Happening in our region: Stories of people and wildlife

Having trouble viewing this email? View it as a Web page.  Dream Fulfilled: A Sacramento Biologist's Love of the Delta Became Her Life's Calling  FWS biologist Heather Swinney conducting a tour of the San Joaquin River in August 2016. Swinney's passion for helping restore the Delta has driven her to become an important team member in the Service's environmental review efforts with California WaterFix and the Central Valley Project. Credit: Steve Martarano/USFWS "I spent a lot of time on the Delta as a kid, boating, fishing, and I know it well. I've fulfilled that dream I had growing up, and am very fortunate I've been able to put that to use..."                                                     — Heather Swinney, biologist Editor's note: Delta Smelt, found only in California's Sacramento-San Joaquin Bay-Delta Estuary, are on the brink of extinction and scientists in the Service's San Francisco Bay-Delta and Lodi Fish and Wildlife offices are battling to save the indicator species on several fronts. These are their stories. Second in a series: By Steve Martarano Heather Swinney still remembers when it clicked that the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta she had enjoyed her entire life might become a career. It was during high school, and she was out on one of her adventures on the estuary she loved when it resonated to her that combining passion for science and water could be her life's calling. Continue to full story...   Saving a Rare Desert Fish on the Brink of Extinction Pahrump poolfish (Empetrichthys latos) are being kept at the Nevada state fish hatchery, at the Lake Meade National Recreation Area, as restoration efforts to restore their home habitat begin on Lake Harriet, near Las Vegas. Credit: Enrique Villar/USFWS Recovery Efforts Are Underway to Save the Pahrump Poolfish at Spring Mountain Ranch State Park in Southern Nevada   There is a rare species of desert fish fighting for its survival in a fresh water pond in the desert landscape of southern Nevada -- the Pahrump poolfish. According to biologists monitoring the tiny fish, one of the last remaining populations of the endangered Pahrump poolfish, Empetrichthys latos, is at an alarmingly low number, below 1,000, compared to the 10,000 recorded in 2015. Continue to full story... Stay Connected with U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Pacific Southwest Region     This email was sent using GovDelivery, on behalf of: U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Pacific Southwest Region · 2800 Cottage Way · Suite W-2606 · Sacramento, CA 95825