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North American deserts—lands of little water—have long been home to a surprising diversity of aquatic life, from fish to insects and mollusks. With European settlement, however, water extraction, resource exploitation, and invasive species set many of these native aquatic species on downward spirals. In this book, conservationists dedicated to these creatures document the history of their work, the techniques and philosophies that inform it, and the challenges and opportunities of the future.
A precursor to this book, Battle Against Extinction, laid out the scope of the problem and related conservation activities through the late 1980s. Since then, many nascent conservation programs have matured, and researchers have developed new technologies, improved and refined methods, and greatly expanded our knowledge of the myriad influences on the ecology and dynamics of these species. Standing between Life and Extinction brings the story up to date. While the future for some species is more secure than thirty years ago, others are less fortunate. Calling attention not only to iconic species like the razorback sucker, Gila trout, and Devils Hole pupfish, but also to other fishes and obscure and fascinating invertebrates inhabiting intermittent aquatic habitats, this book explores the scientific, social, and political challenges of preserving these aquatic species and their habitats amid an increasingly charged political discourse and in desert regions characterized by a growing human population and rapidly changing climate.
North American deserts—lands of little water—have long been home to a surprising diversity of aquatic life, from fish to insects and mollusks. With European settlement, however, water extraction, resource exploitation, and invasive species set many of these native aquatic species on downward spirals. In this book, conservationists dedicated to these creatures document the history of their work, the techniques and philosophies that inform it, and the challenges and opportunities of the future.
A precursor to this book, Battle Against Extinction, laid out the scope of the problem and related conservation activities through the late 1980s. Since then, many nascent conservation programs have matured, and researchers have developed new technologies, improved and refined methods, and greatly expanded our knowledge of the myriad influences on the ecology and dynamics of these species. Standing between Life and Extinction brings the story up to date. While the future for some species is more secure than thirty years ago, others are less fortunate. Calling attention not only to iconic species like the razorback sucker, Gila trout, and Devils Hole pupfish, but also to other fishes and obscure and fascinating invertebrates inhabiting intermittent aquatic habitats, this book explores the scientific, social, and political challenges of preserving these aquatic species and their habitats amid an increasingly charged political discourse and in desert regions characterized by a growing human population and rapidly changing climate.
Foreword
Senator Tom Udall
Preface
Edwin P. (Phil) Pister
Section 1. Engaging the Battle
1 The Battle to Conserve Aquatic Species in Lands of Water Scarcity
Continues Jack E. Williams and David L. Propst
2 The Protagonists
2a Carl Leavitt Hubbs and Robert Rush Miller
Robert J. Edwards
2b W. L. Minckley
Chuck O. Minckley
2c Salvador Contreras-Balderas
María de Lourdes Lozano-Vilano and Armando Jesús
Contreras-Balderas
2d James E. Deacon
Cindy Deacon Williams
2e Clark Hubbs
Gary P. Garrett
2f Robert J. Behnke
Kevin R. Bestgen and Kurt D. Fausch
2g Edwin P. (Phil) Pister
Kathryn Boyer
3 Biodiversity, Biogeography, and Conservation of North American
Desert Fishes Christopher W. Hoagstrom, Derek D. Houston, and
Norman Mercado-Silva
4 Living with Aliens: Nonnative Fishes in the American Southwest
Peter B. Moyle
5 Current Conservation Status of Some Freshwater Species and Their
Habitats in México María de Lourdes Lozano-Vilano, Armando J.
Contreras-Balderas, Gorgonio Ruiz-Campos, and María Elena
García-Ramírez
6 Ghosts of Our Making: Extinct Aquatic Species of the North
American Desert Region Jack E. Williams and Donald W. Sada
Section 2. Racing to Collapse
7 Running on Empty: Southwestern Water Supplies and Climate Change
Brad Udall
8 Mining Hidden Waters: Groundwater Depletion, Aquatic Habitat
Degradation, and Loss of Fish Diversity in the Chihuahuan Desert
Ecoregion of Texas Gary P. Garrett, Megan G. Bean, Robert J.
Edwards, and Dean A. Hendrickson
9 Southwestern Fish and Aquatic Systems: The Climate Challenge
Jonathan T. Overpeck and Scott A. Bonar
10 Novel Drought Regimes Restructure Aquatic Invertebrate
Communities in Arid-Land Streams Kate S. Boersma and David A.
Lytle
11 The Exotic Dilemma: Lessons Learned from Efforts to Recover
Native Colorado River Basin Fishes Brandon Albrecht, Ron Kegerries,
Ron Rogers, and Paul Holden
Section 3. Improving the Odds
12 Applying Endangered Species Act Protections to Desert Fishes:
Assessment and Opportunities Matthew E. Andersen and James E.
Brooks
13 The Value of Specimen Collections for Conserving Biodiversity
Adam E. Cohen, Dean A. Hendrickson, and Gary P. Garrett
14 Conservation Genetics of Desert Fishes in the Genomics Age
Thomas F. Turner, Thomas E. Dowling, Trevor J. Krabbenhoft, Megan
J. Osborne, and Tyler J. Pilger
15 Long-Term Monitoring of a Desert Fish Assemblage in Aravaipa
Creek, Arizona Peter N. Reinthal, Heidi Blasius, and Mark
Haberstich
16 Human Impacts on the Hydrology, Geomorphology, and Restoration
Potential of Southwestern Rivers Mark C. Stone and Ryan R.
Morrison
17 Conservation and Ecological Rehabilitation of North American
Desert Spring Ecosystems Donald W. Sada and Lawrence E. Stevens
Section 4. Searching for Recovery
18 Oases: Finding Hidden Biodiversity Gems in the Southern Sonoran
Desert Michael T. Bogan, Carlos Alonso Ballesteros-Córdova, Scott
E. K. Bennett, Michael H. Darin, Lloyd T. Findley, and Alejandro
Varela-Romero
19 Recent Discoveries and Conservation of Catfishes, Genus
Ictalurus, in México Alejandro Varela-Romero, Carlos Alonso
Ballesteros-Córdova, Gorgonio Ruiz-Campos, Sergio Sánchez-Gonzalez,
and James E. Brooks
20 Ecology, Politics, and Conservation of Gila Trout David L.
Propst, Thomas F. Turner, Jerry A. Monzingo, James E. Brooks, and
Dustin J. Myers
21 Large-River Fish Conservation in the Colorado River Basin:
Progress and Challenges with Razorback Sucker Kevin R. Bestgen,
Thomas E. Dowling, Brandon Albrecht, and Koreen A. Zelasko
22 Assisting Recovery: Intensive Interventions to Conserve Native
Fishes of Desert Springs and Wetlands Sean C. Lema, Jennifer M.
Gumm, Olin G. Feuerbacher, and Michael R. Schwemm
23 Restoration of Aquatic Habitats and Native Fishes in the Desert:
Some Successes in Western North America Anthony A. Echelle and
Alice F. Echelle
Section 5. Exploring Our Future
24 The Devils Hole Pupfish: Science in a Time of Crises Kevin P.
Wilson, Mark B. Hausner, and Kevin C. Brown
25 Politics, Imagination, Ideology, and the Realms of Our Possible
Futures Christopher Norment
26 Searching for Common Ground between Life and Extinction
Christopher W. Hoagstrom, Kevin R. Bestgen, David L. Propst, and
Jack E. Williams Acknowledgments
List of Contributors
Index
David L. Propst is adjunct professor and associate curator in the Department of Biology and Museum of Southwestern Biology at the University of New Mexico. He is coauthor of Fish of the Rockies. He lives in Albuquerque, NM. Jack E. Williams is emeritus senior scientist for Trout Unlimited. Most recently, he is coeditor of Trout and Char of the World. He lives in Oregon’s Rogue River Valley. Kevin R. Bestgen is a senior research scientist in the Department of Fish, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology as well as director of the Larval Fish Laboratory at Colorado State University. He lives in Fort Collins, CO. Christopher W. Hoagstrom is professor in the Department of Zoology at Weber State University. He lives in Ogden, UT.
"Many see the arid lands of western North America as a stretch of
dry, flyover territory, the setting for shoot-'em-up cowboy movies
and the venue for arguments over water rights. This volume edited
by Propst, Williams, Bestgen, and Hoagstrom will completely shatter
those supercilious projections. Conservation of desert fishes was
introduced in Battle against Extinction,edited by W. L. Minckley
and James Deacon. A group of passionate experts in biodiversity,
conservation, history, hydrology, and politics expand the subject
in this excellent exploration of the land-water-bioconservation
ethic for both sides of the RioGrande. Adding to its attraction as
a textbook, a deep dive by researchers will reward with new lines
of inquiry. The photographs are striking and instructive, tables
are crisp, and the writing style is inviting. In particular, candid
photographs of habitats and workers in the field offer readers an
authentic view of the people, topics, and challenges the volume
addresses. The index is extensive, and each chapter includes its
own list of cited literature. This reviewer could not ask for more
in a textbook for use in advanced classes, or as a reference work
to be added to his personal bookshelf. . . . Highly
recommended"
*Choice*
“This book should appeal to anyone broadly interested in
conservation and management of water resources, and specifically to
conservation scientists, natural resource managers, and fish
biologists. There are strong historical threads woven throughout
the chapters, and it serves both as a tribute to pioneering legends
of early desert fish conservation and a synthesis of ongoing work
that reveals successes, failures, and challenges in the face of
human populations expanding into arid regions, the increasing
conflicts over exploitation of water and land, and the overriding
and worsening impacts of human-mediated climate change. The breadth
of topics presented and synthesis of complex research outcomes as
applied to conservation challenges are impressive. A valuable
addition to the conservation literature that will be read widely
and cited extensively.”
*Michael S. Parker, Southern Oregon State University*
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