Fish in the News. Each week the Bailey Brothers start the Pet Fish Talk Show with some fun and interesting stories about fish in the news.         In Backyards Almost Everywhere Ponds are Starting to Heat Up. Yes everywhere, well almost everywhere in the northern hemisphere, backyard ponds are starting to heat up. It's spring! If you've never had a backyard pond, it's fun and easy. If you have one now, there's lots you can do to increase your enjoyment. Shown above top, a beautiful Koi, and just below an Oranda Goldfish. Either fish can go in a backyard pond, but they are not compatible and should no go in the same pond. Click here to read more.       In California Controversy about Chinook Salmon. A recent study indicates that wild salmon may account for just 10 percent of California's fall-run chinook salmon population, while the vast majority of the fish come from hatcheries. The findings are especially troubling in light of the disastrous decline in the population this year, which will probably force the closure of the 2008 season for commercial and recreational salmon fishing. The role of hatcheries in the management of salmon populations has been a contentious issue for many years. The new findings appear to support the idea that including artificially propagated fish in population estimates can mask declines in natural populations caused by a lack of suitable habitat. "Our finding that 90 percent of the fish are from hatcheries surprised a lot of people," said Rachel Barnett-Johnson, shown above, a fisheries biologist with the Institute of Marine Sciences at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Click here to read more.       In Indonesian Borneo First Lungless Frog Discovered Researchers have confirmed the first case of complete lunglessness in a frog, according to a report in the April 8th issue of Current Biology. The aquatic frog with the scientific name Barbourula kalimantanensis apparently gets all the oxygen it needs through its skin.  Previously known from only two specimens, two new populations of the aquatic frog were found by the team during a recent expedition to Indonesian Borneo. "We knew that we would have to be very lucky just to find the frog," said David Bickford of the National University of Singapore. "People have been trying for 30 years. But when we did and I was doing the initial dissections -- right there in the field -- I have to say that I was very skeptical at first [that they would in fact lack lungs]. It just did not seem possible. We were all shocked when it turned out to be true for all the specimens we had from Kalimantan, Indonesia. "The thing that struck me most then and now is that there are still major firsts (e.g., first lungless frog!) to be found out in the field," he added. "All you have to do is go a little ways beyond what people have done before, and -- voila!" Of all tetrapods (animals with four limbs), lunglessness is only known to occur in amphibians. There are many lungless salamanders and a single species of caecilian, a limbless amphibian resembling an earthworm, known to science. Nevertheless, Bickford said, the complete loss of lungs is a particularly rare evolutionary event that has probably only occurred three times. Click here to read more.   In the Southern Hemisphere Conservation Of Freshwater Fish Biodiversity. Scientists have made the first global-scale analysis of the processes leading to freshwater fish invasion in river basins. This phenomenon affects most river ecosystems of countries of the Northern hemisphere. However, in the context of economic growth developing countries are now experiencing, their river basins, home to the greater part of freshwater fish biodiversity, are at risk of the same fate unless vigilance is applied. Humans have regularly been introducing exotic species into natural environments in order to provide for their nutritional necessities or meet less indispensable purposes such as horticulture, fishing or hunting. However, the particular environments are not always adapted for hosting new arrivals. Past introduction attempts, such as that of wild rabbit into Australia or brown fario trout into Southern hemisphere water courses, led to an awareness that these different species, qualified by scientists as none-native, have the power to upset an ecosystem. Click here to read more.         Des Moines, Iowa, High Ammonia Levels Threaten Water. Manure and commercial fertilizers spread on frozen ground contributed to record ammonia levels in water supplies across Iowa this spring, threatening tap water in Des Moines and harming fish and other aquatic life, officials said. Sampling by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources found sharply elevated readings across the state, prompting environmental groups to urge new restrictions for farmers who use the fertilizers. "We're alarmed about the ammonia levels Des Moines Water Works has had to deal with," said Roger Wolf, who works on river issues on behalf of the Iowa Soybean Association and a consortium called Agriculture's Clean Water Alliance. "We're trying to identify the sources so we can do something about it." Click here to read more.       In Brigham City, Utah , Fanged Fish Shows Up In Pioneer Park Pond. Biologists in Utah are searching for answers after a fish with fangs was discovered in Pioneer Park Pond in Brigham City, about an hour north of Salt Lake City, was found a couple weeks ago when every fish in the pond was discovered to be dead. Click here to read more. Click here to see the video. Special thanks to Jay from PA for sending us an email with a link to this story.   In Indonesia Strange New Angler Fish May See Like Humans. While diving in the harbor of a small island in Indonesia recently, husband and wife Buck and Fitrie Randolph, with dive guide Toby Fadirsyair, found a strange fish and took some pictures. The oddball creature looks like an anglerfish, but different. Its eyes, unlike those of nearly all fish, point forward and may allow the fish to gauge depth the way humans do. The flat fish has tan- and peach-colored stripes and rippling folds of skin that obscure its fins. About the size of a human fist, it is soft and pliable enough to slip into narrow crevices of coral reefs - perhaps why it's never been seen before. Click here to read more. Special thanks to Cameron, who sent us this link while visiting in St. Lucia, a tropical island in the Caribbean Sea.   Joshua from Okemos, Michigan, says ... Hello Guys, looks like spring may have finally hit mid michigan ... it was 55 degrees yesterday and looks like everyone got into the cedar closet and pulled out the shorts .... I hope you are your mother are doing well .... Here are a few interesting things I found while surfing the net ... Hope you enjoy! Joshua From Okemos MI   http://www.kypost.com/news/local/story.aspx?... 445a-aea1-ae1ba35d2bf4   http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/ ... /METRO   http://www.wzzm13.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=90175   http://www.mlive.com/features/annarbornews/ ... .xml&coll=2   http://www.chippewa.com/articles/2008/03/30/outdoors/999z.txt   Callers during this Show Keenan from Washington DC calls and talks about his 10-gallon aquarium with four Mbuna Cichlids, which seem be OK now, but Tom and Nevin warn Keenan that it will most probably not continue, and his Mbunas need a much bigger aquarium with more Mbunas. Merete from Copenhagen calls and says she had the day off so she had fun with her fish until 10 pm, then the fun became work. She is looking for some Dwarf Freshwater Puffers. Leslie from Michigan calls and talks about his 60-gallon aquarium with eight Firemouth Cichlids that have stopped spawning. Tom and Nevin give five important tips for spawning cichlids like the Firemouths. Lesley also said he emailed some pictures of his Firemouths, but we did not get the pictures yet.   Pictures of Leslie's Firemouth Cichlids The day after the show Leslie from Michigan sent us and email with pictures of one of his aquariums, shown just below. Can you see the two Firemouths swimming in the lower left part of the aquarium just in front of the plants? Thank you Leslie for calling and sending us this photo.       The picture of the Firemouth Cichlid, just above, was sent to us by Chris Dumcombe of Starfish with his permission to use it.   The Bailey Brothers encourage YOU to call Pet Fish Talk during the show and talk about your pet fish.     Download of this Entire Show Here's how: Right-Click here, then click on "Save Target (or Link) As ...".  Navigate to the folder you prefer, and click on the button labeled "Save". Later you can copy the MP3-file to your iPod or other MP3-player. You can also burn files to CDs, then play them in a CD-player.  Click here to download the PodCast for this show. Click here to buy an MP3-enabled CD-Player, or click here to buy an MP3-Player, or click here to buy an Apple iPod, which can all play Pet Fish Talk Shows.     There are lots of Pet Fish Talk Shows. 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