Scientists, conservationists, and policy experts from five continents gathered July 15-17 at the University of Nevada, Reno’s Tahoe campus to tackle a growing crisis: the decline of migratory freshwater fish.
“This is the first time that people have come together and developed a list like this. A global list to protect migratory fish,” said UNR research professor Zeb Hogan.
Species like trout and salmon rely on healthy rivers to travel and survive. But dams, pollution, and climate change are putting them at risk.
The three-day workshop launched several global initiatives, including a plan to list vulnerable fish under a United Nations treaty. It also designated the Truckee River, from Lake Tahoe to Pyramid Lake, as a key migration route.
“The first day, everyone came with all the information that we had about fish from all over the world. And then the second day, we talked about which fish should go on this list that’s going to go to the United Nations,” Hogan said .
The meeting also spotlighted local work by the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe, whose decades-long restoration efforts are now seen as a model for Indigenous-led conservation.
The workshop drew global attention to local species in the Tahoe Basin and Northern Nevada.
“We have the Lahontan cutthroat trout, which is the largest trout in North America. And then the cui-ui, which is a fish that’s found nowhere else on Earth,” Hogan said.
Researchers say the outcomes will help shape international policy at the 2026 Convention on Migratory Species in Brazil.
