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A California Chinook Salmon Jumps into a waterfall during spawning season
Geneticists Light Up Debate on Salmon Conservation
Splitting Chinook salmon into two groups based on their DNA could aid conservation efforts. But some researchers argue that this would be a misuse of the data.
Geneticists Light Up Debate on Salmon Conservation
Geneticists Light Up Debate on Salmon Conservation

Splitting Chinook salmon into two groups based on their DNA could aid conservation efforts. But some researchers argue that this would be a misuse of the data.

Splitting Chinook salmon into two groups based on their DNA could aid conservation efforts. But some researchers argue that this would be a misuse of the data.

fish, genetics & genomics

Infographic comparing the fall and spring salmon runs
Infographic: An Incredible Journey
Christie Wilcox, PhD | Feb 1, 2023 | 1 min read
Chinook make their way up the Klamath River every year, but fewer and fewer arrive in the spring.
Timeline summarizing a series of petitions filed about the Chinook salmon
Timeline: An Extended Battle
Christie Wilcox, PhD | Feb 1, 2023 | 3 min read
Various concerned groups have been petitioning NOAA Fisheries to list spring-run Chinook salmon in Oregon and Northern California for over a decade.
A tropical angelfish 
Genome Spotlight: Freshwater Angelfish (Pterophyllum scalare)
Christie Wilcox, PhD | Oct 27, 2022 | 4 min read
A high school student uses crowdfunding to produce the first genome assembly for this popular aquarium species, underscoring the increasing feasibility of whole-genome sequencing.
An Edith’s checkerspot butterfly
Genome Spotlight: Edith’s Checkerspot Butterfly (Euphydryas editha)
Christie Wilcox, PhD | Aug 25, 2022 | 3 min read
A high-quality genome sequence for this versatile insect will likely aid eco-evolutionary research.
A tubifer cardinalfish
Genome Spotlight: Tubifer cardinalfish (Siphamia tubifer)
Christie Wilcox, PhD | Apr 28, 2022 | 3 min read
These tiny reef fish harbor luminous bacteria, and the chromosome-level assembly of the species’ genome may facilitate the duo’s use as a vertebrate model for symbiosis.
Five morphs of Poecilia parae—from top: melanzona yellow, melanzona blue, melanzona red, parae, immaculata—and a female (bottom) of the same species
Fish Species’ Y Chromosomes Diverged Even Without Recombination
Catherine Offord | Sep 1, 2021 | 2 min read
Researchers discover surprisingly high levels of genetic diversity among the colorful male morphs of a freshwater fish.
a purple betta with white fins in a tank
My Daughter’s First Pet—the Next Big Model Organism?
Christie Wilcox, PhD | Jul 15, 2021 | 10+ min read
Bettas were likely the first fish welcomed into human homes. Now, scientists are welcoming them into the lab to learn how genes dictate their appearance and behavior.
Japanese grass pufferfish (Takifugu niphobles) CT scan
Pufferfish Spines Shaped by Same Genes as Feathers and Fish Scales
Nicoletta Lanese | Jul 29, 2019 | 3 min read
To see if the spiky fish shares signaling pathways found in other organisms, scientists scooped up specimens during a mating frenzy on the shores of Japan.
atlantic killifish Fundulus heteroclitus
Killifish Survive Polluted Waters Thanks to Genes from Another Fish
Emma Yasinski | May 6, 2019 | 4 min read
Gulf killifish have made a stunning comeback in Houston with the help of genetic mutations imported from interspecies mating with Atlantic killifish.
Image of the Day: Shark Skin
Ashley Yeager | Nov 8, 2018 | 1 min read
Fish scales follow a model famed computer scientist Alan Turing developed to describe patterns observed in other animals’ feathers, spines, and scales.
Study Finds Epigenetic Differences Between Hatchery-Raised and Wild-Born Salmon
Shawna Williams | Mar 1, 2018 | 4 min read
The variation may help explain why stocked salmon don’t fare as well in the ocean.
Blind Cavefish in Mexico Offer Clues to Sleep Regulation
Catherine Offord | Feb 6, 2018 | 2 min read
Two studies identify a signaling pathway that contributes to the fish’s sleeplessness.
Captivated by Chromosomes
Anna Azvolinsky | Dec 1, 2017 | 8 min read
Peering through a microscope since age 14, Joseph Gall, now 89, still sees wonder at the other end.
Genome Digest
Diana Kwon | Mar 15, 2017 | 4 min read
What researchers are learning as they sequence, map, and decode species’ genomes
Genome Digest
Amanda B. Keener | May 21, 2015 | 4 min read
What researchers are learning as they sequence, map, and decode species’ genomes
Genome Digest
Molly Sharlach | Oct 13, 2014 | 5 min read
What researchers are learning as they sequence, map, and decode species’ genomes
Week in Review: March 3–7
Tracy Vence | Mar 7, 2014 | 3 min read
The gene behind a butterfly’s mimicry; the evolution of adipose fins; bacteria and bowel cancer; plants lacking plastid genomes
Genome Digest
Abby Olena, PhD | Feb 6, 2014 | 5 min read
What researchers are learning as they sequence, map, and decode species’ genomes
Extreme Expression
Tracy Vence | Aug 26, 2013 | 1 min read
Researchers sequence the transcriptome of the Antarctic-dwelling bald notothen fish.
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