Landscape influences on stream fish assemblages across spatial scales in a northern Great Plains ecoregion

2008 ◽  
Vol 65 (2) ◽  
pp. 245-257 ◽  
Author(s):  
Henry F Wilson ◽  
Marguerite A Xenopoulos
Keyword(s):  
Land Cover ◽  
Great Plains ◽  
Fish Species ◽  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Species Assemblages ◽  
Northern Great Plains ◽  
Stream Fish ◽  
Stream Fish Assemblages ◽  
Nms Ordination

We examined the relationship between multiple spatial scales of fish assemblage structure and land cover in streams of a northern Great Plains ecoregion. We used regional richness measurements, an index of biotic integrity (IBI), and nonmetric multidimensional scaling (NMS) ordination to characterize fish assemblages. These metrics were related to regional catchment landscape at two spatial scales (overall catchment, overall riparian) and then to a set of local subcatchments from within these catchments at three scales (overall subcatchment, overall riparian buffer, and reach). Relationships between catchment fish richness, IBI scores, and landscape predictors were strongest at the riparian scale, with the strongest single predictor being riparian forest (r2 = 0.63, P < 0.01). NMS ordination analysis showed clear similarities between fish species assemblages in agriculturally dominated catchments and assemblages found in smaller headwater streams. At the same time, forested catchments and catchments with larger areas exhibited similar fish species assemblages. Our results indicate that both local and regional stream fish assemblages are structured by broader-scale landscape characteristics, with land cover providing a better indication of overall available habitat volume than catchment area or stream order.

scholarly journals Land cover, riparian zones and instream habitat influence stream fish assemblages in the eastern Amazon

2018 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 317-329 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luciano F. A. Montag ◽  
Kirk O. Winemiller ◽  
Friedrich W. Keppeler ◽  
Híngara Leão ◽  
Naraiana L. Benone ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Cover ◽  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
Riparian Zones ◽  
Stream Fish ◽  
Stream Fish Assemblages

scholarly journals Effects of deforestation on headwater stream fish assemblages in the Upper Xingu River Basin, Southeastern Amazonia

2019 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Paulo Ilha ◽  
Sergio Rosso ◽  
Luis Schiesari
Keyword(s):  
Land Cover ◽  
River Basin ◽  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
Headwater Stream ◽  
Assemblage Structure ◽  
Stream Fish ◽  
Taxonomic Structure ◽  
Fish Assemblage Structure ◽  
Xingu River ◽  
Stream Fish Assemblages

ABSTRACT The expansion of the Amazonian agricultural frontier represents the most extensive land cover change in the world, detrimentally affecting stream ecosystems which collectively harbor the greatest diversity of freshwater fish on the planet. Our goal was to test the hypotheses that deforestation affects the abundance, richness, and taxonomic structure of headwater stream fish assemblages in the Upper Xingu River Basin, in Southeastern Amazonia. Standardized sampling surveys in replicated first order streams demonstrated that deforestation strongly influences fish assemblage structure. Deforested stream reaches had twice the fish abundance than reference stream reaches in primary forests. These differences in assemblage structure were largely driven by increases in the abundance of a handful of species, as no influence of deforestation on species richness was observed. Stream canopy cover was the strongest predictor of assemblage structure, possibly by a combination of direct and indirect effects on the provision of forest detritus, food resources, channel morphology, and micro-climate regulation. Given the dynamic nature of change in land cover and use in the region, this article is an important contribution to the understanding of the effects of deforestation on Amazonian stream fish, and their conservation.

scholarly journals The influence of environmental variables on the functional structure of headwater stream fish assemblages: a study of two tropical basins in Central Brazil

2015 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 349-360 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rodrigo Assis Carvalho ◽  
Francisco Leonardo Tejerina-Garro
Keyword(s):  
Fish Species ◽  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
Environmental Variables ◽  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
Headwater Stream ◽  
Stream Fish ◽  
Tropical Region ◽  
Dissimilarity Matrix ◽  
Species Trait ◽  
Stream Fish Assemblages

We investigated functional patterns of fish assemblages of two adjacent basins (Araguaia and Tocantins) to test whether their headwater stream fish assemblages are more functionally (dis)similar than expected by chance and whether these (dis)similarities are related to differences of environmental conditions between basins. We used an analysis of similarities (ANOSIM) on a functional dissimilarity matrix to test for (dis)similarities between fish assemblages of both basins. We performed RLQ and fourth-corner analyses to determine fish species trait-environment relationship. Our results revealed functional dissimilarities between fish assemblages of both basins and significant species trait-environment relationships, suggesting that environmental conditions are driving such dissimilarities. Inter-basin dissimilarities are mainly driven by altitudinal and water temperature gradients, whereas dissimilarities among streams within the basins are influenced by channel depth, turbidity and conductivity. These five environmental variables mostly affected six fish species traits (body mass, water column position, substrate preference, parental care, foraging locality and migration) in different manners. This study is an attempt to understand functional trends of fish assemblages in a tropical region that remains poorly known but severely threatened.

Effects of reservoir connectivity on stream fish assemblages in the Great Plains

2006 ◽  
Vol 63 (3) ◽  
pp. 480-493 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeffrey A Falke ◽  
Keith B Gido
Keyword(s):  
Great Plains ◽  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
Canopy Cover ◽  
Stream Fish ◽  
Fish Assemblage Structure ◽  
Reservoir Species ◽  
Notropis Stramineus ◽  
Pimephales Notatus ◽  
Stream Fish Assemblages ◽  
Reservoir Connectivity

The upstream effects of reservoirs on stream fish assemblages were highly localized in 3rd- through 5th-order streams in the Great Plains, USA. Streams that differed in connectivity to reservoirs were sampled at their confluences with a river or reservoir and between the confluence and the stream's origin. Sites at confluences had higher total, nonnative, and reservoir species richness than middle sites. Variability in fish assemblage structure upstream of reservoirs was influenced by catchment area, stream size, gradient, and reservoir connectivity. Confluence sites connected to reservoirs were correctly classified based on the presence of red shiners (Cyprinella lutrensis) and bluntnose minnows (Pimephales notatus) and the absence of sand shiners (Notropis stramineus); middle sites on connected streams were classified by the absence of redfin shiners (Lythrurus umbratilis). Intensive sampling across pool habitats within two streams isolated by a reservoir indicated that abundance of common reservoir species was related to pool size, turbidity, and canopy cover, but not proximity to the reservoir. These data suggest that streams connected to reservoirs can maintain diverse native fish communities with minimal invasions by reservoir-dwelling species, but a fraction of the community either has been lost or occurs at low abundance (e.g., sand shiners and redfin shiners).

Stream fish assemblages and basin land cover in a river network

2006 ◽  
Vol 365 (1-3) ◽  
pp. 140-153 ◽  
Author(s):  
Young-Seuk Park ◽  
Gaël Grenouillet ◽  
Benjamin Esperance ◽  
Sovan Lek
Keyword(s):  
Land Cover ◽  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
River Network ◽  
Stream Fish ◽  
Stream Fish Assemblages

Landscape Influences on Stream Habitats and Biological Assemblages

2006 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Land Cover ◽  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Cumulative Effect ◽  
Stream Fish ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Forest Harvest ◽  
Land Cover Types ◽  
Fine Sediments ◽  
Habitat Variables

<em>Abstract.</em>—Forest harvests have been shown to have negative effects on stream fish and habitat; however, the relationship between these factors, and the magnitude of these effects, has received little study. We investigated the influence that various land-cover types (including recent forest harvest) have on fish assemblages at multiple spatial scales and compared these results to the influences of local instream habitat variables. Satellite land-cover data and land management harvest maps were used to characterize the land-cover types throughout the Knife River basin in northeast Minnesota. Eleven spatial scales (with 30-m and 100-m buffer widths), including site, reach, stream corridor, and catchment, were evaluated. Forward stepwise regression was used to relate land cover to coldwater index of biotic integrity scores and metrics. Land-cover relationships varied with spatial scale, but land cover at the catchment and corridor scales explained the most variation in fish and habitat variables. Generally, increases in forest cover and decreases in water/wetland were associated with higher quality fish assemblages and instream habitat. No negative effects of forest harvest were found at the site or reach scales. Forest harvest 5–8 years old was negatively related to fish assemblage quality at the stream corridor and catchment scales, possibly related to changes in temperature and substrate at the corridor scale, and increases in fine sediments and unstable banks at the catchment scale. The cumulative effect of increasing forest harvest from 0 to 8 years old throughout the catchment was associated with lower quality fish assemblages and instream habitat, indicating that large increases in similar timed forest harvests throughout a catchment (not just in the riparian zone) can have negative effects on stream fish and habitat.

scholarly journals Influence of environmental variables on stream fish fauna at multiple spatial scales

2016 ◽  
Vol 14 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Nara Tadini Junqueira ◽  
Diego Rodrigues Macedo ◽  
Rafael Couto Rosa de Souza ◽  
Robert Mason Hughes ◽  
Marcos Callisto ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
River Basin ◽  
Fish Species ◽  
Environmental Variables ◽  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Fish Fauna ◽  
Stream Fish ◽  
Fish Diversity ◽  
Physical Habitat

ABSTRACT Effects of environmental variables at different spatial scales on freshwater fish assemblages are relatively unexplored in Neotropical ecosystems. However, those influences are important for developing management strategies to conserve fish diversity and water resources. We evaluated the influences of site- (in-stream) and catchment-scale (land use and cover) environmental variables on the abundance and occurrence of fish species in streams of the Upper Araguari River basin through use of variance partitioning with partial CCA. We sampled 38 1st to 3rd order stream sites in September 2009. We quantified site variables to calculate 11 physical habitat metrics and mapped catchment land use/cover. Site and catchment variables explained > 50% of the total variation in fish species. Site variables (fish abundance: 25.31%; occurrence: 24.51%) explained slightly more variation in fish species than catchment land use/cover (abundance: 22.69%; occurrence: 18.90%), indicating that factors at both scales are important. Because anthropogenic pressures at site and catchment scales both affect stream fish in the Upper Araguari River basin, both must be considered jointly to apply conservation strategies in an efficient manner.

Watershed, reach, and riparian influences on stream fish assemblages in the Northern Lakes and Forest Ecoregion, U.S.A.

2003 ◽  
Vol 60 (5) ◽  
pp. 491-505 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lizhu Wang ◽  
John Lyons ◽  
Paul Rasmussen ◽  
Paul Seelbach ◽  
Thomas Simon ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Factors ◽  
Fish Assemblages ◽  
Cold Water ◽  
Spatial Scales ◽  
Relative Influence ◽  
Stream Fish ◽  
Watershed Scale ◽  
Small Streams ◽  
Stream Fish Assemblages ◽  
Sand And Gravel

We analyzed data from 79 watersheds in an undegraded U.S. ecoregion to identify key environmental factors that explained stream fish assemblage patterns and to evaluate the relative influence of environmental factors operating at different spatial scales. A few key factors from the watershed, reach, and riparian scale explained a significant amount of the variance in fish attributes. Three environment–fish associations were evident. Top carnivores and intolerant cold-water fishes were associated with relatively narrow, deep, high-gradient, cold streams with strong groundwater inputs. Tolerant cyprinids occurred in small streams with low groundwater input, low dissolved oxygen, and abundant macrophytes. A diverse assemblage (Cyprinidae, Catostomidae, Centrarchidae, Percidae) existed in warm, wide streams in watersheds dominated by lacustrine sand and gravel geology and abundant wetlands and lakes. Overall, reach-scale variables directly explained the most, watershed-scale variables less, and riparian-scale variables the least variation in fish attributes. Watershed and riparian variables had indirect connections with fishes through their direct influence on reach variables. In conjunction with findings from more degraded regions, we conclude that the relative influence of reach-scale variables on fishes are greatest in undegraded areas and that direct effects of watershed-scale variables are increasingly important as human modifications of the landscape increase.

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