Tell me something good about salmon
How can flood bypasses and rice fields provide a suitable habitat for juvenile salmon?
By George Whitman
After more than a decade of research by a group of scientists, local farmers, and state and federal agencies, the answer is clear. When compared to rivers in the central valley, flooded rice fields can grow salmon up to eight times due to the increased abundance of food. In addition to large-scale experiments with hatchery fish, this year (2026) is the first operation of the “Big Notch” that allows wild juvenile salmon to use these habitats more frequently. To discuss how these results are being applied on a larger scale, CBS News interviewed Carson Jeffres about the floodplain benefits for salmon.
To learn more, visit the CBS website for the full article and UC Davis’s new regular series, Tell Me Something Good.
https://www.cbsnews.com/sacramento/news/flooded-california-rice-fields-salmon-populations-recovery/
https://www.ucdavis.edu/climate/news/tell-me-something-good-about-salmon