Christopher Tatara, Ph.D.

Background

Chris Tatara's career with NOAA Fisheries began in 1999 at the Santa Rosa, CA office of the Southwest Region. There, he provided scientific support on toxicology and water quality issues in support of NOAA Fisheries regulatory activities under the Endangered Species Act. In 2002, he joined the Behavioral Ecology team at the NWFSC's Manchester Research Station. His research has focused on the effects of environmental contamination on the physiology of fishes, and the demographics and genetics of fish populations. Chris earned a B.S. in fisheries biology from the University of California, Davis and a Ph.D. in ecology from the University of Georgia, Athens.

Current Research

Chris is a member of a research team that investigates the ecological effects of artificial propagation (hatcheries) on natural anadromous salmonid populations. The team designs and conducts experiments to evaluate the ecological and behavioral effects of innovative rearing technologies for anadromous salmonids and recommends solutions for the enhancement, conservation and protection of salmonid fisheries. The team specifically investigates the effects of hatchery-rearing environments on the behavioral development of adult and juvenile salmon and how hatchery-reared salmonids interact with wild salmonid populations in supplementation programs.