Influence of environmental features at multiple scales and spatial structure on stream fish communities in a tropical agricultural region

Roa‐Fuentes, Camilo A.; Casatti, Lílian

doi:10.1080/02705060.2017.1287129

Cited by 20 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 62 publications

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“…According to some authors, this relationship between landscape and fish assemblages is indirect and is mediated by instream feature changes (e.g., Iwata et al, 2003;Smokorowski and Pratt, 2007;Pease et al, 2011). If we consider this factor, it is possible that the findings of Roa-Fuentes and Casatti (2017) are mediated by the weakening relationship between landscape features and instream habitat features, as demonstrated in the present study.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 74%

The effects of land use at different spatial scales on instream features in agricultural streams

et al. 2017

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The conversion of forests into agriculture has been identified as a key process for stream homogenization. However, the effects of this conversion can be scale-dependent. In this context, our aim was to identify the influence of different land uses at different spatial scales (catchment, drainage network and local) on instream features in agricultural streams. We defined six classes of land use: native forest, reforestation, herbaceous and shrubs, pasture, sugarcane and other categories. We obtained 22 variables related to instream, riparian area, stream morphology and water physicochemical characteristics in 86 stream reaches. To identify and isolate the effect of different land uses at different spatial scales on instream features, we performed a partial redundancy analysis (p-RDA). Different land uses and scales influenced instream features and defined two stream groups: (i) homogeneous streams with a higher proportion of sand substrate and instream grasses that were associated with the proportion of herbaceous vegetation at the local scale and with pasture at all scales and (ii) heterogeneous streams with a higher physical habitat integrity associated with the proportion of forest and sugarcane at the local and catchment scales. Land use at the catchment scale affected the physicochemical water properties and stream morphology, whereas stream physical habitat (i.e., substrate, instream cover, marginal vegetation and stream physical habitat condition) was mainly influenced by land use at the local scale (i.e., 150 m radius). Pure catchment, drainage network and local land uses explained 9%, 7% and 4%, respectively, of the total variation of instream features. Thus, to be most effective, stream conservation and restoration efforts should not be limited to only one scale.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 74%

The effects of land use at different spatial scales on instream features in agricultural streams

et al. 2017

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“…Similarly, Terra, Hughes, and Araújo (2016) and Roa-Fuentes and Casatti (2017) found that fish assemblage structure was more influenced by local variables than catchment and spatial variables. However, fish assemblages were more strongly related to local habitat than landscape features.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 90%

“…However, fish assemblages were more strongly related to local habitat than landscape features. Similarly, Terra, Hughes, and Araújo (2016) and Roa-Fuentes and Casatti (2017) found that fish assemblage structure was more influenced by local variables than catchment and spatial variables. In a separate study involving different sites within our study basin, Leal et al (2017) also found that fish assemblages were more strongly associated with local habitat variables than landscape features.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 93%

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

Montag

Winemiller

Keppeler

et al. 2018

Ecology of Freshwater Fish

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The Amazon rainforest has experienced rapid land-use changes over the last few decades, including extensive deforestation that can affect riparian habitats and streams. The aim of this study was to assess responses of stream fish assemblages to deforestation and land cover change in the eastern Amazon. We expected that percentage of forest in the catchment is correlated with local habitat complexity, which in turn determines fish assemblage composition and structure. We sampled 71 streams in areas with different land uses and tested for relationships between stream fish assemblages and local habitat and landscape variables while controlling for the effect of inter site distance. Fish assemblage composition and structure were correlated with forest coverage, but local habitat variables explained more of the variation in both assemblage composition and structure than landscape variables.Inter site distance contributed to variance explained by local habitat and landscape variables, and the percentage of variance explained by the unique contribution of local habitat was approximately equivalent to the shared variance explained by all three factors in the model. In these streams of the eastern Amazon, fish assemblages were most strongly influenced by features of instream and riparian habitats, yet indirect effects of deforestation on fish assemblage composition and structure were observed even though intact riparian zones were present at most sites. Long-term monitoring of the hydrographic basin, instream habitat and aquatic fauna is needed to test for potential legacy effects and time lags, as well as assess species responses to continuing deforestation and land-use changes in the Amazon. Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) for PROCAD/ CAPES funding (project no 88881.068425/2014-01), the graduate scholarship for TOB and senior internship scholarship for LFAM to conduct research at Texas A&M University (process 88881.119097/2016-1). The manuscript was improved during the review process by addressing the thoughtful comments from Philip Kaufmann and an anonymous reviewer.

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“…Factors such as the riparian vegetation cover, the availability of refuges and stream flow velocities, which are often referred to as determinants of community structure (Benone et al, 2018;Mendonça, Magnusson, & Zuanon, 2005;Roa-Fuentes & Casatti, 2017), also have a functional effect on the fish assemblages. Factors such as the riparian vegetation cover, the availability of refuges and stream flow velocities, which are often referred to as determinants of community structure (Benone et al, 2018;Mendonça, Magnusson, & Zuanon, 2005;Roa-Fuentes & Casatti, 2017), also have a functional effect on the fish assemblages.…”

Section: The Morphology Of Farlowella Amazonum and Brachyhypopomusmentioning

confidence: 99%

Trait–environment relationships in Amazon stream fish assemblages

Santos

Benone

Soares

et al. 2019

Ecology of Freshwater Fish

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Studies of trait–environment relationships provide important tools for the prediction of the response of biological communities to environmental alterations. The Amazon basin presents enormous potential for the development of research on this type of relationship, given the diversity of both its fish fauna and the aquatic ecosystems this fauna inhabits. The present study investigated the association between local environmental variables and the functional traits of fish in 54 streams of six major Amazonian basins. We identified the relationship between the characteristics of the streams (channel morphology, channel habitat units, riparian vegetation cover, large woody fragments and instream cover for aquatic organisms) and fish traits related to locomotion, habitat use and feeding behaviour. The fish fauna of the broader, deeper and more slowly flowing streams was dominated by nektobenthic species that exploit autochthonous resources such as fish and invertebrates. In narrow, fast‐flowing streams, by contrast, there was a predominance of benthic fishes with varying feeding habits, including periphytivorous and invertivorous species. Narrow, shady streams were inhabited by nektonic species adapted for the exploitation of resources from the marginal vegetation. The results of this study contribute to the understanding of the association between the functional structure of fish assemblages and local environmental variables in Amazonian streams. We hope that these findings will stimulate further research into the natural variation in stream fish assemblages that will ensure the development of more effective management strategies that better protect these important aquatic ecosystems.

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Influence of environmental features at multiple scales and spatial structure on stream fish communities in a tropical agricultural region

Cited by 20 publications

References 62 publications

The effects of land use at different spatial scales on instream features in agricultural streams

The effects of land use at different spatial scales on instream features in agricultural streams

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

Trait–environment relationships in Amazon stream fish assemblages

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