Abstract
The MesoHABitat SImulation Model (MesoHABSIM) is the preferred method to calculate spatio-temporal variation in the fish habitat availability in Italian rivers. With the aim of improving the applicability of the MesoHABSIM approach in the Italian territory, we carried out a systematic review of physical habitat preferences for 31 freshwater fish species and three freshwater lampreys, representing 75% of the total indigenous freshwater fish community of Italy. Information related to suitable ranges of depth, flow velocity, biotic/abiotic substrates, covers/shelters was collected and summarized for two critical life stages (adult and juvenile) and two bioperiods (rearing/growth and spawning). Overall, 250 publications were reviewed, classified as 206 peer-reviewed papers, 20 books, 7 PhD thesis, and 17 grey literature sources. Our analysis revealed substantial deficits of information about habitat requirements for more than 30% of Italian freshwater fish species. This information is particularly scarce for the most threatened endemic species, especially for their most critical bioperiod (i.e., spawning). With the aim of preserving freshwater fish biodiversity as required in the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030 (European Commission, 2020), accurate information on physical habitat requirements for spawning is crucial. As an example application of MesoHABSIM, the collected habitat preference information was used to define and apply mesohabitat suitability criteria for one fish species (Telestes muticellus) in a regulated river reach of Argentina Creek (Province of Imperia, Italy). This analysis demonstrates the potential for applying information from the current review to other fish species.
Highlights
Preserving freshwater ecosystems is one of the most difficult challenges humans face globally
We considered 250 bibliography sources, most of which (206) were peer-reviewed researches and the remaining were represented by books or book sections (20), PhD thesis (7) and grey literature sources
Available information on habitat preferences highly varied depending on the species (Figure 1)
Summary
Preserving freshwater ecosystems is one of the most difficult challenges humans face globally. The habitat suitability criteria can be built using empirical data collected in environmental reference sites with natural conditions of river morphology, flow regime, fish community composition (Vezza et al, 2014a; Muñoz-Mas et al, 2016) These criteria can be derived by collecting available information from the literature or using expert knowledge (Parasiewicz et al, 2013; Koutrakis et al, 2019). The availability of such biological information is still scattered and limited to the most common species or those of particular economic value (e.g., Alcaraz-Hernández et al, 2016) This results in a reduced capacity to widely implementing HSMs in regulated rivers, to ensure adequate habitat for the entire fish community, especially for the most critical life stages
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