_2828","science_2078","science_2830","science_448","science_201","science_159"],"featImg":"science_1982570","label":"source_science_1982551"},"science_1982486":{"type":"posts","id":"science_1982486","meta":{"index":"posts_1591205157","site":"science","id":"1982486","score":null,"sort":[1682938828000]},"guestAuthors":[],"slug":"big-wildfires-devastate-californias-fish-but-they-thrive-with-frequent-small-burns","title":"Big Wildfires Can Devastate California’s Fish. But They Thrive With Frequent, Small Burns","publishDate":1682938828,"format":"image","headTitle":"Big Wildfires Can Devastate California’s Fish. But They Thrive With Frequent, Small Burns | KQED","labelTerm":{},"content":"\u003cp>It’s ingrained in the minds of many fish biologists and conservationists — and many more members of the public — that fire is a destructive force. When fire burns an area, that will be bad.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But a burgeoning area of research shows that wildfires can stimulate growth and abundance in freshwater creeks and rivers — particularly low- to moderate-severity fires.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If we don’t have a good grasp of what’s going on with fire, there’s no way we can manage for things like fish, for people, for communities or anything, really,” said Lenya Quinn-Davidson, director of the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources’ Fire Network, addressing a crowd gathered for a healthy fire and fish workshop at the \u003ca href=\"https://www.calsalmon.org/conferences/40th-annual-salmonid-restoration-conference\">40th Annual Salmonid Restoration Conference\u003c/a> last week in Fortuna.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The crowd, composed primarily of fish devotees from nonprofits, regulatory agencies and universities, had gathered to spend the day discussing how the fates of fire and California’s beloved charismatic aquafauna are intertwined.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The future of fire is the future of fish,” said Quinn-Davidson.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Frequent burning and abundant life\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Fires can help fish by killing off some trees, leaving fewer straws in the ground and thus more water to flow in streams and rivers. Fires can also improve the quality of fish habitat by providing a little disturbance in the watershed: A little turbidity can make it easier for small fish to hide from other fish or birds that want to eat them; more erosion can mean more rocks and gravel in the stream, useful for spawning; and bigger rocks and downed logs in the water can help create pools and riffles, which help with feeding and hiding. And smoke can dramatically cool down land and water temperatures, a benefit as most California native river fish like cold water.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The most frequently burned watersheds in the Sierra Nevada (likely because they are remote and hard to access) have something in common: The fish seem to thrive with the fire. That was a striking finding from a study commissioned by Congress involving several research teams in the 1990s to \u003ca href=\"https://www.fs.usda.gov/research/treesearch/6664\">evaluate the health of the Sierra Nevada\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Carl Skinner, retired research geographer with the U.S. Forest Service, was part of that research group.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“What was interesting is that there were aquatic biologists that were studying these creeks also, independent of us,” he said, referring to Deer Creek and Mill Creek, “and they determined that these watersheds contained an intact native fish and amphibian fauna.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In other words, the life in these streams were doing great. They were operating naturally, as they would have prior to the colonization of California by Europeans and the rapid development of the state.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A \u003ca href=\"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0378112705000599\">2005 study of fish and fire\u003c/a> in Idaho by Bureau of Land Management researcher Timothy Burton found that “even in the most severely impacted streams, habitat conditions and trout populations improved dramatically within 5-10 years.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Floods that followed fires “rejuvenated stream habits” by delivering fine sediments and large amounts of gravel, cobble, woody debris and nutrients that resulted in “higher fish productivities than before the fire,” the study found.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Severe fire prompts a devastating fish kill\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The link between fish and fire is not always beneficial.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Severe fires, especially with the big debris flows that can follow when rains come, can kill large numbers of fish. Last August the McKinney Fire prompted a devastating fish kill along 50 miles of the Klamath River.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1982489\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1982489\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1242292458-800x534.jpg\" alt=\"Image shows the conditions of the Klamath River post McKinney fire, which promoted a large fish kill\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1242292458-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1242292458-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1242292458-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1242292458-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1242292458-1536x1025.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1242292458-2048x1366.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1242292458-1920x1281.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Klamath River runs brown with mud after flash floods hit the McKinney Fire in the Klamath National Forest near Yreka. \u003ccite>(David McNew/AFP via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“It was kind of a combo of worst-case scenarios,” said Toz Soto, fisheries program manager for the Karuk Tribe. “I’ve lived in the Klamath my entire life, and I’ve seen a lot of fires and I’ve seen a lot of debris flows and flood effects and things of this sort. But we’ve never experienced anything quite like this.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The McKinney Fire, which took the lives of four people, broke out in steep territory in a dry area of the mid-Klamath mountains and burned fast and hot, driven by winds. Within days, isolated heavy rains dumped over the burn scar, releasing enormous amounts of mud and rock into the river. The flow of the Klamath River, as measured by a stream gauge, doubled within a matter of hours.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Soto said he first noticed a change in the sound of the river. “The rapids weren’t making any noise — they were gurgling, but they weren’t roaring,” he said. “The white water wasn’t white. Things were different.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The extremely muddy, “eerily quiet” water saw big drops in its oxygen content, “pretty much down to zero,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When it’s that low, Soto said, “you might as well just throw the fish up on the bank.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Soto worries that as climate change accelerates the intensity of wildfires and rainstorms, these sorts of events will become more common.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1982490\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1982490 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1321913919-800x525.jpg\" alt=\"A man with orange bibs hangs over the side of a boat collecting large dead fish from the river. \" width=\"800\" height=\"525\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1321913919-800x525.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1321913919-1020x669.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1321913919-160x105.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1321913919-768x504.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1321913919-1536x1008.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1321913919-2048x1344.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1321913919-1920x1260.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Yurok tribe member Thomas Willson of Weitchpec fishes on the Klamath River within Yurok tribal lands in this 2008 photograph. \u003ccite>(Michael Macor/The San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>But there are solutions. Traditional Indigenous knowledge points to the value of using fire to stave off the worst wildfires and to promote health in the forests and aquatic ecosystems.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If we want healthy water for salmon or for drinking or for planting fruits and vegetables, we need to take care of our forest,” said Margo Robbins, Yurok tribal member and executive director of the \u003ca href=\"https://www.culturalfire.org/\">Cultural Fire Management Council\u003c/a>, “and the most efficient, most cost-effective way to take care of the forest is with fire.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s critical for us as Native people to restore those things back into a healthy state,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And, she stressed, everyone has a role: “It’s critical for non-Native people to also take their part in restoring the land to a healthy state, too.”\u003c/p>\n\n","blocks":[],"excerpt":"A burgeoning area of research shows that wildfires can stimulate growth and abundance in freshwater creeks and rivers — particularly low- to moderate-severity fires.","status":"publish","parent":0,"modified":1704846027,"stats":{"hasAudio":false,"hasVideo":false,"hasChartOrMap":false,"iframeSrcs":[],"hasGoogleForm":false,"hasGallery":false,"hasHearkenModule":false,"hasPolis":false,"paragraphCount":26,"wordCount":1052},"headData":{"title":"Big Wildfires Can Devastate California’s Fish. But They Thrive With Frequent, Small Burns | KQED","description":"A burgeoning area of research shows that wildfires can stimulate growth and abundance in freshwater creeks and rivers — particularly low- to moderate-severity fires.","ogTitle":"","ogDescription":"","ogImgId":"","twTitle":"","twDescription":"","twImgId":""},"source":"Wildfire ","sticky":false,"subhead":"What's good for forest health and fire safety is also good for fish","excludeFromSiteSearch":"Include","articleAge":"0","path":"/science/1982486/big-wildfires-devastate-californias-fish-but-they-thrive-with-frequent-small-burns","audioTrackLength":null,"parsedContent":[{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>It’s ingrained in the minds of many fish biologists and conservationists — and many more members of the public — that fire is a destructive force. When fire burns an area, that will be bad.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But a burgeoning area of research shows that wildfires can stimulate growth and abundance in freshwater creeks and rivers — particularly low- to moderate-severity fires.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If we don’t have a good grasp of what’s going on with fire, there’s no way we can manage for things like fish, for people, for communities or anything, really,” said Lenya Quinn-Davidson, director of the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources’ Fire Network, addressing a crowd gathered for a healthy fire and fish workshop at the \u003ca href=\"https://www.calsalmon.org/conferences/40th-annual-salmonid-restoration-conference\">40th Annual Salmonid Restoration Conference\u003c/a> last week in Fortuna.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The crowd, composed primarily of fish devotees from nonprofits, regulatory agencies and universities, had gathered to spend the day discussing how the fates of fire and California’s beloved charismatic aquafauna are intertwined.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The future of fire is the future of fish,” said Quinn-Davidson.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Frequent burning and abundant life\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Fires can help fish by killing off some trees, leaving fewer straws in the ground and thus more water to flow in streams and rivers. Fires can also improve the quality of fish habitat by providing a little disturbance in the watershed: A little turbidity can make it easier for small fish to hide from other fish or birds that want to eat them; more erosion can mean more rocks and gravel in the stream, useful for spawning; and bigger rocks and downed logs in the water can help create pools and riffles, which help with feeding and hiding. And smoke can dramatically cool down land and water temperatures, a benefit as most California native river fish like cold water.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}},{"type":"component","content":"","name":"ad","attributes":{"named":{"label":"fullwidth"},"numeric":["fullwidth"]}},{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The most frequently burned watersheds in the Sierra Nevada (likely because they are remote and hard to access) have something in common: The fish seem to thrive with the fire. That was a striking finding from a study commissioned by Congress involving several research teams in the 1990s to \u003ca href=\"https://www.fs.usda.gov/research/treesearch/6664\">evaluate the health of the Sierra Nevada\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Carl Skinner, retired research geographer with the U.S. Forest Service, was part of that research group.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“What was interesting is that there were aquatic biologists that were studying these creeks also, independent of us,” he said, referring to Deer Creek and Mill Creek, “and they determined that these watersheds contained an intact native fish and amphibian fauna.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In other words, the life in these streams were doing great. They were operating naturally, as they would have prior to the colonization of California by Europeans and the rapid development of the state.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A \u003ca href=\"https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0378112705000599\">2005 study of fish and fire\u003c/a> in Idaho by Bureau of Land Management researcher Timothy Burton found that “even in the most severely impacted streams, habitat conditions and trout populations improved dramatically within 5-10 years.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Floods that followed fires “rejuvenated stream habits” by delivering fine sediments and large amounts of gravel, cobble, woody debris and nutrients that resulted in “higher fish productivities than before the fire,” the study found.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Severe fire prompts a devastating fish kill\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The link between fish and fire is not always beneficial.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Severe fires, especially with the big debris flows that can follow when rains come, can kill large numbers of fish. Last August the McKinney Fire prompted a devastating fish kill along 50 miles of the Klamath River.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1982489\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1982489\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1242292458-800x534.jpg\" alt=\"Image shows the conditions of the Klamath River post McKinney fire, which promoted a large fish kill\" width=\"800\" height=\"534\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1242292458-800x534.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1242292458-1020x680.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1242292458-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1242292458-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1242292458-1536x1025.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1242292458-2048x1366.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1242292458-1920x1281.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Klamath River runs brown with mud after flash floods hit the McKinney Fire in the Klamath National Forest near Yreka. \u003ccite>(David McNew/AFP via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“It was kind of a combo of worst-case scenarios,” said Toz Soto, fisheries program manager for the Karuk Tribe. “I’ve lived in the Klamath my entire life, and I’ve seen a lot of fires and I’ve seen a lot of debris flows and flood effects and things of this sort. But we’ve never experienced anything quite like this.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The McKinney Fire, which took the lives of four people, broke out in steep territory in a dry area of the mid-Klamath mountains and burned fast and hot, driven by winds. Within days, isolated heavy rains dumped over the burn scar, releasing enormous amounts of mud and rock into the river. The flow of the Klamath River, as measured by a stream gauge, doubled within a matter of hours.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Soto said he first noticed a change in the sound of the river. “The rapids weren’t making any noise — they were gurgling, but they weren’t roaring,” he said. “The white water wasn’t white. Things were different.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The extremely muddy, “eerily quiet” water saw big drops in its oxygen content, “pretty much down to zero,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When it’s that low, Soto said, “you might as well just throw the fish up on the bank.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Soto worries that as climate change accelerates the intensity of wildfires and rainstorms, these sorts of events will become more common.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1982490\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1982490 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1321913919-800x525.jpg\" alt=\"A man with orange bibs hangs over the side of a boat collecting large dead fish from the river. \" width=\"800\" height=\"525\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1321913919-800x525.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1321913919-1020x669.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1321913919-160x105.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1321913919-768x504.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1321913919-1536x1008.jpg 1536w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1321913919-2048x1344.jpg 2048w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2023/04/GettyImages-1321913919-1920x1260.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Yurok tribe member Thomas Willson of Weitchpec fishes on the Klamath River within Yurok tribal lands in this 2008 photograph. \u003ccite>(Michael Macor/The San Francisco Chronicle via Getty Images)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>But there are solutions. Traditional Indigenous knowledge points to the value of using fire to stave off the worst wildfires and to promote health in the forests and aquatic ecosystems.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If we want healthy water for salmon or for drinking or for planting fruits and vegetables, we need to take care of our forest,” said Margo Robbins, Yurok tribal member and executive director of the \u003ca href=\"https://www.culturalfire.org/\">Cultural Fire Management Council\u003c/a>, “and the most efficient, most cost-effective way to take care of the forest is with fire.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s critical for us as Native people to restore those things back into a healthy state,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>And, she stressed, everyone has a role: “It’s critical for non-Native people to also take their part in restoring the land to a healthy state, too.”\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}}],"link":"/science/1982486/big-wildfires-devastate-californias-fish-but-they-thrive-with-frequent-small-burns","authors":["11088"],"categories":["science_2874","science_35","science_40","science_4450","science_98","science_3730"],"tags":["science_5178","science_192","science_4417","science_112","science_248","science_113"],"featImg":"science_1982488","label":"source_science_1982486"},"science_1981041":{"type":"posts","id":"science_1981041","meta":{"index":"posts_1591205157","site":"science","id":"1981041","score":null,"sort":[1671562594000]},"guestAuthors":[],"slug":"saving-salmon-chinook-return-to-californias-far-north-with-a-lot-of-human-help","title":"Saving Salmon: Chinook Return to California's Far North — With a Lot of Human Help","publishDate":1671562594,"format":"standard","headTitle":"Saving Salmon: Chinook Return to California’s Far North — With a Lot of Human Help | KQED","labelTerm":{},"content":"\u003cp>Chinook salmon haven’t spawned in the McCloud River for more than 80 years. But last summer, thousands of juveniles were born in the waters of this remote tributary, miles upstream of Shasta Dam.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The young Chinook salmon — some now finger-sized smolts in mid-migration toward the Pacific Ocean — are part of a state and federal experiment that could help make the McCloud a salmon river once again.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Winter-run Chinook were federally listed as endangered in 1994, but recent years have been especially hard for the fish. Facing severe drought and warm river conditions, \u003ca href=\"https://www.nrdc.org/experts/doug-obegi/agencies-planning-disaster-ca-salmon-if-2022-dry\">most winter-run salmon born naturally in the Sacramento River have perished\u003c/a> over the past three years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So restoring Chinook to the McCloud has become an urgent priority for state and federal officials. In the first year of a drought-response project, about 40,000 salmon eggs were brought back to the McCloud, a picturesque river in the wilderness of the Cascade mountains.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Iconic in Northern California, Chinook salmon are critical pieces of the region’s environment. They are consumed by sea lions, orcas and bears, and they still support a commercial fishing industry. Chinook remain vital to the culture and traditional foods of Native Americans, including the Winnemem Wintu Tribe, whose historical salmon fishing grounds include the McCloud River.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Conservation experts say the McCloud’s cold, clean water holds great promise as a potential Chinook refuge — and is perhaps even a future stronghold for the species. Restoring salmon there is considered critical to the species’ survival, since they now spawn only in low-lying parts of the Central Valley near Redding and Red Bluff, where it’s often too hot and dry for most newborn fish to survive.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We probably won’t be able to maintain winter-run Chinook on the valley floor forever,” said Matt Johnson, senior environmental scientist with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1981043\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1981043\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-01-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"Photo shows two hatchery juveniles (with copper tails) that were used to test efficiency of the trapping system and two that spent their early lives imprinting on McCloud River water. \" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-01-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-01-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-01-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-01-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-01.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Matt Johnson of the state Department of Fish and Wildlife measures four winter-run Chinook salmon as part of a trial to estimate the species’ production and survival. \u003ccite>(Eric Holmes/UC Davis)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Johnson spent much of the past five months camped beside the incubation site on the lower McCloud River, guarding the eggs and emerging fry and overseeing the experiment, which is a \u003ca href=\"https://wildlife.ca.gov/News/partners-return-winter-run-chinook-salmon-eggs-to-mccloud-river\">collaboration between his agency, the National Marine Fisheries Service (also known as NOAA Fisheries), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Winnemem Wintu Tribe\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So far, biologists say, the project has gone well. About 90% of the eggs hatched, and the young fish reportedly have thrived in the McCloud, growing faster than hatchery fish.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Recent rainstorms have boosted \u003ca href=\"https://waterdata.usgs.gov/monitoring-location/11377100/#parameterCode=00060&period=P7D\">river flows\u003c/a>, which may increase the odds that salmon will reach the ocean this year, escaping the dangerous water pumps and predators of the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The project is the first step in a long-term plan that may involve capturing adult winter-run Chinook in the lower Sacramento and transporting them to the McCloud to spawn. It’s a difficult and risky venture for the fish but it may be the best shot the species has at survival.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The winter run is headed for extinction, no question, if we don’t develop an artificial system for keeping it going,” said Peter Moyle, a fish biologist at UC Davis who has studied Central Valley fish since the 1970s. He co-authored a \u003ca href=\"https://caltrout.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/SOS-II-Fish-in-Hot-Water-Report.pdf\">report warning that many of California’s native salmon and trout are likely to vanish this century (PDF)\u003c/a> as the environment warms.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A genetically unique run of salmon, winter-run Chinook once spawned in the McCloud in great numbers, along with other seasonal runs of the fish.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[pullquote size='medium' align='right' citation='Peter Moyle, fish biologist, UC Davis']‘The winter run is headed for extinction, no question, if we don’t develop an artificial system for keeping it going.’[/pullquote]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even though the Central Valley’s river system, which includes the McCloud River, marks the southern limit of the Chinook’s range, it was once their stronghold. \u003ca href=\"https://cws.ucdavis.edu/library/historical-abundance-and-decline-chinook-salmon-central-valley-region-california\">Between 1 and 2 million fish\u003c/a>, some weighing 50 pounds or more, spawned in the tributaries of the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers each year before the Gold Rush.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The fish have dwindled to a fraction of their historic abundance. \u003ca href=\"https://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx?DocumentID=84381&inline\">Spawning numbers of winter-run Chinook\u003c/a> dropped to fewer than 200 in the early 1990s. They’ve rebounded, but their future remains in doubt.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The McCloud — a state-designated wild and scenic river — used to offer prime habitat, with deep gravel beds for egg-laying and year-round flows of clean, cold water from Mount Shasta. Construction of Shasta Dam in the 1940s — and Keswick Dam shortly after — changed all this by \u003ca href=\"https://noaa.maps.arcgis.com/apps/MapJournal/index.html?appid=ceebefd9685143daa5bf30d5a7e0c7fa\">locking ocean-run salmon out of some 500 miles of productive high-elevation habitat\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The salmon became confined instead to the lower reaches of the Sacramento River system, where they did not previously spawn. Blazing temperatures in the summer — when the winter-run fish lay and fertilize their eggs near Redding and Red Bluff — have made it difficult for salmon to thrive. Chinook, especially in their early life stages, are sensitive to high temperatures.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Only with the support of hatcheries have California salmon remained abundant enough to be fished.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>River habitat for winter-run Chinook salmon has shrunk\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Juvenile Chinook salmon born in the McCloud River once migrated downstream, into the Sacramento River and out to the Pacific Ocean. Today, about 80% of the salmon’s historical river habitat is behind dams, which prevents the adult fish from swimming upstream to spawn. The state is mounting an experiment to return them to the McCloud River.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1981045\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 740px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1981045 size-full\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/download-11.png\" alt=\"Color coded map of river habitat for winter-run chinook salmon.\" width=\"740\" height=\"561\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/download-11.png 740w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/download-11-160x121.png 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 740px) 100vw, 740px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Map of river habitat for winter-run Chinook salmon. \u003ccite>(NOAA)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>For decades, fishing groups, agencies and Winnemem Wintu tribal leaders have pondered the possibility of reintroducing salmon into the McCloud. Finally, last spring and summer, after two poor spawning years in a row — and with a third one looking likely — federal and state agencies took action.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last year “temperature modeling going into the winter-run spawning season showed a lot of uncertainty — basically a 50-50 chance of being able to maintain suitable temperatures for winter-run eggs to develop in the river,” said Johnson of the Department of Fish and Wildlife.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>A bumpy trip for precious salmon eggs\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Because winter-run Chinook are listed as endangered, fishery agencies are scrambling to save the fish. Last spring they transported about three dozen adult winter-run Chinook trapped at the base of Keswick Dam, just north of Redding, about 50 miles southeast to the north fork of Battle Creek, a tributary near Red Bluff where waters typically run cool and clear.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>They also launched a more complicated effort: They took winter-run Chinook eggs from adult fish at a federal salmon hatchery and transported them up and over Shasta Dam to a remote national forest campground next to the McCloud River.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>They came in two batches of 20,000 — the first by truck on a bumpy, 80-mile ride. A helicopter delivered the second clutch. “We wanted to make sure the transportation phase went smoothly,” Johnson said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The fertilized eggs were incubated in protective cages submerged in river water for weeks. The scientists even placed an electrified barrier around the eggs to protect them from foraging black bears.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1981046\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1981046 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-003-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"Rachel Johnson of NOAA Fisheries and state biologists Sam Funakoshi and Ross Schaefer check a trap for winter-run Chinook salmon that will be transported downstream of Keswick Dam to help them migrate to the ocean.\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-003-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-003-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-003-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-003-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-003.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Rachel Johnson of NOAA Fisheries and state biologists Sam Funakoshi and Ross Schaefer check a trap for winter-run Chinook salmon that will be transported downstream of Keswick Dam to help them migrate to the ocean. \u003ccite>(Carson Jeffres/UC Davis)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Of the 40,000 eggs, Johnson said, about 36,000 emerged as fry. In late summer, the biologists released them into the wild.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The scientists wanted the fish to spend time in McCloud, both to utilize its invertebrate food sources and to undergo the olfactory imprinting process that enables migrating adult salmon to find their birth streams years later. Indeed, it is this process that gives salmon their remarkable homing powers and would truly make these fish McCloud River salmon.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In an undisturbed ecosystem, the fish in the river would simply swim downstream, through San Francisco Bay, and out into the ocean. But this unique scenario, where a dam and reservoir block their migration, called on a different approach that required human help.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>State and federal scientists had to recapture the salmon and release them into the lower Sacramento River. The Fish and Wildlife team placed several traps on the McCloud about 20 miles below the release site and managed to capture 1,600 of them. They then drove the fish downstream and released them into the Sacramento River. If all goes well, some of the young salmon will return from the ocean in two to four years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The agencies plan to repeat the project next year, transporting more Chinook eggs up to the McCloud and again hauling the young fish back downstream. “We intend to do it again, and do it better,” Johnson said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To improve the program’s effectiveness, scientists are now addressing some unanswered questions from the experiment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/contact/rachel-johnson-phd\">Rachel Johnson\u003c/a>, a biologist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Southwest Fisheries Science Center, wants to know how many of the salmon released at the incubation site made it as far downstream as the fish trap array. This will reveal the survival rate of the released fish and help Johnson and her colleagues better understand the quality of the McCloud’s habitat.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To do this, she is studying data on daily river flow rates and capture rates in the traps, then combining this information with the known effectiveness of the types of gear they used. That, she said, would “give us the number that swam past.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>From what they already know about the size of the fish upon recapture, it’s looking good.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The fish in the McCloud were 30 to 40% larger than the average winter-run fish that were being caught at the Red Bluff Diversion Dam,” she said, referring to a structure downstream of Shasta.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>A gem in ‘a string of pearls’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>A great deal of work has already been done to help Sacramento River salmon. State agencies and conservation groups have \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/environment/2018/12/restoring-floodplains-reversal-california-central-valley/\">restored floodplains\u003c/a> and side channels, where slow-moving water provides young fish with abundant food and shelter from predators. This work often involves removing, or carving notches in, levees so that river water can flow over farm fields.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Johnson sees this connected system of restored habitat parcels as a “string of pearls,” and says the McCloud might be one of its more valuable gems.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Better still, the McCloud’s geographic location at the upper end of the watershed could have a beneficial trickle-down effect through the watershed and the early life stages of Chinook, ultimately improving their lifelong survival rates.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If you can have such highly productive, good-growth habitat so high in the system, it starts the fish off in such a strong condition,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Protecting areas lower in the watershed are important to Chinook, too. Research by Jacob Katz, biologist with the group California Trout, shows that floodplains restored in the lower stretches of the Sacramento watershed have helped salmon. Smolts grow faster on inundated floodplains than they do in the river’s channelized main stem.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Katz said reintroducing Chinook to the high-elevation spawning areas in the McCloud will complement the work he has done, and vice versa.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Both spawning habitat and rearing habitat are necessary, yet insufficient on their own,” he said. “We need to restore every link in the habitat chain.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Ambitious future plans\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The summer’s salmon relocation effort was technically not a reintroduction project but an emergency drought action required by the state and federal endangered species acts and intended to shield winter-run Chinook from drought impacts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>However, it’s likely that the McCloud effort of last summer will develop in years ahead into a full-fledged salmon reintroduction program.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Randy Beckwith, head of the state Department of Water Resources’ Riverine Stewardship branch, said “the juvenile collection piece is the most difficult part” of a potential long-term McCloud River reintroduction plan.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1981047\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1981047 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-02-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"Marine Sisk, a biologist with the Winnemem Wintu tribe, measures a juvenile winter-run Chinook salmon reared in the McCloud (top) compared to a much smaller similar-age fish reared in the hatchery.\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-02-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-02-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-02-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-02-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-02.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Marine Sisk, biologist with the Winnemem Wintu Tribe, measures a juvenile winter-run Chinook salmon reared in the McCloud (top) compared to a much smaller similar-age fish reared in the hatchery. \u003ccite>(Eric Holmes/UC Davis)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>While the state and federal fishery scientists did their work a few miles upstream, Beckwith’s agency tested a $1.5 million contraption dubbed the Juvenile Salmonid Collection System in the narrow McCloud River arm of Lake Shasta. The setup is a floating array designed to deflect floating debris, like logs and trash, while a dangling synthetic curtain funnels the young salmon into a dead-end live trap. The trap component has not been installed yet due to regulatory constraints associated with handling endangered species, but the agency has plans to do so, possibly next summer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While traps of the sort already used on the McCloud are designed to catch a sample fraction of a river’s fish, the system the state is working on will hopefully catch all of them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A successful McCloud River salmon reintroduction would also mean giving adult salmon access to the river. Currently, Keswick Dam, just upstream of Redding, marks the end of the line for free-swimming adult salmon. If they are to get beyond this point, fishery managers will need to do one of two things: build a stairway, called a fish ladder or fishway, which leads migrating salmon around a dam, or trap the fish and truck them upstream.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ladders would give the salmon autonomy to migrate on their own. But Shasta Dam is a 600-foot-high barrier, so hauling them instead would be much cheaper. It is generally considered the only feasible solution on the table, although federal officials have no firm plans to do so yet.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But scientists have questioned the effectiveness of trap-and-haul programs. In a 2017 paper, Moyle and a colleague, biologist \u003ca href=\"https://watershed.ucdavis.edu/people/robert-lusardi\">Robert Lusardi\u003c/a>, warned that \u003ca href=\"https://afspubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1080/03632415.2017.1356124\">it can cause high mortality rates in transferred fish\u003c/a>, both adults going upstream and juveniles coming downstream. A trap-and-haul program for salmon “should proceed with extreme caution,” they wrote.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There’s another option, too. Battle Creek, which flows off Mount Lassen’s south flank, could also serve as a lifeline for winter-run Chinook. It was once an important spawning stream and, like most California rivers, is now riddled with dams.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But unlike Keswick and Shasta, they are small. \u003ca href=\"https://www.usbr.gov/mp/battlecreek/status.html\">One dam was removed in 2010\u003c/a>, and Katz said there are \u003ca href=\"https://caltrout.org/campaigns/battle-creek-dams\">plans to remove or modify the rest to provide Chinook with unassisted passage\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Battle Creek offers an opportunity to have a second population of winter-run fish that doesn’t need to be trucked — a completely volitional population,” he said. “Battle Creek could be the epitome of a 21st-century reconciled watershed.”\u003c/p>\n\n","blocks":[],"excerpt":"Urgently trying to help an endangered species devastated by drought, biologists hauled 40,000 eggs to the McCloud River this year, then brought the young fish back again to migrate. So far, it's gone well.","status":"publish","parent":0,"modified":1704846127,"stats":{"hasAudio":false,"hasVideo":false,"hasChartOrMap":false,"iframeSrcs":[],"hasGoogleForm":false,"hasGallery":false,"hasHearkenModule":false,"hasPolis":false,"paragraphCount":56,"wordCount":2557},"headData":{"title":"Saving Salmon: Chinook Return to California's Far North — With a Lot of Human Help | KQED","description":"Urgently trying to help an endangered species devastated by drought, biologists hauled 40,000 eggs to the McCloud River this year, then brought the young fish back again to migrate. So far, it's gone well.","ogTitle":"","ogDescription":"","ogImgId":"","twTitle":"","twDescription":"","twImgId":""},"source":"CalMatters","sticky":false,"nprByline":"Alastair Bland","excludeFromSiteSearch":"Include","showOnAuthorArchivePages":"No","articleAge":"0","path":"/science/1981041/saving-salmon-chinook-return-to-californias-far-north-with-a-lot-of-human-help","audioTrackLength":null,"parsedContent":[{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Chinook salmon haven’t spawned in the McCloud River for more than 80 years. But last summer, thousands of juveniles were born in the waters of this remote tributary, miles upstream of Shasta Dam.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The young Chinook salmon — some now finger-sized smolts in mid-migration toward the Pacific Ocean — are part of a state and federal experiment that could help make the McCloud a salmon river once again.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Winter-run Chinook were federally listed as endangered in 1994, but recent years have been especially hard for the fish. Facing severe drought and warm river conditions, \u003ca href=\"https://www.nrdc.org/experts/doug-obegi/agencies-planning-disaster-ca-salmon-if-2022-dry\">most winter-run salmon born naturally in the Sacramento River have perished\u003c/a> over the past three years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So restoring Chinook to the McCloud has become an urgent priority for state and federal officials. In the first year of a drought-response project, about 40,000 salmon eggs were brought back to the McCloud, a picturesque river in the wilderness of the Cascade mountains.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Iconic in Northern California, Chinook salmon are critical pieces of the region’s environment. They are consumed by sea lions, orcas and bears, and they still support a commercial fishing industry. Chinook remain vital to the culture and traditional foods of Native Americans, including the Winnemem Wintu Tribe, whose historical salmon fishing grounds include the McCloud River.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}},{"type":"component","content":"","name":"ad","attributes":{"named":{"label":"fullwidth"},"numeric":["fullwidth"]}},{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Conservation experts say the McCloud’s cold, clean water holds great promise as a potential Chinook refuge — and is perhaps even a future stronghold for the species. Restoring salmon there is considered critical to the species’ survival, since they now spawn only in low-lying parts of the Central Valley near Redding and Red Bluff, where it’s often too hot and dry for most newborn fish to survive.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We probably won’t be able to maintain winter-run Chinook on the valley floor forever,” said Matt Johnson, senior environmental scientist with the California Department of Fish and Wildlife.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1981043\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1981043\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-01-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"Photo shows two hatchery juveniles (with copper tails) that were used to test efficiency of the trapping system and two that spent their early lives imprinting on McCloud River water. \" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-01-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-01-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-01-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-01-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-01.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Matt Johnson of the state Department of Fish and Wildlife measures four winter-run Chinook salmon as part of a trial to estimate the species’ production and survival. \u003ccite>(Eric Holmes/UC Davis)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Johnson spent much of the past five months camped beside the incubation site on the lower McCloud River, guarding the eggs and emerging fry and overseeing the experiment, which is a \u003ca href=\"https://wildlife.ca.gov/News/partners-return-winter-run-chinook-salmon-eggs-to-mccloud-river\">collaboration between his agency, the National Marine Fisheries Service (also known as NOAA Fisheries), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Winnemem Wintu Tribe\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>So far, biologists say, the project has gone well. About 90% of the eggs hatched, and the young fish reportedly have thrived in the McCloud, growing faster than hatchery fish.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Recent rainstorms have boosted \u003ca href=\"https://waterdata.usgs.gov/monitoring-location/11377100/#parameterCode=00060&period=P7D\">river flows\u003c/a>, which may increase the odds that salmon will reach the ocean this year, escaping the dangerous water pumps and predators of the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The project is the first step in a long-term plan that may involve capturing adult winter-run Chinook in the lower Sacramento and transporting them to the McCloud to spawn. It’s a difficult and risky venture for the fish but it may be the best shot the species has at survival.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The winter run is headed for extinction, no question, if we don’t develop an artificial system for keeping it going,” said Peter Moyle, a fish biologist at UC Davis who has studied Central Valley fish since the 1970s. He co-authored a \u003ca href=\"https://caltrout.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/SOS-II-Fish-in-Hot-Water-Report.pdf\">report warning that many of California’s native salmon and trout are likely to vanish this century (PDF)\u003c/a> as the environment warms.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A genetically unique run of salmon, winter-run Chinook once spawned in the McCloud in great numbers, along with other seasonal runs of the fish.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}},{"type":"component","content":"‘The winter run is headed for extinction, no question, if we don’t develop an artificial system for keeping it going.’","name":"pullquote","attributes":{"named":{"size":"medium","align":"right","citation":"Peter Moyle, fish biologist, UC Davis","label":""},"numeric":[]}},{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even though the Central Valley’s river system, which includes the McCloud River, marks the southern limit of the Chinook’s range, it was once their stronghold. \u003ca href=\"https://cws.ucdavis.edu/library/historical-abundance-and-decline-chinook-salmon-central-valley-region-california\">Between 1 and 2 million fish\u003c/a>, some weighing 50 pounds or more, spawned in the tributaries of the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers each year before the Gold Rush.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The fish have dwindled to a fraction of their historic abundance. \u003ca href=\"https://nrm.dfg.ca.gov/FileHandler.ashx?DocumentID=84381&inline\">Spawning numbers of winter-run Chinook\u003c/a> dropped to fewer than 200 in the early 1990s. They’ve rebounded, but their future remains in doubt.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The McCloud — a state-designated wild and scenic river — used to offer prime habitat, with deep gravel beds for egg-laying and year-round flows of clean, cold water from Mount Shasta. Construction of Shasta Dam in the 1940s — and Keswick Dam shortly after — changed all this by \u003ca href=\"https://noaa.maps.arcgis.com/apps/MapJournal/index.html?appid=ceebefd9685143daa5bf30d5a7e0c7fa\">locking ocean-run salmon out of some 500 miles of productive high-elevation habitat\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The salmon became confined instead to the lower reaches of the Sacramento River system, where they did not previously spawn. Blazing temperatures in the summer — when the winter-run fish lay and fertilize their eggs near Redding and Red Bluff — have made it difficult for salmon to thrive. Chinook, especially in their early life stages, are sensitive to high temperatures.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Only with the support of hatcheries have California salmon remained abundant enough to be fished.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>River habitat for winter-run Chinook salmon has shrunk\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Juvenile Chinook salmon born in the McCloud River once migrated downstream, into the Sacramento River and out to the Pacific Ocean. Today, about 80% of the salmon’s historical river habitat is behind dams, which prevents the adult fish from swimming upstream to spawn. The state is mounting an experiment to return them to the McCloud River.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1981045\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 740px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1981045 size-full\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/download-11.png\" alt=\"Color coded map of river habitat for winter-run chinook salmon.\" width=\"740\" height=\"561\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/download-11.png 740w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/download-11-160x121.png 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 740px) 100vw, 740px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Map of river habitat for winter-run Chinook salmon. \u003ccite>(NOAA)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>For decades, fishing groups, agencies and Winnemem Wintu tribal leaders have pondered the possibility of reintroducing salmon into the McCloud. Finally, last spring and summer, after two poor spawning years in a row — and with a third one looking likely — federal and state agencies took action.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last year “temperature modeling going into the winter-run spawning season showed a lot of uncertainty — basically a 50-50 chance of being able to maintain suitable temperatures for winter-run eggs to develop in the river,” said Johnson of the Department of Fish and Wildlife.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>A bumpy trip for precious salmon eggs\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>Because winter-run Chinook are listed as endangered, fishery agencies are scrambling to save the fish. Last spring they transported about three dozen adult winter-run Chinook trapped at the base of Keswick Dam, just north of Redding, about 50 miles southeast to the north fork of Battle Creek, a tributary near Red Bluff where waters typically run cool and clear.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>They also launched a more complicated effort: They took winter-run Chinook eggs from adult fish at a federal salmon hatchery and transported them up and over Shasta Dam to a remote national forest campground next to the McCloud River.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>They came in two batches of 20,000 — the first by truck on a bumpy, 80-mile ride. A helicopter delivered the second clutch. “We wanted to make sure the transportation phase went smoothly,” Johnson said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The fertilized eggs were incubated in protective cages submerged in river water for weeks. The scientists even placed an electrified barrier around the eggs to protect them from foraging black bears.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1981046\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1981046 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-003-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"Rachel Johnson of NOAA Fisheries and state biologists Sam Funakoshi and Ross Schaefer check a trap for winter-run Chinook salmon that will be transported downstream of Keswick Dam to help them migrate to the ocean.\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-003-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-003-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-003-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-003-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-003.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Rachel Johnson of NOAA Fisheries and state biologists Sam Funakoshi and Ross Schaefer check a trap for winter-run Chinook salmon that will be transported downstream of Keswick Dam to help them migrate to the ocean. \u003ccite>(Carson Jeffres/UC Davis)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Of the 40,000 eggs, Johnson said, about 36,000 emerged as fry. In late summer, the biologists released them into the wild.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The scientists wanted the fish to spend time in McCloud, both to utilize its invertebrate food sources and to undergo the olfactory imprinting process that enables migrating adult salmon to find their birth streams years later. Indeed, it is this process that gives salmon their remarkable homing powers and would truly make these fish McCloud River salmon.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In an undisturbed ecosystem, the fish in the river would simply swim downstream, through San Francisco Bay, and out into the ocean. But this unique scenario, where a dam and reservoir block their migration, called on a different approach that required human help.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>State and federal scientists had to recapture the salmon and release them into the lower Sacramento River. The Fish and Wildlife team placed several traps on the McCloud about 20 miles below the release site and managed to capture 1,600 of them. They then drove the fish downstream and released them into the Sacramento River. If all goes well, some of the young salmon will return from the ocean in two to four years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The agencies plan to repeat the project next year, transporting more Chinook eggs up to the McCloud and again hauling the young fish back downstream. “We intend to do it again, and do it better,” Johnson said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To improve the program’s effectiveness, scientists are now addressing some unanswered questions from the experiment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003ca href=\"https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/contact/rachel-johnson-phd\">Rachel Johnson\u003c/a>, a biologist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Southwest Fisheries Science Center, wants to know how many of the salmon released at the incubation site made it as far downstream as the fish trap array. This will reveal the survival rate of the released fish and help Johnson and her colleagues better understand the quality of the McCloud’s habitat.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To do this, she is studying data on daily river flow rates and capture rates in the traps, then combining this information with the known effectiveness of the types of gear they used. That, she said, would “give us the number that swam past.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>From what they already know about the size of the fish upon recapture, it’s looking good.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The fish in the McCloud were 30 to 40% larger than the average winter-run fish that were being caught at the Red Bluff Diversion Dam,” she said, referring to a structure downstream of Shasta.\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>A gem in ‘a string of pearls’\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>A great deal of work has already been done to help Sacramento River salmon. State agencies and conservation groups have \u003ca href=\"https://calmatters.org/environment/2018/12/restoring-floodplains-reversal-california-central-valley/\">restored floodplains\u003c/a> and side channels, where slow-moving water provides young fish with abundant food and shelter from predators. This work often involves removing, or carving notches in, levees so that river water can flow over farm fields.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Johnson sees this connected system of restored habitat parcels as a “string of pearls,” and says the McCloud might be one of its more valuable gems.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Better still, the McCloud’s geographic location at the upper end of the watershed could have a beneficial trickle-down effect through the watershed and the early life stages of Chinook, ultimately improving their lifelong survival rates.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If you can have such highly productive, good-growth habitat so high in the system, it starts the fish off in such a strong condition,” she said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Protecting areas lower in the watershed are important to Chinook, too. Research by Jacob Katz, biologist with the group California Trout, shows that floodplains restored in the lower stretches of the Sacramento watershed have helped salmon. Smolts grow faster on inundated floodplains than they do in the river’s channelized main stem.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Katz said reintroducing Chinook to the high-elevation spawning areas in the McCloud will complement the work he has done, and vice versa.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Both spawning habitat and rearing habitat are necessary, yet insufficient on their own,” he said. “We need to restore every link in the habitat chain.”\u003c/p>\n\u003ch2>Ambitious future plans\u003c/h2>\n\u003cp>The summer’s salmon relocation effort was technically not a reintroduction project but an emergency drought action required by the state and federal endangered species acts and intended to shield winter-run Chinook from drought impacts.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>However, it’s likely that the McCloud effort of last summer will develop in years ahead into a full-fledged salmon reintroduction program.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Randy Beckwith, head of the state Department of Water Resources’ Riverine Stewardship branch, said “the juvenile collection piece is the most difficult part” of a potential long-term McCloud River reintroduction plan.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1981047\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1981047 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-02-800x533.jpg\" alt=\"Marine Sisk, a biologist with the Winnemem Wintu tribe, measures a juvenile winter-run Chinook salmon reared in the McCloud (top) compared to a much smaller similar-age fish reared in the hatchery.\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-02-800x533.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-02-1020x679.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-02-160x107.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-02-768x512.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2022/12/121222-Hatchery-Fish-CM-02.jpg 1024w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Marine Sisk, biologist with the Winnemem Wintu Tribe, measures a juvenile winter-run Chinook salmon reared in the McCloud (top) compared to a much smaller similar-age fish reared in the hatchery. \u003ccite>(Eric Holmes/UC Davis)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>While the state and federal fishery scientists did their work a few miles upstream, Beckwith’s agency tested a $1.5 million contraption dubbed the Juvenile Salmonid Collection System in the narrow McCloud River arm of Lake Shasta. The setup is a floating array designed to deflect floating debris, like logs and trash, while a dangling synthetic curtain funnels the young salmon into a dead-end live trap. The trap component has not been installed yet due to regulatory constraints associated with handling endangered species, but the agency has plans to do so, possibly next summer.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While traps of the sort already used on the McCloud are designed to catch a sample fraction of a river’s fish, the system the state is working on will hopefully catch all of them.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A successful McCloud River salmon reintroduction would also mean giving adult salmon access to the river. Currently, Keswick Dam, just upstream of Redding, marks the end of the line for free-swimming adult salmon. If they are to get beyond this point, fishery managers will need to do one of two things: build a stairway, called a fish ladder or fishway, which leads migrating salmon around a dam, or trap the fish and truck them upstream.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ladders would give the salmon autonomy to migrate on their own. But Shasta Dam is a 600-foot-high barrier, so hauling them instead would be much cheaper. It is generally considered the only feasible solution on the table, although federal officials have no firm plans to do so yet.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But scientists have questioned the effectiveness of trap-and-haul programs. In a 2017 paper, Moyle and a colleague, biologist \u003ca href=\"https://watershed.ucdavis.edu/people/robert-lusardi\">Robert Lusardi\u003c/a>, warned that \u003ca href=\"https://afspubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1080/03632415.2017.1356124\">it can cause high mortality rates in transferred fish\u003c/a>, both adults going upstream and juveniles coming downstream. A trap-and-haul program for salmon “should proceed with extreme caution,” they wrote.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There’s another option, too. Battle Creek, which flows off Mount Lassen’s south flank, could also serve as a lifeline for winter-run Chinook. It was once an important spawning stream and, like most California rivers, is now riddled with dams.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>But unlike Keswick and Shasta, they are small. \u003ca href=\"https://www.usbr.gov/mp/battlecreek/status.html\">One dam was removed in 2010\u003c/a>, and Katz said there are \u003ca href=\"https://caltrout.org/campaigns/battle-creek-dams\">plans to remove or modify the rest to provide Chinook with unassisted passage\u003c/a>.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}},{"type":"component","content":"","name":"ad","attributes":{"named":{"label":"floatright"},"numeric":["floatright"]}},{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Battle Creek offers an opportunity to have a second population of winter-run fish that doesn’t need to be trucked — a completely volitional population,” he said. “Battle Creek could be the epitome of a 21st-century reconciled watershed.”\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}}],"link":"/science/1981041/saving-salmon-chinook-return-to-californias-far-north-with-a-lot-of-human-help","authors":["byline_science_1981041"],"categories":["science_31","science_33","science_35","science_40","science_2873","science_4450"],"tags":["science_194","science_192","science_4414","science_248","science_1275","science_463"],"featImg":"science_1981049","label":"source_science_1981041"},"science_1961648":{"type":"posts","id":"science_1961648","meta":{"index":"posts_1591205157","site":"science","id":"1961648","score":null,"sort":[1587474055000]},"guestAuthors":[],"slug":"california-floater-mussels-take-fish-for-an-epic-joyride","title":"California Floater Mussels Take Fish for an Epic Joyride","publishDate":1587474055,"format":"video","headTitle":"California Floater Mussels Take Fish for an Epic Joyride | KQED","labelTerm":{"term":1935,"site":"science"},"content":"\u003cp>[dl_subscribe]Ecologist Jonathan Young steered his rowboat alongside a rectangular container that was floating between two bright orange buoys. He reached under a plastic mesh covering and pulled out a large black and brown object the size of his fist that looked a lot like a clam.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“These are the underdogs of water quality,” he said. “And also, unfortunately, on their way to extinction.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Young is part of a team that is reintroducing the California floater mussel, a native freshwater mussel, and other native plants and animals, to Mountain Lake — a tiny 2,000-year-old natural lake located on the southern edges of San Francisco’s Presidio, nestled between the Presidio Golf Course, the Lake Street neighborhood and Park Presidio Boulevard.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1962410\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1962410 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_wide-800x450.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_wide-800x450.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_wide-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_wide-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_wide-1020x574.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_wide.jpg 1800w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The California floater mussel (Anodonta californiensis) with other freshwater native species that are a part of the Mountain Lake restoration project. \u003ccite>(Josh Cassidy/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The mussels, which naturally filter water and clean it, are a key part of an ambitious restoration project run by the Presidio Trust, a federal agency set up by Congress to help oversee the former military base with the National Park Service.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The California floater is just one of about 300 species of native freshwater mussels in North America, approximately two-thirds of which are threatened, endangered or species of special concern. One thing that often distinguishes them from their saltwater cousins is that most species need a host fish to live off of before they develop fully. It is a fascinatingly clever survival method, but also one of the main reasons their existence is threatened now. In lakes and waterways where the fish populations have disappeared, the mussels have no way to grow in number.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Before European settlers arrived in the late 18\u003csup>th\u003c/sup> century, California floater mussels were likely one of several species found in Mountain Lake, where native Ohlone people would gather food. Things began to change drastically when Spain, and then Mexico, established military bases in the Presidio. The U.S. Army took over in 1848 and maintained a military presence until 1994 when the site transferred to the National Park Service.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 1938, when the Golden Gate Bridge was completed, the military only allowed the connecting highway to go under its golf course, and over a section of Mountain Lake. So highway engineers built a tunnel next door, filling in almost half of the lake to build the access roadway from the bridge to the city.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over the years, the water quality and ecological balance of the lake has been significantly altered by urban activities. Millions of pounds of fertilizer used on the golf course introduced an imbalance of nutrients. For decades, toxic lead and other automobile contaminants drained directly from the roadway into the lake. Most likely due to the resulting filthy water and imbalance in the habitat, the sensitive native mussels have not naturally been found in the lake for quite some time, scientists say.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1962408\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1962408 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/MTL-aerial-towards-GGate_arrows-800x465.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"465\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/MTL-aerial-towards-GGate_arrows-800x465.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/MTL-aerial-towards-GGate_arrows-160x93.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/MTL-aerial-towards-GGate_arrows-768x446.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/MTL-aerial-towards-GGate_arrows-1020x592.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/MTL-aerial-towards-GGate_arrows.jpg 1500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Aerial view of Mountain Lake (indicated by the white arrows lower right) in San Francisco’s Presidio. \u003ccite>(Photo courtesy Presidio Trust)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>It wasn’t until 2011, when the federal government ordered Caltrans to pay $13.5 million to clean up the lake, that the possibility of restoring the mussels’ home could begin in earnest. In 2013, 17,500 cubic yards of contaminated sediment — enough to fill 1,750 dump trucks — was removed from the 4-acre lake, and the Presidio Trust put together a comprehensive plan to resurrect it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since 2014, Mountain Lake, its surrounding wetland and coastal scrub habitats have been the site of a large-scale ecological restoration project of native plants and animals. The goals are to improve water quality, increase biodiversity and promote public awareness in San Francisco and beyond.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In addition to the California floaters, the list of reintroduced native animal species now includes Three-spined stickleback fish, Western pond turtles, Pacific chorus frogs, California red-legged frogs and the San Francisco forktail damselfly. Reintroduced native plants include Common mare’s tail, Floating pond weed, Sago pond weed and Coon’s tail.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The small, sparkly three-spined stickleback fish in the lake were relocated from nearby Lobos Creek. They happen to play a critical role in the mussel’s life cycle. The mussels have evolved an ingenious method of launching their larvae, or \u003cem>glochidia\u003c/em>, into the water, where they clamp onto a fish gill or fin. The larvae hitch a ride on the fish for a few weeks, absorbing nutrients from their hosts, until they are ready to drop off and begin life as a young mussel on the lake bed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>With the guidance of biologist Chris Barnhart of Missouri State University, Young and his team have developed a system to help grow the mussel population in the lake and for successfully raising juvenile mussels in the lab. The biologists borrow adult mussels for a few days at a time and bring them back to a lab where they put them in small tanks with the stickleback fish. Once enough of the stickleback carry glochidia on their gills and fins, Young puts them and the mussels back into the lake.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If they’re lucky, the larvae on the fish will make it to the juvenile stage and grow up to be hardworking living water filters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1962405\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 580px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1962405\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_glochidia1.gif\" alt=\"\" width=\"580\" height=\"326\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Brooding female freshwater California floater mussels release tens of thousands of larvae, called glochidia, to seek out fish hosts. Roughly the size of a grain of sand, they look like tiny versions of their parents. \u003ccite>(Josh Cassidy/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Adult mussels can live 10 years. They can filter up to 38 gallons of water each per day. This sounds like a lot — and it is. But the juvenile mussels can filter at a much higher rate relative to their body size.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If you were to scale them up directly, they’d be four or five times a fire hose in terms of the volume they’re putting out,” Barnhart said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The mussels each have two openings to take in and expel water. Inside them, water passes through their gills, which are lined with thousands of cilia, tiny arms that filter out the nutrients and particles.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Thousands of mussels in a small lake or waterway can have a big effect on overall water health and clarity, Barnhart said. Also, their industrious filtration and sensitivity to pollutants makes them reliable indicators of freshwater quality. The sensitivity of mussels to ammonia led the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to cut the allowable limit for ammonia content in half, in 2013.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Mussels share their watery homes with a world-class array of freshwater fish, snails, crayfish and insects.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“When you add it all up, freshwater holds a big chunk of the biodiversity of North America,” Barnhart said. “Mussel habitat is everybody’s habitat. The fact that so many of them are endangered, sadly, is one of the best reasons to be interested in them.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Their endangered status sets a legal reason for preserving rivers, he noted, which helps protect all life they share habitats with.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One specific goal at Mountain Lake is to establish a self-sustaining population of mussels, the researchers said. The water quality has been monitored once a month for 20 years, so Young and his team have a good idea of the health of the lake. But knowing how the reintroduced mussels are doing is a crucial next step. Barnhart said he has plans to send a graduate student from Missouri State University to do the first extensive survey of mussels in the lake since the reintroduction project began.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To get a sense of how established the mussels are, the student will dive in the lake and survey uniform square sections of the lake bed for mussels. The researcher also will look for free-swimming stickleback fish that already have the glochidia on them, showing that the fish are getting connected with the mussels in the wild. If the project is successful, Young said, it can be replicated in other watersheds in California. Not only would this introduce a native species back into other local streams and rivers, but it could improve water quality naturally.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“These animals need our help elsewhere, not just in this lake,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1962407\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1962407 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_glochidia_fins-800x450.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_glochidia_fins-800x450.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_glochidia_fins-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_glochidia_fins-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_glochidia_fins-1020x574.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_glochidia_fins.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The fin of a three-spined stickleback fish displaying small white parasitic glochidia, the larvae of the California floater mussel that require a fish host before they develop into juveniles. \u003ccite>(Josh Cassidy/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>There are significant challenges, however. Before the reintroduction process, Young and his team worked hard to remove a majority of the fish, turtles and other non-native animals in the lake that could eat the mussels and other native animals. But invasive species like crayfish are still difficult to control.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>An exploding population of crayfish on a small lake can have a disastrous effect on the fledgling population of mussels. Young estimated that the researchers have removed roughly 100 pounds of crayfish from the lake over the past six years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Although not a problem so far in Mountain Lake, the Asian clam, quagga mussel and zebra mussel are invasive species of freshwater mussels (originating in Europe and Asia). The zebra and quagga attach to surfaces and inside pipes with sticky threads, wreaking havoc on boats, docks, water treatment plants and power plant cooling systems across the Great Lakes. The prolific Asian clam threatens to outcompete native species for precious resources in places like Lake Tahoe.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>North American freshwater mussels live unattached, and also differ from the invasive species in that their life spans are much longer – some species live as long as 30 years. By contrast, zebra and quagga have one-to-three-year lifespans and don’t need a host fish to parasitize as one of their stages of development. This shortened life span and direct development enable the invasive mussels to adjust more easily to climate change and pollution.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The complex life cycle of the native mussels just doesn’t hold up well under modern circumstances,” Barnhart said. “They need stable habitat that lasts for decades, and that is in short supply now.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Although not commonly known, freshwater mussels have a colorful history. Most “pearl” buttons before World War II in the U.S. were made from the shells of freshwater mussels harvested in the wild. After the war, manufacturers switched to plastic buttons. Freshwater mussel shells were also used as seeds to cultivate pearls in oysters raised on commercial pearl farms in Japan.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The shell harvest was almost like a mining industry. It’s hard to imagine how abundant these animals were,” Barnhart said. “You could not walk across rivers without stepping on them.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The commercial harvest contributed to the decline of freshwater mussels, but it was the environmental effects of dams, industrialization and habitat loss that led more directly to extinction of many native species, Barnhart added. As of 2019, 34 species are believed to be extinct, and 91 are listed as threatened or endangered species.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1962409\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1962409 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_w_stickleback2-800x450.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_w_stickleback2-800x450.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_w_stickleback2-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_w_stickleback2-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_w_stickleback2-1020x574.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_w_stickleback2.jpg 1800w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">In order to develop into juveniles, the California floater mussel larvae, called glochidia, require a fish host, like these three-spined stickleback fish. The mussels play a key role in maintaining water quality for all the life that depends on it. \u003ccite>(Josh Cassidy/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Barnhart likens the ambitious Mountain Lake project to the restoration of a museum piece. It’s a complex system of native plants and animals, managed by humans in an urban environment. Completely restoring the lake to its pre-European settler state is a difficult goal, he said. But the process is an excellent opportunity and valuable learning resource for the researchers and the general public.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The project already has made huge strides in improving the water quality and native species living in the lake, but there’s still a way to go before it’s a pristine environment, the researchers say. Over the past three years, they have successfully inoculated over 1,000 stickleback fish with mussel larvae, and the harmful algae blooms in the lake have reduced significantly, but it is still unclear as to how long it will take to fully establish a self-sustaining population of mussels.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I still wouldn’t really want to eat anything coming out of Mountain Lake,” Young said, citing the history of lead pollution and other contamination.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ultimately, the scientists understand the complexity and imperfect nature of the work they are doing. Young said real ecosystem change at the lake could take decades.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Right now it’s in its infancy,” Young said. “There’s always going to be ecosystem management, especially in urban areas. There is never going to be a time when you can just walk away from it.”\u003c/p>\n\n","blocks":[],"excerpt":"The mussels, which naturally filter water and clean it, are a key part of an ambitious restoration project run by the Presidio Trust, a federal agency set up by Congress to help oversee the former military base with the National Park Service.","status":"publish","parent":0,"modified":1704847551,"stats":{"hasAudio":false,"hasVideo":false,"hasChartOrMap":false,"iframeSrcs":[],"hasGoogleForm":false,"hasGallery":false,"hasHearkenModule":false,"hasPolis":false,"paragraphCount":39,"wordCount":2170},"headData":{"title":"California Floater Mussels Take Fish for an Epic Joyride | KQED","description":"The California floater mussel does a surprising amount of travel - for a bivalve. First it gets ejected from its parent's shell into the wide watery wilderness. Then it leads a nomad's life clamped on the fins or gills of a fish. Once it's all grown up, the mussel goes to work filtering the water, keeping it clean for all the life that depends on it.","ogTitle":"","ogDescription":"","ogImgId":"","twTitle":"","twDescription":"","twImgId":"","socialDescription":"The California floater mussel does a surprising amount of travel - for a bivalve. First it gets ejected from its parent's shell into the wide watery wilderness. Then it leads a nomad's life clamped on the fins or gills of a fish. Once it's all grown up, the mussel goes to work filtering the water, keeping it clean for all the life that depends on it."},"videoEmbed":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m7p_w4zE3s4","sticky":false,"path":"/science/1961648/california-floater-mussels-take-fish-for-an-epic-joyride","audioTrackLength":null,"parsedContent":[{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}},{"type":"component","content":"","name":"dl_subscribe","attributes":{"named":{"label":""},"numeric":[]}},{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>Ecologist Jonathan Young steered his rowboat alongside a rectangular container that was floating between two bright orange buoys. He reached under a plastic mesh covering and pulled out a large black and brown object the size of his fist that looked a lot like a clam.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“These are the underdogs of water quality,” he said. “And also, unfortunately, on their way to extinction.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Young is part of a team that is reintroducing the California floater mussel, a native freshwater mussel, and other native plants and animals, to Mountain Lake — a tiny 2,000-year-old natural lake located on the southern edges of San Francisco’s Presidio, nestled between the Presidio Golf Course, the Lake Street neighborhood and Park Presidio Boulevard.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1962410\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1962410 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_wide-800x450.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_wide-800x450.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_wide-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_wide-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_wide-1020x574.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_wide.jpg 1800w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The California floater mussel (Anodonta californiensis) with other freshwater native species that are a part of the Mountain Lake restoration project. \u003ccite>(Josh Cassidy/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The mussels, which naturally filter water and clean it, are a key part of an ambitious restoration project run by the Presidio Trust, a federal agency set up by Congress to help oversee the former military base with the National Park Service.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The California floater is just one of about 300 species of native freshwater mussels in North America, approximately two-thirds of which are threatened, endangered or species of special concern. One thing that often distinguishes them from their saltwater cousins is that most species need a host fish to live off of before they develop fully. It is a fascinatingly clever survival method, but also one of the main reasons their existence is threatened now. In lakes and waterways where the fish populations have disappeared, the mussels have no way to grow in number.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}},{"type":"component","content":"","name":"ad","attributes":{"named":{"label":"fullwidth"},"numeric":["fullwidth"]}},{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Before European settlers arrived in the late 18\u003csup>th\u003c/sup> century, California floater mussels were likely one of several species found in Mountain Lake, where native Ohlone people would gather food. Things began to change drastically when Spain, and then Mexico, established military bases in the Presidio. The U.S. Army took over in 1848 and maintained a military presence until 1994 when the site transferred to the National Park Service.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 1938, when the Golden Gate Bridge was completed, the military only allowed the connecting highway to go under its golf course, and over a section of Mountain Lake. So highway engineers built a tunnel next door, filling in almost half of the lake to build the access roadway from the bridge to the city.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over the years, the water quality and ecological balance of the lake has been significantly altered by urban activities. Millions of pounds of fertilizer used on the golf course introduced an imbalance of nutrients. For decades, toxic lead and other automobile contaminants drained directly from the roadway into the lake. Most likely due to the resulting filthy water and imbalance in the habitat, the sensitive native mussels have not naturally been found in the lake for quite some time, scientists say.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1962408\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1962408 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/MTL-aerial-towards-GGate_arrows-800x465.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"465\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/MTL-aerial-towards-GGate_arrows-800x465.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/MTL-aerial-towards-GGate_arrows-160x93.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/MTL-aerial-towards-GGate_arrows-768x446.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/MTL-aerial-towards-GGate_arrows-1020x592.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/MTL-aerial-towards-GGate_arrows.jpg 1500w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Aerial view of Mountain Lake (indicated by the white arrows lower right) in San Francisco’s Presidio. \u003ccite>(Photo courtesy Presidio Trust)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>It wasn’t until 2011, when the federal government ordered Caltrans to pay $13.5 million to clean up the lake, that the possibility of restoring the mussels’ home could begin in earnest. In 2013, 17,500 cubic yards of contaminated sediment — enough to fill 1,750 dump trucks — was removed from the 4-acre lake, and the Presidio Trust put together a comprehensive plan to resurrect it.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Since 2014, Mountain Lake, its surrounding wetland and coastal scrub habitats have been the site of a large-scale ecological restoration project of native plants and animals. The goals are to improve water quality, increase biodiversity and promote public awareness in San Francisco and beyond.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In addition to the California floaters, the list of reintroduced native animal species now includes Three-spined stickleback fish, Western pond turtles, Pacific chorus frogs, California red-legged frogs and the San Francisco forktail damselfly. Reintroduced native plants include Common mare’s tail, Floating pond weed, Sago pond weed and Coon’s tail.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The small, sparkly three-spined stickleback fish in the lake were relocated from nearby Lobos Creek. They happen to play a critical role in the mussel’s life cycle. The mussels have evolved an ingenious method of launching their larvae, or \u003cem>glochidia\u003c/em>, into the water, where they clamp onto a fish gill or fin. The larvae hitch a ride on the fish for a few weeks, absorbing nutrients from their hosts, until they are ready to drop off and begin life as a young mussel on the lake bed.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>With the guidance of biologist Chris Barnhart of Missouri State University, Young and his team have developed a system to help grow the mussel population in the lake and for successfully raising juvenile mussels in the lab. The biologists borrow adult mussels for a few days at a time and bring them back to a lab where they put them in small tanks with the stickleback fish. Once enough of the stickleback carry glochidia on their gills and fins, Young puts them and the mussels back into the lake.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If they’re lucky, the larvae on the fish will make it to the juvenile stage and grow up to be hardworking living water filters.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1962405\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 580px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1962405\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_glochidia1.gif\" alt=\"\" width=\"580\" height=\"326\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Brooding female freshwater California floater mussels release tens of thousands of larvae, called glochidia, to seek out fish hosts. Roughly the size of a grain of sand, they look like tiny versions of their parents. \u003ccite>(Josh Cassidy/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Adult mussels can live 10 years. They can filter up to 38 gallons of water each per day. This sounds like a lot — and it is. But the juvenile mussels can filter at a much higher rate relative to their body size.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“If you were to scale them up directly, they’d be four or five times a fire hose in terms of the volume they’re putting out,” Barnhart said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The mussels each have two openings to take in and expel water. Inside them, water passes through their gills, which are lined with thousands of cilia, tiny arms that filter out the nutrients and particles.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Thousands of mussels in a small lake or waterway can have a big effect on overall water health and clarity, Barnhart said. Also, their industrious filtration and sensitivity to pollutants makes them reliable indicators of freshwater quality. The sensitivity of mussels to ammonia led the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to cut the allowable limit for ammonia content in half, in 2013.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Mussels share their watery homes with a world-class array of freshwater fish, snails, crayfish and insects.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“When you add it all up, freshwater holds a big chunk of the biodiversity of North America,” Barnhart said. “Mussel habitat is everybody’s habitat. The fact that so many of them are endangered, sadly, is one of the best reasons to be interested in them.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Their endangered status sets a legal reason for preserving rivers, he noted, which helps protect all life they share habitats with.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One specific goal at Mountain Lake is to establish a self-sustaining population of mussels, the researchers said. The water quality has been monitored once a month for 20 years, so Young and his team have a good idea of the health of the lake. But knowing how the reintroduced mussels are doing is a crucial next step. Barnhart said he has plans to send a graduate student from Missouri State University to do the first extensive survey of mussels in the lake since the reintroduction project began.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To get a sense of how established the mussels are, the student will dive in the lake and survey uniform square sections of the lake bed for mussels. The researcher also will look for free-swimming stickleback fish that already have the glochidia on them, showing that the fish are getting connected with the mussels in the wild. If the project is successful, Young said, it can be replicated in other watersheds in California. Not only would this introduce a native species back into other local streams and rivers, but it could improve water quality naturally.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“These animals need our help elsewhere, not just in this lake,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1962407\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1962407 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_glochidia_fins-800x450.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_glochidia_fins-800x450.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_glochidia_fins-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_glochidia_fins-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_glochidia_fins-1020x574.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_glochidia_fins.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The fin of a three-spined stickleback fish displaying small white parasitic glochidia, the larvae of the California floater mussel that require a fish host before they develop into juveniles. \u003ccite>(Josh Cassidy/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>There are significant challenges, however. Before the reintroduction process, Young and his team worked hard to remove a majority of the fish, turtles and other non-native animals in the lake that could eat the mussels and other native animals. But invasive species like crayfish are still difficult to control.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>An exploding population of crayfish on a small lake can have a disastrous effect on the fledgling population of mussels. Young estimated that the researchers have removed roughly 100 pounds of crayfish from the lake over the past six years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Although not a problem so far in Mountain Lake, the Asian clam, quagga mussel and zebra mussel are invasive species of freshwater mussels (originating in Europe and Asia). The zebra and quagga attach to surfaces and inside pipes with sticky threads, wreaking havoc on boats, docks, water treatment plants and power plant cooling systems across the Great Lakes. The prolific Asian clam threatens to outcompete native species for precious resources in places like Lake Tahoe.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>North American freshwater mussels live unattached, and also differ from the invasive species in that their life spans are much longer – some species live as long as 30 years. By contrast, zebra and quagga have one-to-three-year lifespans and don’t need a host fish to parasitize as one of their stages of development. This shortened life span and direct development enable the invasive mussels to adjust more easily to climate change and pollution.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The complex life cycle of the native mussels just doesn’t hold up well under modern circumstances,” Barnhart said. “They need stable habitat that lasts for decades, and that is in short supply now.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Although not commonly known, freshwater mussels have a colorful history. Most “pearl” buttons before World War II in the U.S. were made from the shells of freshwater mussels harvested in the wild. After the war, manufacturers switched to plastic buttons. Freshwater mussel shells were also used as seeds to cultivate pearls in oysters raised on commercial pearl farms in Japan.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“The shell harvest was almost like a mining industry. It’s hard to imagine how abundant these animals were,” Barnhart said. “You could not walk across rivers without stepping on them.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The commercial harvest contributed to the decline of freshwater mussels, but it was the environmental effects of dams, industrialization and habitat loss that led more directly to extinction of many native species, Barnhart added. As of 2019, 34 species are believed to be extinct, and 91 are listed as threatened or endangered species.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1962409\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1962409 size-medium\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_w_stickleback2-800x450.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_w_stickleback2-800x450.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_w_stickleback2-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_w_stickleback2-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_w_stickleback2-1020x574.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/04/DL708_Floater_Mussel_w_stickleback2.jpg 1800w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">In order to develop into juveniles, the California floater mussel larvae, called glochidia, require a fish host, like these three-spined stickleback fish. The mussels play a key role in maintaining water quality for all the life that depends on it. \u003ccite>(Josh Cassidy/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Barnhart likens the ambitious Mountain Lake project to the restoration of a museum piece. It’s a complex system of native plants and animals, managed by humans in an urban environment. Completely restoring the lake to its pre-European settler state is a difficult goal, he said. But the process is an excellent opportunity and valuable learning resource for the researchers and the general public.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The project already has made huge strides in improving the water quality and native species living in the lake, but there’s still a way to go before it’s a pristine environment, the researchers say. Over the past three years, they have successfully inoculated over 1,000 stickleback fish with mussel larvae, and the harmful algae blooms in the lake have reduced significantly, but it is still unclear as to how long it will take to fully establish a self-sustaining population of mussels.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I still wouldn’t really want to eat anything coming out of Mountain Lake,” Young said, citing the history of lead pollution and other contamination.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ultimately, the scientists understand the complexity and imperfect nature of the work they are doing. Young said real ecosystem change at the lake could take decades.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}},{"type":"component","content":"","name":"ad","attributes":{"named":{"label":"floatright"},"numeric":["floatright"]}},{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Right now it’s in its infancy,” Young said. “There’s always going to be ecosystem management, especially in urban areas. There is never going to be a time when you can just walk away from it.”\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}}],"link":"/science/1961648/california-floater-mussels-take-fish-for-an-epic-joyride","authors":["11095"],"series":["science_1935"],"categories":["science_2874","science_30","science_40","science_4450","science_86","science_98"],"tags":["science_248"],"featImg":"science_1962412","label":"science_1935"},"science_1951205":{"type":"posts","id":"science_1951205","meta":{"index":"posts_1591205157","site":"science","id":"1951205","score":null,"sort":[1575584913000]},"guestAuthors":[],"slug":"farmers-give-beleaguered-salmon-a-boost-by-flooding-fields","title":"Farmers Flood Fields to Give Beleaguered Salmon a Boost","publishDate":1575584913,"format":"video","headTitle":"Farmers Flood Fields to Give Beleaguered Salmon a Boost | KQED","labelTerm":{},"content":"\u003cp>\u003cem>This story originally appeared in \u003ca href=\"https://protect-us.mimecast.com/s/XRVyCNk8PyfNj41KT4udQM?domain=biographic.com\">bioGraphic\u003c/a>, an online magazine about nature and sustainability powered by the California Academy of Sciences.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Snow geese erupt against a blue sky trimmed with fresh, white clouds. The air is so clear you can see for miles, east to the distant peaks of the Sierra Nevada and west to the gentle slopes of the Coast Ranges. But Carson Jeffres and Jacob Katz are less interested in the view above them than the one at their feet. Standing knee-deep in a flooded field at Knaggs Ranch, a rice farm near Sacramento, they peer into a floating cage made of PVC pipe and mesh and prepare to check on its unusual inhabitants.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jeffres opens the top of the cage and dips in a small net. When he pulls it out, a pair of plump fish, each the size of a pinky finger, wriggle inside. These are young Chinook salmon—a species imperiled in California. He holds up his catch for Katz to admire.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The two men are fish ecologists—Jeffres at the University of California, Davis, and Katz at the conservation-based non-profit California Trout—and they are testing a wild idea. To help save the Chinook, they are using rice fields as winter nurseries for young salmon migrating from their natal streams to the ocean.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over the last century, water agencies have built levees along most of the state’s rivers to control floods and supply water to communities and farmers alike. But these levees also bar young Chinook from the floodplains that historically provided safe, food-rich places to grow on their journey to the Pacific. Today, more than half a million acres of these former floodplains in California’s immense interior valley are occupied by rice farms. Repurposing them as surrogate floodplains during the months they would otherwise lie fallow could be key to restoring endangered populations of wild-spawning Chinook.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We can’t restore those floodplains,” says Rene Henery, California science director for the conservation non-profit Trout Unlimited, “but we can recover the functionality that the fish evolved with.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California’s Central Valley is a flat expanse, flanked on either side by mountain ranges, that extends 400 miles down the middle of the state. Salmon once flourished in the streams and rivers that course through it. “One or two million came back every year,” says Peter Moyle, a fish ecologist at UC Davis. “They were up to 60 pounds and close to a meter long.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For millennia, adult Chinook in California returned to spawn in the upper reaches of waterways that flow down from mountains surrounding the valley. Then, when the winter rainy season caused their natal streams to swell, the next generation of young fish would all swim downstream toward the sea, taking advantage of the many floodplains along the way.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The final stretch of their long journey would begin when the fish hit the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, where the water slows, twisting and turning around the Delta’s many islands. Migrating young salmon have to navigate these braided waterways before making their way across the San Francisco Bay and through the Golden Gate Strait, the iconic narrow opening spanned by the Golden Gate Bridge that leads to the ocean.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1951349\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1951349 size-complete_open_graph\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/20190326_A_0785_full-1200x800.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Jacob Katz examining the siphon after collecting a water sample to measure zooplankton in the floodplain near the Sacramento River. \u003ccite>(Jak Wonderly/bioGraphic)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Habitat Loss\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Today, few Central Valley salmon spawn in the wild. The region’s waterways have been completely remade into a system that includes 20 major dams and more than 1,600 miles of riverbank levees. While this engineered set-up tames flooding and supplies drinking and irrigation water, these benefits to people come at a cost to salmon. Dams block entry to the mountain streams where the fish once spawned, and levees block access to the valley-floor floodplains where young salmon once found plentiful food and shelter.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Across their range, Central Valley Chinook are all classified as a single species, but for management purposes the fish are divided into four runs according to the season when adults return from the Pacific Ocean to spawn. Two of those runs are listed under the federal Endangered Species Act, while the other two are considered federal populations of concern.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Engineered rivers are almost completely to blame. “Just as we’ve lost almost all the floodplain habitat, we’ve also lost pretty much all of the spawning habitat,” says Brian Ellrott, the Central Valley salmon recovery coordinator at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), which leads the efforts to restore populations of these fish.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They’re just straggling along right now,” Jeffres says. “They’re propped up by hatcheries.” State hatcheries release more than 32 million young salmon annually, and these fish dominate all four runs of Central Valley Chinook.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The best way to restore Chinook salmon, fish biologists say, is to give them back some of what they’ve lost. To provide more spawning grounds, NOAA plans to start transporting migrating adults past Central Valley dams―from the downstream side to the upstream reaches―as is done by wildlife agencies in the states of Washington and Oregon.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Restoration of degraded spawning grounds below dams will also be critical to their recovery. While most salmon return to their natal waters to spawn, a few stray in search of new homes. This penchant for exploration allows them to revisit waterways where they had previously been extinct for decades. Recent restoration efforts are starting to pay off: After an absence of 70 years, Chinook now return by the hundreds to spawn in Putah Creek, a tributary of the Sacramento River. Likewise, for the first time in more than half a century, a couple dozen Chinook have found their way back to historical spawning grounds in the San Joaquin River, which flows from the Sierra Nevada to the Delta.[pullquote align='right' citation='Jacob Katz, fish ecologist']‘Fish abundance equals water security. It doesn’t have to be fish versus farms―it can be fish and farms.’[/pullquote]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Restoring floodplain nurseries is a harder problem to solve, since this habitat has been more dramatically altered and requires changes on a much larger scale. Repurposing rice fields in the off-season may be a big part of the answer, and NOAA is supportive of the effort. “We’re pushing to make that happen,” Ellrott says. “Salmon are really resilient―I’m optimistic that if we give them the right nudge, we can restore them in the valley.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Restorationists have good reason to think that prime nursery grounds are vital to the long-term survival of the region’s salmon. The most robust population of spring-run Chinook originates in Butte Creek, which runs along a wildlife refuge that contains some of the valley’s few remaining floodplains. The Butte Creek salmon population is wild-spawning and self-sustaining. “It’s the one successful population of spring-run salmon,” Jeffres says. Young salmon here are more likely to make it out to sea, and the adults more likely to return and spawn.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A probable reason for Butte Creek’s success is that it gives Chinook a place to grow and thrive. The creek’s young fish are larger than those elsewhere in the valley, and being bigger presumably boosts survival. “It makes the salmon more resilient,” Katz says, just like packing lunch before a long trip.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1951231\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 540px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1951231\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/RS40320__20190311_dji_0341_full-sfi.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"540\" height=\"360\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/RS40320__20190311_dji_0341_full-sfi.jpg 540w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/RS40320__20190311_dji_0341_full-sfi-160x107.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 540px) 100vw, 540px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Restored wetlands from the air. This area is adjacent to the sample area. \u003ccite>(Jak Wonderly/bioGraphic)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Understanding Floodplain Value\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_section et_pb_section_13 et_pb_section_parallax et_pb_with_background et_section_regular\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_row et_pb_row_14 text_row\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_column et_pb_column_1_2 et_pb_column_23 text_column align_text_bottom_of_bg_image et_pb_css_mix_blend_mode_passthrough\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_module et_pb_text et_pb_text_12 et_pb_text_align_left et_pb_bg_layout_light\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_text_inner\">\n\u003cp>Before researchers understood the value of floodplains, they considered them risky for fish. “Wildlife biologists thought floodplains were bad for salmon because they stranded them, and that levees were good for salmon because they kept them in the river,” Moyle says. “It was pretty much unquestioned.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s only in the last two decades that this conventional wisdom has been overturned. The first evidence came from scientists looking at the fate of young salmon in the Yolo Bypass. Built to contain a floodplain of the Sacramento River, the Bypass is an enormous flood control structure—about 40 miles long and two miles wide—that shunts water from the Sacramento River around the City of Sacramento. It’s bounded on either side by colossal, earthen levees that are more than 20 feet high and wide enough to drive on. When the river runs high, it overtops a weir at the north end of the levees. Water spills down inside the bypass, flooding it, then rejoins the river at the south end of the levees.\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_section et_pb_section_14 text_section et_section_regular\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_row et_pb_row_15 text_row et_pb_equal_columns\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_column et_pb_column_1_2 et_pb_column_25 vertical-align-in-column text_column et_pb_css_mix_blend_mode_passthrough\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_module et_pb_text et_pb_text_13 et_pb_text_align_left et_pb_bg_layout_light\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_text_inner\">\n\u003cp>The Yolo Bypass only fills during the winter, and, when it does, some of the young salmon migrating downstream come along for the ride. During particularly wet winters, the bypass is so full it looks like an inland sea. “The floodplains are still there,” Katz says. “They’re just used differently, as bypasses.” A 1998 study concluded that salmon swept into the bypass grew faster than those that remained in the river.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jeffres got similar results when he looked at fish in the Cosumnes, one of the state’s rare, free-flowing rivers that still has remnants of natural floodplains. In 2004, he found that young salmon in a floodplain grew faster than those in the Cosumnes River itself.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2009, the California Department of Water Resources decided to give salmon about 20,000 acres of floodplain habitat―one-third of the total acreage―in the Yolo Bypass. Most of the land there is privately owned and farmed for rice during the summer growing season. That decision caught the attention of rice farmer John Brennan, who wanted to keep fields in production in the Yolo Bypass.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Water is in short supply during the hot, dry Central Valley summers, especially during the state’s periodic severe droughts. Historically, the fight over this constrained resource has pitted growers against environmental laws that require allocating water for endangered fish like Chinook. Rather than playing this zero-sum game, Brennan has been looking for ways to integrate conservation with agriculture. “If you’re in the rice business, you’re in the water business―and if you’re in the water business, you’re in the fish business,” he says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Katz puts it this way: “Fish abundance equals water security. It doesn’t have to be fish versus farms―it can be fish \u003cem>and\u003c/em> farms.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_section et_pb_section_18 text_section et_section_regular\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_row et_pb_row_20 text_row et_pb_equal_columns\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_column et_pb_column_1_2 et_pb_column_33 vertical-align-in-column text_column et_pb_css_mix_blend_mode_passthrough\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_module et_pb_text et_pb_text_15 et_pb_text_align_left et_pb_bg_layout_light\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_text_inner\">\n\u003cp>In 2010, Brennan joined forces with two environmentalists to see if rice fields in the bypass could be used as salmon nurseries during the winter, when the fields are dormant and fish are migrating downstream. After scouting the Yolo Bypass for available properties, Brennan and his partners settled on the rice fields of Knaggs Ranch as a chance to put their plan into practice. They bought the ranch and assembled a research team, starting with Jacob Katz since his father is one of Brennan’s partners. Katz invited Jeffres to join him, and the pair has collaborated ever since.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the winter of 2012, the researchers flooded a five-acre corner of the ranch and released 10,000 young hatchery salmon in the fallow field. “When we first started, lots of farmers laughed and said it was the stupidest thing they’d ever heard,’” Jeffres says. He and Katz had their doubts, too. “It didn’t look like fish habitat,” Jeffres says, pointing across the ranch to their original test site. Flat brown fields stretch in all directions, and tidy mud berms divide the land into a patchwork of close-packed rice paddies. “We thought it might be the dumbest thing we’d ever done.”\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_section et_pb_section_19 article_text_section et_section_regular\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_row et_pb_row_21 text_row et_pb_equal_columns\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_column et_pb_column_1_2 et_pb_column_35 text_column et_pb_css_mix_blend_mode_passthrough\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_module et_pb_text et_pb_text_16 et_pb_text_align_left et_pb_bg_layout_light\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_text_inner\">\n\u003cp>They worried they’d end up with a field full of dead fish. They weren’t concerned about residual pesticides, which are applied months earlier and break down relatively quickly in the environment, but they fretted about a host of other potential pitfalls. They thought the stagnant, shallow water in the field might get too warm for fish or make them easy prey for hungry birds. And they didn’t know whether the decomposition of rice stubble, which is left on the fields after the fall harvest, would deplete oxygen levels in the water.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At first the researchers couldn’t tell whether anything was happening. “Out in the fields in mid-winter it looks like a mud puddle. We couldn’t see the fish,” Katz says. “Then we ran a net through the water and caught fish with little potbellies. It was amazing.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Their rice-field test subjects did far more than survive. They thrived, growing five-fold―from 1 gram to more than 5―in just six weeks. “They grew at the highest rates recorded in the Central Valley,” Jeffres says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ultimately, the scientists envision that the young salmon, instead of being introduced into rice fields by humans, will leave their natal waters and migrate downstream and into the bypass on their own. To make that journey possible even if the weir hasn’t overflowed, the California Department of Water Resources wants to add gates that can be opened to let salmon swim in and out of the rice fields on their way to the ocean.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While there are still some barriers left to remove, the possibility of wild-spawning, self-sustaining Chinook runs raised on rice farms is no longer just a pipe dream. In the years since they launched their pilot project, Jeffres and Katz have expanded their effort to encompass 20 acres and 50,000 fish, proving that it can work on a real-world scale. They have also found that, on average, salmon reared in these rice-field nurseries weigh 12 times more than those that grow up in the Sacramento River. The reason for this, Jeffres says, is that there’s so much more for them to eat.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1951234\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 540px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1951234\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/RS40324__20190419_A_1200_full-2-sfi.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"540\" height=\"360\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/RS40324__20190419_A_1200_full-2-sfi.jpg 540w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/RS40324__20190419_A_1200_full-2-sfi-160x107.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 540px) 100vw, 540px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Hundreds of chinook salmon fry in a tank at the UC Davis Marine Laboratory. \u003ccite>(Jak Wonderly/bioGraphic)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Back at Knaggs Ranch\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jeffres wants to know just how much more food the rice fields contain. He casts a long, white net across the shallow water of a rice field then draws it back carefully, keeping clear of the mud. Katz tips the contents into a plastic bag and lifts it high so they can both see.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Holy shit! Holy shit! Holy moly!” Katz exclaims. “I am totally astonished.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jeffres is equally jazzed. “That’s insane!”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Inside the plastic bag, tiny freshwater crustaceans―or “bugs,” as the researchers call them―dart back and forth in constant motion. The water is so thick with them that it looks like a whirling cloud of pink.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>These small crustaceans are the perfect food for young fish, and this haul is the best Katz and Jeffres have ever seen. Most of the bugs they netted belong to the genus \u003cem>Daphnia\u003c/em>, often dubbed water fleas for the way they swim in short hops. They’re here in such abundance because they thrive in shallow, algae-rich waters, from puddles to flooded fields to floodplains. “It’s magic when water slows down and spreads across a floodplain,” Katz says. “It’s liquid protein.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Pickings are far slimmer in rivers. Katz holds up another bag, this one netted about an hour earlier from the Sacramento River. Just a few crustaceans scoot around inside it. “There’s basically nothing here,” he says. “By building levees, we’ve created rivers that are essentially food deserts.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Sacramento River has several flood control bypasses, and Katz estimates that, altogether, they contain up to 150,000 acres of rice fields that could be used as bug-rich salmon nurseries. Another 500,000 acres of rice farms lie along the Sacramento River but outside bypasses―and he thinks they may be able to help salmon, too.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One of these is River Garden Farms, which lies a short stretch upriver from Knaggs Ranch and is managed by Roger Cornwell. Like Brennan, Cornwell wondered if his fields could benefit salmon, despite the fact that the land is not in a bypass. “I met Jacob Katz and started talking to him about what we could do,” he says. Katz proposed another wild idea, one that could solve the food-desert problem: bug farming.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>They wanted to know, Jeffres says, “If we can’t bring the fish to the floodplain, can we bring the floodplain to the fish?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>River Garden Farms is separated from the Sacramento River by a levee, atop which sits the Rough and Ready Pumping Plant, which was installed in 1915 to irrigate fields. The plant houses five glossy, black, massive pumps—each about six feet tall—which fill the pump house with a low roar. This past winter, the team took advantage of the setup and flooded a fallow rice field to raise bugs, then pumped the food-rich water into the Sacramento River to feed young fish as they swam through.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To test whether the bugs would reach their intended recipients, the researchers placed cages of young salmon at intervals along a mile or so of the river. The Rough and Ready pumps delivered bugs starting in late February, and Jacob Montgomery and Jennifer Kronk of California Trout took weekly measurements of the caged fish. By late March, when we visit, all the bugs have been pumped off the field. The field crew pulls on their waders and heads out to the river to see if the experiment worked.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>They start at a site upstream of the pumping plant, where the caged fish didn’t get any field-raised bugs. Montgomery and Kronk wrestle a cage to the river’s muddy bank. Montgomery hefts the cage above the water, revealing young salmon that flash silver as they flip back and forth in distress. The team works fast so as to get the fish back to the river as soon as possible. Montgomery places each fish in a tray with a ruler, splashing it with water to keep it calm and still, and calls out the length for Kronk to record. Then he passes it to her for weighing. When the measuring is done, he estimates that the upstream fish averaged about 55 millimeters long and weighed around 2 grams.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Moving downstream to the next site, Kronk scoops up a fish collected right by the pump outfall. This site got the most bugs delivered from the rice field―if the experiment works, they’ll see it here.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Oh, he’s fat,” Kronk says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She lays it in the measuring tray. It’s 65 millimeters and 2.5 grams, considerably bigger than the upstream average. The next fish is even fatter, at 66 mm and just over 3 g, and the one after that is fatter still, at 71 mm and 4 g.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Wow, look at these guys. They’re doing great,” Montgomery says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Although supplying bugs to fish in a free-flowing river doesn’t guarantee delivery, a system that monitors migrating salmon is already in place―so the researchers will know when to expect the fish and can serve them food from the fields at just the right time. “We can pump bugs into the river when fish are passing by,” Katz says. By spring, the salmon will have completed their journey, and the rice fields will be drained and ready for planting.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1951235\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 540px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1951235\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/RS40325__20190424_2341_full-sfi.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"540\" height=\"360\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/RS40325__20190424_2341_full-sfi.jpg 540w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/RS40325__20190424_2341_full-sfi-160x107.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 540px) 100vw, 540px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Rachelle Tallman, UC Davis Graduate student, creating an incision in a salmon fry after inserting a tracking tag. \u003ccite>(Jak Wonderly/bioGraphic)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Fish biologists have long assumed that the larger young salmon are when they navigate the Delta, the faster they can swim and the better their chances of survival. “It’s a really dangerous place,” Trout Unlimited’s Rene Henery says. “There are lots of introduced predatory fish.” To date, however, there is no direct evidence that size is important to survival.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“In the fish world, we say bigger fish are more likely to make it to the ocean. But no one has actually looked at survival,” says Rachelle Tallman, a graduate student in fish ecology at UC Davis. Tallman is now heading up a project to do just that.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The project is part of an effort by the California Rice Commission to incentivize farmers to manage their rice fields in a way that benefits local wildlife. Paul Buttner, who manages environmental affairs for the commission, currently pays farmers to flood their fields for water birds migrating along the Pacific Flyway. He hopes to launch a similar program for salmon that would compensate farmers for creating floodplain nurseries for young, migrating fish. But first he needs solid proof that it works.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“How many salmon from fields survive and go out the Golden Gate?” Buttner asks. “More than those that grow up in the river?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While the Rough and Ready plant was pumping bugs into the Sacramento River, Tallman was setting up a different experiment to assess how size affects a salmon’s success. She reared two sets of young salmon: some in a laboratory tank and others in rice fields in the Yolo Bypass. Now, on a warm April day near the edge of the bypass, she’s pulling fish from the rice fields and equipping them with acoustic tags so she can compare survival rates as they swim out to, and beyond, the Golden Gate.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tallman stands at a fish-surgery station sheltered by a white tent. As she slips a young salmon into a bucket of anesthetic, she alerts her team that a surgery is in progress. “Dope!” she calls out. A minute later the fish has stopped wriggling and Tallman springs into action. In rapid succession, she weighs it, measures it, and places it on a foam block. Cool water streams across the fish, which lies motionless apart from flapping gills.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Surgical scissors in hand, Tallman cuts a small opening in its belly and pushes a centimeter-long tag inside. She closes the wound with a single stitch and knots both ends. “Fish out of surgery,” she calls. A crew member collects the salmon and puts it in a recovery bucket. The whole operation, including anesthesia, takes just two minutes. Then Tallman picks up another fish and starts the process anew. “Dope!” she says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Back at the lab, another crew tags tank-reared fish. Collectively, the team tags more than 750 salmon.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A day after the surgeries, Tallman releases her tagged salmon into the wild, sending some into the Sacramento River and some into the Yolo Bypass, which drains into the Sacramento. About 200 underwater acoustic receivers will track their progress.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By early May, the first tagged fish have navigated the perils of the Delta. Now, they must traverse the San Francisco Bay—a huge body of water that covers more than 500 square miles. But this part of their journey is less risky. Once they’ve gotten this far, most young salmon readily find their way across the Bay and swim through its narrow opening beneath the Golden Gate Bridge, out into the Pacific Ocean. It will likely be December before Tallman can crunch all the data and tell Buttner whether—and how much—the rice field nurseries boost survival rates for the salmon. While the final verdict is still out, Buttner says they’re all hoping for a nice Christmas present.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The fish in Tallman’s study that do make it to the Pacific and survive in the open ocean will eventually attempt to return as adults to spawn in the Central Valley’s extensive but highly altered river system. It’s a journey the scientists hope will become at least slightly less challenging in the years to come. “We’re not going to get back what we once had,” Jeffres says. “But we can mimic it.” He and Katz envision waterways that are managed for flood control and farming but also for Chinook survival, ones with rice-field nurseries and bug farms to help restore self-sustaining salmon populations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s about welcoming the wild back into human landscapes in a way that makes sense,” Katz says. “We’re reimagining the system to work with nature.”\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\n","blocks":[],"excerpt":"California’s Chinook salmon have been losing habitat to agriculture for decades. Now, the fish are getting some much-needed help.","status":"publish","parent":0,"modified":1704848061,"stats":{"hasAudio":false,"hasVideo":false,"hasChartOrMap":false,"iframeSrcs":[],"hasGoogleForm":false,"hasGallery":false,"hasHearkenModule":false,"hasPolis":false,"paragraphCount":66,"wordCount":4200},"headData":{"title":"Farmers Flood Fields to Give Beleaguered Salmon a Boost | KQED","description":"California’s Chinook salmon have been losing habitat to agriculture for decades. Now, the fish are getting some much-needed help.","ogTitle":"","ogDescription":"","ogImgId":"","twTitle":"","twDescription":"","twImgId":""},"videoEmbed":"https://youtu.be/jAJR03u248c","source":"bioGraphic","sticky":false,"nprByline":" Robin Meadows \u003cbr />bioGraphic\u003cbr>","path":"/science/1951205/farmers-give-beleaguered-salmon-a-boost-by-flooding-fields","audioTrackLength":null,"parsedContent":[{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>\u003cem>This story originally appeared in \u003ca href=\"https://protect-us.mimecast.com/s/XRVyCNk8PyfNj41KT4udQM?domain=biographic.com\">bioGraphic\u003c/a>, an online magazine about nature and sustainability powered by the California Academy of Sciences.\u003c/em>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Snow geese erupt against a blue sky trimmed with fresh, white clouds. The air is so clear you can see for miles, east to the distant peaks of the Sierra Nevada and west to the gentle slopes of the Coast Ranges. But Carson Jeffres and Jacob Katz are less interested in the view above them than the one at their feet. Standing knee-deep in a flooded field at Knaggs Ranch, a rice farm near Sacramento, they peer into a floating cage made of PVC pipe and mesh and prepare to check on its unusual inhabitants.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jeffres opens the top of the cage and dips in a small net. When he pulls it out, a pair of plump fish, each the size of a pinky finger, wriggle inside. These are young Chinook salmon—a species imperiled in California. He holds up his catch for Katz to admire.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The two men are fish ecologists—Jeffres at the University of California, Davis, and Katz at the conservation-based non-profit California Trout—and they are testing a wild idea. To help save the Chinook, they are using rice fields as winter nurseries for young salmon migrating from their natal streams to the ocean.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Over the last century, water agencies have built levees along most of the state’s rivers to control floods and supply water to communities and farmers alike. But these levees also bar young Chinook from the floodplains that historically provided safe, food-rich places to grow on their journey to the Pacific. Today, more than half a million acres of these former floodplains in California’s immense interior valley are occupied by rice farms. Repurposing them as surrogate floodplains during the months they would otherwise lie fallow could be key to restoring endangered populations of wild-spawning Chinook.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}},{"type":"component","content":"","name":"ad","attributes":{"named":{"label":"fullwidth"},"numeric":["fullwidth"]}},{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We can’t restore those floodplains,” says Rene Henery, California science director for the conservation non-profit Trout Unlimited, “but we can recover the functionality that the fish evolved with.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>California’s Central Valley is a flat expanse, flanked on either side by mountain ranges, that extends 400 miles down the middle of the state. Salmon once flourished in the streams and rivers that course through it. “One or two million came back every year,” says Peter Moyle, a fish ecologist at UC Davis. “They were up to 60 pounds and close to a meter long.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For millennia, adult Chinook in California returned to spawn in the upper reaches of waterways that flow down from mountains surrounding the valley. Then, when the winter rainy season caused their natal streams to swell, the next generation of young fish would all swim downstream toward the sea, taking advantage of the many floodplains along the way.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The final stretch of their long journey would begin when the fish hit the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, where the water slows, twisting and turning around the Delta’s many islands. Migrating young salmon have to navigate these braided waterways before making their way across the San Francisco Bay and through the Golden Gate Strait, the iconic narrow opening spanned by the Golden Gate Bridge that leads to the ocean.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1951349\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\" style=\"max-width: 640px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-1951349 size-complete_open_graph\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/20190326_A_0785_full-1200x800.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"427\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Jacob Katz examining the siphon after collecting a water sample to measure zooplankton in the floodplain near the Sacramento River. \u003ccite>(Jak Wonderly/bioGraphic)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Habitat Loss\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Today, few Central Valley salmon spawn in the wild. The region’s waterways have been completely remade into a system that includes 20 major dams and more than 1,600 miles of riverbank levees. While this engineered set-up tames flooding and supplies drinking and irrigation water, these benefits to people come at a cost to salmon. Dams block entry to the mountain streams where the fish once spawned, and levees block access to the valley-floor floodplains where young salmon once found plentiful food and shelter.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Across their range, Central Valley Chinook are all classified as a single species, but for management purposes the fish are divided into four runs according to the season when adults return from the Pacific Ocean to spawn. Two of those runs are listed under the federal Endangered Species Act, while the other two are considered federal populations of concern.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Engineered rivers are almost completely to blame. “Just as we’ve lost almost all the floodplain habitat, we’ve also lost pretty much all of the spawning habitat,” says Brian Ellrott, the Central Valley salmon recovery coordinator at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), which leads the efforts to restore populations of these fish.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“They’re just straggling along right now,” Jeffres says. “They’re propped up by hatcheries.” State hatcheries release more than 32 million young salmon annually, and these fish dominate all four runs of Central Valley Chinook.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The best way to restore Chinook salmon, fish biologists say, is to give them back some of what they’ve lost. To provide more spawning grounds, NOAA plans to start transporting migrating adults past Central Valley dams―from the downstream side to the upstream reaches―as is done by wildlife agencies in the states of Washington and Oregon.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Restoration of degraded spawning grounds below dams will also be critical to their recovery. While most salmon return to their natal waters to spawn, a few stray in search of new homes. This penchant for exploration allows them to revisit waterways where they had previously been extinct for decades. Recent restoration efforts are starting to pay off: After an absence of 70 years, Chinook now return by the hundreds to spawn in Putah Creek, a tributary of the Sacramento River. Likewise, for the first time in more than half a century, a couple dozen Chinook have found their way back to historical spawning grounds in the San Joaquin River, which flows from the Sierra Nevada to the Delta.\u003c/p>\u003c/div>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}},{"type":"component","content":"‘Fish abundance equals water security. It doesn’t have to be fish versus farms―it can be fish and farms.’","name":"pullquote","attributes":{"named":{"align":"right","citation":"Jacob Katz, fish ecologist","label":""},"numeric":[]}},{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Restoring floodplain nurseries is a harder problem to solve, since this habitat has been more dramatically altered and requires changes on a much larger scale. Repurposing rice fields in the off-season may be a big part of the answer, and NOAA is supportive of the effort. “We’re pushing to make that happen,” Ellrott says. “Salmon are really resilient―I’m optimistic that if we give them the right nudge, we can restore them in the valley.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Restorationists have good reason to think that prime nursery grounds are vital to the long-term survival of the region’s salmon. The most robust population of spring-run Chinook originates in Butte Creek, which runs along a wildlife refuge that contains some of the valley’s few remaining floodplains. The Butte Creek salmon population is wild-spawning and self-sustaining. “It’s the one successful population of spring-run salmon,” Jeffres says. Young salmon here are more likely to make it out to sea, and the adults more likely to return and spawn.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A probable reason for Butte Creek’s success is that it gives Chinook a place to grow and thrive. The creek’s young fish are larger than those elsewhere in the valley, and being bigger presumably boosts survival. “It makes the salmon more resilient,” Katz says, just like packing lunch before a long trip.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1951231\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 540px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1951231\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/RS40320__20190311_dji_0341_full-sfi.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"540\" height=\"360\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/RS40320__20190311_dji_0341_full-sfi.jpg 540w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/RS40320__20190311_dji_0341_full-sfi-160x107.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 540px) 100vw, 540px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Restored wetlands from the air. This area is adjacent to the sample area. \u003ccite>(Jak Wonderly/bioGraphic)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}},{"type":"component","content":"","name":"ad","attributes":{"named":{"label":"floatright"},"numeric":["floatright"]}},{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Understanding Floodplain Value\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_section et_pb_section_13 et_pb_section_parallax et_pb_with_background et_section_regular\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_row et_pb_row_14 text_row\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_column et_pb_column_1_2 et_pb_column_23 text_column align_text_bottom_of_bg_image et_pb_css_mix_blend_mode_passthrough\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_module et_pb_text et_pb_text_12 et_pb_text_align_left et_pb_bg_layout_light\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_text_inner\">\n\u003cp>Before researchers understood the value of floodplains, they considered them risky for fish. “Wildlife biologists thought floodplains were bad for salmon because they stranded them, and that levees were good for salmon because they kept them in the river,” Moyle says. “It was pretty much unquestioned.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It’s only in the last two decades that this conventional wisdom has been overturned. The first evidence came from scientists looking at the fate of young salmon in the Yolo Bypass. Built to contain a floodplain of the Sacramento River, the Bypass is an enormous flood control structure—about 40 miles long and two miles wide—that shunts water from the Sacramento River around the City of Sacramento. It’s bounded on either side by colossal, earthen levees that are more than 20 feet high and wide enough to drive on. When the river runs high, it overtops a weir at the north end of the levees. Water spills down inside the bypass, flooding it, then rejoins the river at the south end of the levees.\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_section et_pb_section_14 text_section et_section_regular\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_row et_pb_row_15 text_row et_pb_equal_columns\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_column et_pb_column_1_2 et_pb_column_25 vertical-align-in-column text_column et_pb_css_mix_blend_mode_passthrough\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_module et_pb_text et_pb_text_13 et_pb_text_align_left et_pb_bg_layout_light\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_text_inner\">\n\u003cp>The Yolo Bypass only fills during the winter, and, when it does, some of the young salmon migrating downstream come along for the ride. During particularly wet winters, the bypass is so full it looks like an inland sea. “The floodplains are still there,” Katz says. “They’re just used differently, as bypasses.” A 1998 study concluded that salmon swept into the bypass grew faster than those that remained in the river.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jeffres got similar results when he looked at fish in the Cosumnes, one of the state’s rare, free-flowing rivers that still has remnants of natural floodplains. In 2004, he found that young salmon in a floodplain grew faster than those in the Cosumnes River itself.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2009, the California Department of Water Resources decided to give salmon about 20,000 acres of floodplain habitat―one-third of the total acreage―in the Yolo Bypass. Most of the land there is privately owned and farmed for rice during the summer growing season. That decision caught the attention of rice farmer John Brennan, who wanted to keep fields in production in the Yolo Bypass.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Water is in short supply during the hot, dry Central Valley summers, especially during the state’s periodic severe droughts. Historically, the fight over this constrained resource has pitted growers against environmental laws that require allocating water for endangered fish like Chinook. Rather than playing this zero-sum game, Brennan has been looking for ways to integrate conservation with agriculture. “If you’re in the rice business, you’re in the water business―and if you’re in the water business, you’re in the fish business,” he says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Katz puts it this way: “Fish abundance equals water security. It doesn’t have to be fish versus farms―it can be fish \u003cem>and\u003c/em> farms.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_section et_pb_section_18 text_section et_section_regular\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_row et_pb_row_20 text_row et_pb_equal_columns\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_column et_pb_column_1_2 et_pb_column_33 vertical-align-in-column text_column et_pb_css_mix_blend_mode_passthrough\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_module et_pb_text et_pb_text_15 et_pb_text_align_left et_pb_bg_layout_light\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_text_inner\">\n\u003cp>In 2010, Brennan joined forces with two environmentalists to see if rice fields in the bypass could be used as salmon nurseries during the winter, when the fields are dormant and fish are migrating downstream. After scouting the Yolo Bypass for available properties, Brennan and his partners settled on the rice fields of Knaggs Ranch as a chance to put their plan into practice. They bought the ranch and assembled a research team, starting with Jacob Katz since his father is one of Brennan’s partners. Katz invited Jeffres to join him, and the pair has collaborated ever since.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In the winter of 2012, the researchers flooded a five-acre corner of the ranch and released 10,000 young hatchery salmon in the fallow field. “When we first started, lots of farmers laughed and said it was the stupidest thing they’d ever heard,’” Jeffres says. He and Katz had their doubts, too. “It didn’t look like fish habitat,” Jeffres says, pointing across the ranch to their original test site. Flat brown fields stretch in all directions, and tidy mud berms divide the land into a patchwork of close-packed rice paddies. “We thought it might be the dumbest thing we’d ever done.”\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_section et_pb_section_19 article_text_section et_section_regular\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_row et_pb_row_21 text_row et_pb_equal_columns\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_column et_pb_column_1_2 et_pb_column_35 text_column et_pb_css_mix_blend_mode_passthrough\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_module et_pb_text et_pb_text_16 et_pb_text_align_left et_pb_bg_layout_light\">\n\u003cdiv class=\"et_pb_text_inner\">\n\u003cp>They worried they’d end up with a field full of dead fish. They weren’t concerned about residual pesticides, which are applied months earlier and break down relatively quickly in the environment, but they fretted about a host of other potential pitfalls. They thought the stagnant, shallow water in the field might get too warm for fish or make them easy prey for hungry birds. And they didn’t know whether the decomposition of rice stubble, which is left on the fields after the fall harvest, would deplete oxygen levels in the water.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At first the researchers couldn’t tell whether anything was happening. “Out in the fields in mid-winter it looks like a mud puddle. We couldn’t see the fish,” Katz says. “Then we ran a net through the water and caught fish with little potbellies. It was amazing.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Their rice-field test subjects did far more than survive. They thrived, growing five-fold―from 1 gram to more than 5―in just six weeks. “They grew at the highest rates recorded in the Central Valley,” Jeffres says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Ultimately, the scientists envision that the young salmon, instead of being introduced into rice fields by humans, will leave their natal waters and migrate downstream and into the bypass on their own. To make that journey possible even if the weir hasn’t overflowed, the California Department of Water Resources wants to add gates that can be opened to let salmon swim in and out of the rice fields on their way to the ocean.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While there are still some barriers left to remove, the possibility of wild-spawning, self-sustaining Chinook runs raised on rice farms is no longer just a pipe dream. In the years since they launched their pilot project, Jeffres and Katz have expanded their effort to encompass 20 acres and 50,000 fish, proving that it can work on a real-world scale. They have also found that, on average, salmon reared in these rice-field nurseries weigh 12 times more than those that grow up in the Sacramento River. The reason for this, Jeffres says, is that there’s so much more for them to eat.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1951234\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 540px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1951234\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/RS40324__20190419_A_1200_full-2-sfi.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"540\" height=\"360\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/RS40324__20190419_A_1200_full-2-sfi.jpg 540w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/RS40324__20190419_A_1200_full-2-sfi-160x107.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 540px) 100vw, 540px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Hundreds of chinook salmon fry in a tank at the UC Davis Marine Laboratory. \u003ccite>(Jak Wonderly/bioGraphic)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Back at Knaggs Ranch\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jeffres wants to know just how much more food the rice fields contain. He casts a long, white net across the shallow water of a rice field then draws it back carefully, keeping clear of the mud. Katz tips the contents into a plastic bag and lifts it high so they can both see.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Holy shit! Holy shit! Holy moly!” Katz exclaims. “I am totally astonished.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Jeffres is equally jazzed. “That’s insane!”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Inside the plastic bag, tiny freshwater crustaceans―or “bugs,” as the researchers call them―dart back and forth in constant motion. The water is so thick with them that it looks like a whirling cloud of pink.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>These small crustaceans are the perfect food for young fish, and this haul is the best Katz and Jeffres have ever seen. Most of the bugs they netted belong to the genus \u003cem>Daphnia\u003c/em>, often dubbed water fleas for the way they swim in short hops. They’re here in such abundance because they thrive in shallow, algae-rich waters, from puddles to flooded fields to floodplains. “It’s magic when water slows down and spreads across a floodplain,” Katz says. “It’s liquid protein.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Pickings are far slimmer in rivers. Katz holds up another bag, this one netted about an hour earlier from the Sacramento River. Just a few crustaceans scoot around inside it. “There’s basically nothing here,” he says. “By building levees, we’ve created rivers that are essentially food deserts.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Sacramento River has several flood control bypasses, and Katz estimates that, altogether, they contain up to 150,000 acres of rice fields that could be used as bug-rich salmon nurseries. Another 500,000 acres of rice farms lie along the Sacramento River but outside bypasses―and he thinks they may be able to help salmon, too.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>One of these is River Garden Farms, which lies a short stretch upriver from Knaggs Ranch and is managed by Roger Cornwell. Like Brennan, Cornwell wondered if his fields could benefit salmon, despite the fact that the land is not in a bypass. “I met Jacob Katz and started talking to him about what we could do,” he says. Katz proposed another wild idea, one that could solve the food-desert problem: bug farming.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>They wanted to know, Jeffres says, “If we can’t bring the fish to the floodplain, can we bring the floodplain to the fish?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>River Garden Farms is separated from the Sacramento River by a levee, atop which sits the Rough and Ready Pumping Plant, which was installed in 1915 to irrigate fields. The plant houses five glossy, black, massive pumps—each about six feet tall—which fill the pump house with a low roar. This past winter, the team took advantage of the setup and flooded a fallow rice field to raise bugs, then pumped the food-rich water into the Sacramento River to feed young fish as they swam through.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>To test whether the bugs would reach their intended recipients, the researchers placed cages of young salmon at intervals along a mile or so of the river. The Rough and Ready pumps delivered bugs starting in late February, and Jacob Montgomery and Jennifer Kronk of California Trout took weekly measurements of the caged fish. By late March, when we visit, all the bugs have been pumped off the field. The field crew pulls on their waders and heads out to the river to see if the experiment worked.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>They start at a site upstream of the pumping plant, where the caged fish didn’t get any field-raised bugs. Montgomery and Kronk wrestle a cage to the river’s muddy bank. Montgomery hefts the cage above the water, revealing young salmon that flash silver as they flip back and forth in distress. The team works fast so as to get the fish back to the river as soon as possible. Montgomery places each fish in a tray with a ruler, splashing it with water to keep it calm and still, and calls out the length for Kronk to record. Then he passes it to her for weighing. When the measuring is done, he estimates that the upstream fish averaged about 55 millimeters long and weighed around 2 grams.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Moving downstream to the next site, Kronk scoops up a fish collected right by the pump outfall. This site got the most bugs delivered from the rice field―if the experiment works, they’ll see it here.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Oh, he’s fat,” Kronk says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>She lays it in the measuring tray. It’s 65 millimeters and 2.5 grams, considerably bigger than the upstream average. The next fish is even fatter, at 66 mm and just over 3 g, and the one after that is fatter still, at 71 mm and 4 g.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Wow, look at these guys. They’re doing great,” Montgomery says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Although supplying bugs to fish in a free-flowing river doesn’t guarantee delivery, a system that monitors migrating salmon is already in place―so the researchers will know when to expect the fish and can serve them food from the fields at just the right time. “We can pump bugs into the river when fish are passing by,” Katz says. By spring, the salmon will have completed their journey, and the rice fields will be drained and ready for planting.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1951235\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 540px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-full wp-image-1951235\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/RS40325__20190424_2341_full-sfi.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"540\" height=\"360\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/RS40325__20190424_2341_full-sfi.jpg 540w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2019/12/RS40325__20190424_2341_full-sfi-160x107.jpg 160w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 540px) 100vw, 540px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Rachelle Tallman, UC Davis Graduate student, creating an incision in a salmon fry after inserting a tracking tag. \u003ccite>(Jak Wonderly/bioGraphic)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>Fish biologists have long assumed that the larger young salmon are when they navigate the Delta, the faster they can swim and the better their chances of survival. “It’s a really dangerous place,” Trout Unlimited’s Rene Henery says. “There are lots of introduced predatory fish.” To date, however, there is no direct evidence that size is important to survival.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“In the fish world, we say bigger fish are more likely to make it to the ocean. But no one has actually looked at survival,” says Rachelle Tallman, a graduate student in fish ecology at UC Davis. Tallman is now heading up a project to do just that.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The project is part of an effort by the California Rice Commission to incentivize farmers to manage their rice fields in a way that benefits local wildlife. Paul Buttner, who manages environmental affairs for the commission, currently pays farmers to flood their fields for water birds migrating along the Pacific Flyway. He hopes to launch a similar program for salmon that would compensate farmers for creating floodplain nurseries for young, migrating fish. But first he needs solid proof that it works.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“How many salmon from fields survive and go out the Golden Gate?” Buttner asks. “More than those that grow up in the river?”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While the Rough and Ready plant was pumping bugs into the Sacramento River, Tallman was setting up a different experiment to assess how size affects a salmon’s success. She reared two sets of young salmon: some in a laboratory tank and others in rice fields in the Yolo Bypass. Now, on a warm April day near the edge of the bypass, she’s pulling fish from the rice fields and equipping them with acoustic tags so she can compare survival rates as they swim out to, and beyond, the Golden Gate.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Tallman stands at a fish-surgery station sheltered by a white tent. As she slips a young salmon into a bucket of anesthetic, she alerts her team that a surgery is in progress. “Dope!” she calls out. A minute later the fish has stopped wriggling and Tallman springs into action. In rapid succession, she weighs it, measures it, and places it on a foam block. Cool water streams across the fish, which lies motionless apart from flapping gills.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Surgical scissors in hand, Tallman cuts a small opening in its belly and pushes a centimeter-long tag inside. She closes the wound with a single stitch and knots both ends. “Fish out of surgery,” she calls. A crew member collects the salmon and puts it in a recovery bucket. The whole operation, including anesthesia, takes just two minutes. Then Tallman picks up another fish and starts the process anew. “Dope!” she says.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Back at the lab, another crew tags tank-reared fish. Collectively, the team tags more than 750 salmon.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>A day after the surgeries, Tallman releases her tagged salmon into the wild, sending some into the Sacramento River and some into the Yolo Bypass, which drains into the Sacramento. About 200 underwater acoustic receivers will track their progress.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By early May, the first tagged fish have navigated the perils of the Delta. Now, they must traverse the San Francisco Bay—a huge body of water that covers more than 500 square miles. But this part of their journey is less risky. Once they’ve gotten this far, most young salmon readily find their way across the Bay and swim through its narrow opening beneath the Golden Gate Bridge, out into the Pacific Ocean. It will likely be December before Tallman can crunch all the data and tell Buttner whether—and how much—the rice field nurseries boost survival rates for the salmon. While the final verdict is still out, Buttner says they’re all hoping for a nice Christmas present.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The fish in Tallman’s study that do make it to the Pacific and survive in the open ocean will eventually attempt to return as adults to spawn in the Central Valley’s extensive but highly altered river system. It’s a journey the scientists hope will become at least slightly less challenging in the years to come. “We’re not going to get back what we once had,” Jeffres says. “But we can mimic it.” He and Katz envision waterways that are managed for flood control and farming but also for Chinook survival, ones with rice-field nurseries and bug farms to help restore self-sustaining salmon populations.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s about welcoming the wild back into human landscapes in a way that makes sense,” Katz says. “We’re reimagining the system to work with nature.”\u003c/p>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\u003c/div>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}}],"link":"/science/1951205/farmers-give-beleaguered-salmon-a-boost-by-flooding-fields","authors":["byline_science_1951205"],"categories":["science_2874","science_35","science_40","science_98"],"tags":["science_1120","science_5178","science_205","science_3370","science_248","science_3838","science_201"],"featImg":"science_1951230","label":"source_science_1951205"},"science_1946871":{"type":"posts","id":"science_1946871","meta":{"index":"posts_1591205157","site":"science","id":"1946871","score":null,"sort":[1567026101000]},"guestAuthors":[],"slug":"this-saturday-is-free-fishing-day-throughout-california","title":"This Saturday Is Free Fishing Day Throughout California","publishDate":1567026101,"format":"standard","headTitle":"This Saturday Is Free Fishing Day Throughout California | KQED","labelTerm":{},"content":"\u003cp>Slather on the sunscreen, line up some some bait, and bring your tackle box – Saturday, August 31st is Free Fishing Day across California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>You won’t need a sport-fishing license to cast a line that day at dozens of lakes, reservoirs and creeks throughout the state. The Department of Fish and Wildlife waives the usual fees – $16.20 for a day, $49.94 for annual licenses – two days a year. July 4th is the other, so this’ll be your last chance in 2019.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s not a free-for-all, you can’t just go fish for anything and however many you want anywhere,” says Jennifer Benedet with the department. People will have to obey the same rules that apply the rest of the year. You can read up on those regulations online at \u003ca href=\"https://www.wildlife.ca.gov\">wildlife.ca.gov\u003c/a> . The site also includes a Fishing Guide to the best spots to try.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>New anglers can join \u003ca href=\"https://www.wildlife.ca.gov/Fishing-in-the-City\">Fishing in the City\u003c/a>, a program that offers free fishing clinics in Sacramento, the San Francisco Bay Area, the South Bay, Los Angeles, and other urban areas. Participants can reel in their catch and learn how to prepare it for dinner.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you’re hooked after your first fishing expedition, you can join the \u003ca href=\"https://www.wildlife.ca.gov/Fishing/Passport\">California Fishing Passport\u003c/a>. That interactive program challenges you to fish 150 different species in the state’s waters. It even awards a certificate for catching your very first fish!\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp> \u003c/p>\n\n","blocks":[],"excerpt":"This Saturday, August 31st, is this year's last Free Fishing Day in California.","status":"publish","parent":0,"modified":1704848366,"stats":{"hasAudio":false,"hasVideo":false,"hasChartOrMap":false,"iframeSrcs":[],"hasGoogleForm":false,"hasGallery":false,"hasHearkenModule":false,"hasPolis":false,"paragraphCount":7,"wordCount":254},"headData":{"title":"This Saturday Is Free Fishing Day Throughout California | KQED","description":"This Saturday, August 31st, is this year's last Free Fishing Day in California.","ogTitle":"","ogDescription":"","ogImgId":"","twTitle":"","twDescription":"","twImgId":""},"sticky":false,"path":"/science/1946871/this-saturday-is-free-fishing-day-throughout-california","audioTrackLength":null,"parsedContent":[{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Slather on the sunscreen, line up some some bait, and bring your tackle box – Saturday, August 31st is Free Fishing Day across California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>You won’t need a sport-fishing license to cast a line that day at dozens of lakes, reservoirs and creeks throughout the state. The Department of Fish and Wildlife waives the usual fees – $16.20 for a day, $49.94 for annual licenses – two days a year. July 4th is the other, so this’ll be your last chance in 2019.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s not a free-for-all, you can’t just go fish for anything and however many you want anywhere,” says Jennifer Benedet with the department. People will have to obey the same rules that apply the rest of the year. You can read up on those regulations online at \u003ca href=\"https://www.wildlife.ca.gov\">wildlife.ca.gov\u003c/a> . The site also includes a Fishing Guide to the best spots to try.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>New anglers can join \u003ca href=\"https://www.wildlife.ca.gov/Fishing-in-the-City\">Fishing in the City\u003c/a>, a program that offers free fishing clinics in Sacramento, the San Francisco Bay Area, the South Bay, Los Angeles, and other urban areas. Participants can reel in their catch and learn how to prepare it for dinner.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If you’re hooked after your first fishing expedition, you can join the \u003ca href=\"https://www.wildlife.ca.gov/Fishing/Passport\">California Fishing Passport\u003c/a>. That interactive program challenges you to fish 150 different species in the state’s waters. It even awards a certificate for catching your very first fish!\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}},{"type":"component","content":"","name":"ad","attributes":{"named":{"label":"fullwidth"},"numeric":["fullwidth"]}},{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp> \u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}}],"link":"/science/1946871/this-saturday-is-free-fishing-day-throughout-california","authors":["11616"],"categories":["science_2874","science_30","science_35","science_37","science_36","science_2873"],"tags":["science_3832","science_248","science_1275"],"featImg":"science_1937209","label":"science"},"science_1938750":{"type":"posts","id":"science_1938750","meta":{"index":"posts_1591205157","site":"science","id":"1938750","score":null,"sort":[1551945705000]},"guestAuthors":[],"slug":"trump-pressure-on-california-water-plan-excludes-public-rushes-science-emails-show","title":"Trump's California Water Order Rushes Science and Cuts Out Public, Emails Show","publishDate":1551945705,"format":"image","headTitle":"Trump’s California Water Order Rushes Science and Cuts Out Public, Emails Show | KQED","labelTerm":{},"content":"\u003cp>The Trump Administration has ordered federal biologists to speed up critical decisions about whether to send more water from Northern California to farmers in the Central Valley, a move that critics say threatens the integrity of the science and cuts the public out of the process.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The decisions will control irrigation for millions of acres of farmland in the country’s biggest agricultural economy, drinking water for two-thirds of Californians from Silicon Valley to San Diego, and the fate of endangered salmon and other fish.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Federal biologists will set these rules after completing an intricate scientific analysis, and they are the final word on how much and when water can be pumped out of the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta.\u003c/p>\n\u003caside class=\"pullquote alignright\">‘I think this is a proposal for extinction.’\u003cbr>\n\u003ccite>Doug Obegi, Natural Resources Defense Council\u003c/cite>\u003c/aside>\n\u003cp>An investigation by KQED found that the analysis will be done under unprecedented time pressure, with less transparency, less outside scientific scrutiny, and without, say federal scientists, the resources to do it properly.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s a very aggressive schedule,” said a former federal biologist familiar with the matter who did not want to be identified. “And I think it runs the risk of forcing them to make dangerous shortcuts in the scientific analysis that the decisions demand.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to internal emails obtained under the Freedom of Information Act, federal scientists raised two major concerns: that their agency lacks the staff to undertake the analysis and that the Trump Administration is skewing the rules to boost the water supply for Central Valley farms.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Some see the fingerprints of acting interior secretary David Bernhardt, who once helped lead the charge to increase pumping and weaken environmental standards in the Delta. He was then a lawyer for the Fresno-based Westlands Water District, the largest agricultural water agency in the country.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bernhardt is already under scrutiny after a \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/12/climate/david-bernhardt-endangered-species.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">recent New York Times story\u003c/a> reported that, shortly after joining the Interior Department in 2017, he directly advocated on Westlands’ behalf to get more water for farmers at the expense of endangered fish, even though federal rules precluded him from lobbying.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last week, the Campaign Legal Center, a non-profit ethics organization in Washington, D.C., \u003ca href=\"https://campaignlegal.org/sites/default/files/2019-02/2-28-19%20Bernhardt%20CLC%20Complaint%20FINAL.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">filed a complaint\u003c/a> demanding that the Interior Department’s inspector general open an investigation into whether Bernhardt is using his public office to benefit his former client.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bernhardt now oversees two of the three agencies under orders from the White House to expedite the new rules shaping California’s water future: the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At stake is the future of fish teetering on the edge of existence, a salmon fishing industry in crisis, and the ample supply of water flowing through millions of California faucets and fields.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Trump’s Campaign Promise\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Just five years ago, Bernhardt stood before a panel of judges on the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals. He was there arguing on behalf of Westlands Water District, and its 600,000 acres of farmland, that federal environmental rules protecting salmon should be thrown out.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now, as head of the agency that controls decisions affecting his former client, Bernhardt is leading the charge to replace those rules.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Agricultural water districts have long disdained the current rules (called “biological opinions” and written in \u003ca href=\"https://www.fws.gov/sfbaydelta/cvp-swp/index.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">2008\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.westcoast.fisheries.noaa.gov/central_valley/water_operations/ocap.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">2009\u003c/a>). The rules require state and federal pumps in the Delta to slow down when endangered salmon, smelt and other fish are nearby, in order to protect them. That diminishes the water supply for farmers, leaving them scrambling to fill the gap. When people shout “fish vs. farms,” that’s usually what they’re talking about.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>During President Trump’s 2016 campaign, he promised Central Valley farmers he would send them more water. As a step toward keeping that promise, Trump signed an \u003ca href=\"https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/presidential-memorandum-promoting-reliable-supply-delivery-water-west/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">October 2018 memo\u003c/a> ordering the rapid scientific review.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1938792\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1938792\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/PJH_Intertie-076-web2-800x450.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/PJH_Intertie-076-web2-800x450.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/PJH_Intertie-076-web2-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/PJH_Intertie-076-web2-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/PJH_Intertie-076-web2-1020x574.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/PJH_Intertie-076-web2-1200x675.jpg 1200w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/PJH_Intertie-076-web2.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Water from the Delta reaches millions of Californians and millions of acres of farmland. \u003ccite>(Paul Hames / California Department of Water Resources)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“That’s definitely on our mind,” says Erin Curtis, spokeswoman for the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. “The president has outlined in his memo that we need to take a new look at how we’re operating these projects in a way that we can maximize water deliveries.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As a first step, the Bureau, which operates dams and water pumps, released an \u003ca href=\"https://www.usbr.gov/newsroom/newsrelease/detail.cfm?RecordID=64503\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">871-page proposal\u003c/a> in early February for how it would like the rules to operate.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The plan, called a “biological assessment,” would provide billions of gallons more water for agricultural and urban water districts, an increase of 10 to 15 percent depending on the year. That would leave less in the Delta for endangered fish.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Environmental groups are alarmed at the proposal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I think this is a proposal for extinction,” says Doug Obegi, an attorney at the Natural Resources Defense Council in San Francisco. “What we decide to do in the Delta really will determine if we drive our native species extinct and threaten thousands of fishing jobs.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Not Enough Staff To Do the Job\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to federal law, two federal wildlife agencies, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, must now review the Bureau of Reclamation’s plan.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If it doesn’t do enough to protect threatened fish, the agencies have the obligation and legal authority to write rules that do. These biological opinions will replace the current ones, although they could be challenged in court.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Under President Trump’s decree, federal biologists must write those opinions in 135 days, the minimal amount of time guaranteed under the Endangered Species Act.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Given the complexity of the issues, the agencies have previously needed more time than that to complete their analysis, from 60 to 80 percent more time.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>They must look at how water flows across hundreds of miles through different rivers, dams and levees, and then forecast how it would affect the life cycle of half a dozen threatened species. These include endangered Chinook salmon and threatened steelhead and green sturgeon, as well as endangered killer whales in the Pacific Ocean, which depend on salmon for food.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“How often does the interior secretary write a memo forcing that an opinion happens in 135 days?” says Cay Goude, former assistant field supervisor for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service office in Sacramento. “It’s never happened to my knowledge.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Goude worked on a previous biological opinion for the agency, on the Delta smelt, before retiring. “You don’t want to rush anything and do a poor job,” she said, “because it’s very important to have the scientific facts accurate and appropriate.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even before Trump tightened the timeline, one of the agencies, NOAA Fisheries, warned that it did not have the resources to do the analysis.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1938778\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1938778\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/email-3-800x314.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"314\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/email-3-800x314.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/email-3-160x63.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/email-3-768x302.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/email-3-1020x401.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/email-3-1200x471.jpg 1200w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/email-3.jpg 1576w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Excerpt from an internal NOAA email.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In July 2018, Maria Rea, the assistant regional administrator in the California Central Valley Office of NOAA, described the agency’s dilemma in an email to her internal staff. She said it took 30 part-time staff and 10 full-time staff to complete the previous biological opinion in 2009, which took 246 days.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We do not have resources to undertake this consultation,” Rea wrote.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>NOAA is working to reassign staff, currently on other projects, to at least achieve similar staffing levels, according to agency staff who spoke on the condition they not be identified. The federal government shutdown in January slowed that process.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Eliminating Protections for Fish\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to the emails obtained by KQED, federal wildlife scientists also are concerned that the Bureau of Reclamation is pushing to give more water to agriculture at the expense of threatened species.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In an email to fellow NOAA Fisheries staff last summer, Water Operations and Delta Consultations Branch Chief Garwin Yip outlined his misgivings about cases where there is scientific debate about what the fish need.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Absence of definitive science should not be the reason to propose actions more aggressive towards water supply,” Yip wrote.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Both Yip and Rea declined to comment about their emails.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While the Bureau of Reclamation has updated its proposal since then, it’s unclear whether those concerns have been addressed. Some say the agency has cherry-picked the science in favor of boosting water for farmers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s not science, basically,” says Jon Rosenfield, senior scientist with San Francisco Baykeeper, an environmental group in San Francisco. “It’s an extraordinarily selective read and deliberate misinterpretation of the information that we have.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rosenfield points to several of the protections the Bureau of Reclamation is proposing to eliminate, such as rules that guarantee water flows through crucial parts of the estuary when fish are most at risk because they are closer to the pumps.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1938783\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1938783\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/pumpingplant-800x458.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"458\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/pumpingplant-800x458.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/pumpingplant-160x92.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/pumpingplant-768x440.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/pumpingplant-1020x584.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/pumpingplant-1200x688.jpg 1200w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/pumpingplant.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Trump Administration is rewriting rules governing how water flows through massive pumping plants in the Delta. \u003ccite>(Lauren Sommer/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The agency says “dynamic rules,” which rely on new technology that monitors where the fish are in the Delta, can do a better job than fixed rules.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We feel that what we’ve proposed both helps protect listed species as well as provides more water supply flexibility,” says Russ Callejo, assistant regional director for the Mid-Pacific Region of the Bureau of Reclamation in Sacramento. “We think it does both.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Environmental groups are skeptical of that claim, saying the Bureau is proposing to dial back water pumping only after the fish are significantly harmed. The wildlife agencies will have to evaluate that during their biological reviews.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This is where some see the influence of Bernhardt, \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/12/climate/david-bernhardt-endangered-species.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">who told\u003c/a> The New York Times that he directed a senior official to weaken protections for fish and divert water to farms as part of a broader administration policy to help rural America.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>No Public Review\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The internal emails also show the new environmental rules will receive less outside scientific review than ever before, which eliminates public involvement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Peer review, in which independent scientists assess other researchers’ work, is a core practice of science, and previous biological opinions have received that scrutiny.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When the current rules were written in 2008, the draft biological opinion from NOAA Fisheries \u003ca href=\"http://www.science.calwater.ca.gov/events/reviews/review_ocap.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">underwent an independent review by a panel of scientists\u003c/a>. The review included a meeting where the public could attend and comment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This time, wildlife agencies say the Trump Administration’s deadline won’t allow for that.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>NOAA Fisheries, which is writing the environmental rules for salmon and other fish, plans to have some independent scientific review, according to agency staff. The draft biological opinion will be sent out to individual scientists, but without public involvement or comment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which is writing the environmental rules for delta smelt, says the agency is planning some form of peer review as well.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We intend to incorporate peer review into the development of our biological opinion,” said Shane Hunt, spokesman for the federal agency’s Bay-Delta Fish & Wildlife Office. “We are still ironing out the details.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Water Districts Gain Access\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, as the public is frozen out, water districts will be given unprecedented access.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For the first time, public water agencies, keen to boost their supply, are invited to be heavily involved in the development of the environmental rules in the biological opinions, which are legally mandated to protect fish.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2016, Congress passed, and President Obama signed, the \u003ca href=\"https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/senate-bill/612/text\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">WIIN Act\u003c/a>, giving water contractors the power to “have routine and continuing opportunities to discuss and submit information” to federal agencies developing the biological opinions. The act, pushed by Senator Dianne Feinstein and Central Valley Republicans, was an effort at compromise after years of water battles in California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Before the Bureau of Reclamation even finished its proposed plan, water agencies had the chance to submit their take on endangered species protections.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We have adhered to the WIIN Act,” says the Bureau’s Callejo. “We have involved the public water agencies.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Westlands Water District did not respond to questions about its involvement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Water agencies will also receive drafts of the biological opinions from wildlife agencies. Under the law, their comments must be “afforded due consideration” by wildlife biologists. If the comments aren’t adopted, those biologists must explain why.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There are no plans to release the drafts to the public.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad floatright]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s always a red flag when you have the regulated entity, the entity that stands to lose something, having control over the regulation process,” says Rosenfield. “We don’t let the tobacco companies determine what level of smoking is safe.”\u003c/p>\n\n","blocks":[],"excerpt":"KQED investigation finds federal biologists concerned that shortened deadline from president cuts time needed to protect fish on brink of extinction. ","status":"publish","parent":0,"modified":1704848817,"stats":{"hasAudio":false,"hasVideo":false,"hasChartOrMap":false,"iframeSrcs":[],"hasGoogleForm":false,"hasGallery":false,"hasHearkenModule":false,"hasPolis":false,"paragraphCount":65,"wordCount":2171},"headData":{"title":"Trump's California Water Order Rushes Science and Cuts Out Public, Emails Show | KQED","description":"KQED investigation finds federal biologists concerned that shortened deadline from president cuts time needed to protect fish on brink of extinction. ","ogTitle":"","ogDescription":"","ogImgId":"","twTitle":"","twDescription":"","twImgId":""},"source":"Water","audioUrl":"https://www.kqed.org/.stream/anon/radio/RDnews/2019/03/SomnerWaterInvestigation.mp3","sticky":false,"audioTrackLength":231,"path":"/science/1938750/trump-pressure-on-california-water-plan-excludes-public-rushes-science-emails-show","parsedContent":[{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>The Trump Administration has ordered federal biologists to speed up critical decisions about whether to send more water from Northern California to farmers in the Central Valley, a move that critics say threatens the integrity of the science and cuts the public out of the process.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The decisions will control irrigation for millions of acres of farmland in the country’s biggest agricultural economy, drinking water for two-thirds of Californians from Silicon Valley to San Diego, and the fate of endangered salmon and other fish.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Federal biologists will set these rules after completing an intricate scientific analysis, and they are the final word on how much and when water can be pumped out of the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta.\u003c/p>\n\u003caside class=\"pullquote alignright\">‘I think this is a proposal for extinction.’\u003cbr>\n\u003ccite>Doug Obegi, Natural Resources Defense Council\u003c/cite>\u003c/aside>\n\u003cp>An investigation by KQED found that the analysis will be done under unprecedented time pressure, with less transparency, less outside scientific scrutiny, and without, say federal scientists, the resources to do it properly.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s a very aggressive schedule,” said a former federal biologist familiar with the matter who did not want to be identified. “And I think it runs the risk of forcing them to make dangerous shortcuts in the scientific analysis that the decisions demand.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}},{"type":"component","content":"","name":"ad","attributes":{"named":{"label":"fullwidth"},"numeric":["fullwidth"]}},{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to internal emails obtained under the Freedom of Information Act, federal scientists raised two major concerns: that their agency lacks the staff to undertake the analysis and that the Trump Administration is skewing the rules to boost the water supply for Central Valley farms.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Some see the fingerprints of acting interior secretary David Bernhardt, who once helped lead the charge to increase pumping and weaken environmental standards in the Delta. He was then a lawyer for the Fresno-based Westlands Water District, the largest agricultural water agency in the country.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bernhardt is already under scrutiny after a \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/12/climate/david-bernhardt-endangered-species.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">recent New York Times story\u003c/a> reported that, shortly after joining the Interior Department in 2017, he directly advocated on Westlands’ behalf to get more water for farmers at the expense of endangered fish, even though federal rules precluded him from lobbying.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Last week, the Campaign Legal Center, a non-profit ethics organization in Washington, D.C., \u003ca href=\"https://campaignlegal.org/sites/default/files/2019-02/2-28-19%20Bernhardt%20CLC%20Complaint%20FINAL.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">filed a complaint\u003c/a> demanding that the Interior Department’s inspector general open an investigation into whether Bernhardt is using his public office to benefit his former client.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Bernhardt now oversees two of the three agencies under orders from the White House to expedite the new rules shaping California’s water future: the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>At stake is the future of fish teetering on the edge of existence, a salmon fishing industry in crisis, and the ample supply of water flowing through millions of California faucets and fields.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Trump’s Campaign Promise\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Just five years ago, Bernhardt stood before a panel of judges on the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals. He was there arguing on behalf of Westlands Water District, and its 600,000 acres of farmland, that federal environmental rules protecting salmon should be thrown out.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Now, as head of the agency that controls decisions affecting his former client, Bernhardt is leading the charge to replace those rules.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Agricultural water districts have long disdained the current rules (called “biological opinions” and written in \u003ca href=\"https://www.fws.gov/sfbaydelta/cvp-swp/index.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">2008\u003c/a> and \u003ca href=\"https://www.westcoast.fisheries.noaa.gov/central_valley/water_operations/ocap.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">2009\u003c/a>). The rules require state and federal pumps in the Delta to slow down when endangered salmon, smelt and other fish are nearby, in order to protect them. That diminishes the water supply for farmers, leaving them scrambling to fill the gap. When people shout “fish vs. farms,” that’s usually what they’re talking about.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>During President Trump’s 2016 campaign, he promised Central Valley farmers he would send them more water. As a step toward keeping that promise, Trump signed an \u003ca href=\"https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/presidential-memorandum-promoting-reliable-supply-delivery-water-west/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">October 2018 memo\u003c/a> ordering the rapid scientific review.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1938792\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1938792\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/PJH_Intertie-076-web2-800x450.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"450\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/PJH_Intertie-076-web2-800x450.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/PJH_Intertie-076-web2-160x90.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/PJH_Intertie-076-web2-768x432.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/PJH_Intertie-076-web2-1020x574.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/PJH_Intertie-076-web2-1200x675.jpg 1200w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/PJH_Intertie-076-web2.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Water from the Delta reaches millions of Californians and millions of acres of farmland. \u003ccite>(Paul Hames / California Department of Water Resources)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>“That’s definitely on our mind,” says Erin Curtis, spokeswoman for the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. “The president has outlined in his memo that we need to take a new look at how we’re operating these projects in a way that we can maximize water deliveries.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>As a first step, the Bureau, which operates dams and water pumps, released an \u003ca href=\"https://www.usbr.gov/newsroom/newsrelease/detail.cfm?RecordID=64503\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">871-page proposal\u003c/a> in early February for how it would like the rules to operate.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The plan, called a “biological assessment,” would provide billions of gallons more water for agricultural and urban water districts, an increase of 10 to 15 percent depending on the year. That would leave less in the Delta for endangered fish.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Environmental groups are alarmed at the proposal.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I think this is a proposal for extinction,” says Doug Obegi, an attorney at the Natural Resources Defense Council in San Francisco. “What we decide to do in the Delta really will determine if we drive our native species extinct and threaten thousands of fishing jobs.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Not Enough Staff To Do the Job\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to federal law, two federal wildlife agencies, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, must now review the Bureau of Reclamation’s plan.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>If it doesn’t do enough to protect threatened fish, the agencies have the obligation and legal authority to write rules that do. These biological opinions will replace the current ones, although they could be challenged in court.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Under President Trump’s decree, federal biologists must write those opinions in 135 days, the minimal amount of time guaranteed under the Endangered Species Act.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Given the complexity of the issues, the agencies have previously needed more time than that to complete their analysis, from 60 to 80 percent more time.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>They must look at how water flows across hundreds of miles through different rivers, dams and levees, and then forecast how it would affect the life cycle of half a dozen threatened species. These include endangered Chinook salmon and threatened steelhead and green sturgeon, as well as endangered killer whales in the Pacific Ocean, which depend on salmon for food.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“How often does the interior secretary write a memo forcing that an opinion happens in 135 days?” says Cay Goude, former assistant field supervisor for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service office in Sacramento. “It’s never happened to my knowledge.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Goude worked on a previous biological opinion for the agency, on the Delta smelt, before retiring. “You don’t want to rush anything and do a poor job,” she said, “because it’s very important to have the scientific facts accurate and appropriate.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Even before Trump tightened the timeline, one of the agencies, NOAA Fisheries, warned that it did not have the resources to do the analysis.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1938778\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1938778\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/email-3-800x314.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"314\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/email-3-800x314.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/email-3-160x63.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/email-3-768x302.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/email-3-1020x401.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/email-3-1200x471.jpg 1200w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/email-3.jpg 1576w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">Excerpt from an internal NOAA email.\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>In July 2018, Maria Rea, the assistant regional administrator in the California Central Valley Office of NOAA, described the agency’s dilemma in an email to her internal staff. She said it took 30 part-time staff and 10 full-time staff to complete the previous biological opinion in 2009, which took 246 days.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We do not have resources to undertake this consultation,” Rea wrote.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>NOAA is working to reassign staff, currently on other projects, to at least achieve similar staffing levels, according to agency staff who spoke on the condition they not be identified. The federal government shutdown in January slowed that process.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Eliminating Protections for Fish\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>According to the emails obtained by KQED, federal wildlife scientists also are concerned that the Bureau of Reclamation is pushing to give more water to agriculture at the expense of threatened species.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In an email to fellow NOAA Fisheries staff last summer, Water Operations and Delta Consultations Branch Chief Garwin Yip outlined his misgivings about cases where there is scientific debate about what the fish need.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Absence of definitive science should not be the reason to propose actions more aggressive towards water supply,” Yip wrote.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Both Yip and Rea declined to comment about their emails.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>While the Bureau of Reclamation has updated its proposal since then, it’s unclear whether those concerns have been addressed. Some say the agency has cherry-picked the science in favor of boosting water for farmers.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s not science, basically,” says Jon Rosenfield, senior scientist with San Francisco Baykeeper, an environmental group in San Francisco. “It’s an extraordinarily selective read and deliberate misinterpretation of the information that we have.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Rosenfield points to several of the protections the Bureau of Reclamation is proposing to eliminate, such as rules that guarantee water flows through crucial parts of the estuary when fish are most at risk because they are closer to the pumps.\u003c/p>\n\u003cfigure id=\"attachment_1938783\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\" style=\"max-width: 800px\">\u003cimg loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1938783\" src=\"https://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/pumpingplant-800x458.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"800\" height=\"458\" srcset=\"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/pumpingplant-800x458.jpg 800w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/pumpingplant-160x92.jpg 160w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/pumpingplant-768x440.jpg 768w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/pumpingplant-1020x584.jpg 1020w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/pumpingplant-1200x688.jpg 1200w, https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/2020/03/pumpingplant.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\">\u003cfigcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\">The Trump Administration is rewriting rules governing how water flows through massive pumping plants in the Delta. \u003ccite>(Lauren Sommer/KQED)\u003c/cite>\u003c/figcaption>\u003c/figure>\n\u003cp>The agency says “dynamic rules,” which rely on new technology that monitors where the fish are in the Delta, can do a better job than fixed rules.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We feel that what we’ve proposed both helps protect listed species as well as provides more water supply flexibility,” says Russ Callejo, assistant regional director for the Mid-Pacific Region of the Bureau of Reclamation in Sacramento. “We think it does both.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Environmental groups are skeptical of that claim, saying the Bureau is proposing to dial back water pumping only after the fish are significantly harmed. The wildlife agencies will have to evaluate that during their biological reviews.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This is where some see the influence of Bernhardt, \u003ca href=\"https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/12/climate/david-bernhardt-endangered-species.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">who told\u003c/a> The New York Times that he directed a senior official to weaken protections for fish and divert water to farms as part of a broader administration policy to help rural America.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>No Public Review\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The internal emails also show the new environmental rules will receive less outside scientific review than ever before, which eliminates public involvement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Peer review, in which independent scientists assess other researchers’ work, is a core practice of science, and previous biological opinions have received that scrutiny.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>When the current rules were written in 2008, the draft biological opinion from NOAA Fisheries \u003ca href=\"http://www.science.calwater.ca.gov/events/reviews/review_ocap.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">underwent an independent review by a panel of scientists\u003c/a>. The review included a meeting where the public could attend and comment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>This time, wildlife agencies say the Trump Administration’s deadline won’t allow for that.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>NOAA Fisheries, which is writing the environmental rules for salmon and other fish, plans to have some independent scientific review, according to agency staff. The draft biological opinion will be sent out to individual scientists, but without public involvement or comment.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which is writing the environmental rules for delta smelt, says the agency is planning some form of peer review as well.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We intend to incorporate peer review into the development of our biological opinion,” said Shane Hunt, spokesman for the federal agency’s Bay-Delta Fish & Wildlife Office. “We are still ironing out the details.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003cstrong>Water Districts Gain Access\u003c/strong>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Meanwhile, as the public is frozen out, water districts will be given unprecedented access.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>For the first time, public water agencies, keen to boost their supply, are invited to be heavily involved in the development of the environmental rules in the biological opinions, which are legally mandated to protect fish.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In 2016, Congress passed, and President Obama signed, the \u003ca href=\"https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/senate-bill/612/text\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">WIIN Act\u003c/a>, giving water contractors the power to “have routine and continuing opportunities to discuss and submit information” to federal agencies developing the biological opinions. The act, pushed by Senator Dianne Feinstein and Central Valley Republicans, was an effort at compromise after years of water battles in California.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Before the Bureau of Reclamation even finished its proposed plan, water agencies had the chance to submit their take on endangered species protections.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We have adhered to the WIIN Act,” says the Bureau’s Callejo. “We have involved the public water agencies.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Westlands Water District did not respond to questions about its involvement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Water agencies will also receive drafts of the biological opinions from wildlife agencies. Under the law, their comments must be “afforded due consideration” by wildlife biologists. If the comments aren’t adopted, those biologists must explain why.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>There are no plans to release the drafts to the public.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}},{"type":"component","content":"","name":"ad","attributes":{"named":{"label":"floatright"},"numeric":["floatright"]}},{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s always a red flag when you have the regulated entity, the entity that stands to lose something, having control over the regulation process,” says Rosenfield. “We don’t let the tobacco companies determine what level of smoking is safe.”\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}}],"link":"/science/1938750/trump-pressure-on-california-water-plan-excludes-public-rushes-science-emails-show","authors":["239"],"categories":["science_2874","science_46","science_40","science_43","science_3423","science_98"],"tags":["science_3905","science_202","science_3370","science_3832","science_248","science_247","science_3830","science_804"],"featImg":"science_1938773","label":"source_science_1938750"},"science_1932298":{"type":"posts","id":"science_1932298","meta":{"index":"posts_1591205157","site":"science","id":"1932298","score":null,"sort":[1538663787000]},"guestAuthors":[],"slug":"odd-looking-razorback-sucker-fish-pulled-back-from-extinction","title":"Odd-Looking Razorback Sucker Fish Pulled Back from Extinction","publishDate":1538663787,"format":"standard","headTitle":"Odd-Looking Razorback Sucker Fish Pulled Back from Extinction | KQED","labelTerm":{},"content":"\u003cp>Another rare Colorado River fish has been pulled back from the brink of extinction, the second comeback this year for a species unique to the Southwestern U.S.[contextly_sidebar id=”BYI9mWuVpb9QTHKLbJd6ZDj5GWZscFJ4″]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service plans to announce Thursday that it will recommend reclassifying the ancient and odd-looking razorback sucker from endangered to threatened, meaning it is still at risk of extinction, but the danger is no longer immediate.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Associated Press was briefed on the plans before the official announcement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hundreds of thousands of razorbacks once thrived in the Colorado River and its tributaries, which flow across seven states and Mexico.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By the 1980s they had dwindled to about 100. Researchers blame non-native predator fish that attacked and ate the razorbacks and dams that disrupted their habitat.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>[ad fullwidth]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Their numbers have bounced back to between 54,000 and 59,000 today, thanks to a multimillion-dollar effort that enlisted the help of hatcheries, dam operators, landowners, native American tribes and state and federal agencies.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s a work in progress,” said Tom Chart, director of the Upper Colorado River Endangered Fish Recovery Program. “We get more fish out in the system, they’re showing up in more places, they’re spawning in more locations.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Chart’s program oversees the campaign to restore the razorback sucker and three other fish, all of them found only in the Colorado River system.[contextly_sidebar id=”y18ri0i7YRNusM4MaupD0rRK3ptnsRkv”]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In March, the Fish and Wildlife Service recommended changing the humpback chub from endangered to threatened. It takes 18 to 24 months to complete the process, including a public comment period.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The razorback sucker’s name comes from a sharp-edge, keel-like ridge along its back behind its head. Chart thinks the ridge may have evolved to help the fish stay stable in the turbulent waters of the Colorado.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It can grow up to 3 feet (1 meter) long and live up to 40 years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Razorbacks have been around for between 3 million and 5 million years, but trouble arrived as the population expanded in the Southwest. State and federal agencies began introducing game fish into the Colorado without realizing they would devour the native fish, Chart said. A spurt of dam-building was a boon to cities and farms but interrupted the natural springtime surge of melting snow, which in turn shrank the floodplains that provided a safe nursery for young razorbacks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dams also made parts of the rivers too cold for razorbacks, because they release water from the chilly depths of reservoirs. And they blocked the natural migration of the fish.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By the late 1980s, most of the wild razorbacks were old, an ominous sign they were no longer reproducing, Chart said. The Fish and Wildlife Service began capturing the remaining wild razorbacks and moving them to hatcheries to begin rebuilding the population.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The agency designated razorbacks an endangered species in 1991, although Utah and Colorado enacted state protections earlier.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Biologists began restocking rivers with hatchery-raised razorbacks in 1995. Now, about 55,000 are released into the Colorado and its tributaries annually.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Fish and Wildlife Service began working with dam operators to time water releases to help razorbacks spawn and restore flood plains for them to mature. Some dams were modified to help razorbacks to get by.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Wildlife officials began reining in non-native predator fish with nets and screens to keep them from escaping reservoirs, or removing them by electrofishing — stunning them with electricity and euthanizing them with an overdose of anesthetic.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Changing the fish from endangered to threatened will allow more flexibility in the way it is protected, said Kevin McAbee, deputy director of the recovery program.[contextly_sidebar id=”voKJy4Iqh39xrCR8R6NvLg6qjH81F3ZC”]\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Under endangered status, individual fish have to be protected, but threatened status means biologists can take steps to improve the overall population even if some fish might be hurt, McAbee said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Razorbacks still face challenges. The first-year survival rate of hatchery fish, each roughly 14 inches (36 centimeters) long, is about 20 percent or less in the wild, Chart said. It climbs to 80 percent after that.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Drought, climate change and increasing human demand are straining the rivers, which makes it harder for fish to survive.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>McAbee said the Fish and Wildlife Service took the river’s uncertain future into account before recommending the change for the razorbacks. Their long lifespan helps them endure low-water years when few young fish survive, he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cooperation among water users in 2018, a year of devastating drought in much of the Southwest, shows the razorbacks’ needs can be accommodated, McAbee said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Things could have been catastrophic,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Taylor McKinnon of the Center for Biological Diversity is doubtful about how healthy the razorbacks really are.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The government’s reliance on hatcheries to boost the population shows they are not self-sustaining, he said, and he worries about their future in the overtaxed Colorado River.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I think the elephant in the room right now with regard to recovery is climate change and river flows and regional aridification,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re skeptical of the merits of this,” McKinnon said.\u003c/p>\n\n","blocks":[],"excerpt":"Drought, climate change and increasing human demand are straining the rivers, which makes it harder for fish to survive.","status":"publish","parent":0,"modified":1704927429,"stats":{"hasAudio":false,"hasVideo":false,"hasChartOrMap":false,"iframeSrcs":[],"hasGoogleForm":false,"hasGallery":false,"hasHearkenModule":false,"hasPolis":false,"paragraphCount":31,"wordCount":879},"headData":{"title":"Odd-Looking Razorback Sucker Fish Pulled Back from Extinction | KQED","description":"Drought, climate change and increasing human demand are straining the rivers, which makes it harder for fish to survive.","ogTitle":"","ogDescription":"","ogImgId":"","twTitle":"","twDescription":"","twImgId":""},"source":"Animals","sticky":false,"nprByline":"Dan Elliot\u003cbr />The Associated Press","path":"/science/1932298/odd-looking-razorback-sucker-fish-pulled-back-from-extinction","audioTrackLength":null,"parsedContent":[{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003cp>Another rare Colorado River fish has been pulled back from the brink of extinction, the second comeback this year for a species unique to the Southwestern U.S.\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service plans to announce Thursday that it will recommend reclassifying the ancient and odd-looking razorback sucker from endangered to threatened, meaning it is still at risk of extinction, but the danger is no longer immediate.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Associated Press was briefed on the plans before the official announcement.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Hundreds of thousands of razorbacks once thrived in the Colorado River and its tributaries, which flow across seven states and Mexico.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By the 1980s they had dwindled to about 100. Researchers blame non-native predator fish that attacked and ate the razorbacks and dams that disrupted their habitat.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003c/div>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}},{"type":"component","content":"","name":"ad","attributes":{"named":{"label":"fullwidth"},"numeric":["fullwidth"]}},{"type":"contentString","content":"\u003cdiv class=\"post-body\">\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Their numbers have bounced back to between 54,000 and 59,000 today, thanks to a multimillion-dollar effort that enlisted the help of hatcheries, dam operators, landowners, native American tribes and state and federal agencies.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“It’s a work in progress,” said Tom Chart, director of the Upper Colorado River Endangered Fish Recovery Program. “We get more fish out in the system, they’re showing up in more places, they’re spawning in more locations.”\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Chart’s program oversees the campaign to restore the razorback sucker and three other fish, all of them found only in the Colorado River system.\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>In March, the Fish and Wildlife Service recommended changing the humpback chub from endangered to threatened. It takes 18 to 24 months to complete the process, including a public comment period.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The razorback sucker’s name comes from a sharp-edge, keel-like ridge along its back behind its head. Chart thinks the ridge may have evolved to help the fish stay stable in the turbulent waters of the Colorado.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>It can grow up to 3 feet (1 meter) long and live up to 40 years.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Razorbacks have been around for between 3 million and 5 million years, but trouble arrived as the population expanded in the Southwest. State and federal agencies began introducing game fish into the Colorado without realizing they would devour the native fish, Chart said. A spurt of dam-building was a boon to cities and farms but interrupted the natural springtime surge of melting snow, which in turn shrank the floodplains that provided a safe nursery for young razorbacks.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Dams also made parts of the rivers too cold for razorbacks, because they release water from the chilly depths of reservoirs. And they blocked the natural migration of the fish.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>By the late 1980s, most of the wild razorbacks were old, an ominous sign they were no longer reproducing, Chart said. The Fish and Wildlife Service began capturing the remaining wild razorbacks and moving them to hatcheries to begin rebuilding the population.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The agency designated razorbacks an endangered species in 1991, although Utah and Colorado enacted state protections earlier.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Biologists began restocking rivers with hatchery-raised razorbacks in 1995. Now, about 55,000 are released into the Colorado and its tributaries annually.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The Fish and Wildlife Service began working with dam operators to time water releases to help razorbacks spawn and restore flood plains for them to mature. Some dams were modified to help razorbacks to get by.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Wildlife officials began reining in non-native predator fish with nets and screens to keep them from escaping reservoirs, or removing them by electrofishing — stunning them with electricity and euthanizing them with an overdose of anesthetic.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Changing the fish from endangered to threatened will allow more flexibility in the way it is protected, said Kevin McAbee, deputy director of the recovery program.\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Under endangered status, individual fish have to be protected, but threatened status means biologists can take steps to improve the overall population even if some fish might be hurt, McAbee said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Razorbacks still face challenges. The first-year survival rate of hatchery fish, each roughly 14 inches (36 centimeters) long, is about 20 percent or less in the wild, Chart said. It climbs to 80 percent after that.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Drought, climate change and increasing human demand are straining the rivers, which makes it harder for fish to survive.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>McAbee said the Fish and Wildlife Service took the river’s uncertain future into account before recommending the change for the razorbacks. Their long lifespan helps them endure low-water years when few young fish survive, he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Cooperation among water users in 2018, a year of devastating drought in much of the Southwest, shows the razorbacks’ needs can be accommodated, McAbee said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“Things could have been catastrophic,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>Taylor McKinnon of the Center for Biological Diversity is doubtful about how healthy the razorbacks really are.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>The government’s reliance on hatcheries to boost the population shows they are not self-sustaining, he said, and he worries about their future in the overtaxed Colorado River.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“I think the elephant in the room right now with regard to recovery is climate change and river flows and regional aridification,” he said.\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>\u003c/p>\n\u003cp>“We’re skeptical of the merits of this,” McKinnon said.\u003c/p>\n\n\u003c/div>\u003c/p>","attributes":{"named":{},"numeric":[]}}],"link":"/science/1932298/odd-looking-razorback-sucker-fish-pulled-back-from-extinction","authors":["byline_science_1932298"],"categories":["science_2874","science_35"],"tags":["science_1120","science_261","science_192","science_248"],"featImg":"science_1932303","label":"source_science_1932298"}},"programsReducer":{"possible":{"id":"possible","title":"Possible","info":"Possible is hosted by entrepreneur Reid Hoffman and writer Aria Finger. Together in Possible, Hoffman and Finger lead enlightening discussions about building a brighter collective future. The show features interviews with visionary guests like Trevor Noah, Sam Altman and Janette Sadik-Khan. Possible paints an optimistic portrait of the world we can create through science, policy, business, art and our shared humanity. It asks: What if everything goes right for once? How can we get there? Each episode also includes a short fiction story generated by advanced AI GPT-4, serving as a thought-provoking springboard to speculate how humanity could leverage technology for good.","airtime":"SUN 2pm","imageSrc":"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/possible-5gxfizEbKOJ-pbF5ASgxrs_.1400x1400.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.possible.fm/","meta":{"site":"news","source":"Possible"},"link":"/radio/program/possible","subscribe":{"apple":"https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/possible/id1677184070","spotify":"https://open.spotify.com/show/730YpdUSNlMyPQwNnyjp4k"}},"1a":{"id":"1a","title":"1A","info":"1A is home to the national conversation. 1A brings on great guests and frames the best debate in ways that make you think, share and engage.","airtime":"MON-THU 11pm-12am","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/1a.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"https://the1a.org/","meta":{"site":"news","source":"npr"},"link":"/radio/program/1a","subscribe":{"npr":"https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/RBrW","apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=1188724250&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/radio/1A-p947376/","rss":"https://feeds.npr.org/510316/podcast.xml"}},"all-things-considered":{"id":"all-things-considered","title":"All Things Considered","info":"Every weekday, \u003cem>All Things Considered\u003c/em> hosts Robert Siegel, Audie Cornish, Ari Shapiro, and Kelly McEvers present the program's trademark mix of news, interviews, commentaries, reviews, and offbeat features. Michel Martin hosts on the weekends.","airtime":"MON-FRI 1pm-2pm, 4:30pm-6:30pm\u003cbr />SAT-SUN 5pm-6pm","imageSrc":"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/ATC_1400.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.npr.org/programs/all-things-considered/","meta":{"site":"news","source":"npr"},"link":"/radio/program/all-things-considered"},"american-suburb-podcast":{"id":"american-suburb-podcast","title":"American Suburb: The Podcast","tagline":"The flip side of gentrification, told through one town","info":"Gentrification is changing cities across America, forcing people from neighborhoods they have long called home. Call them the displaced. Now those priced out of the Bay Area are looking for a better life in an unlikely place. American Suburb follows this migration to one California town along the Delta, 45 miles from San Francisco. But is this once sleepy suburb ready for them?","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/powerpress/1440_0018_AmericanSuburb_iTunesTile_01.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"/news/series/american-suburb-podcast","meta":{"site":"news","source":"kqed","order":"13"},"link":"/news/series/american-suburb-podcast/","subscribe":{"npr":"https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/RBrW","apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?mt=2&id=1287748328","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/radio/American-Suburb-p1086805/","rss":"https://ww2.kqed.org/news/series/american-suburb-podcast/feed/podcast","google":"https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkMzMDExODgxNjA5"}},"baycurious":{"id":"baycurious","title":"Bay Curious","tagline":"Exploring the Bay Area, one question at a time","info":"KQED’s new podcast, Bay Curious, gets to the bottom of the mysteries — both profound and peculiar — that give the Bay Area its unique identity. And we’ll do it with your help! You ask the questions. You decide what Bay Curious investigates. And you join us on the journey to find the answers.","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/powerpress/1440_0017_BayCurious_iTunesTile_01.jpg","imageAlt":"\"KQED Bay Curious","officialWebsiteLink":"/news/series/baycurious","meta":{"site":"news","source":"kqed","order":"4"},"link":"/podcasts/baycurious","subscribe":{"apple":"https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/bay-curious/id1172473406","npr":"https://www.npr.org/podcasts/500557090/bay-curious","rss":"https://ww2.kqed.org/news/category/bay-curious-podcast/feed/podcast","google":"https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93dzIua3FlZC5vcmcvbmV3cy9jYXRlZ29yeS9iYXktY3VyaW91cy1wb2RjYXN0L2ZlZWQvcG9kY2FzdA","stitcher":"https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/bay-curious","spotify":"https://open.spotify.com/show/6O76IdmhixfijmhTZLIJ8k"}},"bbc-world-service":{"id":"bbc-world-service","title":"BBC World Service","info":"The day's top stories from BBC News compiled twice daily in the week, once at weekends.","airtime":"MON-FRI 9pm-10pm, TUE-FRI 1am-2am","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/2021/10/BBC_1400.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/live:bbc_world_service","meta":{"site":"news","source":"BBC World Service"},"link":"/radio/program/bbc-world-service","subscribe":{"apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/global-news-podcast/id135067274?mt=2","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/radio/BBC-World-Service-p455581/","rss":"https://podcasts.files.bbci.co.uk/p02nq0gn.rss"}},"code-switch-life-kit":{"id":"code-switch-life-kit","title":"Code Switch / Life Kit","info":"\u003cem>Code Switch\u003c/em>, which listeners will hear in the first part of the hour, has fearless and much-needed conversations about race. Hosted by journalists of color, the show tackles the subject of race head-on, exploring how it impacts every part of society — from politics and pop culture to history, sports and more.\u003cbr />\u003cbr />\u003cem>Life Kit\u003c/em>, which will be in the second part of the hour, guides you through spaces and feelings no one prepares you for — from finances to mental health, from workplace microaggressions to imposter syndrome, from relationships to parenting. The show features experts with real world experience and shares their knowledge. Because everyone needs a little help being human.\u003cbr />\u003cbr />\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/podcasts/510312/codeswitch\">\u003cem>Code Switch\u003c/em> offical site and podcast\u003c/a>\u003cbr />\u003ca href=\"https://www.npr.org/lifekit\">\u003cem>Life Kit\u003c/em> offical site and podcast\u003c/a>\u003cbr />","airtime":"SUN 9pm-10pm","imageSrc":"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/CodeSwitchLifeKit_StationGraphics_300x300EmailGraphic.png","meta":{"site":"radio","source":"npr"},"link":"/radio/program/code-switch-life-kit","subscribe":{"apple":"https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/1112190608?mt=2&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory","google":"https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cubnByLm9yZy9yc3MvcG9kY2FzdC5waHA_aWQ9NTEwMzEy","spotify":"https://open.spotify.com/show/3bExJ9JQpkwNhoHvaIIuyV","rss":"https://feeds.npr.org/510312/podcast.xml"}},"commonwealth-club":{"id":"commonwealth-club","title":"Commonwealth Club of California Podcast","info":"The Commonwealth Club of California is the nation's oldest and largest public affairs forum. As a non-partisan forum, The Club brings to the public airwaves diverse viewpoints on important topics. The Club's weekly radio broadcast - the oldest in the U.S., dating back to 1924 - is carried across the nation on public radio stations and is now podcasting. Our website archive features audio of our recent programs, as well as selected speeches from our long and distinguished history. This podcast feed is usually updated twice a week and is always un-edited.","airtime":"THU 10pm, FRI 1am","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2019/07/commonwealthclub.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.commonwealthclub.org/podcasts","meta":{"site":"news","source":"Commonwealth Club of California"},"link":"/radio/program/commonwealth-club","subscribe":{"apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/commonwealth-club-of-california-podcast/id976334034?mt=2","google":"https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cDovL3d3dy5jb21tb253ZWFsdGhjbHViLm9yZy9hdWRpby9wb2RjYXN0L3dlZWtseS54bWw","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/radio/Commonwealth-Club-of-California-p1060/"}},"considerthis":{"id":"considerthis","title":"Consider This","tagline":"Make sense of the day","info":"Make sense of the day. Every weekday afternoon, Consider This helps you consider the major stories of the day in less than 15 minutes, featuring the reporting and storytelling resources of NPR. Plus, KQED’s Bianca Taylor brings you the local KQED news you need to know.","imageSrc":"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Consider-This_3000_V3-copy-scaled-1.jpg","imageAlt":"Consider This from NPR and KQED","officialWebsiteLink":"/podcasts/considerthis","meta":{"site":"news","source":"kqed","order":"7"},"link":"/podcasts/considerthis","subscribe":{"apple":"https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1503226625?mt=2&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory","npr":"https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/coronavirusdaily","google":"https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5ucHIub3JnLzUxMDM1NS9wb2RjYXN0LnhtbA","spotify":"https://open.spotify.com/show/3Z6JdCS2d0eFEpXHKI6WqH"}},"forum":{"id":"forum","title":"Forum","tagline":"The conversation starts here","info":"KQED’s live call-in program discussing local, state, national and international issues, as well as in-depth interviews.","airtime":"MON-FRI 9am-11am, 10pm-11pm","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/2022/06/forum-logo-900x900tile-1.gif","imageAlt":"KQED Forum with Mina Kim and Alexis Madrigal","officialWebsiteLink":"/forum","meta":{"site":"news","source":"kqed","order":"8"},"link":"/forum","subscribe":{"apple":"https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/kqeds-forum/id73329719","google":"https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM5NTU3MzgxNjMz","npr":"https://www.npr.org/podcasts/432307980/forum","stitcher":"https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqedfm-kqeds-forum-podcast","rss":"https://feeds.megaphone.fm/KQINC9557381633"}},"freakonomics-radio":{"id":"freakonomics-radio","title":"Freakonomics Radio","info":"Freakonomics Radio is a one-hour award-winning podcast and public-radio project hosted by Stephen Dubner, with co-author Steve Levitt as a regular guest. It is produced in partnership with WNYC.","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/05/freakonomicsRadio.png","officialWebsiteLink":"http://freakonomics.com/","airtime":"SUN 1am-2am, SAT 3pm-4pm","meta":{"site":"radio","source":"WNYC"},"link":"/radio/program/freakonomics-radio","subscribe":{"npr":"https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/4s8b","apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/freakonomics-radio/id354668519","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/podcasts/WNYC-Podcasts/Freakonomics-Radio-p272293/","rss":"https://feeds.feedburner.com/freakonomicsradio"}},"fresh-air":{"id":"fresh-air","title":"Fresh Air","info":"Hosted by Terry Gross, \u003cem>Fresh Air from WHYY\u003c/em> is the Peabody Award-winning weekday magazine of contemporary arts and issues. One of public radio's most popular programs, Fresh Air features intimate conversations with today's biggest luminaries.","airtime":"MON-FRI 7pm-8pm","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/2021/10/FreshAir_1400.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.npr.org/programs/fresh-air/","meta":{"site":"radio","source":"npr"},"link":"/radio/program/fresh-air","subscribe":{"npr":"https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/4s8b","apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=214089682&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/radio/Fresh-Air-p17/","rss":"https://feeds.npr.org/381444908/podcast.xml"}},"here-and-now":{"id":"here-and-now","title":"Here & Now","info":"A live production of NPR and WBUR Boston, in collaboration with stations across the country, Here & Now reflects the fluid world of news as it's happening in the middle of the day, with timely, in-depth news, interviews and conversation. Hosted by Robin Young, Jeremy Hobson and Tonya Mosley.","airtime":"MON-THU 11am-12pm","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/2021/10/HereNow_1400.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"http://www.wbur.org/hereandnow","meta":{"site":"news","source":"npr"},"link":"/radio/program/here-and-now","subsdcribe":{"apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?mt=2&id=426698661","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/radio/Here--Now-p211/","rss":"https://feeds.npr.org/510051/podcast.xml"}},"how-i-built-this":{"id":"how-i-built-this","title":"How I Built This with Guy Raz","info":"Guy Raz dives into the stories behind some of the world's best known companies. How I Built This weaves a narrative journey about innovators, entrepreneurs and idealists—and the movements they built.","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2018/05/howIBuiltThis.png","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.npr.org/podcasts/510313/how-i-built-this","airtime":"SUN 7:30pm-8pm","meta":{"site":"news","source":"npr"},"link":"/radio/program/how-i-built-this","subscribe":{"npr":"https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/3zxy","apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/how-i-built-this-with-guy-raz/id1150510297?mt=2","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/podcasts/Arts--Culture-Podcasts/How-I-Built-This-p910896/","rss":"https://feeds.npr.org/510313/podcast.xml"}},"inside-europe":{"id":"inside-europe","title":"Inside Europe","info":"Inside Europe, a one-hour weekly news magazine hosted by Helen Seeney and Keith Walker, explores the topical issues shaping the continent. No other part of the globe has experienced such dynamic political and social change in recent years.","airtime":"SAT 3am-4am","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/insideEurope.jpg","meta":{"site":"news","source":"Deutsche Welle"},"link":"/radio/program/inside-europe","subscribe":{"apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/inside-europe/id80106806?mt=2","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/radio/Inside-Europe-p731/","rss":"https://partner.dw.com/xml/podcast_inside-europe"}},"latino-usa":{"id":"latino-usa","title":"Latino USA","airtime":"MON 1am-2am, SUN 6pm-7pm","info":"Latino USA, the radio journal of news and culture, is the only national, English-language radio program produced from a Latino perspective.","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/latinoUsa.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"http://latinousa.org/","meta":{"site":"news","source":"npr"},"link":"/radio/program/latino-usa","subscribe":{"npr":"https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/xtTd","apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=79681317&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/radio/Latino-USA-p621/","rss":"https://feeds.npr.org/510016/podcast.xml"}},"live-from-here-highlights":{"id":"live-from-here-highlights","title":"Live from Here Highlights","info":"Chris Thile steps to the mic as the host of Live from Here (formerly A Prairie Home Companion), a live public radio variety show. Download Chris’s Song of the Week plus other highlights from the broadcast. Produced by American Public Media.","airtime":"SAT 6pm-8pm, SUN 11am-1pm","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/liveFromHere.png","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.livefromhere.org/","meta":{"site":"arts","source":"american public media"},"link":"/radio/program/live-from-here-highlights","subscribe":{"apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/id1167173941","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/radio/Live-from-Here-Highlights-p921744/","rss":"https://feeds.publicradio.org/public_feeds/a-prairie-home-companion-highlights/rss/rss"}},"marketplace":{"id":"marketplace","title":"Marketplace","info":"Our flagship program, helmed by Kai Ryssdal, examines what the day in money delivered, through stories, conversations, newsworthy numbers and more. Updated Monday through Friday at about 3:30 p.m. PT.","airtime":"MON-FRI 4pm-4:30pm, MON-WED 6:30pm-7pm","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/2021/10/Marketplace_1400.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.marketplace.org/","meta":{"site":"news","source":"American Public Media"},"link":"/radio/program/marketplace","subscribe":{"apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=201853034&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/radio/APM-Marketplace-p88/","rss":"https://feeds.publicradio.org/public_feeds/marketplace-pm/rss/rss"}},"mindshift":{"id":"mindshift","title":"MindShift","tagline":"A podcast about the future of learning and how we raise our kids","info":"The MindShift podcast explores the innovations in education that are shaping how kids learn. Hosts Ki Sung and Katrina Schwartz introduce listeners to educators, researchers, parents and students who are developing effective ways to improve how kids learn. We cover topics like how fed-up administrators are developing surprising tactics to deal with classroom disruptions; how listening to podcasts are helping kids develop reading skills; the consequences of overparenting; and why interdisciplinary learning can engage students on all ends of the traditional achievement spectrum. This podcast is part of the MindShift education site, a division of KQED News. KQED is an NPR/PBS member station based in San Francisco. You can also visit the MindShift website for episodes and supplemental blog posts or tweet us \u003ca href=\"https://twitter.com/MindShiftKQED\">@MindShiftKQED\u003c/a> or visit us at \u003ca href=\"/mindshift\">MindShift.KQED.org\u003c/a>","imageSrc":"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/mindshift2021-tile-3000x3000-1-scaled-1.jpg","imageAlt":"KQED MindShift: How We Will Learn","officialWebsiteLink":"/mindshift/","meta":{"site":"news","source":"kqed","order":"2"},"link":"/podcasts/mindshift","subscribe":{"apple":"https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mindshift-podcast/id1078765985","google":"https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM1NzY0NjAwNDI5","npr":"https://www.npr.org/podcasts/464615685/mind-shift-podcast","stitcher":"https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/stories-teachers-share","spotify":"https://open.spotify.com/show/0MxSpNYZKNprFLCl7eEtyx"}},"morning-edition":{"id":"morning-edition","title":"Morning Edition","info":"\u003cem>Morning Edition\u003c/em> takes listeners around the country and the world with multi-faceted stories and commentaries every weekday. Hosts Steve Inskeep, David Greene and Rachel Martin bring you the latest breaking news and features to prepare you for the day.","airtime":"MON-FRI 3am-9am","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/2021/10/ME_1400.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.npr.org/programs/morning-edition/","meta":{"site":"news","source":"npr"},"link":"/radio/program/morning-edition"},"onourwatch":{"id":"onourwatch","title":"On Our Watch","tagline":"Police secrets, unsealed","info":"For decades, the process for how police police themselves has been inconsistent – if not opaque. In some states, like California, these proceedings were completely hidden. After a new police transparency law unsealed scores of internal affairs files, our reporters set out to examine these cases and the shadow world of police discipline. On Our Watch brings listeners into the rooms where officers are questioned and witnesses are interrogated to find out who this system is really protecting. Is it the officers, or the public they've sworn to serve?","imageSrc":"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/OOW_Tile_Final.png","imageAlt":"On Our Watch from NPR and KQED","officialWebsiteLink":"/podcasts/onourwatch","meta":{"site":"news","source":"kqed","order":"1"},"link":"/podcasts/onourwatch","subscribe":{"apple":"https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1567098962","google":"https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5ucHIub3JnLzUxMDM2MC9wb2RjYXN0LnhtbD9zYz1nb29nbGVwb2RjYXN0cw","npr":"https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/onourwatch","spotify":"https://open.spotify.com/show/0OLWoyizopu6tY1XiuX70x","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/radio/On-Our-Watch-p1436229/","stitcher":"https://www.stitcher.com/show/on-our-watch","rss":"https://feeds.npr.org/510360/podcast.xml"}},"on-the-media":{"id":"on-the-media","title":"On The Media","info":"Our weekly podcast explores how the media 'sausage' is made, casts an incisive eye on fluctuations in the marketplace of ideas, and examines threats to the freedom of information and expression in America and abroad. For one hour a week, the show tries to lift the veil from the process of \"making media,\" especially news media, because it's through that lens that we see the world and the world sees us","airtime":"SUN 2pm-3pm, MON 12am-1am","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/onTheMedia.png","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.wnycstudios.org/shows/otm","meta":{"site":"news","source":"wnyc"},"link":"/radio/program/on-the-media","subscribe":{"apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/on-the-media/id73330715?mt=2","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/radio/On-the-Media-p69/","rss":"http://feeds.wnyc.org/onthemedia"}},"our-body-politic":{"id":"our-body-politic","title":"Our Body Politic","info":"Presented by KQED, KCRW and KPCC, and created and hosted by award-winning journalist Farai Chideya, Our Body Politic is unapologetically centered on reporting on not just how women of color experience the major political events of today, but how they’re impacting those very issues.","airtime":"SAT 6pm-7pm, SUN 1am-2am","imageSrc":"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/77/2020/10/Our-Body-Politic_1600.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"https://our-body-politic.simplecast.com/","meta":{"site":"news","source":"kcrw"},"link":"/radio/program/our-body-politic","subscribe":{"apple":"https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/our-body-politic/id1533069868","google":"https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5zaW1wbGVjYXN0LmNvbS9feGFQaHMxcw","spotify":"https://open.spotify.com/show/4ApAiLT1kV153TttWAmqmc","rss":"https://feeds.simplecast.com/_xaPhs1s","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/podcasts/News--Politics-Podcasts/Our-Body-Politic-p1369211/"}},"pbs-newshour":{"id":"pbs-newshour","title":"PBS NewsHour","info":"Analysis, background reports and updates from the PBS NewsHour putting today's news in context.","airtime":"MON-FRI 3pm-4pm","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/2021/10/PBS_1400.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.pbs.org/newshour/","meta":{"site":"news","source":"pbs"},"link":"/radio/program/pbs-newshour","subscribe":{"apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/pbs-newshour-full-show/id394432287?mt=2","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/radio/PBS-NewsHour---Full-Show-p425698/","rss":"https://www.pbs.org/newshour/feeds/rss/podcasts/show"}},"perspectives":{"id":"perspectives","title":"Perspectives","tagline":"KQED's series of of daily listener commentaries since 1991","info":"KQED's series of of daily listener commentaries since 1991.","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/perspectives/wp-content/uploads/sites/44/powerpress/1440_0010_Perspectives_iTunesTile_01.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"/perspectives/","meta":{"site":"radio","source":"kqed","order":"15"},"link":"/perspectives","subscribe":{"apple":"https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/id73801135","npr":"https://www.npr.org/podcasts/432309616/perspectives","rss":"https://ww2.kqed.org/perspectives/category/perspectives/feed/","google":"https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93dzIua3FlZC5vcmcvcGVyc3BlY3RpdmVzL2NhdGVnb3J5L3BlcnNwZWN0aXZlcy9mZWVkLw"}},"planet-money":{"id":"planet-money","title":"Planet Money","info":"The economy explained. Imagine you could call up a friend and say, Meet me at the bar and tell me what's going on with the economy. Now imagine that's actually a fun evening.","airtime":"SUN 3pm-4pm","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/planetmoney.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.npr.org/sections/money/","meta":{"site":"news","source":"npr"},"link":"/radio/program/planet-money","subscribe":{"npr":"https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/M4f5","apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/planet-money/id290783428?mt=2","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/podcasts/Business--Economics-Podcasts/Planet-Money-p164680/","rss":"https://feeds.npr.org/510289/podcast.xml"}},"politicalbreakdown":{"id":"politicalbreakdown","title":"Political Breakdown","tagline":"Politics from a personal perspective","info":"Political Breakdown is a new series that explores the political intersection of California and the nation. Each week hosts Scott Shafer and Marisa Lagos are joined with a new special guest to unpack politics -- with personality — and offer an insider’s glimpse at how politics happens.","airtime":"THU 6:30pm-7pm","imageSrc":"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/01/PB24_Final-scaled.jpg","imageAlt":"KQED Political Breakdown","officialWebsiteLink":"/podcasts/politicalbreakdown","meta":{"site":"radio","source":"kqed","order":"11"},"link":"/podcasts/politicalbreakdown","subscribe":{"apple":"https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/political-breakdown/id1327641087","google":"https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM5Nzk2MzI2MTEx","npr":"https://www.npr.org/podcasts/572155894/political-breakdown","stitcher":"https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/political-breakdown","spotify":"https://open.spotify.com/show/07RVyIjIdk2WDuVehvBMoN","rss":"https://ww2.kqed.org/news/tag/political-breakdown/feed/podcast"}},"pri-the-world":{"id":"pri-the-world","title":"PRI's The World: Latest Edition","info":"Each weekday, host Marco Werman and his team of producers bring you the world's most interesting stories in an hour of radio that reminds us just how small our planet really is.","airtime":"MON-FRI 2pm-3pm","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/2021/10/TheWorld_1400.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.pri.org/programs/the-world","meta":{"site":"news","source":"PRI"},"link":"/radio/program/pri-the-world","subscribe":{"apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/pris-the-world-latest-edition/id278196007?mt=2","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/podcasts/News--Politics-Podcasts/PRIs-The-World-p24/","rss":"http://feeds.feedburner.com/pri/theworld"}},"radiolab":{"id":"radiolab","title":"Radiolab","info":"A two-time Peabody Award-winner, Radiolab is an investigation told through sounds and stories, and centered around one big idea. In the Radiolab world, information sounds like music and science and culture collide. Hosted by Jad Abumrad and Robert Krulwich, the show is designed for listeners who demand skepticism, but appreciate wonder. WNYC Studios is the producer of other leading podcasts including Freakonomics Radio, Death, Sex & Money, On the Media and many more.","airtime":"SUN 12am-1am, SAT 2pm-3pm","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/radiolab1400.png","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.wnycstudios.org/shows/radiolab/","meta":{"site":"science","source":"WNYC"},"link":"/radio/program/radiolab","subscribe":{"apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/radiolab/id152249110?mt=2","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/radio/RadioLab-p68032/","rss":"https://feeds.wnyc.org/radiolab"}},"reveal":{"id":"reveal","title":"Reveal","info":"Created by The Center for Investigative Reporting and PRX, Reveal is public radios first one-hour weekly radio show and podcast dedicated to investigative reporting. Credible, fact based and without a partisan agenda, Reveal combines the power and artistry of driveway moment storytelling with data-rich reporting on critically important issues. The result is stories that inform and inspire, arming our listeners with information to right injustices, hold the powerful accountable and improve lives.Reveal is hosted by Al Letson and showcases the award-winning work of CIR and newsrooms large and small across the nation. In a radio and podcast market crowded with choices, Reveal focuses on important and often surprising stories that illuminate the world for our listeners.","airtime":"SAT 4pm-5pm","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/reveal300px.png","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.revealnews.org/episodes/","meta":{"site":"news","source":"npr"},"link":"/radio/program/reveal","subscribe":{"apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/reveal/id886009669","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/radio/Reveal-p679597/","rss":"http://feeds.revealradio.org/revealpodcast"}},"says-you":{"id":"says-you","title":"Says You!","info":"Public radio's game show of bluff and bluster, words and whimsy. The warmest, wittiest cocktail party - it's spirited and civil, brainy and boisterous, peppered with musical interludes. Fast paced and playful, it's the most fun you can have with language without getting your mouth washed out with soap. Our motto: It's not important to know the answers, it's important to like the answers!","airtime":"SUN 4pm-5pm","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/saysYou.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"http://www.saysyouradio.com/","meta":{"site":"comedy","source":"Pipit and Finch"},"link":"/radio/program/says-you","subscribe":{"apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/says-you!/id1050199826","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/radio/Says-You-p480/","rss":"https://saysyou.libsyn.com/rss"}},"science-friday":{"id":"science-friday","title":"Science Friday","info":"Science Friday is a weekly science talk show, broadcast live over public radio stations nationwide. Each week, the show focuses on science topics that are in the news and tries to bring an educated, balanced discussion to bear on the scientific issues at hand. Panels of expert guests join host Ira Flatow, a veteran science journalist, to discuss science and to take questions from listeners during the call-in portion of the program.","airtime":"FRI 11am-1pm","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/scienceFriday.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.wnycstudios.org/shows/science-friday","meta":{"site":"news","source":"npr"},"link":"/radio/program/science-friday","subscribe":{"apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=73329284&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/radio/Science-Friday-p394/","rss":"http://feeds.wnyc.org/science-friday"}},"science-podcast":{"id":"science-podcast","title":"KQED Science News","tagline":"From the lab, to your ears","info":"KQED Science explores science and environment news, trends, and events from the Bay Area and beyond.","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/science/wp-content/uploads/sites/35/powerpress/1440_0006_SciNews_iTunesTile_01.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"https://ww2.kqed.org/science/category/science-podcast/","meta":{"site":"science","source":"kqed","order":"17"},"link":"/science/category/science-podcast","subscribe":{"apple":"https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/kqed-science-news/id214663465","google":"https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cDovL2Jsb2dzLmtxZWQub3JnL3NjaWVuY2UvZmVlZC8","stitcher":"https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed-science-news","rss":"https://ww2.kqed.org/science/category/science-podcast/feed/podcast"}},"selected-shorts":{"id":"selected-shorts","title":"Selected Shorts","info":"Spellbinding short stories by established and emerging writers take on a new life when they are performed by stars of the stage and screen.","airtime":"SAT 8pm-9pm","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/selectedShorts.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.pri.org/programs/selected-shorts","meta":{"site":"arts","source":"pri"},"link":"/radio/program/selected-shorts","subscribe":{"apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=253191824&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/radio/Selected-Shorts-p31792/","rss":"https://feeds.megaphone.fm/selectedshorts"}},"snap-judgment":{"id":"snap-judgment","title":"Snap Judgment","info":"Snap Judgment (Storytelling, with a BEAT) mixes real stories with killer beats to produce cinematic, dramatic, kick-ass radio. Snap’s raw, musical brand of storytelling dares listeners to see the world through the eyes of another. WNYC studios is the producer of leading podcasts including Radiolab, Freakonomics Radio, Note To Self, Here’s The Thing With Alec Baldwin, and more.","airtime":"SAT 1pm-2pm, 9pm-10pm","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/snapJudgement.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"https://snapjudgment.org","meta":{"site":"arts","source":"WNYC"},"link":"/radio/program/snap-judgment","subscribe":{"apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=283657561&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/radio/Snap-Judgment-p243817/","rss":"https://feeds.feedburner.com/snapjudgment-wnyc"}},"soldout":{"id":"soldout","title":"SOLD OUT: Rethinking Housing in America","tagline":"A new future for housing","info":"Sold Out: Rethinking Housing in America","imageSrc":"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Final-Tile-Design.png","imageAlt":"KQED Sold Out: Rethinking Housing in America","officialWebsiteLink":"/podcasts/soldout","meta":{"site":"news","source":"kqed","order":3},"link":"/podcasts/soldout","subscribe":{"npr":"https://www.npr.org/podcasts/911586047/s-o-l-d-o-u-t-a-new-future-for-housing","apple":"https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/introducing-sold-out-rethinking-housing-in-america/id1531354937","rss":"https://feeds.megaphone.fm/soldout","spotify":"https://open.spotify.com/show/38dTBSk2ISFoPiyYNoKn1X","stitcher":"https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/sold-out-rethinking-housing-in-america","tunein":"https://tunein.com/radio/SOLD-OUT-Rethinking-Housing-in-America-p1365871/","google":"https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vc29sZG91dA"}},"ted-radio-hour":{"id":"ted-radio-hour","title":"TED Radio Hour","info":"The TED Radio Hour is a journey through fascinating ideas, astonishing inventions, fresh approaches to old problems, and new ways to think and create.","airtime":"SUN 3pm-4pm, SAT 10pm-11pm","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/tedRadioHour.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.npr.org/programs/ted-radio-hour/?showDate=2018-06-22","meta":{"site":"news","source":"npr"},"link":"/radio/program/ted-radio-hour","subscribe":{"npr":"https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/8vsS","apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=523121474&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/radio/TED-Radio-Hour-p418021/","rss":"https://feeds.npr.org/510298/podcast.xml"}},"tech-nation":{"id":"tech-nation","title":"Tech Nation Radio Podcast","info":"Tech Nation is a weekly public radio program, hosted by Dr. Moira Gunn. Founded in 1993, it has grown from a simple interview show to a multi-faceted production, featuring conversations with noted technology and science leaders, and a weekly science and technology-related commentary.","airtime":"FRI 10pm","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/techNation.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"http://technation.podomatic.com/","meta":{"site":"science","source":"Tech Nation Media"},"link":"/radio/program/tech-nation","subscribe":{"rss":"https://technation.podomatic.com/rss2.xml"}},"thebay":{"id":"thebay","title":"The Bay","tagline":"Local news to keep you rooted","info":"Host Devin Katayama walks you through the biggest story of the day with reporters and newsmakers.","imageSrc":"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/1440_0002_TheBay_iTunesTile_01.jpg","imageAlt":"\"KQED The Bay","officialWebsiteLink":"/podcasts/thebay","meta":{"site":"radio","source":"kqed","order":"6"},"link":"/podcasts/thebay","subscribe":{"apple":"https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-bay/id1350043452","google":"https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM4MjU5Nzg2MzI3","npr":"https://www.npr.org/podcasts/586725995/the-bay","stitcher":"https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/the-bay","spotify":"https://open.spotify.com/show/4BIKBKIujizLHlIlBNaAqQ","rss":"https://feeds.megaphone.fm/KQINC8259786327"}},"californiareport":{"id":"californiareport","title":"The California Report","tagline":"California, day by day","info":"KQED’s statewide radio news program providing daily coverage of issues, trends and public policy decisions.","imageSrc":"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/77/2020/12/TCR-scaled.jpg","imageAlt":"KQED The California Report","officialWebsiteLink":"/californiareport","meta":{"site":"news","source":"kqed","order":"9"},"link":"/californiareport","subscribe":{"apple":"https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/kqeds-the-california-report/id79681292","google":"https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM1MDAyODE4NTgz","npr":"https://www.npr.org/podcasts/432285393/the-california-report","stitcher":"https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqedfm-kqeds-the-california-report-podcast-8838","rss":"https://ww2.kqed.org/news/tag/tcram/feed/podcast"}},"californiareportmagazine":{"id":"californiareportmagazine","title":"The California Report Magazine","tagline":"Your state, your stories","info":"Every week, The California Report Magazine takes you on a road trip for the ears: to visit the places and meet the people who make California unique. The in-depth storytelling podcast from the California Report.","airtime":"FRI 4:30pm-5pm, 6:30pm-7pm, 11pm-11:30pm","imageSrc":"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/77/2020/12/TCRmag-scaled.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"/californiareportmagazine","meta":{"site":"news","source":"kqed","order":"10"},"link":"/californiareportmagazine","subscribe":{"apple":"https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-california-report-magazine/id1314750545","google":"https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM3NjkwNjk1OTAz","npr":"https://www.npr.org/podcasts/564733126/the-california-report-magazine","stitcher":"https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/the-california-report-magazine","rss":"https://ww2.kqed.org/news/tag/tcrmag/feed/podcast"}},"theleap":{"id":"theleap","title":"The Leap","tagline":"What if you closed your eyes, and jumped?","info":"Stories about people making dramatic, risky changes, told by award-winning public radio reporter Judy Campbell.","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/news/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/powerpress/1440_0000_TheLeap_iTunestile_01.jpg","imageAlt":"KQED The Leap","officialWebsiteLink":"/podcasts/theleap","meta":{"site":"news","source":"kqed","order":"14"},"link":"/podcasts/theleap","subscribe":{"apple":"https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-leap/id1046668171","google":"https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkM0NTcwODQ2MjY2","npr":"https://www.npr.org/podcasts/447248267/the-leap","stitcher":"https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/the-leap","spotify":"https://open.spotify.com/show/3sSlVHHzU0ytLwuGs1SD1U","rss":"https://ww2.kqed.org/news/programs/the-leap/feed/podcast"}},"masters-of-scale":{"id":"masters-of-scale","title":"Masters of Scale","info":"Masters of Scale is an original podcast in which LinkedIn co-founder and Greylock Partner Reid Hoffman sets out to describe and prove theories that explain how great entrepreneurs take their companies from zero to a gazillion in ingenious fashion.","airtime":"Every other Wednesday June 12 through October 16 at 8pm (repeats Thursdays at 2am)","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2019/06/mastersofscale.jpeg","officialWebsiteLink":"https://mastersofscale.com/","meta":{"site":"radio","source":"WaitWhat"},"link":"/radio/program/masters-of-scale","subscribe":{"apple":"http://mastersofscale.app.link/","rss":"https://rss.art19.com/masters-of-scale"}},"the-moth-radio-hour":{"id":"the-moth-radio-hour","title":"The Moth Radio Hour","info":"Since its launch in 1997, The Moth has presented thousands of true stories, told live and without notes, to standing-room-only crowds worldwide. Moth storytellers stand alone, under a spotlight, with only a microphone and a roomful of strangers. The storyteller and the audience embark on a high-wire act of shared experience which is both terrifying and exhilarating. Since 2008, The Moth podcast has featured many of our favorite stories told live on Moth stages around the country. For information on all of our programs and live events, visit themoth.org.","airtime":"SAT 8pm-9pm and SUN 11am-12pm","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/theMoth.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"https://themoth.org/","meta":{"site":"arts","source":"prx"},"link":"/radio/program/the-moth-radio-hour","subscribe":{"apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-moth-podcast/id275699983?mt=2","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/radio/The-Moth-p273888/","rss":"http://feeds.themoth.org/themothpodcast"}},"the-new-yorker-radio-hour":{"id":"the-new-yorker-radio-hour","title":"The New Yorker Radio Hour","info":"The New Yorker Radio Hour is a weekly program presented by the magazine's editor, David Remnick, and produced by WNYC Studios and The New Yorker. Each episode features a diverse mix of interviews, profiles, storytelling, and an occasional burst of humor inspired by the magazine, and shaped by its writers, artists, and editors. This isn't a radio version of a magazine, but something all its own, reflecting the rich possibilities of audio storytelling and conversation. Theme music for the show was composed and performed by Merrill Garbus of tUnE-YArDs.","airtime":"SAT 10am-11am","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/theNewYorker.png","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.wnycstudios.org/shows/tnyradiohour","meta":{"site":"arts","source":"WNYC"},"link":"/radio/program/the-new-yorker-radio-hour","subscribe":{"apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/id1050430296","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/podcasts/WNYC-Podcasts/New-Yorker-Radio-Hour-p803804/","rss":"https://feeds.feedburner.com/newyorkerradiohour"}},"the-takeaway":{"id":"the-takeaway","title":"The Takeaway","info":"The Takeaway is produced in partnership with its national audience. It delivers perspective and analysis to help us better understand the day’s news. Be a part of the American conversation on-air and online.","airtime":"MON-THU 12pm-1pm","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/2021/10/TheTakeaway_1400.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.wnycstudios.org/shows/takeaway","meta":{"site":"news","source":"WNYC"},"link":"/radio/program/the-takeaway","subscribe":{"apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-takeaway/id363143310?mt=2","tuneIn":"http://tunein.com/radio/The-Takeaway-p150731/","rss":"https://feeds.feedburner.com/takeawaypodcast"}},"this-american-life":{"id":"this-american-life","title":"This American Life","info":"This American Life is a weekly public radio show, heard by 2.2 million people on more than 500 stations. Another 2.5 million people download the weekly podcast. It is hosted by Ira Glass, produced in collaboration with Chicago Public Media, delivered to stations by PRX The Public Radio Exchange, and has won all of the major broadcasting awards.","airtime":"SAT 12pm-1pm, 7pm-8pm","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/thisAmericanLife.png","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.thisamericanlife.org/","meta":{"site":"news","source":"wbez"},"link":"/radio/program/this-american-life","subscribe":{"apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=201671138&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory","rss":"https://www.thisamericanlife.org/podcast/rss.xml"}},"truthbetold":{"id":"truthbetold","title":"Truth Be Told","tagline":"Advice by and for people of color","info":"We’re the friend you call after a long day, the one who gets it. Through wisdom from some of the greatest thinkers of our time, host Tonya Mosley explores what it means to grow and thrive as a Black person in America, while discovering new ways of being that serve as a portal to more love, more healing, and more joy.","airtime":"","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/2020/08/TBT_2020tile_3000x3000-scaled.jpg","imageAlt":"KQED Truth Be Told with Tonya Mosley","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.kqed.ord/podcasts/truthbetold","meta":{"site":"news","source":"npr","order":"12"},"link":"/podcasts/truthbetold","subscribe":{"apple":"https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/truth-be-told/id1462216572","google":"https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93dzIua3FlZC5vcmcvbmV3cy9jYXRlZ29yeS90cnV0aC1iZS10b2xkLXBvZGNhc3QvZmVlZA","npr":"https://www.npr.org/podcasts/719210818/truth-be-told","stitcher":"https://www.stitcher.com/s?fid=398170&refid=stpr","spotify":"https://open.spotify.com/show/587DhwTBxke6uvfwDfaV5N"}},"wait-wait-dont-tell-me":{"id":"wait-wait-dont-tell-me","title":"Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me!","info":"Peter Sagal and Bill Kurtis host the weekly NPR News quiz show alongside some of the best and brightest news and entertainment personalities.","airtime":"SUN 10am-11am, SAT 11am-12pm, SAT 6pm-7pm","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/waitWait.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.npr.org/programs/wait-wait-dont-tell-me/","meta":{"site":"news","source":"npr"},"link":"/radio/program/wait-wait-dont-tell-me","subscribe":{"npr":"https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/Xogv","apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewPodcast?s=143441&mt=2&id=121493804&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/radio/Wait-Wait-Dont-Tell-Me-p46/","rss":"https://feeds.npr.org/344098539/podcast.xml"}},"washington-week":{"id":"washington-week","title":"Washington Week","info":"For 50 years, Washington Week has been the most intelligent and up to date conversation about the most important news stories of the week. Washington Week is the longest-running news and public affairs program on PBS and features journalists -- not pundits -- lending insight and perspective to the week's important news stories.","airtime":"SAT 1:30am-2am","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/04/washington-week.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"http://www.pbs.org/weta/washingtonweek/","meta":{"site":"news","source":"pbs"},"link":"/radio/program/washington-week","subscribe":{"apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/washington-week-audio-pbs/id83324702?mt=2","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/podcasts/Current-Affairs/Washington-Week-p693/","rss":"http://feeds.pbs.org/pbs/weta/washingtonweek-audio"}},"weekend-edition-saturday":{"id":"weekend-edition-saturday","title":"Weekend Edition Saturday","info":"Weekend Edition Saturday wraps up the week's news and offers a mix of analysis and features on a wide range of topics, including arts, sports, entertainment, and human interest stories. The two-hour program is hosted by NPR's Peabody Award-winning Scott Simon.","airtime":"SAT 5am-10am","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/2021/10/WE_1400.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.npr.org/programs/weekend-edition-saturday/","meta":{"site":"news","source":"npr"},"link":"/radio/program/weekend-edition-saturday"},"weekend-edition-sunday":{"id":"weekend-edition-sunday","title":"Weekend Edition Sunday","info":"Weekend Edition Sunday features interviews with newsmakers, artists, scientists, politicians, musicians, writers, theologians and historians. The program has covered news events from Nelson Mandela's 1990 release from a South African prison to the capture of Saddam Hussein.","airtime":"SUN 5am-10am","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/2021/10/WE_1400.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.npr.org/programs/weekend-edition-sunday/","meta":{"site":"news","source":"npr"},"link":"/radio/program/weekend-edition-sunday"},"world-affairs":{"id":"world-affairs","title":"World Affairs","info":"The world as we knew it is undergoing a rapid transformation…so what's next? Welcome to WorldAffairs, your guide to a changing world. We give you the context you need to navigate across borders and ideologies. Through sound-rich stories and in-depth interviews, we break down what it means to be a global citizen on a hot, crowded planet. Our hosts, Ray Suarez, Teresa Cotsirilos and Philip Yun help you make sense of an uncertain world, one story at a time.","airtime":"MON 10pm, TUE 1am, SAT 3am","imageSrc":"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/worldaffairs-podcastlogo2021-scaled.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.worldaffairs.org/","meta":{"site":"news","source":"World Affairs"},"link":"/radio/program/world-affairs","subscribe":{"apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/world-affairs/id101215657?mt=2","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/radio/WorldAffairs-p1665/","rss":"https://worldaffairs.libsyn.com/rss"}},"on-shifting-ground":{"id":"on-shifting-ground","title":"On Shifting Ground with Ray Suarez","info":"Geopolitical turmoil. A warming planet. Authoritarians on the rise. We live in a chaotic world that’s rapidly shifting around us. “On Shifting Ground with Ray Suarez” explores international fault lines and how they impact us all. Each week, NPR veteran Ray Suarez hosts conversations with journalists, leaders and policy experts to help us read between the headlines – and give us hope for human resilience.","airtime":"MON 10pm, TUE 1am, SAT 3am","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/2022/12/onshiftingground-600x600-1.png","officialWebsiteLink":"https://worldaffairs.org/radio-podcast/","meta":{"site":"news","source":"On Shifting Ground"},"link":"/radio/program/on-shifting-ground","subscribe":{"apple":"https://podcasts.apple.com/ie/podcast/on-shifting-ground/id101215657","rss":"https://feeds.libsyn.com/36668/rss"}},"hidden-brain":{"id":"hidden-brain","title":"Hidden Brain","info":"Shankar Vedantam uses science and storytelling to reveal the unconscious patterns that drive human behavior, shape our choices and direct our relationships.","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/05/hiddenbrain.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.npr.org/series/423302056/hidden-brain","airtime":"SUN 7pm-8pm","meta":{"site":"news","source":"NPR"},"link":"/radio/program/hidden-brain","subscribe":{"apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/hidden-brain/id1028908750?mt=2","tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/podcasts/Science-Podcasts/Hidden-Brain-p787503/","rss":"https://feeds.npr.org/510308/podcast.xml"}},"city-arts":{"id":"city-arts","title":"City Arts & Lectures","info":"A one-hour radio program to hear celebrated writers, artists and thinkers address contemporary ideas and values, often discussing the creative process. Please note: tapes or transcripts are not available","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/radio/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2018/05/cityartsandlecture-300x300.jpg","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.cityarts.net/","airtime":"SUN 1pm-2pm, TUE 10pm, WED 1am","meta":{"site":"news","source":"City Arts & Lectures"},"link":"https://www.cityarts.net","subscribe":{"tuneIn":"https://tunein.com/radio/City-Arts-and-Lectures-p692/","rss":"https://www.cityarts.net/feed/"}},"white-lies":{"id":"white-lies","title":"White Lies","info":"In 1965, Rev. James Reeb was murdered in Selma, Alabama. Three men were tried and acquitted, but no one was ever held to account. Fifty years later, two journalists from Alabama return to the city where it happened, expose the lies that kept the murder from being solved and uncover a story about guilt and memory that says as much about America today as it does about the past.","imageSrc":"https://media.npr.org/assets/img/2019/04/16/white-lies_final_sq-b1391789cfa7562bf3a4cd0c9cdae27fc4fa01b9.jpg?s=800","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.npr.org/podcasts/510343/white-lies","meta":{"site":"news","source":"npr"},"link":"/radio/program/white-lies","subscribe":{"npr":"https://rpb3r.app.goo.gl/whitelies","apple":"https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1462650519?mt=2&at=11l79Y&ct=nprdirectory","google":"https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5ucHIub3JnLzUxMDM0My9wb2RjYXN0LnhtbA","spotify":"https://open.spotify.com/show/12yZ2j8vxqhc0QZyRES3ft?si=LfWYEK6URA63hueKVxRLAw","rss":"https://feeds.npr.org/510343/podcast.xml"}},"rightnowish":{"id":"rightnowish","title":"Rightnowish","tagline":"Art is where you find it","info":"Rightnowish digs into life in the Bay Area right now… ish. Journalist Pendarvis Harshaw takes us to galleries painted on the sides of liquor stores in West Oakland. We'll dance in warehouses in the Bayview, make smoothies with kids in South Berkeley, and listen to classical music in a 1984 Cutlass Supreme in Richmond. Every week, Pen talks to movers and shakers about how the Bay Area shapes what they create, and how they shape the place we call home.","imageSrc":"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Rightnowish_tile2021.jpg","imageAlt":"KQED Rightnowish with Pendarvis Harshaw","officialWebsiteLink":"/podcasts/rightnowish","meta":{"site":"arts","source":"kqed","order":"5"},"link":"/podcasts/rightnowish","subscribe":{"npr":"https://www.npr.org/podcasts/721590300/rightnowish","rss":"https://ww2.kqed.org/arts/programs/rightnowish/feed/podcast","apple":"https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/rightnowish/id1482187648","stitcher":"https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/rightnowish","google":"https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vS1FJTkMxMjU5MTY3NDc4","spotify":"https://open.spotify.com/show/7kEJuafTzTVan7B78ttz1I"}},"jerrybrown":{"id":"jerrybrown","title":"The Political Mind of Jerry Brown","tagline":"Lessons from a lifetime in politics","info":"The Political Mind of Jerry Brown brings listeners the wisdom of the former Governor, Mayor, and presidential candidate. Scott Shafer interviewed Brown for more than 40 hours, covering the former governor's life and half-century in the political game – and Brown has some lessons he'd like to share. ","imageSrc":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/sites/10/powerpress/jerrybrownpodcast.jpg","imageAlt":"KQED The Political Mind of Jerry Brown","officialWebsiteLink":"/podcasts/jerrybrown","meta":{"site":"news","source":"kqed","order":"16"},"link":"/podcasts/jerrybrown","subscribe":{"npr":"https://www.npr.org/podcasts/790253322/the-political-mind-of-jerry-brown","apple":"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/id1492194549","rss":"https://ww2.kqed.org/news/series/jerrybrown/feed/podcast/","tuneIn":"http://tun.in/pjGcK","stitcher":"https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/kqed/the-political-mind-of-jerry-brown","spotify":"https://open.spotify.com/show/54C1dmuyFyKMFttY6X2j6r?si=K8SgRCoISNK6ZbjpXrX5-w","google":"https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly93dzIua3FlZC5vcmcvbmV3cy9zZXJpZXMvamVycnlicm93bi9mZWVkL3BvZGNhc3Qv"}},"the-splendid-table":{"id":"the-splendid-table","title":"The Splendid Table","info":"\u003cem>The Splendid Table\u003c/em> hosts our nation's conversations about cooking, sustainability and food culture.","imageSrc":"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/10/2022/08/splendidtable-logo.jpeg","officialWebsiteLink":"https://www.splendidtable.org/","airtime":"SUN 10-11 pm","meta":{"site":"radio","source":"npr"},"link":"/radio/program/the-splendid-table"}},"racesReducer":{"5921":{"id":"5921","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 7","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":158422,"precinctsReportPercentage":98.97,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:48 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Doris Matsui","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":89456,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Tom Silva","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":48920,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"David Mandel","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":20046,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-09T01:00:38.194Z"},"5922":{"id":"5922","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 8","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":0,"uncontested":true,"precinctsReportPercentage":0,"eevp":0,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:20 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Rudy Recile","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":0,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"John Garamendi","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":0,"isWinner":true}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-06T04:00:30.000Z"},"5924":{"id":"5924","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 10","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":185034,"precinctsReportPercentage":99.07,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:48 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Mark DeSaulnier","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":121265,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Katherine Piccinini","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":34883,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Nolan Chen","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":19459,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Joe Sweeney","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"NPP","voteCount":7606,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Mohamed Elsherbini","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"NPP","voteCount":1821,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-09T01:02:32.415Z"},"5926":{"id":"5926","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 12","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":153801,"precinctsReportPercentage":98.88,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 20, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:41 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Lateefah Simon","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":85905,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Jennifer Tran","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":22964,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Tony Daysog","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":17197,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Stephen Slauson","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":9699,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Glenn Kaplan","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":6785,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Eric Wilson","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":4243,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Abdur Sikder","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":2847,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Ned Nuerge","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":2532,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Andre Todd","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":1629,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-16T00:22:36.062Z"},"5928":{"id":"5928","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 14","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":125831,"precinctsReportPercentage":99.14,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 20, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:41 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Eric Swalwell","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":83989,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Vin Kruttiventi","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":22106,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Alison Hayden","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":11928,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Luis Reynoso","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":7808,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-12T00:51:36.366Z"},"5930":{"id":"5930","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 16","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":182135,"precinctsReportPercentage":98.91,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"April 3, 2024","timeUpdated":"3:04 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Sam Liccardo","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":38489,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Evan Low","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":30249,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Joe Simitian","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":30249,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Peter Ohtaki","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":23275,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Peter Dixon","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":14673,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Rishi Kumar","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":12377,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Karl Ryan","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":11557,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Julie Lythcott-Haims","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":11383,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Ahmed Mostafa","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":5811,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Greg Tanaka","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":2421,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Joby Bernstein","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":1651,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-12T00:32:05.002Z"},"5931":{"id":"5931","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 17","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":117534,"precinctsReportPercentage":98.92,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:20 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Ro Khanna","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":73941,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Anita Chen","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":31539,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Ritesh Tandon","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":5728,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Mario Ramirez","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":4491,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Joe Dehn","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"Lib","voteCount":1835,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-08T01:50:53.956Z"},"5932":{"id":"5932","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 18","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":96302,"precinctsReportPercentage":98.93,"eevp":98.83,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 25, 2024","timeUpdated":"5:47 AM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Zoe Lofgren","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":49323,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Peter Hernandez","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":31622,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Charlene Nijmeh","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":10614,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Lawrence Milan","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":2712,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Luele Kifle","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":2031,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-12T00:26:02.706Z"},"5963":{"id":"5963","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"State House, District 2","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":139085,"precinctsReportPercentage":98.62,"eevp":98.6,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:20 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Michael Greer","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":38079,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Chris Rogers","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":27126,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Rusty Hicks","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":25615,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Ariel Kelley","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":19483,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Frankie Myers","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":17694,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Ted Williams","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":9550,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Cynthia Click","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":1538,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-22T21:38:36.711Z"},"5972":{"id":"5972","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"State House, District 11","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":99775,"precinctsReportPercentage":99,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:48 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Lori Wilson","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":50085,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Dave Ennis","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":26074,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Wanda Wallis","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":14638,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Jeffrey Flack","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":8978,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-08T02:01:24.524Z"},"5973":{"id":"5973","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"State House, District 12","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":143532,"precinctsReportPercentage":99.19,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:38 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Damon Connolly","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":111275,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Andy Podshadley","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":17240,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Eryn Cervantes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":15017,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-21T00:25:32.262Z"},"5975":{"id":"5975","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"State House, District 14","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":106997,"precinctsReportPercentage":99.06,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:48 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Buffy Wicks","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":78678,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Margot Smith","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":18251,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Utkarsh Jain","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":10068,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-15T01:30:34.539Z"},"5976":{"id":"5976","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"State House, District 15","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":97144,"precinctsReportPercentage":98.98,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:48 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Sonia Ledo","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":30946,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Anamarie Farias","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":29512,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Monica Wilson","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":24775,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Karen Mitchoff","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":11911,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-14T00:19:38.858Z"},"5977":{"id":"5977","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"State House, District 16","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":0,"uncontested":true,"precinctsReportPercentage":0,"eevp":0,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:20 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Joseph Rubay","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":0,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Rebecca Bauer-Kahan","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":0,"isWinner":true}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-06T04:00:30.000Z"},"5978":{"id":"5978","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"State House, District 17","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":111003,"precinctsReportPercentage":98.99,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"8:25 AM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Matt Haney","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":90915,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Manuel Noris-Barrera","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":13843,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Otto Duke","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":6245,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-12T00:36:19.697Z"},"5979":{"id":"5979","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"State House, District 18","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":86008,"precinctsReportPercentage":99.1,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 20, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:41 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Mia Bonta","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":73040,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Andre Sandford","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"AIP","voteCount":4575,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Mindy Pechenuk","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":4389,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Cheyenne Kenney","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":4004,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-06T08:03:23.729Z"},"5980":{"id":"5980","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"State House, District 19","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":113959,"precinctsReportPercentage":98.8,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:20 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Catherine Stefani","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":64960,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"David Lee","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":33035,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Nadia Flamenco","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":8335,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Arjun Sodhani","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":7629,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-11T23:50:23.109Z"},"5981":{"id":"5981","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"State House, District 20","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":0,"uncontested":true,"precinctsReportPercentage":0,"eevp":0,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 20, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:36 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Liz Ortega","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":0,"isWinner":true}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-06T04:00:30.000Z"},"5982":{"id":"5982","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"State House, District 21","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":0,"uncontested":true,"precinctsReportPercentage":0,"eevp":0,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:20 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Mark Gilham","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":0,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Diane Papan","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":0,"isWinner":true}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-06T04:00:30.000Z"},"5984":{"id":"5984","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"State House, District 23","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":116963,"precinctsReportPercentage":98.91,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:20 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Marc Berman","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":67106,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Lydia Kou","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":23699,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Gus Mattammal","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":13277,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Allan Marson","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":12881,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-12T01:13:06.280Z"},"5987":{"id":"5987","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"State House, District 26","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":72753,"precinctsReportPercentage":99.19,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:20 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Patrick Ahrens","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":25036,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Tara Sreekrishnan","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":19600,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Sophie Song","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":15954,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Omar Din","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":8772,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Bob Goodwyn","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"Lib","voteCount":2170,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Ashish Garg","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"NPP","voteCount":1221,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-13T21:06:29.070Z"},"5989":{"id":"5989","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"State House, District 28","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":0,"uncontested":true,"precinctsReportPercentage":0,"eevp":0,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"5:10 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Gail Pellerin","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":0,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Liz Lawler","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":0,"isWinner":true}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-06T04:00:30.000Z"},"6010":{"id":"6010","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"State House, District 49","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":0,"uncontested":true,"precinctsReportPercentage":0,"eevp":0,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:36 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Mike Fong","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":0,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Long Liu","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":0,"isWinner":true}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-06T04:00:30.000Z"},"6018":{"id":"6018","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 2","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":229348,"precinctsReportPercentage":99.05,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:38 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Jared Huffman","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":169005,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Chris Coulombe","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":37372,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Tief Gibbs","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":18437,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Jolian Kangas","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"NPP","voteCount":3166,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Jason Brisendine","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"NPP","voteCount":1368,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-12T00:46:10.103Z"},"6020":{"id":"6020","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 4","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":187640,"precinctsReportPercentage":96.32,"eevp":96.36,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:20 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Mike Thompson","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":118147,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"John Munn","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":56232,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Andrew Engdahl","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":11202,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Niket Patwardhan","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"NPP","voteCount":2059,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-07T00:30:57.980Z"},"6025":{"id":"6025","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 9","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":121271,"precinctsReportPercentage":99.17,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"5:10 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Josh Harder","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":60396,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Kevin Lincoln","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":36346,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"John McBride","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":15525,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Khalid Jafri","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":9004,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-12T00:49:44.113Z"},"6031":{"id":"6031","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 15","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":0,"uncontested":true,"precinctsReportPercentage":0,"eevp":0,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:20 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Anna Kramer","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":0,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Kevin Mullin","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":0,"isWinner":true}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-06T04:00:30.000Z"},"6035":{"id":"6035","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 19","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":203670,"precinctsReportPercentage":99.11,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 25, 2024","timeUpdated":"5:47 AM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Jimmy Panetta","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":132540,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Jason Anderson","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":58120,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Sean Dougherty","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"Grn","voteCount":13010,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-07T00:23:46.779Z"},"6066":{"id":"6066","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"State House, District 3","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":0,"uncontested":true,"precinctsReportPercentage":0,"eevp":0,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"5:10 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Jamie Gallagher","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":0,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Aaron Draper","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":0,"isWinner":true}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-06T04:00:30.000Z"},"6067":{"id":"6067","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"State House, District 4","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":0,"uncontested":true,"precinctsReportPercentage":0,"eevp":0,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:20 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Cecilia Aguiar-Curry","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":0,"isWinner":true}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-06T04:00:30.000Z"},"6087":{"id":"6087","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"State House, District 24","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":66643,"precinctsReportPercentage":99.19,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:20 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Alex Lee","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":45544,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Bob Brunton","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":14951,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Marti Souza","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":6148,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-14T23:23:49.770Z"},"6088":{"id":"6088","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"State House, District 25","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":69560,"precinctsReportPercentage":99.31,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:20 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Ash Kalra","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":35821,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Ted Stroll","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":18255,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Lan Ngo","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":15484,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-14T02:40:57.200Z"},"6092":{"id":"6092","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"State House, District 29","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":0,"uncontested":true,"precinctsReportPercentage":0,"eevp":0,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 25, 2024","timeUpdated":"5:47 AM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Robert Rivas","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":0,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"J.W. Paine","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":0,"isWinner":true}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-06T04:00:30.000Z"},"6223":{"id":"6223","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 46","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":0,"uncontested":true,"precinctsReportPercentage":0,"eevp":0,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"5:16 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Lou Correa","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":0,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"David Pan","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":0,"isWinner":true}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-06T04:00:30.000Z"},"6530":{"id":"6530","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"State Senate, District 3","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":222193,"precinctsReportPercentage":98.99,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:48 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Thom Bogue","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":61776,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Christopher Cabaldon","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":59041,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Rozzana Verder-Aliga","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":45546,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Jackie Elward","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":41127,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Jimih Jones","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":14703,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-15T01:24:31.539Z"},"6531":{"id":"6531","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"State Senate, District 5","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":171623,"precinctsReportPercentage":99.09,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"5:10 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Jim Shoemaker","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":74935,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Jerry McNerney","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":57040,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Carlos Villapudua","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":39648,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-13T20:07:46.382Z"},"6532":{"id":"6532","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"State Senate, District 7","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":192446,"precinctsReportPercentage":98.72,"eevp":98.78,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:48 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Jesse Arreguín","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":61837,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Jovanka Beckles","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":34025,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Dan Kalb","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":28842,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Kathryn Lybarger","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":28041,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Sandre Swanson","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":22862,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Jeanne Solnordal","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":16839,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-16T00:58:11.533Z"},"6533":{"id":"6533","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"State Senate, District 9","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":0,"uncontested":true,"precinctsReportPercentage":0,"eevp":0,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:20 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Tim Grayson","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":0,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Marisol Rubio","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":0,"isWinner":true}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-06T04:00:30.000Z"},"6534":{"id":"6534","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"State Senate, District 11","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":228260,"precinctsReportPercentage":99.09,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:20 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Scott Wiener","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":166592,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Yvette Corkrean","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":34438,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Cynthia Cravens","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":18513,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Jing Xiong","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"NPP","voteCount":8717,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-12T02:01:51.597Z"},"6535":{"id":"6535","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"State Senate, District 13","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":227191,"precinctsReportPercentage":98.88,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:20 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Josh Becker","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":167127,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Alexander Glew","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":42788,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Christina Laskowski","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":17276,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-12T01:56:24.964Z"},"6536":{"id":"6536","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"State Senate, District 15","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":180231,"precinctsReportPercentage":98.81,"eevp":98.95,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:20 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Dave Cortese","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":124440,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Robert Howell","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":34173,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Tony Loaiza","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":21618,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-13T01:15:45.365Z"},"6548":{"id":"6548","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"State Senate, District 39","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":0,"uncontested":true,"precinctsReportPercentage":0,"eevp":0,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 20, 2024","timeUpdated":"4:55 PM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Akilah Weber","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":0,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Bob Divine","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":0,"isWinner":true}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-06T04:00:30.000Z"},"6611":{"id":"6611","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 11","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":188732,"precinctsReportPercentage":98.89,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 22, 2024","timeUpdated":"8:25 AM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Nancy Pelosi","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":138285,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Bruce Lou","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":16285,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Marjorie Mikels","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":9363,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Bianca Von Krieg","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":7634,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Jason Zeng","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":6607,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Jason Boyce","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":4325,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Larry Nichelson","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":3482,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Eve Del Castello","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":2751,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-12T00:31:55.445Z"},"8589":{"id":"8589","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"U.S. Senate, Class I","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":7276537,"precinctsReportPercentage":99,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 25, 2024","timeUpdated":"5:47 AM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Adam Schiff","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":2299507,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Steve Garvey","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":2292414,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Katie Porter","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":1115606,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Barbara Lee","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":714408,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Eric Early","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":240723,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"James Bradley","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":98180,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Christina Pascucci","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":61755,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Sharleta Bassett","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":54422,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Sarah Liew","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":38483,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Laura Garza ","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"NPP","voteCount":34320,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Jonathan Reiss","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":34283,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Sepi Gilani","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":34056,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Gail Lightfoot","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"Lib","voteCount":33046,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Denice Gary-Pandol","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":25494,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"James Macauley","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":23168,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Harmesh Kumar","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":21522,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"David Peterson","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":21076,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Douglas Pierce","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":19371,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Major Singh","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"NPP","voteCount":16965,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"John Rose","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":14577,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Perry Pound","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":14134,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Raji Rab","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":13558,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Mark Ruzon","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"NPP","voteCount":13429,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Forrest Jones","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"AIP","voteCount":13027,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Stefan Simchowitz","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":12717,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Martin Veprauskas","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":9714,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Don Grundmann","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"NPP","voteCount":6582,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-06T05:01:46.589Z"},"8686":{"id":"8686","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"President,","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top1","totalVotes":3589127,"precinctsReportPercentage":99,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 25, 2024","timeUpdated":"5:48 AM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Joe Biden","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":3200188,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Marianne Williamson","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":145690,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Dean Phillips","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":99981,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Armando Perez-Serrato","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":42925,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Gabriel Cornejo","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":41261,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"President Boddie","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":25373,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Stephen Lyons","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":21008,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Eban Cambridge","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":12701,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-06T04:12:27.559Z"},"8688":{"id":"8688","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"President,","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top1","totalVotes":2466569,"precinctsReportPercentage":99,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 25, 2024","timeUpdated":"5:47 AM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Donald Trump","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":1953947,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Nikki Haley","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":430792,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Ron DeSantis","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":35581,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Chris Christie","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":20164,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Vivek Ramaswamy","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":11069,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Rachel Swift","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":4231,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"David Stuckenberg","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":3895,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Ryan Binkley","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":3563,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Asa Hutchinson","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":3327,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-06T04:13:19.766Z"},"81993":{"id":"81993","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"U.S. Senate, Class I Unexpired Term","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top2","totalVotes":7358837,"precinctsReportPercentage":99,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 25, 2024","timeUpdated":"5:47 AM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Steve Garvey","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":2444940,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Adam Schiff","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":2155146,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"Katie Porter","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":1269194,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Barbara Lee","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":863278,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Eric Early","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"R","voteCount":448788,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Christina Pascucci","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":109421,"isWinner":false},{"candidateName":"Sepi Gilani","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"D","voteCount":68070,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-06T04:31:08.186Z"},"82014":{"id":"82014","type":"apRace","location":"State of California","raceName":"Proposition, 1 - Behavioral Health Services Program","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceType":"top1","totalVotes":7221972,"precinctsReportPercentage":99,"eevp":99,"tabulationStatus":"Tabulation Paused","dateUpdated":"March 25, 2024","timeUpdated":"5:47 AM","source":"AP","candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":null,"voteCount":3624998,"isWinner":true},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":null,"voteCount":3596974,"isWinner":false}],"winnerDateTime":"2024-03-21T00:11:06.265Z"},"timeLoaded":"April 16, 2024 3:52 AM","nationalRacesLoaded":true,"localRacesLoaded":true,"overrides":[{"id":"5921","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 7","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"5922","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 8","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"5924","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 10","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"5926","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 12","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/alameda/congress-12th-district"},{"id":"5928","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 14","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"5930","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 16","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/california/congress-16th-district"},{"id":"5931","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 17","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"5932","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 18","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"5963","raceName":"State Assembly, District 2","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"5972","raceName":"State Assembly, District 11","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"5973","raceName":"State Assembly, District 12","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"5975","raceName":"State Assembly, District 14","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"5976","raceName":"State Assembly, District 15","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/contracosta/state-assembly"},{"id":"5977","raceName":"State Assembly, District 16","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"5978","raceName":"State Assembly, District 17","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"5979","raceName":"State Assembly, District 18","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"5980","raceName":"State Assembly, District 19","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"5981","raceName":"State Assembly, District 20","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"5982","raceName":"State Assembly, District 21","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"5984","raceName":"State Assembly, District 23","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/california/state-assembly-23rd-district"},{"id":"5987","raceName":"State Assembly, District 26","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/santaclara/state-assembly-26th-district"},{"id":"5989","raceName":"State Assembly, District 28","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"6010","raceName":"State Assembly, District 4","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"6018","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 2","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"6020","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 4","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"6025","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 9","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"6031","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 15","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"6035","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 19","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"6067","raceName":"State Assembly, District 4","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"6087","raceName":"State Assembly, District 24","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"6088","raceName":"State Assembly, District 25","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"6092","raceName":"State Assembly, District 29","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"6223","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 4","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"6530","raceName":"State Senate, District 3","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/california/state-senate-3rd-district"},{"id":"6531","raceName":"State Senate, District 5","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"6532","raceName":"State Senate, District 7","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/california/state-senate-7th-district"},{"id":"6533","raceName":"State Senate, District 9","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"6534","raceName":"State Senate, District 11","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"6535","raceName":"State Senate, District 13","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"6536","raceName":"State Senate, District 15","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"6611","raceName":"U.S. House of Representatives, District 11","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":""},{"id":"8589","raceName":"U.S. Senate (Full Term)","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/california/senator"},{"id":"8686","raceName":"California Democratic Presidential Primary","raceDescription":"Candidates are competing for 496 delegates.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/president/democrat"},{"id":"8688","raceName":"California Republican Presidential Primary","raceDescription":"Candidates are competing for 169 delegates.","raceReadTheStory":"https://kqed.org/elections/results/president/republican"},{"id":"81993","raceName":"U.S. Senate (Partial/Unexpired Term)","raceDescription":"Top two candidates advance to general election."},{"id":"82014","raceName":"Proposition 1","raceDescription":"Bond and mental health reforms. Passes with majority vote.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/california/proposition-1"}],"AlamedaJudge5":{"id":"AlamedaJudge5","type":"localRace","location":"Alameda","raceName":"Superior Court Judge, Office 5","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"7:02 PM","dateUpdated":"April 1, 2024","totalVotes":200601,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Terry Wiley","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":200601}]},"AlamedaJudge12":{"id":"AlamedaJudge12","type":"localRace","location":"Alameda","raceName":"Superior Court Judge, Office 12","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"7:02 PM","dateUpdated":"April 1, 2024","totalVotes":240853,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Mark Fickes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":133009},{"candidateName":"Michael P. Johnson","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":107844}]},"AlamedaBoard2":{"id":"AlamedaBoard2","type":"localRace","location":"Alameda","raceName":"Board of Education, Trustee Area 2","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"7:02 PM","dateUpdated":"April 1, 2024","totalVotes":33580,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"John Lewis","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":6943},{"candidateName":"Angela Normand","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":26637}]},"AlamedaBoard5":{"id":"AlamedaBoard5","type":"localRace","location":"Alameda","raceName":"Board of Education, Trustee Area 5","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"7:02 PM","dateUpdated":"April 1, 2024","totalVotes":26072,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Guadalupe \"Lupe\" Angulo","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":7521},{"candidateName":"Janevette Cole","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":13338},{"candidateName":"Joe Orlando Ramos","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":5213}]},"AlamedaBoard6":{"id":"AlamedaBoard6","type":"localRace","location":"Alameda","raceName":"Board of Education, Trustee Area 6","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"7:02 PM","dateUpdated":"April 1, 2024","totalVotes":30864,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"John Guerrero","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":9989},{"candidateName":"Eileen McDonald","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":20875}]},"AlamedaSup1":{"id":"AlamedaSup1","type":"localRace","location":"Alameda","raceName":"Board of Supervisors, District 1","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"7:02 PM","dateUpdated":"April 1, 2024","totalVotes":41038,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"David Haubert","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":41038}]},"AlamedaSup2":{"id":"AlamedaSup2","type":"localRace","location":"Alameda","raceName":"Board of Supervisors, District 2","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top2","timeUpdated":"7:02 PM","dateUpdated":"April 1, 2024","totalVotes":31034,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Elisa Márquez","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":31034}]},"AlamedaSup4":{"id":"AlamedaSup4","type":"localRace","location":"Alameda","raceName":"Board of Supervisors, District 4","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/alameda/supervisor-4th-district","raceType":"top2","timeUpdated":"7:02 PM","dateUpdated":"April 1, 2024","totalVotes":57007,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Jennifer Esteen","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":22400},{"candidateName":"Nate Miley","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":34607}]},"AlamedaSup5":{"id":"AlamedaSup5","type":"localRace","location":"Alameda","raceName":"Board of Supervisors, District 5","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/alameda/supervisor-5th-district","raceType":"top2","timeUpdated":"7:02 PM","dateUpdated":"April 1, 2024","totalVotes":81059,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Ben Bartlett","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":13518},{"candidateName":"Nikki Fortunato Bas","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":27597},{"candidateName":"John J. Bauters","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":16783},{"candidateName":"Ken Berrick","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":7520},{"candidateName":"Omar Farmer","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":1240},{"candidateName":"Gregory Hodge","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":3419},{"candidateName":"Chris Moore","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":7428},{"candidateName":"Gerald Pechenuk","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":305},{"candidateName":"Lorrel Plimier","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":3249}]},"AlamedaBoard7":{"id":"AlamedaBoard7","type":"localRace","location":"Alameda","raceName":"Flood Control & Water Conservation District Director, Zone 7, Full Term","raceDescription":"Top three candidates win seat.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top3","timeUpdated":"7:02 PM","dateUpdated":"April 1, 2024","totalVotes":134340,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Alan Burnham","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":15723},{"candidateName":"Sandy Figuers","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":22454},{"candidateName":"Laurene K. Green","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":30343},{"candidateName":"Kathy Narum","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":23833},{"candidateName":"Seema Badar","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":7468},{"candidateName":"Catherine Brown","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":34519}]},"AlamedaAuditor":{"id":"AlamedaAuditor","type":"localRace","location":"Alameda","raceName":"Oakland Auditor","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"7:02 PM","dateUpdated":"April 1, 2024","totalVotes":59227,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Michael Houston","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":59227}]},"AlamedaMeasureA":{"id":"AlamedaMeasureA","type":"localRace","location":"Alameda","raceName":"Measure A","raceDescription":"Alameda County. Civil service. Passes with majority vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"7:02 PM","dateUpdated":"April 1, 2024","totalVotes":282335,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":167903},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":114432}]},"AlamedaMeasureB":{"id":"AlamedaMeasureB","type":"localRace","location":"Alameda","raceName":"Measure B","raceDescription":"Alameda County. Recall rules. Passes with majority vote.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/alameda/measure-b","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"7:02 PM","dateUpdated":"April 1, 2024","totalVotes":282683,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":182200},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":100483}]},"AlamedaMeasureD":{"id":"AlamedaMeasureD","type":"localRace","location":"Alameda","raceName":"Measure D","raceDescription":"Oakland. Appropriations limit. Passes with majority vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"7:02 PM","dateUpdated":"April 1, 2024","totalVotes":79797,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":59852},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":19945}]},"AlamedaMeasureE":{"id":"AlamedaMeasureE","type":"localRace","location":"Alameda","raceName":"Measure E","raceDescription":"Alameda Unified School District. Parcel tax. Passes with 2/3 vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"7:02 PM","dateUpdated":"April 1, 2024","totalVotes":22692,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":17280},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":5412}]},"AlamedaMeasureF":{"id":"AlamedaMeasureF","type":"localRace","location":"Alameda","raceName":"Measure F","raceDescription":"Piedmont. Parcel tax. Passes with 2/3 vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"7:02 PM","dateUpdated":"April 1, 2024","totalVotes":4855,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":3673},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":1182}]},"AlamedaMeasureG":{"id":"AlamedaMeasureG","type":"localRace","location":"Alameda","raceName":"Measure G","raceDescription":"Albany Unified School District. Parcel tax. Passes with 2/3 vote. ","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"7:02 PM","dateUpdated":"April 1, 2024","totalVotes":5898,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":4651},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":1247}]},"AlamedaMeasureH":{"id":"AlamedaMeasureH","type":"localRace","location":"Alameda","raceName":"Measure H","raceDescription":"Berkeley Unified School District. Parcel tax. Passes with 2/3 vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"7:02 PM","dateUpdated":"April 1, 2024","totalVotes":33331,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":29418},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":3913}]},"AlamedaMeasureI":{"id":"AlamedaMeasureI","type":"localRace","location":"Alameda","raceName":"Measure I","raceDescription":"Hayward Unified School District. School bond. Passes with 55% vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"7:02 PM","dateUpdated":"April 1, 2024","totalVotes":21929,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":14151},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":7778}]},"AlamedaMeasureJ":{"id":"AlamedaMeasureJ","type":"localRace","location":"Alameda","raceName":"Measure J","raceDescription":"San Leandro Unified School District. School bond. Passes with 55% vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"7:02 PM","dateUpdated":"April 1, 2024","totalVotes":12338,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":7784},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":4554}]},"CCD2":{"id":"CCD2","type":"localRace","location":"Contra Costa","raceName":"Board of Supervisors, District 2","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:45 PM","dateUpdated":"March 28, 2024","totalVotes":45776,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Candace Andersen","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":45776}]},"CCD3":{"id":"CCD3","type":"localRace","location":"Contra Costa","raceName":"Board of Supervisors, District 3","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"6:45 PM","dateUpdated":"March 28, 2024","totalVotes":25120,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Diane Burgis","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":25120}]},"CCD5":{"id":"CCD5","type":"localRace","location":"Contra Costa","raceName":"Board of Supervisors, District 5","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/contracosta/supervisor-5th-district","raceType":"top2","timeUpdated":"6:45 PM","dateUpdated":"March 28, 2024","totalVotes":37045,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Mike Barbanica","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":14338},{"candidateName":"Jelani Killings","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":5683},{"candidateName":"Shanelle Scales-Preston","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":12993},{"candidateName":"Iztaccuauhtli Hector Gonzalez","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":4031}]},"CCMeasureA":{"id":"CCMeasureA","type":"localRace","location":"Contra Costa","raceName":"Measure A","raceDescription":"Martinez. Appoint City Clerk. Passes with a majority vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:45 PM","dateUpdated":"March 28, 2024","totalVotes":11513,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":7554},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":3959}]},"CCMeasureB":{"id":"CCMeasureB","type":"localRace","location":"Contra Costa","raceName":"Measure B","raceDescription":"Antioch Unified School District. School bond. Passes with 55% vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:45 PM","dateUpdated":"March 28, 2024","totalVotes":17971,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":10397},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":7574}]},"CCMeasureC":{"id":"CCMeasureC","type":"localRace","location":"Contra Costa","raceName":"Measure C","raceDescription":"Martinez Unified School District. Parcel tax. Passes with 2/3 vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:45 PM","dateUpdated":"March 28, 2024","totalVotes":9230,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":6917},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":2313}]},"CCMeasureD":{"id":"CCMeasureD","type":"localRace","location":"Contra Costa","raceName":"Measure D","raceDescription":"Moraga School District. School bond. Passes with 55% vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:45 PM","dateUpdated":"March 28, 2024","totalVotes":6007,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":4052},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":1955}]},"MarinD2":{"id":"MarinD2","type":"localRace","location":"Marin","raceName":"Board of Supervisors, District 2","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/marin/supervisor-2nd-district","raceType":"top2","timeUpdated":"6:54 PM","dateUpdated":"March 27, 2024","totalVotes":18466,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Brian Colbert","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":7971},{"candidateName":"Heather McPhail Sridharan","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":4851},{"candidateName":"Ryan O'Neil","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":2647},{"candidateName":"Gabe Paulson","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":2997}]},"MarinD3":{"id":"MarinD3","type":"localRace","location":"Marin","raceName":"Board of Supervisors, District 3","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"6:54 PM","dateUpdated":"March 27, 2024","totalVotes":13274,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Stephanie Moulton-Peters","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":13274}]},"MarinD4":{"id":"MarinD4","type":"localRace","location":"Marin","raceName":"Board of Supervisors, District 4","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"6:54 PM","dateUpdated":"March 27, 2024","totalVotes":12986,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Dennis Rodoni","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":10086},{"candidateName":"Francis Drouillard","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":2900}]},"MarinLarkspurCC":{"id":"MarinLarkspurCC","type":"localRace","location":"Marin","raceName":"Larkspur City Council (Short Term)","raceDescription":"Top candidate wins seat.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"6:54 PM","dateUpdated":"March 27, 2024","totalVotes":4176,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Stephanie Andre","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":2514},{"candidateName":"Claire Paquette","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":1008},{"candidateName":"Lana Scott","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":654}]},"MarinRossCouncil":{"id":"MarinRossCouncil","type":"localRace","location":"Marin","raceName":"Ross Town Council","raceDescription":"Top three candidates win seat.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top3","timeUpdated":"6:54 PM","dateUpdated":"March 27, 2024","totalVotes":1740,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Charles William \"Bill\" Kircher, Jr.","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":536},{"candidateName":"Mathew Salter","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":502},{"candidateName":"Shadi Aboukhater","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":187},{"candidateName":"Teri Dowling","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":515}]},"MarinMeasureA":{"id":"MarinMeasureA","type":"localRace","location":"Marin","raceName":"Measure A","raceDescription":"Tamalpais Union High School District. School bond. Passes with 55% vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:54 PM","dateUpdated":"March 27, 2024","totalVotes":45345,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":24376},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":20969}]},"MarinMeasureB":{"id":"MarinMeasureB","type":"localRace","location":"Marin","raceName":"Measure B","raceDescription":"Petaluma Joint Union High School District. Parcel tax. Passes with 2/3 vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:54 PM","dateUpdated":"March 27, 2024","totalVotes":132,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":62},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":70}]},"MarinMeasureC":{"id":"MarinMeasureC","type":"localRace","location":"Marin","raceName":"Measure C","raceDescription":"Belvedere. Appropriation limit. Passes with majority vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:54 PM","dateUpdated":"March 27, 2024","totalVotes":870,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":679},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":191}]},"MarinMeasureD":{"id":"MarinMeasureD","type":"localRace","location":"Marin","raceName":"Measure D","raceDescription":"Larkspur. Rent stabilization. Passes with majority vote.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/marin/measure-d","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:54 PM","dateUpdated":"March 27, 2024","totalVotes":4955,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":2573},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":2382}]},"MarinMeasureE":{"id":"MarinMeasureE","type":"localRace","location":"Marin","raceName":"Measure E","raceDescription":"Ross. Special tax. Passes with 2/3 vote.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/marin/measure-e","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:54 PM","dateUpdated":"March 27, 2024","totalVotes":874,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":683},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":191}]},"MarinMeasureF":{"id":"MarinMeasureF","type":"localRace","location":"Marin","raceName":"Measure F","raceDescription":"San Anselmo. Flood Control and Water Conservation District. Passes with majority vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:54 PM","dateUpdated":"March 27, 2024","totalVotes":5193,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":3083},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":2110}]},"MarinMeasureG":{"id":"MarinMeasureG","type":"localRace","location":"Marin","raceName":"Measure G","raceDescription":"Bel Marin Keys Community Services District. Special tax. Passes with 2/3 vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:54 PM","dateUpdated":"March 27, 2024","totalVotes":830,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":661},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":169}]},"MarinMeasureH":{"id":"MarinMeasureH","type":"localRace","location":"Marin","raceName":"Measure H","raceDescription":"Marinwood Community Services District. Appropriations limit, fire protection. Passes with a majority vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:54 PM","dateUpdated":"March 27, 2024","totalVotes":1738,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":1369},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":369}]},"MarinMeasureI":{"id":"MarinMeasureI","type":"localRace","location":"Marin","raceName":"Measure I","raceDescription":"Marinwood Community Services District. Appropriations limit, parks. Passes with a majority vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:54 PM","dateUpdated":"March 27, 2024","totalVotes":1735,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":1336},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":399}]},"NapaD2":{"id":"NapaD2","type":"localRace","location":"Napa","raceName":"Board of Supervisors, District 2","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"6:50 PM","dateUpdated":"April 3, 2024","totalVotes":8351,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Liz Alessio","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":6340},{"candidateName":"Doris Gentry","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":2011}]},"NapaD4":{"id":"NapaD4","type":"localRace","location":"Napa","raceName":"Board of Supervisors, District 4","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/napa/supervisor-4th-district","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"6:50 PM","dateUpdated":"April 3, 2024","totalVotes":7306,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Amber Manfree","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":3913},{"candidateName":"Pete Mott","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":3393}]},"NapaD5":{"id":"NapaD5","type":"localRace","location":"Napa","raceName":"Board of Supervisors, District 5","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/napa/supervisor-5th-district","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"6:50 PM","dateUpdated":"April 3, 2024","totalVotes":5356,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Mariam Aboudamous","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":2379},{"candidateName":"Belia Ramos","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":2977}]},"NapaMeasureD":{"id":"NapaMeasureD","type":"localRace","location":"Napa","raceName":"Measure D","raceDescription":"Howell Mountain Elementary School District. School bond. Passes with 55% vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:50 PM","dateUpdated":"April 3, 2024","totalVotes":741,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":367},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":374}]},"NapaMeasureU":{"id":"NapaMeasureU","type":"localRace","location":"Napa","raceName":"Measure U","raceDescription":"Lake Berryessa Resort Improvement District. Appropriations limit. Passes with majority vote. ","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:50 PM","dateUpdated":"April 3, 2024","totalVotes":86,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":63},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":23}]},"NapaMeasureU1":{"id":"NapaMeasureU1","type":"localRace","location":"Napa","raceName":"Measure U","raceDescription":"Yountville. Appropriations limit. Passes with majority vote. ","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:50 PM","dateUpdated":"April 3, 2024","totalVotes":925,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":793},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":132}]},"SFJudge1":{"id":"SFJudge1","type":"localRace","location":"San Francisco","raceName":"Superior Court Judge, Seat 1","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/sanfrancisco/superior-court-seat-1","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"6:50 PM","dateUpdated":"March 21, 2024","totalVotes":202960,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Michael Begert","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":124943},{"candidateName":"Chip Zecher","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":78017}]},"SFJudge13":{"id":"SFJudge13","type":"localRace","location":"San Francisco","raceName":"Superior Court Judge, Seat 13","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/sanfrancisco/superior-court-seat-13","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"6:50 PM","dateUpdated":"March 21, 2024","totalVotes":202386,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Jean Myungjin Roland","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":90012},{"candidateName":"Patrick S. Thompson","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":112374}]},"SFPropA":{"id":"SFPropA","type":"localRace","location":"San Francisco","raceName":"Proposition A","raceDescription":"Housing bond. Passes with 2/3 vote.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/sanfrancisco/proposition-a","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:50 PM","dateUpdated":"March 21, 2024","totalVotes":225187,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":158497},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":66690}]},"SFPropB":{"id":"SFPropB","type":"localRace","location":"San Francisco","raceName":"Proposition B","raceDescription":"Police staffing. Passes with majority vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:50 PM","dateUpdated":"March 21, 2024","totalVotes":222954,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":61580},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":161374}]},"SFPropC":{"id":"SFPropC","type":"localRace","location":"San Francisco","raceName":"Proposition C","raceDescription":"Transfer tax exemption. Passes with majority vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:50 PM","dateUpdated":"March 21, 2024","totalVotes":220349,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":116311},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":104038}]},"SFPropD":{"id":"SFPropD","type":"localRace","location":"San Francisco","raceName":"Proposition D","raceDescription":"Ethics laws. Passes with majority vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:50 PM","dateUpdated":"March 21, 2024","totalVotes":222615,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":198584},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":24031}]},"SFPropE":{"id":"SFPropE","type":"localRace","location":"San Francisco","raceName":"Proposition E","raceDescription":"Police policies. Passes with majority vote.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/sanfrancisco/proposition-e","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:50 PM","dateUpdated":"March 21, 2024","totalVotes":222817,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":120529},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":102288}]},"SFPropF":{"id":"SFPropF","type":"localRace","location":"San Francisco","raceName":"Proposition F","raceDescription":"Drug screening. Passes with majority vote.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/sanfrancisco/proposition-f","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:50 PM","dateUpdated":"March 21, 2024","totalVotes":224004,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":130214},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":93790}]},"SFPropG":{"id":"SFPropG","type":"localRace","location":"San Francisco","raceName":"Proposition G","raceDescription":"Eighth-grade algebra. Passes with majority vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:50 PM","dateUpdated":"March 21, 2024","totalVotes":222704,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":182066},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":40638}]},"SMJudge4":{"id":"SMJudge4","type":"localRace","location":"San Mateo","raceName":"Superior Court Judge, Office 4","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"6:56 PM","dateUpdated":"April 4, 2024","totalVotes":108919,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Sarah Burdick","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":108919}]},"SMD1":{"id":"SMD1","type":"localRace","location":"San Mateo","raceName":"Board of Supervisors, District 1","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/sanmateo/supervisor-1st-district","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"6:56 PM","dateUpdated":"April 4, 2024","totalVotes":29650,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Jackie Speier","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":20353},{"candidateName":"Ann Schneider","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":9297}]},"SMD4":{"id":"SMD4","type":"localRace","location":"San Mateo","raceName":"Board of Supervisors, District 4","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/sanmateo/supervisor-4th-district","raceType":"top2","timeUpdated":"6:56 PM","dateUpdated":"April 4, 2024","totalVotes":22725,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Antonio Lopez","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":5730},{"candidateName":"Lisa Gauthier","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":10358},{"candidateName":"Celeste Brevard","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":1268},{"candidateName":"Paul Bocanegra","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":1909},{"candidateName":"Maggie Cornejo","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":3460}]},"SMD5":{"id":"SMD5","type":"localRace","location":"San Mateo","raceName":"Board of Supervisors, District 5","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"6:56 PM","dateUpdated":"April 4, 2024","totalVotes":19937,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"David Canepa","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":19937}]},"SMMeasureB":{"id":"SMMeasureB","type":"localRace","location":"San Mateo","raceName":"Measure B","raceDescription":"County Service Area #1 (Highlands). Special tax. Passes with 2/3 vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:56 PM","dateUpdated":"April 4, 2024","totalVotes":1549,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":1360},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":189}]},"SMMeasureC":{"id":"SMMeasureC","type":"localRace","location":"San Mateo","raceName":"Measure C","raceDescription":"Jefferson Elementary School District. Parcel tax. Passes with 2/3 vote","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:56 PM","dateUpdated":"April 4, 2024","totalVotes":12234,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":8543},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":3691}]},"SMMeasureE":{"id":"SMMeasureE","type":"localRace","location":"San Mateo","raceName":"Measure E","raceDescription":"Woodside Elementary School District. School bond. Passes with 55% vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:56 PM","dateUpdated":"April 4, 2024","totalVotes":1392,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":910},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":482}]},"SMMeasureG":{"id":"SMMeasureG","type":"localRace","location":"San Mateo","raceName":"Measure G","raceDescription":"Pacifica School District. School bond. Passes with 55% vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:56 PM","dateUpdated":"April 4, 2024","totalVotes":11548,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":7067},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":4481}]},"SMMeasureH":{"id":"SMMeasureH","type":"localRace","location":"San Mateo","raceName":"Measure H","raceDescription":"San Carlos School District. School bond. Passes with 55% vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:56 PM","dateUpdated":"April 4, 2024","totalVotes":9938,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":6283},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":3655}]},"SCJudge5":{"id":"SCJudge5","type":"localRace","location":"Santa Clara","raceName":"Superior Court Judge, Office 5","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"7:05 PM","dateUpdated":"April 4, 2024","totalVotes":301953,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Jay Boyarsky","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":142549},{"candidateName":"Nicole M. Ford","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":52147},{"candidateName":"Johnene Linda Stebbins","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":107257}]},"SCD2":{"id":"SCD2","type":"localRace","location":"Santa Clara","raceName":"Board of Supervisors, District 2","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/santaclara/supervisor-2nd-district","raceType":"top2","timeUpdated":"7:05 PM","dateUpdated":"April 4, 2024","totalVotes":44059,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Corina Herrera-Loera","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":10519},{"candidateName":"Jennifer Margaret Celaya","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":2394},{"candidateName":"Madison Nguyen","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":12794},{"candidateName":"Betty Duong","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":14031},{"candidateName":"Nelson McElmurry","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":4321}]},"SCD3":{"id":"SCD3","type":"localRace","location":"Santa Clara","raceName":"Board of Supervisors, District 3","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"7:05 PM","dateUpdated":"April 4, 2024","totalVotes":42549,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Otto Lee","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":42549}]},"SCD5":{"id":"SCD5","type":"localRace","location":"Santa Clara","raceName":"Board of Supervisors, District 5","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/santaclara/supervisor-5th-district","raceType":"top2","timeUpdated":"7:05 PM","dateUpdated":"April 4, 2024","totalVotes":88712,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Margaret Abe-Koga","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":37172},{"candidateName":"Sally J. Lieber","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":21962},{"candidateName":"Barry Chang","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":6164},{"candidateName":"Peter C. Fung","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":17892},{"candidateName":"Sandy Sans","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":5522}]},"SCSJMayor":{"id":"SCSJMayor","type":"localRace","location":"Santa Clara","raceName":"San José Mayor","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"7:05 PM","dateUpdated":"April 4, 2024","totalVotes":167064,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Matt Mahan","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":144701},{"candidateName":"Tyrone Wade","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":22363}]},"SCSJD2":{"id":"SCSJD2","type":"localRace","location":"Santa Clara","raceName":"San José City Council, District 2","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top2","timeUpdated":"7:05 PM","dateUpdated":"April 4, 2024","totalVotes":14131,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Joe Lopez","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":4950},{"candidateName":"Pamela Campos","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":3436},{"candidateName":"Vanessa Sandoval","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":2719},{"candidateName":"Babu Prasad","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":3026}]},"SCSJD4":{"id":"SCSJD4","type":"localRace","location":"Santa Clara","raceName":"San José City Council, District 4","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"7:05 PM","dateUpdated":"April 4, 2024","totalVotes":14322,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Kansen Chu","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":5931},{"candidateName":"David Cohen","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":8391}]},"SCSJD6":{"id":"SCSJD6","type":"localRace","location":"Santa Clara","raceName":"San José City Council, District 6","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top2","timeUpdated":"7:05 PM","dateUpdated":"April 4, 2024","totalVotes":25108,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"David Cohen","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":9875},{"candidateName":"Alex Shoor","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":3850},{"candidateName":"Angelo \"A.J.\" Pasciuti","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":2688},{"candidateName":"Michael Mulcahy","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":8695}]},"SCSJD8":{"id":"SCSJD8","type":"localRace","location":"Santa Clara","raceName":"San José City Council, District 8","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top2","timeUpdated":"7:05 PM","dateUpdated":"April 4, 2024","totalVotes":21462,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Tam Truong","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":6982},{"candidateName":"Domingo Candelas","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":8466},{"candidateName":"Sukhdev Singh Bainiwal","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":5513},{"candidateName":"Surinder Kaur Dhaliwal","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":501}]},"SCSJD10":{"id":"SCSJD10","type":"localRace","location":"Santa Clara","raceName":"San José City Council, District 10","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top2","timeUpdated":"7:05 PM","dateUpdated":"April 4, 2024","totalVotes":22799,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"George Casey","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":8805},{"candidateName":"Arjun Batra","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":8354},{"candidateName":"Lenka Wright","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":5640}]},"SCMeasureA":{"id":"SCMeasureA","type":"localRace","location":"Santa Clara","raceName":"Measure A","raceDescription":"Santa Clara. Appointed city clerk. Passes with majority vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"7:05 PM","dateUpdated":"April 4, 2024","totalVotes":20315,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":6580},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":13735}]},"SCMeasureB":{"id":"SCMeasureB","type":"localRace","location":"Santa Clara","raceName":"Measure B","raceDescription":"Santa Clara. Appointed police chief. Passes with majority vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"7:05 PM","dateUpdated":"April 4, 2024","totalVotes":20567,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":5680},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":14887}]},"SCMeasureC":{"id":"SCMeasureC","type":"localRace","location":"Santa Clara","raceName":"Measure C","raceDescription":"Sunnyvale School District. School bond. Passes with 55% vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"7:05 PM","dateUpdated":"April 4, 2024","totalVotes":14656,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":10261},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":4395}]},"SolanoD15":{"id":"SolanoD15","type":"localRace","location":"Solano","raceName":"Superior Court Judge, Department 15","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"","timeUpdated":"7:08 PM","dateUpdated":"March 28, 2024","totalVotes":81709,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Mike Thompson","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":36844},{"candidateName":"Bryan J. Kim","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":44865}]},"SolanoD1":{"id":"SolanoD1","type":"localRace","location":"Solano","raceName":"Board of Supervisors, District 1","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/solano/supervisor-1st-district","raceType":"","timeUpdated":"7:08 PM","dateUpdated":"March 28, 2024","totalVotes":13786,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Michael Wilson","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":6401},{"candidateName":"Cassandra James","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":7385}]},"SolanoD2":{"id":"SolanoD2","type":"localRace","location":"Solano","raceName":"Board of Supervisors, District 2","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"","timeUpdated":"7:08 PM","dateUpdated":"March 28, 2024","totalVotes":19903,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Monica Brown","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":10951},{"candidateName":"Nora Dizon","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":3135},{"candidateName":"Rochelle Sherlock","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":5817}]},"SolanoD5":{"id":"SolanoD5","type":"localRace","location":"Solano","raceName":"Board of Supervisors, District 5","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"","timeUpdated":"7:08 PM","dateUpdated":"March 28, 2024","totalVotes":17888,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Mitch Mashburn","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":11210},{"candidateName":"Chadwick J. Ledoux","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":6678}]},"SolanoEducation":{"id":"SolanoEducation","type":"localRace","location":"Solano","raceName":"Sacramento County Board of Education","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"","timeUpdated":"7:08 PM","dateUpdated":"March 28, 2024","totalVotes":3650,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Heather Davis","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":2960},{"candidateName":"Shazleen Khan","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":690}]},"SolanoMeasureA":{"id":"SolanoMeasureA","type":"localRace","location":"Solano","raceName":"Measure A","raceDescription":"Benicia. Hotel tax. Passes with majority vote.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/solano/measure-a","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"7:08 PM","dateUpdated":"March 28, 2024","totalVotes":10136,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":7869},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":2267}]},"SolanoMeasureB":{"id":"SolanoMeasureB","type":"localRace","location":"Solano","raceName":"Measure B","raceDescription":"Benicia. Sales tax. Passes with majority vote.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/solano/measure-b","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"7:08 PM","dateUpdated":"March 28, 2024","totalVotes":10164,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":7335},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":2829}]},"SolanoMeasureC":{"id":"SolanoMeasureC","type":"localRace","location":"Solano","raceName":"Measure C","raceDescription":"Benicia Unified School District. School bond. Passes with 55% vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"7:08 PM","dateUpdated":"March 28, 2024","totalVotes":10112,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":6316},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":3796}]},"SolanoMeasureN":{"id":"SolanoMeasureN","type":"localRace","location":"Solano","raceName":"Measure N","raceDescription":"Davis Joint Unified School District. Parcel tax. Passes with 2/3 vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"7:08 PM","dateUpdated":"March 28, 2024","totalVotes":15,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":5},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":10}]},"SonomaJudge3":{"id":"SonomaJudge3","type":"localRace","location":"Sonoma","raceName":"Superior Court Judge, Office 3","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"6:51 PM","dateUpdated":"March 29, 2024","totalVotes":115405,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Kristine M. Burk","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":79498},{"candidateName":"Beki Berrey","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":35907}]},"SonomaJudge4":{"id":"SonomaJudge4","type":"localRace","location":"Sonoma","raceName":"Superior Court Judge, Office 4","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"6:51 PM","dateUpdated":"March 29, 2024","totalVotes":86789,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Paul J. Lozada","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":86789}]},"SonomaJudge6":{"id":"SonomaJudge6","type":"localRace","location":"Sonoma","raceName":"Superior Court Judge, Office 6","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"6:51 PM","dateUpdated":"March 29, 2024","totalVotes":117990,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Omar Figueroa","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":42236},{"candidateName":"Kenneth English","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":75754}]},"SonomaD1":{"id":"SonomaD1","type":"localRace","location":"Sonoma","raceName":"Board of Supervisors, District 1","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"6:51 PM","dateUpdated":"March 29, 2024","totalVotes":30348,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Rebecca Hermosillo","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":23958},{"candidateName":"Jonathan Mathieu","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":6390}]},"SonomaD3":{"id":"SonomaD3","type":"localRace","location":"Sonoma","raceName":"Board of Supervisors, District 3","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/sonoma/supervisor-3rd-district","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"6:51 PM","dateUpdated":"March 29, 2024","totalVotes":16312,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Chris Coursey","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":11346},{"candidateName":"Omar Medina","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":4966}]},"SonomaD5":{"id":"SonomaD5","type":"localRace","location":"Sonoma","raceName":"Board of Supervisors, District 5","raceDescription":"Candidate with majority vote wins seat. If no candidate reaches majority, top two candidates advance to runoff in general election.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"top1","timeUpdated":"6:51 PM","dateUpdated":"March 29, 2024","totalVotes":23356,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Lynda Hopkins","candidateIncumbent":true,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":23356}]},"SonomaMeasureA":{"id":"SonomaMeasureA","type":"localRace","location":"Sonoma","raceName":"Measure A","raceDescription":"Cotati-Rohnert Park Unified School District. Parcel tax. Passes with 2/3 vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:51 PM","dateUpdated":"March 29, 2024","totalVotes":13756,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":10320},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":3436}]},"SonomaMeasureB":{"id":"SonomaMeasureB","type":"localRace","location":"Sonoma","raceName":"Measure B","raceDescription":"Petaluma Joint Union High School District. Parcel tax. Passes with 2/3 vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:51 PM","dateUpdated":"March 29, 2024","totalVotes":24877,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":15795},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":9082}]},"SonomaMeasureC":{"id":"SonomaMeasureC","type":"localRace","location":"Sonoma","raceName":"Measure C","raceDescription":"Fort Ross School District. School bond. Passes with 55% vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:51 PM","dateUpdated":"March 29, 2024","totalVotes":286,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":159},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":127}]},"SonomaMeasureD":{"id":"SonomaMeasureD","type":"localRace","location":"Sonoma","raceName":"Measure D","raceDescription":"Harmony Union School District. School bond. Passes with 55% vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:51 PM","dateUpdated":"March 29, 2024","totalVotes":1925,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":1089},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":836}]},"SonomaMeasureE":{"id":"SonomaMeasureE","type":"localRace","location":"Sonoma","raceName":"Measure E","raceDescription":"Petaluma City (Elementary) School District. Parcel tax. Passes with 2/3 vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:51 PM","dateUpdated":"March 29, 2024","totalVotes":11133,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":7622},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":3511}]},"SonomaMeasureG":{"id":"SonomaMeasureG","type":"localRace","location":"Sonoma","raceName":"Measure G","raceDescription":"Rincon Valley Union School District. School bond. Passes with 55% vote.","raceReadTheStory":"","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:51 PM","dateUpdated":"March 29, 2024","totalVotes":14577,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":8668},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":5909}]},"SonomaMeasureH":{"id":"SonomaMeasureH","type":"localRace","location":"Sonoma","raceName":"Measure H","raceDescription":"Sonoma County. Sales tax. Passes with majority vote.","raceReadTheStory":"https://www.kqed.org/elections/results/sonoma/measure-h","raceType":"yesNo","timeUpdated":"6:51 PM","dateUpdated":"March 29, 2024","totalVotes":145261,"candidates":[{"candidateName":"Yes","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":89646},{"candidateName":"No","candidateIncumbent":false,"candidateParty":"","voteCount":55615}]}},"radioSchedulesReducer":{},"listsReducer":{"posts/science?tag=fish":{"isFetching":false,"latestQuery":{"from":0,"postsToRender":9},"tag":null,"vitalsOnly":true,"totalRequested":9,"isLoading":false,"isLoadingMore":true,"total":26,"items":["science_1983280","science_1982551","science_1982486","science_1981041","science_1961648","science_1951205","science_1946871","science_1938750","science_1932298"]}},"recallGuideReducer":{"intros":{},"policy":{},"candidates":{}},"savedPostsReducer":{},"sessionReducer":{},"siteSettingsReducer":{},"subscriptionsReducer":{},"termsReducer":{"about":{"name":"About","type":"terms","id":"about","slug":"about","link":"/about","taxonomy":"site"},"arts":{"name":"Arts & Culture","grouping":["arts","pop","trulyca"],"description":"KQED Arts provides daily in-depth coverage of the Bay Area's music, art, film, performing arts, literature and arts news, as well as cultural commentary and criticism.","type":"terms","id":"arts","slug":"arts","link":"/arts","taxonomy":"site"},"artschool":{"name":"Art School","parent":"arts","type":"terms","id":"artschool","slug":"artschool","link":"/artschool","taxonomy":"site"},"bayareabites":{"name":"KQED food","grouping":["food","bayareabites","checkplease"],"parent":"food","type":"terms","id":"bayareabites","slug":"bayareabites","link":"/food","taxonomy":"site"},"bayareahiphop":{"name":"Bay Area Hiphop","type":"terms","id":"bayareahiphop","slug":"bayareahiphop","link":"/bayareahiphop","taxonomy":"site"},"campaign21":{"name":"Campaign 21","type":"terms","id":"campaign21","slug":"campaign21","link":"/campaign21","taxonomy":"site"},"checkplease":{"name":"KQED food","grouping":["food","bayareabites","checkplease"],"parent":"food","type":"terms","id":"checkplease","slug":"checkplease","link":"/food","taxonomy":"site"},"education":{"name":"Education","grouping":["education"],"type":"terms","id":"education","slug":"education","link":"/education","taxonomy":"site"},"elections":{"name":"Elections","type":"terms","id":"elections","slug":"elections","link":"/elections","taxonomy":"site"},"events":{"name":"Events","type":"terms","id":"events","slug":"events","link":"/events","taxonomy":"site"},"event":{"name":"Event","alias":"events","type":"terms","id":"event","slug":"event","link":"/event","taxonomy":"site"},"filmschoolshorts":{"name":"Film School Shorts","type":"terms","id":"filmschoolshorts","slug":"filmschoolshorts","link":"/filmschoolshorts","taxonomy":"site"},"food":{"name":"KQED food","grouping":["food","bayareabites","checkplease"],"type":"terms","id":"food","slug":"food","link":"/food","taxonomy":"site"},"forum":{"name":"Forum","relatedContentQuery":"posts/forum?","parent":"news","type":"terms","id":"forum","slug":"forum","link":"/forum","taxonomy":"site"},"futureofyou":{"name":"Future of You","grouping":["science","futureofyou"],"parent":"science","type":"terms","id":"futureofyou","slug":"futureofyou","link":"/futureofyou","taxonomy":"site"},"jpepinheart":{"name":"KQED food","relatedContentQuery":"trending/food,bayareabites,checkplease","parent":"food","type":"terms","id":"jpepinheart","slug":"jpepinheart","link":"/food","taxonomy":"site"},"liveblog":{"name":"Live Blog","type":"terms","id":"liveblog","slug":"liveblog","link":"/liveblog","taxonomy":"site"},"livetv":{"name":"Live TV","parent":"tv","type":"terms","id":"livetv","slug":"livetv","link":"/livetv","taxonomy":"site"},"lowdown":{"name":"The Lowdown","relatedContentQuery":"posts/lowdown?","parent":"news","type":"terms","id":"lowdown","slug":"lowdown","link":"/lowdown","taxonomy":"site"},"mindshift":{"name":"Mindshift","parent":"news","description":"MindShift explores the future of education by highlighting the innovative – and sometimes counterintuitive – ways educators and parents are helping all children succeed.","type":"terms","id":"mindshift","slug":"mindshift","link":"/mindshift","taxonomy":"site"},"news":{"name":"News","grouping":["news","forum"],"type":"terms","id":"news","slug":"news","link":"/news","taxonomy":"site"},"perspectives":{"name":"Perspectives","parent":"radio","type":"terms","id":"perspectives","slug":"perspectives","link":"/perspectives","taxonomy":"site"},"podcasts":{"name":"Podcasts","type":"terms","id":"podcasts","slug":"podcasts","link":"/podcasts","taxonomy":"site"},"pop":{"name":"Pop","parent":"arts","type":"terms","id":"pop","slug":"pop","link":"/pop","taxonomy":"site"},"pressroom":{"name":"Pressroom","type":"terms","id":"pressroom","slug":"pressroom","link":"/pressroom","taxonomy":"site"},"quest":{"name":"Quest","parent":"science","type":"terms","id":"quest","slug":"quest","link":"/quest","taxonomy":"site"},"radio":{"name":"Radio","grouping":["forum","perspectives"],"description":"Listen to KQED Public Radio – home of Forum and The California Report – on 88.5 FM in San Francisco, 89.3 FM in Sacramento, 88.3 FM in Santa Rosa and 88.1 FM in Martinez.","type":"terms","id":"radio","slug":"radio","link":"/radio","taxonomy":"site"},"root":{"name":"KQED","image":"https://ww2.kqed.org/app/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png","imageWidth":1200,"imageHeight":630,"headData":{"title":"KQED | News, Radio, Podcasts, TV | Public Media for Northern California","description":"KQED provides public radio, television, and independent reporting on issues that matter to the Bay Area. We’re the NPR and PBS member station for Northern California."},"type":"terms","id":"root","slug":"root","link":"/root","taxonomy":"site"},"science":{"name":"Science","grouping":["science","futureofyou"],"description":"KQED Science brings you award-winning science and environment coverage from the Bay Area and beyond.","type":"terms","id":"science","slug":"science","link":"/science","taxonomy":"site"},"stateofhealth":{"name":"State of Health","parent":"science","type":"terms","id":"stateofhealth","slug":"stateofhealth","link":"/stateofhealth","taxonomy":"site"},"support":{"name":"Support","type":"terms","id":"support","slug":"support","link":"/support","taxonomy":"site"},"thedolist":{"name":"The Do List","parent":"arts","type":"terms","id":"thedolist","slug":"thedolist","link":"/thedolist","taxonomy":"site"},"trulyca":{"name":"Truly CA","grouping":["arts","pop","trulyca"],"parent":"arts","type":"terms","id":"trulyca","slug":"trulyca","link":"/trulyca","taxonomy":"site"},"tv":{"name":"TV","type":"terms","id":"tv","slug":"tv","link":"/tv","taxonomy":"site"},"voterguide":{"name":"Voter Guide","parent":"elections","alias":"elections","type":"terms","id":"voterguide","slug":"voterguide","link":"/voterguide","taxonomy":"site"},"science_248":{"type":"terms","id":"science_248","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"248","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"fish","slug":"fish","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"fish Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null,"imageData":{"ogImageSize":{"file":"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png","width":1200,"height":630},"twImageSize":{"file":"https://cdn.kqed.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KQED-OG-Image@1x.png"},"twitterCard":"summary_large_image"}},"ttid":252,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/fish"},"source_science_1983280":{"type":"terms","id":"source_science_1983280","meta":{"override":true},"name":"NPR","link":"https://www.npr.org/","isLoading":false},"source_science_1982551":{"type":"terms","id":"source_science_1982551","meta":{"override":true},"name":"Water","isLoading":false},"source_science_1982486":{"type":"terms","id":"source_science_1982486","meta":{"override":true},"name":"Wildfire ","isLoading":false},"source_science_1981041":{"type":"terms","id":"source_science_1981041","meta":{"override":true},"name":"CalMatters","isLoading":false},"source_science_1951205":{"type":"terms","id":"source_science_1951205","meta":{"override":true},"name":"bioGraphic","isLoading":false},"source_science_1938750":{"type":"terms","id":"source_science_1938750","meta":{"override":true},"name":"Water","isLoading":false},"source_science_1932298":{"type":"terms","id":"source_science_1932298","meta":{"override":true},"name":"Animals","isLoading":false},"science_2874":{"type":"terms","id":"science_2874","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"2874","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"Animals","slug":"animals","taxonomy":"category","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"Animals Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":2874,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/category/animals"},"science_30":{"type":"terms","id":"science_30","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"30","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"Biology","slug":"biology","taxonomy":"category","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"Biology Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":32,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/category/biology"},"science_40":{"type":"terms","id":"science_40","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"40","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"News","slug":"news","taxonomy":"category","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"News Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":42,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/category/news"},"science_4450":{"type":"terms","id":"science_4450","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"4450","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"Science","slug":"science","taxonomy":"category","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"Science Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":4450,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/category/science"},"science_98":{"type":"terms","id":"science_98","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"98","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"Water","slug":"water","taxonomy":"category","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"Water Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":102,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/category/water"},"science_261":{"type":"terms","id":"science_261","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"261","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"endangered species","slug":"endangered-species","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"endangered species Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":265,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/endangered-species"},"science_813":{"type":"terms","id":"science_813","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"813","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"news","slug":"news-2","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"news Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":820,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/news-2"},"science_804":{"type":"terms","id":"science_804","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"804","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"wildlife","slug":"wildlife","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"wildlife Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":811,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/wildlife"},"science_35":{"type":"terms","id":"science_35","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"35","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"Environment","slug":"environment","taxonomy":"category","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"Environment Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":37,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/category/environment"},"science_1195":{"type":"terms","id":"science_1195","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"1195","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"dams","slug":"dams","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"dams Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":1204,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/dams"},"science_4417":{"type":"terms","id":"science_4417","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"4417","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"featured-news","slug":"featured-news","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"featured-news Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":4417,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/featured-news"},"science_2828":{"type":"terms","id":"science_2828","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"2828","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"floods","slug":"floods","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"floods Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":2828,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/floods"},"science_2078":{"type":"terms","id":"science_2078","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"2078","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"Hetch Hetchy","slug":"hetch-hetchy","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"Hetch Hetchy Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":2089,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/hetch-hetchy"},"science_2830":{"type":"terms","id":"science_2830","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"2830","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"levees","slug":"levees","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"levees Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":2830,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/levees"},"science_448":{"type":"terms","id":"science_448","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"448","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"parks","slug":"parks","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"parks Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":454,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/parks"},"science_201":{"type":"terms","id":"science_201","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"201","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"water","slug":"water-2","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"water Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":205,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/water-2"},"science_159":{"type":"terms","id":"science_159","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"159","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"Yosemite","slug":"yosemite","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"Yosemite Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":163,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/yosemite"},"science_3730":{"type":"terms","id":"science_3730","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"3730","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"Wildfires","slug":"wildfires","taxonomy":"category","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"Wildfires Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":3730,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/category/wildfires"},"science_5178":{"type":"terms","id":"science_5178","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"5178","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"California","slug":"california","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"California Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":5178,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/california"},"science_192":{"type":"terms","id":"science_192","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"192","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"environment","slug":"environment-2","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"environment Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":196,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/environment-2"},"science_112":{"type":"terms","id":"science_112","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"112","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"fire","slug":"fire","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"fire Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":116,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/fire"},"science_113":{"type":"terms","id":"science_113","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"113","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"wildfire","slug":"wildfire","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"wildfire Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":117,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/wildfire"},"science_31":{"type":"terms","id":"science_31","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"31","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"Climate","slug":"climate","taxonomy":"category","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"Climate Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":33,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/category/climate"},"science_33":{"type":"terms","id":"science_33","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"33","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"Energy","slug":"energy","taxonomy":"category","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"Energy Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":35,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/category/energy"},"science_2873":{"type":"terms","id":"science_2873","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"2873","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"Oceans","slug":"oceans","taxonomy":"category","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"Oceans Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":2873,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/category/oceans"},"science_194":{"type":"terms","id":"science_194","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"194","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"climate change","slug":"climate-change","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"climate change Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":198,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/climate-change"},"science_4414":{"type":"terms","id":"science_4414","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"4414","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"featured-science","slug":"featured-science","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"featured-science Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":4414,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/featured-science"},"science_1275":{"type":"terms","id":"science_1275","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"1275","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"fishing","slug":"fishing","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"fishing Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":1284,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/fishing"},"science_463":{"type":"terms","id":"science_463","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"463","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"Shasta Dam","slug":"shasta-dam","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"Shasta Dam Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":469,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/shasta-dam"},"science_1935":{"type":"terms","id":"science_1935","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"1935","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"Deep Look","slug":"deep-look","taxonomy":"series","description":"[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mpAc7SyETD4?rel=0&w=640&h=360]\r\n\r\n\u003cbr/>\r\n\r\n\u003ch2>About Deep Look\u003c/h2>\r\n\r\n[dl_subscribe]\r\n\r\n\u003cp>See the unseen at the very edge of our visible world. Get a new perspective on our place in the universe and meet extraordinary new friends. Explore big scientific mysteries by going incredibly small with Deep Look, a new ultra-HD (4K) short video series created by KQED San Francisco and presented by PBS Digital Studios.\u003c/p>\r\n\r\n\u003cp>Don't miss an episode! \u003ca href=\"http://goo.gl/8NwXqt\">SUBSCRIBE to Deep Look on YouTube.\u003c/a>\u003c/p>\r\n","featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"Deep Look Archives | KQED Science","description":"[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mpAc7SyETD4?rel=0&w=640&h=360] About Deep Look [dl_subscribe] See the unseen at the very edge of our visible world. Get a new perspective on our place in the universe and meet extraordinary new friends. Explore big scientific mysteries by going incredibly small with Deep Look, a new ultra-HD (4K) short video series created by KQED San Francisco and presented by PBS Digital Studios. Don't miss an episode! SUBSCRIBE to Deep Look on YouTube.","ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":1946,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/series/deep-look"},"science_86":{"type":"terms","id":"science_86","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"86","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"Video","slug":"video","taxonomy":"category","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"Video Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":89,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/category/video"},"science_1120":{"type":"terms","id":"science_1120","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"1120","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"animals","slug":"animals","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"animals Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":1128,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/animals"},"science_205":{"type":"terms","id":"science_205","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"205","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"conservation","slug":"conservation","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"conservation Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":209,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/conservation"},"science_3370":{"type":"terms","id":"science_3370","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"3370","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"featured","slug":"featured","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"featured Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":3370,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/featured"},"science_3838":{"type":"terms","id":"science_3838","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"3838","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"ingest","slug":"ingest","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"ingest Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":3838,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/ingest"},"science_37":{"type":"terms","id":"science_37","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"37","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"Events","slug":"events","taxonomy":"category","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"Events Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":39,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/category/events"},"science_36":{"type":"terms","id":"science_36","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"36","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"Food","slug":"food","taxonomy":"category","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"Food Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":38,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/category/food"},"science_3832":{"type":"terms","id":"science_3832","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"3832","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"FeatureText","slug":"featuretext","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"FeatureText Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":3832,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/featuretext"},"science_46":{"type":"terms","id":"science_46","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"46","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"Audio","slug":"audio","taxonomy":"category","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"Audio Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":48,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/category/audio"},"science_43":{"type":"terms","id":"science_43","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"43","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"Radio","slug":"radio","taxonomy":"category","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"Radio Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":45,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/category/radio"},"science_3423":{"type":"terms","id":"science_3423","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"3423","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"Science Podcast","slug":"science-podcast","taxonomy":"category","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"Bay Area Science: Stories & Insights with KQED's Science Podcasts","description":"Our captivating podcasts take you on a journey through the Bay Area's vibrant scientific landscape. Discover groundbreaking research & hear expert insights.","ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null,"socialTitle":"Bay Area Science: Stories & Insights with KQED's Science Podcasts"},"ttid":3423,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/category/science-podcast"},"science_3905":{"type":"terms","id":"science_3905","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"3905","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"California water","slug":"california-water","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"California water Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":3905,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/california-water"},"science_202":{"type":"terms","id":"science_202","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"202","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"delta","slug":"delta","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"delta Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":206,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/delta"},"science_247":{"type":"terms","id":"science_247","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"247","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"salmon","slug":"salmon","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"salmon Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":251,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/salmon"},"science_3830":{"type":"terms","id":"science_3830","meta":{"index":"terms_1591234321","site":"science","id":"3830","found":true},"relationships":{},"included":{},"name":"Staff","slug":"staff","taxonomy":"tag","description":null,"featImg":null,"headData":{"title":"Staff Archives | KQED Science","description":null,"ogTitle":null,"ogDescription":null,"ogImgId":null,"twTitle":null,"twDescription":null,"twImgId":null},"ttid":3830,"isLoading":false,"link":"/science/tag/staff"}},"userAgentReducer":{"userAgent":"claudebot","isBot":true},"userPermissionsReducer":{"wpLoggedIn":false},"localStorageReducer":{},"browserHistoryReducer":[],"eventsReducer":{},"fssReducer":{},"tvDailyScheduleReducer":{},"tvWeeklyScheduleReducer":{},"tvPrimetimeScheduleReducer":{},"tvMonthlyScheduleReducer":{},"userAccountReducer":{"routeTo":"","showDeleteConfirmModal":false,"user":{"userId":"","isFound":false,"firstName":"","lastName":"","phoneNumber":"","email":"","articles":[]}},"youthMediaReducer":{},"checkPleaseReducer":{"filterData":{},"restaurantData":[]},"location":{"pathname":"/science/tag/fish/","previousPathname":"/"}}
