Salmon bones confirm sustainable chum fishery for 2,500 years under Tsleil-Waututh Nation
New research confirms that Tsleil-Waututh Nation has consistently and sustainably fished for chum salmon for 1,200 years longer than the archaeological record had previously demonstrated
Dr. Brian Hunt receives NSERC Discovery Grant to research the impacts of urbanization on the coastal ocean
Dr. Brian Hunt will receive an NSERC Discovery Grant for work on the impacts of urbanization on coastal oceans, specifically regarding ocean cities.
Are viruses keeping sea lice at bay in wild salmon?
More than 30 previously unknown RNA viruses in sea lice have been identified by UBC researchers. Sea lice are parasitic copepods (small crustaceans) found in many fresh and saltwater habitats and have been implicated in the decline of wild salmon populations.
Food quality matters for southern resident killer whales, UBC study states
If southern resident killer whales ate just low-lipid salmon, they would have to eat around 80,000 more Chinook salmon every year than if they just ate high-lipid salmon.
The DNA of salmon heritage
Two UBC researchers are exploring the problem of dwindling salmon runs from opposite ends of the knowledge continuum—cutting edge genomics, and empirical evidence gathered over millennia by the Indigenous Peoples of the coast.
Seafood farming’s growth rate has already peaked, and now it’s in decline
The growth rate of seafood farming worldwide peaked in 1996 according to new UBC research, highlighting the importance of rebuilding wild fish stocks to feed future demand.
Food quality might be key for juvenile sockeye salmon growth and survival
The quality of food sockeye salmon eat along their migration routes is more important to their growth and condition than quantity, a new study has found, highlighting concerns about the effects of climate change on ocean conditions and salmon.
Expect shorter food chains in more productive coastal ecosystems
“We provided evidence for bottom-up omnivory in nutrient-rich temperate pelagic ecosystems, where food chain length is determined by the level of diatom production,” said Jacob Lerner. “This is very different from the global model for pelagic ecosystems.”
BC is facing a steep decline in sockeye salmon
The sockeye population has been in decline for a century – since 1913, returns in the Skeena River have dropped by 75% – and while there are many factors at play, says Dr. William Cheung, “climate change is definitely one of them.”
Southern resident killer whales not getting enough to eat since 2018
The animals have been in an energy deficit, averaged across spring, summer and fall, for six of the last 40 years.