CORRECTION: HabitatNews: January 2026

Having trouble viewing this email? View it as a Web page. January 20, 2026 Highlights Video: Rebuilding an Olympic Peninsula River for Blueback Sockeye Salmon Along Washington's Olympic Peninsula, NOAA and the Quinault Indian Nation are working together to restore one of the region's most important salmon rivers. For the Quinault people, salmon are more than a resource: they are central to their culture and livelihood. As salmon populations decline, so does the foundation of that heritage. This partnership is built on a shared commitment: to heal the Upper Quinault River and rebuild "blueback" sockeye salmon stocks. Scientists Breed Sunflower Sea Stars Key to Reviving California's Imperiled Kelp Forests With funding from NOAA Fisheries, The Nature Conservancy and partners are advancing science to bring sunflower sea stars back to California. This keystone species is critical to kelp forest health, but functionally extinct in the state due to a wasting disease. Together, partners are rearing juvenile sea stars in laboratories and conducting research on their behavior and genetics. The ultimate goal: cross-breeding a genetically diverse group of stars that can be outplanted in the wild. Reconnecting Habitat Aids Migratory Fish on the Roanoke River The Roanoke River in North Carolina is one of the largest and wildest rivers on the East Coast, providing essential spawning habitat for fish like striped bass, river herring, and endangered Atlantic sturgeon. Although the river is mostly undeveloped, many old culverts and other small barriers disrupt its floodplain. These structures can block fish from reaching their spawning areas or trap them in standing water where low oxygen levels can kill them. With funding from NOAA Fisheries, The Nature Conservancy is working to remove these barriers. Interactive Tool Helps Quantify Effects of Shoreline Restoration in Virginia Our partners at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science developed an online, interactive tool that calculates ecosystem and economic benefits for marsh restoration projects in Virginia's Middle Peninsula. Knowing the benefits that land owners and communities would get from projects can help decision makers prioritize where to allocate funding. A Restored Reef Brings Fish Habitat Back to Southern California Monitoring of the Palos Verdes Reef restoration project in Southern California reveals that the 70,000 tons of quarry rock, deposited in 2020, have successfully restored an area contaminated by DDTs and other toxins and buried by sediment. The report shows: Total and fish biomass increased by 1,178% and 166%, respectively; shifting sediment uncovered an acre of buried natural reef; and no invasive algae or invertebrates were detected. The once-barren seafloor is now a thriving ecosystem of kelp forests supporting harbor seals, shrimp, and diverse fish populations. Small Modifications to Turtle Excluder Devices Have Big Impacts for Gulf Sea Turtles To address juvenile sea turtle bycatch in the Gulf, the DWH Open Ocean TIG designed and tested turtle excluder devices with reduced bar spacing. Final reports show that these modifications successfully reduce bycatch–while causing no significant decrease in shrimp catch. The project team collaborated with the otter trawl shrimp fishery to gather input from start to finish. A follow-up project will continue to engage with the fishery and encourage the voluntary use of these new devices. Alaska Creek Impacted by Historic Mining Restored to Support Salmon and Local Communities Just outside the small town of Hope, Alaska, on the Kenai Peninsula, a salmon stream scarred by more than a century of gold mining is coming back to life. This large-scale river restoration project was funded by NOAA Fisheries' Office of Habitat Conservation. The aptly named Resurrection Creek once again offers spawning and rearing habitat for all five species of Pacific salmon—Chinook, coho, pink, chum, and sockeye. Restoration Lab Corals Return to the Seafloor for the First Time Some of the first mesophotic corals to spawn in human care were successfully returned to the seafloor to support restoration of habitats injured by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Scientists collected corals from the Gulf, grew and spawned them in labs, and then returned them to the same area where they were collected–where they will be monitored to understand the success of different coral propagation methods. Most-Viewed NOAA Fisheries Social Post NOAA Fisheries' most popular social media post to date came from the NOAA's Deepwater Horizon Mesophotic and Deep Benthic Communities program! The post featured our favorite juvenile King crab who was observed during an expedition in the Gulf of America. The post reached millions of viewers and generated significant public interest, underscoring how field observations connected to habitat conservation can effectively engage broad audiences and increase visibility of our mission. Visit our website NOAA Fisheries Office of Habitat Conservation

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