Relationship between Morphological Characteristics and Quality of Aquatic Habitat in Mountain Streams of Slovakia

Zuzana Štefunková,Milan Čistý,Andrej Škrinár,Peter Ivan,Viktória Tyukosová,Martina Majorošová,Viliam Macura

doi:10.3390/w13020142

Zuzana Štefunková, Milan Čistý + Show 5 more

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https://doi.org/10.3390/w13020142

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Abstract

This study evaluated the relationship between abiotic flow characteristics and habitat quality. Habitat quality was assessed using the Instream Flow Incremental Methodology (IFIM), which uses bioindication. Brown trout was selected as a bioindicator because of its sensitivity to morphological changes and its occurrence in sufficient reference reaches. The correlation between the morphological characteristics of the stream and the area-weighted suitability (AWS), which represents habitat quality, was evaluated. Fifty-nine reference reaches of fifty-two mountain and piedmont streams in Slovakia were analysed. The correlation analysis demonstrated the strongest relationship between the AWS and the stream depth and width. The relationship between the water surface area and the AWS indicated that, for mountain streams, there is a significantly increasing trend of the AWS value with increasing surface area. Considering piedmont streams, the AWS variation with a change in the water-surface area was minimal. These results can form the basis for deriving regression equations to determine habitat quality. Such a procedure can significantly simplify the evaluation of the quality of aquatic habitat, making it much more accessible for design practice.

Highlights

IntroductionCompared with a natural river, a regulated riverbed is monotonous in shape
The need to address fundamental research questions leading to advances in related science and key management issues has led to the establishment of the scientific discipline ecohydraulics [1] that brings together biologists, ecologists, fluvial geomorphologists, sedimentologists, hydrologists, hydraulic and river engineers, and water resource managers.A practical example of alternative urban stream channel designs influencing ecohydraulic conditions has been described by Anim et al [2]
The results showed that: (i) with the addition of natural oscillations to an increasing number of individual topographic variables in a degraded channel, the ecohydraulic conditions were incrementally improved and (ii) the channel reconfiguration reduced the excessive frequency of bed mobility, loss of habitat, and hydraulic diversity, as more topographic variables were added

Summary

Introduction

Compared with a natural river, a regulated riverbed is monotonous in shape Such regulated streams do not provide a suitable habitat for a wider range of animals, especially fish. The geometry of the riverbed affects the hydraulic characteristics of the stream, which affects the diversity of the velocity field and the sediment regime, diversity of the riverbed, and a wide range of abiotic and biotic flow characteristics. This relationship can be modelled, which allows a qualitatively higher level for a wide range of water management activities. Habitat modelling in fish ecology [8]

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