Wander With Wild Things

A brutal few days doing field work. All day, 90+ degrees, catching, counting, measuring, weighing fish who would really rather not be handled. And who do their damndest to stick their spiny fin rays into my skin at every possible opportunity despite my insistence that I am not going to hurt them. As a result, my brain is fried and my hands are pincushions today. I am relishing the cool air of the office for a day or two before striking out in search of more critters great and small.

But the results of these recent labours are promising -- we are seeing a marked increase in numbers and population health of an endangered fish species that lives in the river. They are found nowhere else in the world. They appear to have had several years of successful reproduction and individuals of all sizes are found throughout our sampling sites, which is a sign that things are looking up for this beautiful little fish! Thanks to the removal of an old hydropower dam four years ago, their habitat is restored and their future is getting brighter every day!