Ecotones and fluvial regimes in arctic lotic environments

Abstract

The fluvial regime in arctic streams is influenced by size of stream, the presence and storage capacity of lakes in the drainage basin, groundwater, and permafrost. Exchange of material with terrestrial environments depends on the season and is more or less suspended in winter. Permafrost and water storage in ice and snow control run off and erosion. Damage to vegetation by flooding, fire, animal or human activity can affect the permafrost and result in rapid erosion. Living space and conditions in lotic environments are modified by ice and during break up are very labile. Fish and benthic organisms in streams have behavioural and physiological adaptations which allow them to benefit from the wide range of river and stream environments found in the arctic and to tolerate the range of seasonal conditions. Ecotones are weakly developed in arctic streams and are of minor functional significance. Only farther south does riparian vegetation begin to play a role in regulating stream processes and not until south of the tree line can ecotones be considered important modulators of fluvial environments.