Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/1310869
Almond Almond Board of California 22 Rypel and other researchers have been focused on figuring out if rice fields, especially rice fields in low-lying areas near the Sacramento River subject to winter flooding, can be a suitable rearing habitat for salmon, who once relied on vast wetlands along the Central Valley floor for survival. "Salmon evolved to use these expansive wetland habitats," Rypel said. "They would spawn in shoal-like gravel habitats in the mountains, then smolts would come down onto the valley floor and rear in these wetland habitats where they would grow quickly. What we're learning is that the availability of wetland habitats during critical periods is very, very important for supporting robust salmon populations in the Central Valley. There are simply not a lot of those wetlands left, but there are a lot of riceland habitats. So we're asking whether we can smartly use rice habitats to recover salmon and achieve a healthier population overall." Previous research has shown that salmon grow faster in rice fields than even in hatcheries. Rypel's research this year aimed to determine whether that faster growth leads to a higher rate of survival. Results were encouraging. This year's work showed that fish in the rice fields grew much faster, allowing them to be released by mid-March into the Sacramento River. Fish in a control group raised under hatchery-like conditions grew much slower and could not be released until June. The earlier release appears to have made a huge difference – data collected from the acoustic transmitters showed that 4.5-5% of the salmon raised in the rice fields reached the ocean, compared to less than 1% of salmon in the control group. "What we really think is going on is a combination of size and timing. You can almost boil it down to two words – 'big' and 'early,'" Rypel said. "You want to get the fish as big as they can get, as early as they can get there, because when it's early it times up better with when there are rains and when there is flow in the river. When you release these fish late in the season, as we often do out of the hatcheries, into rivers that are low and have no food, they're not going to survive well." Gabriele Ludwig, Ph.D., director for Sustainability and Environmental Affairs at the Almond Board, said ABC's Strategic Ag Innovation Committee decided to support the rice field salmon research because finding ways to better protect fish is essential to ensuring a more reliable water supply for all growers, including almond growers, generations down the road. "We are investing in the larger conversation," Ludwig said. "California agricultural groups need to work together to show that they can create and support habitat in working lands. We all live together in the valley, and we will either be successful together or face the consequences together." That sentiment was shared in a recent article by almond grower and Vice President of Terranova Ranch, Don Cameron, who described the salmon rice field research as follows: "While the research has no direct benefit to almond growers, it stands to benefit all Californians by supporting biodiversity and the health of our environment. As one of 7,600 almond growers in the Central Valley, I am proud of the work we are doing to make life better for all Californians by growing almonds responsibly. We truly believe working together we can achieve a balance between people, farms, and fish. One thing is for certain, we will not get there by placing blame on each other without accepting responsibility for finding mutually beneficial solutions." Rypel echoed the need for a strategy that is bigger than any one crop. "There are 40 million people in California, and we aren't going anywhere," he said. "It's extremely important that we find ways to reconcile the land uses and the needs of fish and wildlife so both can co-exist. If we don't do that, we're going to be in for even worse times." "I've been impressed with the Almond Board's longsighted view of the value of this work," Ryphel continued. "If we can do things to have healthier fish and wildlife populations, that's good for everybody overall, and it is going to hopefully ease the regulatory burden in the long run." For more information about this research, visit salmon.calrice.org. "I've been impressed with the Almond Board's longsighted view of the value of this work. If we can do things to have healthier fish and wildlife populations, that's good for everybody overall, and it is going to hopefully ease the regulatory burden in the long run." — Andrew Rypel, Ph.D.