Long-term developments in ecological rehabilitation of the main distributaries in the Rhine delta: fish and macroinvertebrates

Vaate, A. bij de; Breukel, R.; Velde, G. van der

doi:10.1007/1-4020-5367-3_15

Cited by 5 publications

(3 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…Many large rivers have begun to recover from heavy pollution (Sparks and Lerczak, ; de Vaate et al ., ). Monitoring data collected during a recovery provides us with the unique opportunity to learn how aquatic assemblages responded to improved water quality.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…Rhine, Seine and Thames) than North America but tended to peak during the mid‐20th century for both continents (Lubinski et al ., ; Wieriks and Schulte‐Wülwer‐Leidig, ). Legislative changes have resulted in improved water quality (Andrews, ; Wieriks and Schulte‐Wülwer‐Leidig, ; de Vaate et al ., ) and are associated with biological recovery (Pegg and McClelland, ; de Vaate et al ., ; Belliard et al ., ). Despite the apparent connection, few studies have rigorously examined the associations between improved water quality and long‐term changes in large river aquatic assemblages (Elliott, ; Pegg and McClelland, ; Perkin and Bonner, ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Effects of Improved Water Quality on Fish Assemblages in a Heavily Modified Large River System

Parker

Epifanio

Casper

et al. 2015

River Research & Apps

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A long history of human alterations has affected the hydrology, physical habitat and water quality of most large river ecosystems. For more than a century, the Illinois River Waterway has been subject to channelization, damming, dredging, agricultural runoff and industrial and municipal effluents. This study evaluates how subsequent improvements in water quality have influenced long‐term changes in fish assemblages (1983–2010). We used five metrics to characterize the changes in fish assemblages. These metrics depicted shifts in the abundance and biomass of predatory and native fishes and species richness. Random forests (RF) and multiple linear regressions (MLRs) were used to relate the fish metrics to individual water quality and weather variables, with weather primarily used to account for inter‐annual variation. Model performances varied spatially and among fish metrics (0 ≤ pseudo‐R2 ≤ 0.73 for RF; 0.10 ≤ adjR2 ≤ 0.88 for MLR), but dissolved oxygen, un‐ionized ammonia and water clarity were often the best predictors. As the distance downstream of major pollutant sources increased, water quality became less important for explaining the changes in fish metrics and weather more important. These results indicate that water quality improvement largely accounts for fish assemblage recovery in the river system, although within some reaches we examined, weather had substantial compounding effects. The results could be used to prioritize water quality variables for long‐term monitoring and aid in predicting fish assemblage responses to future changes in water quality and climate. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Effects of Improved Water Quality on Fish Assemblages in a Heavily Modified Large River System

Parker

Epifanio

Casper

et al. 2015

River Research & Apps

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…According to Lorenz et al (2018) the main reason for this research gap is that both river restoration and river restoration research are young disciplines. Moreover, most studies have focused on large rivers such as the River Rhine (Bij de Vaate et al, 2006), The Seine River (Romero et al, 2016) or the River Scheldt (Van Damme et al, 2005), but smaller streams are often not well studied (but see e.g. Kim et al, 2019).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Do investments in water quality and habitat restoration programs pay off? An analysis of the chemical and biological water quality of a lowland stream in the Zwalm River basin (Belgium)

Boets

Dillen

Mertens

et al. 2021

Environmental Science & Policy

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Dispersal of invasive species by drifting

2011

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Drifting can be an effective way for aquatic organisms to disperse and colonise new areas. Increasing connectivity between European large rivers facilitates invasion by drifting aquatic macroinvertebrates. The present study shows that high abundances of invasive species drift in the headstream of the river Rhine. Dikerogammarus villosus and Chelicorophium curvispinum represented up to 90% of the total of drifting macroinvertebrates. Drift activity shows seasonal and diel patterns. Most species started drifting in spring and were most abundant in the water column during the summer period. Drift activity was very low during the winter period. Diel patterns were apparent; most species, including D. villosus, drifted during the night. Drifting macroinvertebrates colonised stony substrate directly from the water column. D. villosus generally colonised the substrate at night, while higher numbers of C. curvispinum colonised the substrate during the day. It is very likely that drifting functions as a dispersal mechanism for crustacean invaders. Once waterways are connected, these species are no longer necessarily dependent on dispersal vectors other than drift for extending their distribution range [Current Zoology 57 (6): 818-827, 2011].

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Long-term developments in ecological rehabilitation of the main distributaries in the Rhine delta: fish and macroinvertebrates

Cited by 5 publications

References 33 publications

The Effects of Improved Water Quality on Fish Assemblages in a Heavily Modified Large River System

The Effects of Improved Water Quality on Fish Assemblages in a Heavily Modified Large River System

Do investments in water quality and habitat restoration programs pay off? An analysis of the chemical and biological water quality of a lowland stream in the Zwalm River basin (Belgium)

Dispersal of invasive species by drifting

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