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Weekly Highlights for 07-29-2009

I. Departmental/Bureau News

A. Upcoming Events

No Upcoming Events highlights for this week

B. Current

USGS Scientists Assess Impacts of Volcanic Activity on Riverine Ecosystems near Redoubt Volcano
The 2009 eruption of Redoubt volcano in Alaska seriously affected the Drift River by adding a significant quantity of sediment during two huge lahars. In addition, ash fall events occurred in several watersheds downwind of the volcano. In August scientists from the USGS Alaska Science Center and Alaska Volcano Observatory, in cooperation with staff from Lake Clark National Park and Preserve, will visit research sites near Redoubt where data were previously collected to assess potential impacts of sediment and ash deposits on water quality, habitat quality, composition of aquatic insect communities, and fish presence. Coho salmon, a species of importance to Cook Inlet commercial and sport fisheries, were previously documented spawning or rearing in most of the study sites to be visited.
Contact: Christopher Waythomas Anchorage, AK, (907) 786-7122

FERC cites USGS findings concerning presence of threatened steelhead in the Tuolumne River, California
In a ruling released July 18th the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) ordered instream flow and temperature studies to protect endangered Chinook salmon and threatened steelhead in the Tuolumne River. Steelhead, the migratory form of rainbow trout, are listed as Threatened under the Endangered Species Act and their presence in the Tuolumne River has been a lingering question. NOAA Fisheries and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service requested protection for these species and cited findings by USGS Alaska Science Center biologist Christian Zimmerman indicating that steelhead were present in the river. In a report published in the Transactions of the American Fisheries Society, Zimmerman and co-authors used otolith microchemistry to determine that some juvenile rainbow trout collected in the Tuolumne River and other Central Valley rivers were the progeny of migratory steelhead. FERC, in its ruling, stated that, “..this information is sufficient to support the conclusion that steelhead are present in the Tuolumne River” and “..this finding does require us to reconsider whether additional measures may be needed to benefit steelhead.”
Contact: Christian Zimmerman Anchorage, AK, (907) 786-7071

II. Press Inquiries/Media

On July 29 USGS Alaska Science Center research geographer Benjamin Jones was interviewed by a correspondent for the journal Nature about research on the 2007 Anaktuvuk River wildfire that will be published in the journal Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research next month.
Contact: Benjamin Jones Anchorage, AK, (907) 786-7033

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