The 27th International Congress for Conservation Biology was organized in Montpellier, France in August 2015. John Piccolo was present at the conference together with over 2000 attendees that presented research on conservation efforts worldwide – the largest meeting ever for the Society of Conservation Biology (SCB). Important topics included, among others, citizen science, social-ecological science, roadless area protection, and river connectivity. Plenary speakers included Peter Kareiva, Clive Spash, Anne Larigauderie, Ana Rodrigues, and Carl Jones. John Piccolo joined the SCB Freshwater working group and also presented a poster on the Land Ethic in conservation biology.

John Piccolo presented a poster about Klarälven salmon at the recent international symposium “Advances in the Population Ecology of Stream Salmonids – IV” in Girona, Cataluña, Spain. The poster can be seen online here:

John also gave a presentation about conservation biology of salmon and trout, focusing on a recent debate on conservation ethics summarized by Tallis et als (2014) article in Nature Communications. He also recommends Holmes Rolston IIIs “A New Environmental Ethics: The Next Millennium for Life on Earth”  for more reading on conservation ethics.

Just nu pågår det internationella symposiumet  “Advances in the Population Ecology of Stream Salmonids – IV” i Girona, Katalonien, Spanien. Allt från livshistoria och genetik till restaurering och beteende ekologi diskuteras.  Från Karlstads Universitet deltar Eva Bergman och John Piccolo. Eva Bergman presenterar “Woody debris in boreal streams: Effects on brown trout foraging and behavior” och Jack Piccolos presentation har titeln “Understanding Atlantic salmon smolt production in a large regulated river: A case study from Klarälven, Sweden”. 

Den vetenskapliga artikeln “Ice cover alters the behavior and stress level of brown trout Salmo trutta”, om juvenila öringars vinterbeteende, har publicerats i Behavioral Ecology. Artikeln är resultatet av ett avdelningsgemensamt experiement på Karlstads Universitet där Johan Watz och Bror Jonsson hållit i taktpinnen.  Övriga författare är Eva Bergman, Olle Calles, Åsa Enefalk, Stina Gustafsson, Anna Hagelin, Anders Nilsson, Johnny Norrgård, Daniel Nyqvist, Martin Österling, John Piccolo, Lea Schneider och Larry Greenberg.

I abstraktet beskrivs studien: “Surface ice in rivers and lakes buffers the thermal environment and provides overhead cover, protecting aquatic animals from terrestrial predators. We tested if surface ice influenced the behavior (swimming activity, aggressive encounters, and number of food items eaten) and stress level (coloration of eyes and body) of stream-living brown troutSalmo trutta at temperatures of 3–4 °C in indoor experimental flumes. We hypothesized that an individual’s resting metabolic rate (RMR, as measured by resting ventilation rate) would affect winter behavior. Therefore, groups of 4 trout, consisting of individuals with high, low, or mixed (2 individuals each) RMR, were exposed to experimental conditions with or without ice cover. Ice cover reduced stress responses, as evaluated by body coloration. Also, trout in low RMR groups had a paler body color than those in both mixed and high RMR groups. Trout increased their swimming activity under ice cover, with the highest activity found in high RMR groups. Ice cover increased the number of aggressive encounters but did not influence the number of drifting food items taken by each group. In mixed RMR groups, however, single individuals were better able to monopolize food than in the other groups. As the presence of surface ice increases the activity level and reduces stress in stream-living trout, ice cover should influence their energy budgets and production. The results should be viewed in light of ongoing global warming that reduces the duration of ice cover, especially at high latitudes and altitudes.”

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Den vetenskapliga artikeln “Spawning migration of wild and supplementary stocked landlocked Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar)”, om laxens lekvandring i Klarälven, har publicerats i River Research and Applications. Författare är Anna Hagelin, Olle Calles, John Piccolo, Larry Greenberg och Eva Bergman från NRRV, Karlstads Universitet. I artikelns abstrakt skriver de:

“Upstream migration by adult salmonids is impeded by dams in many regulated rivers, as is the case for landlocked Atlantic salmon, Salmo salar, in the River Klarälven, Sweden. There, the salmon cannot reach the spawning grounds due to the presence of eight dams. Hence, hatchery-reared smolts are released downstream of the dams, and upstream migrating spawners are caught in a trap at the lowermost dam before transported by truck to the spawning grounds past the dams. To identify the spawning grounds and compare the behavior of wild and hatchery-reared Atlantic salmon during upstream migration and spawning, 34 wild and 28 hatchery-reared, radio-tagged Atlantic salmon were followed during their spawning migration from August to October 2011. Half (50%) of the hatchery fish, but only 11,8% of the wild fish ended up as fallbacks, i.e. they migrated past the first downstream power station, and did not spawn. A significantly higher proportion (21.4%) of hatchery- reared salmon moved in an erratic way, with several up and down stream movements, when compared to the wild salmon (5.9%). When looking at the salmon that stayed in the river (exc. fallbacks), wild individuals exhibited a holding behavior (little or no movements before presumed spawning) more often (86.7%) than the reared ones (50%). The wild salmon also held position (and presumably spawned) for longer time (25.4 days) than the reared salmon (16.1 days). Reared salmon held position, on average, 10 km further upstream than wild salmon, passing the presumed best-quality spawning habitat. The migration speed (average 17.4 km/day) between two logger stations did not differ between wild and reared fish or between sexes. Our results suggest that the reproductive success of hatchery-reared Atlantic salmon is relatively low and their capacity as supplementary spawners to the wild population in the Klarälven, is probably small.”

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Karlstad University has a master program in Stream Ecology: The educational program focuses on the ecology of streams and rivers, but also includes how man affects different freshwater environments and sustainable solutions for problems in these environments. We are located on the banks of Scandinavia’s longest river, on the shores of the EU’s largest lake. We have field studies located throughout Sweden, with international cooperation throughout Europe and North America. We also house the largest indoor stream aquarium facility in Sweden, where research on stream ecology is conducted year round. Close cooperation with faculty, researchers, and graduate students with a strong commitment to stream ecology prepares you for further research or for employment in Sweden and abroad.

The programme is offered as both campus and distance studies with obligatory examinations at Karlstad University about 2-3 occasions each semester. The training focuses on the study of freshwater environments with special focus on running water connected to the strong research environment at Karlstad University. Particular emphasis is placed on studies of fish and other organisms in the anthropogenically-influenced habitats and on the methods to solve applied problems. The programme includes courses that certify certain specific areas in studies of freshwater environments and thus enables consulting on advanced level. You are also offered the opportunity to do thesis research connected to ongoing research projects or in cooperation with one of our external partners. Studies are conducted on the full-time schedule for two years. You plan, together with a counselor, how your studies will be (an individual study plan submitted). Because the programme focuses on applied research projects, you gain experience working with government, private, and non-profit agencies. You can also choose yourself the extent to which your studies are linked to the labor market through the elective courses you choose.

Admission to the programme requires Upper Secondary English course 5 or equivalent, and a Bachelor degree of 180 ECTS credits including at least 90 ECTS credits in Biology, with a profile in Ecology.

Contact director John Piccolo , director of studies or Stina Eriksson, student councellor.

Admission by 15 april!

John Piccolo och Martin Österling är medförfattare på artikeln “Genomics and the challenging translation into conservation practice”, publicerad i Trends in Ecology and Evolution. I artikelns inledning skriver författarna:

“The global loss of biodiversity continues at an alarming rate. Genomic approaches have been suggested as a promising tool for conservation practice as scaling up to genome-wide data can improve traditional conservation genetic inferences and provide qualitatively novel insights. However, the generation of genomic data and subsequent analyses and interpretations remain challenging and largely confined to academic research in ecology and evolution. This generates a gap between basic research and applicable solutions for conservation managers faced with multifaceted problems. Before the real-world conservation potential of genomic research can be realized, we suggest that current infrastructures need to be modified, methods must mature, analytical pipelines need to be eveloped, and successful case studies must be disseminated to practitioners.”

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En vetenskaplig artikel med titeln “Atlantic Salmon and Brown Trout in Lake Vänern: A proposal for a co-management system” har publicerats i tidskriften Aquatic Ecosystem Health & Management. Emperin i artikeln har något år på nacken men är fortfarande aktuell. Författare är Eva Bergman, Johnny Norrgård, John Piccolo, Pär Gustafsson, Fredrik Nilsson och Paul Hart –  de flesta med NRRV-kopplingar.

I artikelns abstract inleder författarna: “Co-management is of increasing interest for fisheries management. We explore possibilities for, and barriers to, developing a co-management system, using threatened populations of landlocked Atlantic Salmon and Brown Trout as examples. Good management of natural resources requires not only knowledge about the resource, but also suitable tools to collect information and make decisions…”. 

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John Piccolo leder studenterna i Ekologisk miljövård på en studieresa till konferensen Vattendagarna 2014, vid Vattenriket i Kristianstad. Han har skickat en kort rapport från konferensens första dag: Tema på konferens i år är ”Vatten och samhälle – möjligheter och utmaningar!” Björn Risinger, generaldirektör Havs och Vattenmyndigheten, öppnade konfernesen och pratade bland annat om en ny process för biologisk mångfald och rinnande vatten. Temat för tisdag förmiddag var ”Vattnets värde i samhällsperspektiv”  och handlade om ekosystemtjänster och vattens värde. Konferensen kommer även att handla mycket om vattenkraft och vattenmiljö.

Läs programet här: http://www.limnologerna.org/VD2014/Vattendagar%202014%20Program%20141125.pdf

För ungefär två veckor sedan (tiden går snabbt när en har roligt) arrangerades Vänerdagen på Folkets Hus i Vänersborg. Anders Andersson och John Piccolo deltog från NRRV och Karlstads Universitet. Våra repressentanter rapporterar om en lyckad dag med flera intressanta möten och föredrag. Anders Andersson pratade själv om sin forskning i presentationen: “Studie om sportfiske efter lax och öring”. Flera presentationer kan laddas ner från Vänerdagens hemsida.