It seems not very long ago that many kinds of fish were quite abundant. Granted, my childhood is now a couple of generations back, but I recall vividly the great variety of fresh fish and shellfish resting on ice at the fish shops, or salted in barrels that sat on the sawdust-covered floor. In those days, no one would ever have dreamt that fish so common as cod, eels, or shad could possibly become as scarce as hen’s teeth. Nor that sturgeon would teeter on the brink of extinction. Nor that fisheries would collapse like a row of toy soldiers, one following another.

Sadly, this is the situation the world faces today. According to the Food and Agricultural Organization of the UN, over two-thirds of world capture fisheries are fully to over-exploited, and around 10% are recovering from collapse. Clearly, we live in a different world than when I was a little girl.

As an ecologist working in fisheries, I have spent a great deal of my professional life studying diadromous species. These are fishes that move between fresh and marine waters in order to complete their life cycle. These include the anadromous (literally, “up-running” from the Greek) species such as salmons and shads that run up from the sea to spawn in fresh water, catadromous (“down-running”) species such as eels that spawn in the sea, and amphidromous (“running both ways”) fishes such as menhaden or bluefish, that spawn at either end, but use estuaries as a place in which to grow. As a group, the diadromous fishes are fascinating: they have evolved to adapt to widely varying environments, and we are learning increasingly more about their rich repertoire of migratory behaviors and ecological roles they hold.

Some of my studies of diadromous species – salmons, shads, and eels – were motivated not only by scientific questions, but also because of conservation concerns. Many of these species seemed to be in decline. Also, several landmark papers were recently published documenting declines in fisheries and possibly linking these to degraded ecosystem function. Thus, a question that dogged me was: how are the diadromous species doing as a whole?

Reviewing such a vast group would be impractical for a short sabbatical, so instead I decided to tackle the more feasible project of looking at status and trends of diadromous species in the North Atlantic. I define this system as the zone that includes everything north of South America to the west (including the Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean), and northern Africa to the east (including the Mediterranean and Ponto-Caspian seas for some species). This amounts to roughly a dozen and a half species on each side of the Atlantic. Thus, it is still a sizable project to undertake.

I knew that a great place to conduct this project would be with colleagues at Cemagref, an institute that does a variety of environmental research around France. My colleagues, led by Dr. Eric Rochard, form the “Unité Ecosystèmes Estuariens et Poissons Migrateurs Amphihalins” through the Cemagref-Bordeaux laboratory. The group studies estuaries and associated problems that affect living resources such as fish and shellfish. They also take a watershed approach to studying diadromous species, since many of these species can penetrate hundreds of kilometers into continental waters. I had been interacting informally with this research group for nearly a decade, so I was well aware of their special expertise and interests. We also share many interests of a technical nature that seemed appropriate to delve into more as well. Hence, when I had a chance to apply for a Fulbright-Aquitaine fellowship to work with Eric and his colleagues, I jumped at it.

I was fortunate to receive the fellowship, and the research project has been truly interesting to pursue. Interesting not only for the data themselves, but also because I realized rather quickly that this project, to be successful, would require a lot of “buy-in” from many colleagues in North America and Europe who possessed data sets needed for the analysis. Thus, the project is becoming more of a “community-based” effort, with many people contributing data sets that will help us all to take a good look at trends in these species. Which species are in decline, and where? How bad are the declines among species? But not all news is bad. Where are the success stories? Where are species being protected and managed wisely?

Being here in France has been more than just a matter of collecting data sets, however. It has been a wonderful opportunity to get better acquainted with this research group and what it does, to learn about the daily routines of such a group, and learn more about the world of French research in general. The unité is composed of researchers and doctoral students, working on a range of projects from early life history of key species up to the level of climate change effects on fish communities. The unité also has an aquaculture facility where they maintain what are perhaps, sadly, the very last European sturgeons. They hope to care for these animals long enough for them to reproduce, so that there is a chance to reintroduce them and save this ancient species from extinction.

I’ve been impressed with the dedication to hard work by my French colleagues, and the extent to which they care about fisheries from a conservation perspective. I’ve also been impressed by the high degree of camaraderie. The research group gets along well on its stomach, one could say: they dine together at lunch, and gather each other up for coffee and tea breaks, too.

Despite my limited French language skills, I’ve had a really good time discussing everything from science to lifestyles to politics with my French colleagues. I think it’s not often that a Yankee comes to spend time with this group, so it’s an opportunity for them to learn something about Americans and our culture too. And now, doors are opening for some to travel to the States as post-docs, as well.

The more I have learned about Senator Fulbright’s intentions in setting up his scholars’ exchange, the more I appreciate his foresight. He really understood that we need to live amongst other cultures in order better to know our own, and better to maintain world peace and prosperity. I am grateful to have been able to participate in the process.

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