The Role of Disturbance in Stream Ecology

Resh, Vincent H.; Brown, Arthur V.; Covich, Alan P.; Gurtz, Martin E.; Li, Hiram W.; Minshall, G. Wayne; Reice, Seth R.; Sheldon, Andrew L.; Wallace, J. Bruce; Wissmar, Robert C.

doi:10.2307/1467300

Cited by 1,347 publications

(979 citation statements)

References 94 publications

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“…dams and river flow regulation; Poff et al, 1997) lead to decreases in environmental variability that may be detrimental to some freshwater fishes. Because disturbance is a fundamental characteristic of aquatic ecosystems, many species have adapted life histories that are shaped by, and may depend on such events (Resh et al, 1988). Nonetheless, there are conditions where fire and fire-related disturbance can pose shortterm risks to fish populations.…”

Section: Disturbance and Natural Variabilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The evolutionary connection to environmental variability provides a rationale to manage habitats that express the full distribution of natural variability (Resh et al, 1988;Dunning et al, 1992;Poff et al, 1997;Landres et al, 1999). The concept of natural variability includes elements of disturbance that may cause substantial disruption on a local scale.…”

Section: Disturbance and Natural Variabilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

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Effects of fire on fish populations: landscape perspectives on persistence of native fishes and nonnative fish invasions

Dunham

Young

Gresswell

et al. 2003

Forest Ecology and Management

142

134

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Our limited understanding of the short and long-term effects of fire on fish contributes to considerable uncertainty in assessments of the risks and benefits of fire management alternatives. A primary concern among the many potential effects of fire is the effects of fire and fire management on persistence of native fish populations. Limited evidence suggests vulnerability of fish to fire is contingent upon the quality of affected habitats, the amount and distribution of habitat (habitat fragmentation), and habitat specificity of the species in question. Species with narrow habitat requirements in highly degraded and fragmented systems are likely to be most vulnerable to fire and fire-related disturbance. In addition to effects of fire on native fish, there are growing concerns about the effects of fire on nonnative fish invasions. The role of fire in facilitating invasions by nonnative fishes is unknown, but experience with other species suggests some forms of disturbance associated with fire may facilitate invasion. Management efforts to promote persistence of fishes in fire-prone landscapes can take the form of four basic alternatives: (1) prefire management; (2) post-fire management; (3) managing fire itself (e.g. fire fighting); and (4) monitoring and adaptive management. Among these alternatives, pre-fire management is likely to be most effective. Effective pre-fire management activities will address factors that may render fish populations more vulnerable to the effects of fire (e.g. habitat degradation, fragmentation, and nonnative species). Post-fire management is also potentially important, but suffers from being a reactive approach that may not address threats in time to avert them. Managing fire itself can be important in some contexts, but negative consequences for fish populations are possible (e.g. toxicity of fire fighting chemicals to fish). Monitoring and adaptive management can provide important new information for evaluating alternatives, but proper implementation is often hampered by inadequate study designs and inconsistent financial and institutional support. The challenge for providing better management guidelines will be to add solid empirical data and models to assess the relevance of emerging concepts and theories, and provide a sense of where and when fires pose significant risks and/or benefits to fishes. Published by Elsevier Science B.V.

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Section: Disturbance and Natural Variabilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Disturbance and Natural Variabilitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of fire on fish populations: landscape perspectives on persistence of native fishes and nonnative fish invasions

Dunham

Young

Gresswell

et al. 2003

Forest Ecology and Management

142

134

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…Restoration and protection of physical and chemical conditions are fundamental to all water-quality regulation in North America (Novotny, 1988). Waterquality restoration has been defined as 'returning the concentration of substances to values typical of undisturbed conditions' (Herricks & Osborne, 1985) and implicitly assumes that an impact or a disturbance (Pickett & White, 1985;Resh et al, 1988) has occurred.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Riparian vegetated buffer strips in water‐quality restoration and stream management

1993

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SUMMARY1. A review is presented of the literature on riparian vegetated buffCT strips (VBS) for use in stream-water-quality restoration and limitations associated with their use are discussed. The results are also presented of recent investigations on the effectiveness of a forested and a grass vegetated buffer strip for reducing shallow subsurface inputs of nutrients from agriculture to a stream in central Illinois, U.S.A. 2. Because riparian zones link the stream with its terrestrial catchment, they can modify, incorporate, dilute, or concentrate substances before they enter a lotic system. In small to mid-size streams forested riparian zones can moderate temperatures, reduce sediment inputs, provide important sources of organic matter, and stabilize stream banks. 3. Several questions on the utility and efficiency of vegetated buffer strips for stream restoration still remain unanswered, including: what types (grass v forest) are most efficient; do they become nutrient saturated; are they only temporary sinks; how does species composition influence effectiveness; and, what is the optimal width of buffer to facilitate nutrient reduction under different conditions? 4. Water samples were collected (1989-90) from lysimeters located at three depths (60, 120, and > 120 cm) in an upland area planted in conventional row crops (com and soybean) and in three adjacent riparian buffer treatments, a 39 m wide grass buffer, a 16 m wide mature forested buffer, and a buffer planted in row-crops to the stream bank. Concentrations of dissolved and total phosphorus and nitrate-N in each sample were determined following major precipitation events over a seventeen month period. 5. Both the forested and grass VBS reduced nitrate-N concentrations in shallow groundwater (up to 90% reduction). On an annual basis the forested VBS was more effective at reducing concentrations of nitrate-N than was the grass VBS, but was less efficient at retaining total and dissolved P. 6. During the dormant season, both grass and forested buffer strips released dissolved and total P to the groundwater. The VBS apparently acted as a nutrient sink for much of the year, but also released accumulated nutrients during the remaining portion of the year. Periodic harvesting of plant biomass may reduce the amount of P released during the dormant season. 7. VBSs are not as effective in agriculture areas with tile drained fields. Alternative restoration practices such as discharging drain tiles into wetlands constructed parallel to the stream channel may prove to be a more effective means of controlling non-point-source agricultural inputs of nutrients in such areas. 243244 L.L. Osborne and D.A. Kovacic

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“…Large infrequent disturbances are thought to play as large a role in shaping a fish assemblage's composition, as do biological interactions such as competition and predation, which generally receive much more attention (Sousa 1984;Resh et al 1988;Poff and Ward 1989). Natural disturbances can serve as an ecological reset mechanism by causing local disequilibrium (Sousa 1984).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of Hurricane Katrina on Freshwater Fish Assemblages in a Small Coastal Tributary of Lake Pontchartrain, Louisiana

Vrancken

O'Connell

2010

Trans Am Fish Soc

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Hurricane Katrina struck southeastern Louisiana on 29 August 2005 and thereby created an opportunity to examine the effects of a catastrophic storm on fish assemblages in a coastal stream. Bayou Lacombe is a small (46.1 river kilometers), primarily freshwater stream that drains into the northeastern portion of Lake Pontchartrain, a large oligohaline estuary located north of New Orleans. In summer 2005 (prior to the hurricane), three upstream and three downstream reaches of Bayou Lacombe were surveyed by electrofishing. These same six reaches were resurveyed in the summer of 2006 to assess the effects of the hurricane on fish assemblages. There were significant changes in fish assemblages at the downstream and upstream reaches. At the downstream reaches, centrarchid species such as bluegill Lepomis macrochirus, warmouth L. gulosus, and redspotted sunfish L. miniatus increased in abundance after the hurricane, as did inland silverside Menidia beryllina and striped mullet Mugil cephalus, both estuarine‐dependent species. At the upstream reaches, longear sunfish L. megalotis decreased after the hurricane and weed shiners Notropis texanus, goldstriped darters Etheostoma parvipinne, and warmouth were absent from posthurricane samples. Principal components and BEST analyses showed that differences in dissolved oxygen between years were related to fish assemblage changes in the upstream reaches. Salinity and temperature were associated with fish assemblage changes in the downstream reaches. Similar significant changes could occur in other coastal streams prone to increased hurricane activity.

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The Role of Disturbance in Stream Ecology

Cited by 1,347 publications

References 94 publications

Effects of fire on fish populations: landscape perspectives on persistence of native fishes and nonnative fish invasions

Effects of fire on fish populations: landscape perspectives on persistence of native fishes and nonnative fish invasions

Riparian vegetated buffer strips in water‐quality restoration and stream management

Effects of Hurricane Katrina on Freshwater Fish Assemblages in a Small Coastal Tributary of Lake Pontchartrain, Louisiana

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