Conservation Of Aquatic Ecosystems Research Articles

Patterns and magnitude of flow alteration in California, USA

Abstract Quantifying the natural flow regime is essential for management of water resources and conservation of aquatic ecosystems. Understanding the degree to which anthropogenic activities have altered flows is critical for developing effective conservation strategies. Assessing flow alteration requires estimates of flows expected in the absence of human influence and under current land use and water management. There are several techniques to predict flows in streams and rivers; however, none have been applied to make predictions of natural flow conditions over large regions and time periods. We utilised machine learning statistical models to predict natural monthly flows (natural streamflows without the influence of water management or anthropogenic land use) in California from 1950 to 2015, using time‐dependent and fixed watershed variables from reference stream gages. These models were then used to make estimates of mean, maximum and minimum monthly flows in all streams in the state. We compared observed flows measured at 540 stream gages across the state with expected natural flows at the same locations, to quantify the type, frequency and magnitude of flow alteration over the past 20 years (1996–2015). A gage was considered altered if an observed flow metric (monthly mean, annual maximum, annual minimum) fell outside the 80% prediction interval of the modelled flow estimate. We found that 95% of the 540 stream gages in California had at least 1 month of altered flows over the past 20 years, and 11% of gages were frequently altered (over two‐thirds of the months recorded had evidence of altered flows). The type of alteration varied across the state with flows being either depleted, inflated or a mix of both at different times of the year. Most altered gages (68%) exhibited both depletion and inflation in monthly flows over the time period. Inflation of monthly mean flows was most prevalent during the summer months, while depletion of monthly flows was evident throughout the year. Type, frequency and magnitude of flow alteration varied by region. Flow depletion was present at >80% of gages in the North Coast and Central Coast, flow inflation was measured at >80% of gages in the South Coast and San Francisco Bay and both depletion and inflation were evident at >80% of gages in the Sacramento River and San Joaquin and Tulare regions. Annual maximum flows were consistently depleted and annual minimum flows were commonly inflated in the Sierra Nevada and Central Valley (Sacramento River and San Joaquin and Tulare regions). This is the first study to comprehensively assess flow alteration at stream gages across California. Understanding the patterns and degree of alteration can aid in prioritising streams for environmental flow assessment and developing conservation strategies for native freshwater biota.

Biomarkers employment in planktonic copepods for early management and conservation of aquatic ecosystems: The case of the ‘Capo Peloro’ lakes (southern Italy)

Transitional water ecosystems can be exposed to high levels of anthropic pressure. The main aim of this study was to present the ‘Capo Peloro’ lakes (southern Italy) case study, which highlights the advantageous use of ecotoxicological biomarkers in key copepod species, to reveal potential contamination in transitional water ecosystems. The focus was on changes that occur after the summer season, as during the summer, the surrounding human population increases significantly, with the consequent enhancement of anthropic pressures. Biomarkers were defined to monitor the zooplankton copepods Paracartia latisetosa, Acartia tonsa and Oithona brevicornis. Acetylcholinesterase, lipid peroxidation, and benzo(a)pyrene-monooxygenase activities were determined. P. latisetosa, A. tonsa and O. brevicornis show linear increases in their acetylcholinesterase activities with increasing concentrations in sample homogenates, which defines their high metabolic rates, and thus the suitability of these species as bioindicators. Biochemical alterations in these species induce changes in their biological attributes that can also lead to their disappearance, with a cascade of consequences for the higher trophic levels in the food chain. These data indicate that for the two lakes of Capo Peloro there is contamination by pesticides, carbamates and polycyclic and polyhalogenated aromatic hydrocarbons. This occurs mainly at the end of the summer season, and only affects the species of the low trophic levels. This case study shows the benefits provided by this biomarker approach as applied to zooplankton species, to monitor transitional water ecosystems and to estimate their toxicological risk, and thus to provide an early warning signal for loss of ecosystem integrity.

Detection of regime shifts in a shallow lake ecosystem based on multi-proxy paleolimnological indicators

There have been significant regime shifts in the ecosystem structure and function in a large number of lakes worldwide due to the increasing human disturbance and climate change in recent decades. It has become a critical issue in lake conservation and management to identify the characteristics of regime shifts in lakes and explore potential early-warning signals prior to regime shifts. However, research on identifying and predicting regime shifts in lakes is still a difficult task since recent modelling approaches cannot fully grasp the non-linear processes among multiple ecosystem components and the ecological time series data are too scarce to support the detection in most lakes. In this study, multi-proxy paleolimnological records were used to obtain long time-series ecological data and determine the inflection points of regime shifts in the Baiyangdian Lake, northern China. First, the sediment chronology was established, and macrophyte pollen as well as nutrient conditions in each dated sediment layer were identified. Then the heuristic segmentation algorithm and Pettitt test were used to determine the most significant inflection points of regime shifts. Additionally, multiple early-warning indicators including variance, autocorrelation and skewness were used to test their ability to forecast the major ecosystem regime shift. Results show that the most important abrupt change in the Baiyangdian Lake occurred in the early 1960s. The increasing variance coupled with decreasing autocorrelation and skewness started in 1–16 years before this regime shift, which is consistent with a flickering phenomenon rather than critical slowing down. The detection results of regime shifts and early-warning signals can provide valuable reference information for the lake management and aquatic ecosystem conservation.

Filling in the Gaps for Aquatic Ecosystem Conservation – Biomonitoring forBaseline Information and Capacity Building in Meghalaya, India

This paper describes a stream biomonitoring program that builds capacity in undergraduate college students in the field of freshwater ecology and conservation. The program involves sampling of aquatic macroinvertebrates and hydrological parameters in streams of the state of Meghalaya, India. Several colleges from Shillong initiated short-term, one-year and long-term biomonitoring of streams in East Khasi Hills and Ri-Bhoi districts. Nine stream locations sampled over October-December in 2014 provided a snapshot of physical and biotic conditions, thus enabling the examination of spatial trends in water quality parameters and aquatic biota. A year-long sampling study from 2014-2015 provided a seasonal view of stream parameters at Lwai (clean) and Umkaliar (moderately polluted) streams. Results from both sampling sets suggest that turbidity negatively affected the richness of pollution sensitive taxa. Dissolved Oxygen values were lower in polluted streams and were non-significantly lower in summer than in winter. After an initial training in the field, the sampling was conducted by college students under supervision from their lecturers. Data obtained on macroinvertebrates adds to the sparse information available on stream ecosystems in the biodiversity-rich northeast Indian region. We hope the paper provides a template for monitoring of vital ecosystems in this and similar regions.

An explicit GIS-based river basin framework for aquatic ecosystem conservation in the Amazon

Abstract. Despite large-scale infrastructure development, deforestation, mining and petroleum exploration in the Amazon Basin, relatively little attention has been paid to the management scale required for the protection of wetlands, fisheries and other aspects of aquatic ecosystems. This is due, in part, to the enormous size, multinational composition and interconnected nature of the Amazon River system, as well as to the absence of an adequate spatial model for integrating data across the entire Amazon Basin. In this data article we present a spatially uniform multi-scale GIS framework that was developed especially for the analysis, management and monitoring of various aspects of aquatic systems in the Amazon Basin. The Amazon GIS-Based River Basin Framework is accessible as an ESRI geodatabase at doi:10.5063/F1BG2KX8.

Longitudinal and seasonal patterns of macroinvertebrate communities in a large undammed river system in Southwest China

Identifying naturally-regulated spatial and temporal variations of benthic macroinvertebrates is critical to effective assessment and conservation of aquatic ecosystems, but little is known about these variations in large rivers in East Asian monsoon region. Here, we address this issue by measuring within-one-year longitudinal and seasonal variability in macroinvertebrate assemblages in such a broadly natural river across its whole watershed. Along longitudinal gradients, taxon richness, Shannon–Wiener diversity and mayflies and caddisflies significantly decreased downstream but chironomids and oligochaeta increased. Taxon richness, diversity indices, and abundance of most taxa all had lowest value in summer. Assemblage structure showed both significant but larger longitudinal than seasonal variations, with a clear separation of upstream and most midstream sites from downstream ones in ordination plot. Different environmental and spatial variables were significant for distinguishing macroinvertebrate assemblages among four seasons, although substrate and PCNM1 emerged as important in all seasons. Variance partitioning analyses indicated stronger environmental control than spatial structuring of community composition in all seasons, with pure environmental factors explaining most community variation. These observed patterns contribute to understanding of sources of uncertainty in bioassessment and thus have implications for ecological monitoring and assessment using macroinvertebrates in rivers in monsoon regions.

Environmental factors influencing the distribution and abundance of the introduced signal crayfish in the north of Iberian Peninsula

The identification of habitat requirements of invasive species is essential to evaluate their spread and to assess the vulnerability of recipient ecosystems. We studied the distribution and abundance of the invasive signal crayfish (Pacifastacus leniusculus) in 43 sites in northern Spain and analysed the relationships with several abiotic and biotic parameters of the aquatic ecosystems. Our results indicated that the abundance of signal crayfish was positively associated with vegetation cover and negatively associated with boulders. Also, its abundance was positively correlated with water temperature, organic matter, cations (e.g. sodium), anions (e.g. sulfates) and abundance of some native fish species (Parachondrostoma miegii and Luciobarbus graellsii). We concluded that the habitat of signal crayfish is among salmonid stretches (headwaters) with cold waters and low proportion of organic debris, and among cyprinid stretches (low waters) with warmer waters which it inhabits with another invasive crayfish, the red swamp crayfish (Procambarus clarkii). Our analysis indicated that the presence of signal crayfish is limited in the uppermost stretches by lower water temperatures and a lower proportion of organic debris. The existence of a natural environmental limiting factor in upstream reaches facilitates the conservation of aquatic ecosystems and native fauna.

Patterns and multi-scale drivers of phytoplankton species richness in temperate peri-urban lakes

Local species richness (SR) is a key characteristic affecting ecosystem functioning. Yet, the mechanisms regulating phytoplankton diversity in freshwater ecosystems are not fully understood, especially in peri-urban environments where anthropogenic pressures strongly impact the quality of aquatic ecosystems. To address this issue, we sampled the phytoplankton communities of 50 lakes in the Paris area (France) characterized by a large gradient of physico-chemical and catchment-scale characteristics. We used large phytoplankton datasets to describe phytoplankton diversity patterns and applied a machine-learning algorithm to test the degree to which species richness patterns are potentially controlled by environmental factors. Selected environmental factors were studied at two scales: the lake-scale (e.g. nutrients concentrations, water temperature, lake depth) and the catchment-scale (e.g. catchment, landscape and climate variables). Then, we used a variance partitioning approach to evaluate the interaction between lake-scale and catchment-scale variables in explaining local species richness. Finally, we analysed the residuals of predictive models to identify potential vectors of improvement of phytoplankton species richness predictive models.Lake-scale and catchment-scale drivers provided similar predictive accuracy of local species richness (R2=0.458 and 0.424, respectively). Both models suggested that seasonal temperature variations and nutrient supply strongly modulate local species richness. Integrating lake- and catchment-scale predictors in a single predictive model did not provide increased predictive accuracy; therefore suggesting that the catchment-scale model probably explains observed species richness variations through the impact of catchment-scale variables on in-lake water quality characteristics.Models based on catchment characteristics, which include simple and easy to obtain variables, provide a meaningful way of predicting phytoplankton species richness in temperate lakes. This approach may prove useful and cost-effective for the management and conservation of aquatic ecosystems.

Dynamics of a natural population of a hyallelid amphipod from Brazil

Hyalella longistila is a freshwater amphipod found in streams in southeastern Brazil. We examined temporal variations in the population dynamics of this species by analyzing its abundance, size frequency distribution, proportion of mating pairs and brooding females, sex ratio and recruitment, as well as the possible influence of environmental variables on such parameters. Samples were made in a stream in the state of Minas Gerais from March 2012 to February 2013. The size frequency distribution was polymodal for most of the months, with more than one maximum for both juveniles and adults. The maximum size attained by females (brooding and non-brooding) was higher than in males and the mean size of males (paired and unpaired) was higher when comparing with paired and unpaired females, respectively. Hyalella longistila seems to reproduce continuously but more intensively twice a year, in the middle of winter and end of spring. Recruitment occurred during several months (April, May, October, November, and December 2012), which could have affected the observed polymodal distribution. It is likely that this continuous breeding activity was possible due to the abundant macrophyte stand where the population inhabits, which could have provided constant shelter and feeding for individuals, but this aspect still needs to be investigated further. Moreover, a positive effect of dissolved oxygen on the frequency of brooding females, as well as of temperature on the abundance were recorded. Our results can help future researches in the conservation of aquatic ecosystems as a whole, more specifically for the preservation of Hyalella longistila and its use as a test organism.

The conservation of aquatic ecosystems of the Orinoco River basin.

Journal of Fish BiologyVolume 89, Issue 1 p. 172-173 SPECIAL ISSUE PAPER The conservation of aquatic ecosystems of the Orinoco River basin A. Machado-Allison, Corresponding Author A. Machado-Allison Laboratorio de Ictiología, Instituto de Zoología y Ecología Tropical UCV, Caracas, 1041-A VenezuelaAuthor to whom correspondence should be addressed. Tel.: +58 212 3724702; email: machado.allison@gmail.comSearch for more papers by this author A. Machado-Allison, Corresponding Author A. Machado-Allison Laboratorio de Ictiología, Instituto de Zoología y Ecología Tropical UCV, Caracas, 1041-A VenezuelaAuthor to whom correspondence should be addressed. Tel.: +58 212 3724702; email: machado.allison@gmail.comSearch for more papers by this author First published: 18 February 2016 https://doi.org/10.1111/jfb.12867Citations: 3Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat No abstract is available for this article.Citing Literature Volume89, Issue1Special Issue: Fish and Aquatic Habitat Conservation in South AmericaJuly 2016Pages 172-173 RelatedInformation

Assessing Potential Conservation and Restoration Areas of FreshwaterFish Fauna in the Indian River Basins.

Conservation efforts globally are skewed toward terrestrial ecosystems. To date, conservation of aquatic ecosystems, in particular fish fauna, is largely neglected. We provide a country-wide assessment of Indian river ecosystems in order to identify and prioritize areas for protection and restoration of freshwater fish fauna. Using various biodiversity and anthropogenic attributes, coupled with tools of ecological modeling, we delineated areas for fish fauna conservation and restoration in the 20 major river basins of India. To do this, we used prioritization analyses and reserve selection algorithms to derive conservation value index (CVI) and vulnerability index (VI) of the river basins. CVI was estimated using endemicity, rarity, conservation value, and taxonomic singularity, while VI was estimated using a disturbance index derived from percent geographic area of the basin under human settlements, human population density, predominant land use, and total number of exotic fish species in each basin. The two indices, CVI and VI, were converted into geo-referenced maps, and each map was super-imposed onto species richness and forest cover maps, respectively. After superimposition, areas with high CVI and low VI shade intensities were delineated for conservation, while areas with high CVI and high VI shade intensities were demarcated for restoration. In view of the importance of freshwater fish for human livelihoods and consumption, and ecosystems of India's rivers, we call for urgent attention to the conservation of their fish fauna along with restoration of their degraded habitats.

Monitoring the Variation in Ice-Cover Characteristics of the Slave River, Canada Using RADARSAT-2 Data—A Case Study

The winter regime of river-ice covers in high northern latitude regions is often a determining factor in the management of water resources, conservation of aquatic ecosystems and preservation of traditional and cultural lifestyles of local peoples. As ground-based monitoring of river-ice regimes in high northern latitudes is expensive and restricted to a few locations due to limited accessibility to most places along rivers from shorelines, remote sensing techniques are a suitable approach for monitoring. This study developed a RADARSAT-2 based method to monitor the spatio-temporal variation of ice covers, as well as ice types during the freeze-up period, along the main channel of the Slave River Delta in the Northwest Territories of Canada. The spatio-temporal variation of ice covers along the river was analyzed using the backscatter-based coefficient of variation (CV) in the 2013–2014 and 2014–2015 winters. As a consequence of weather and flow conditions, the ice cover in the 2013–2014 winter had the higher variation than the 2014–2015 winter, particularly in the potential areas of flooded/cracked ice covers. The river sections near active channels (e.g., Middle Channel and Nagle Channel), Big Eddy, and Great Slave Lake also yielded higher intra-annual variation of ice cover characteristics during the winters. With the inclusion of backscatter and texture analysis from RADARSAT-2 data, four water and ice cover classes consisting of open water, thermal ice, juxtaposed ice, and consolidated ice, were discriminated in the images acquired between November and March in both the studied winters. In addition to river geomorphology and climatic conditions such as river width, sinuosity or air temperature, the fluctuation of water flows during the winter has a significant impact on the variation of ice cover as well as the formation of different ice types in the Slave River. The RADARSAT-2 based monitoring algorithm can also be applied to other river systems in high latitude ecosystems to annually monitor their river-ice variation and formation during the freeze-up and ice cover progression period.

Structure and biodiversity of zooplankton communities in freshwater habitats of a Vereda Wetland Region, Minas Gerais, Brazil

Abstract Aims: Vereda wetlands are among the most important aquatic habitats in Brazilian savannah (Cerrado) because of their association with river springs and its relevancy for biodiversity conservation. This study aimed to determine and compare the biodiversity of zooplankton in vereda lakes, differentiated by the presence or absence of aquatic macrophytes at an environmental reserve in Uberlândia, Minas Geais, Southeastern Brazil. Zooplanctonic abundance patterns and their relation with environmental parameters were also discussed and presented through multivariate statistics. Methods Twelve samples were taken at water surface, at 15-day intervals in 2006. It was observed a total richness of 75 species, including 12 genera, 29 species and one sub-species as new records for Minas Gerais State. Results Rotifers were the predominant group and Lecanidae was the most diverse family. Among cladocerans, Chydoridae showed the greatest richness and Bosminidae the highest abundance. Few adult copepods were sampled in this study, but nauplii were very frequent. Cyclopidae was the most common family among copepods and there was no record of Calanoida. Conclusions The difference in composition among the studied lakes was remarkable. The lake with macrophytes showed the greatest richness but the lowest density, and the opposite situation occurred in the other lake. This can be explained by the fact that aquatic macrophytes, as primary producers, exert a bottom-up effect on zooplankton community, sustaining a high local diversity in contrast with a low numeric abundance of these microorganisms. Therefore, this pattern may have been created by the surround heterogeneity and, at the same time, by the reduction of available minerals of the system caused by macrophyte matter fixation. Many studies on zooplankton need to be developed in palm swamp communities in order to better comprehend the biological diversity and the energy balance in different habitats for the conservation of aquatic ecosystems.

Qualidade da Água e Suas Relações com a Biodiversidade Fitoplanctônica

This review aims to present some biotic and abiotic parameters that have been used to determine water quality and its influence on phytoplankton biodiversity. The decrease in phytoplankton biodiversity in polluted environments can change all the trophic structure of the ecosystem since this community is the base of the food chain in these environments. Knowledge of the different parameters that determine water quality is important for the management and conservation of aquatic ecosystems. Usually, parameters are of easy access and interpretation which allows broad monitoring of water quality across the country.

Studying groundwater and surface water interactions using airborne remote sensing in Heihe River basin, northwest China

Abstract. Managing surface water and groundwater as a unified system is important for water resource exploitation and aquatic ecosystem conservation. The unified approach to water management needs accurate characterization of surface water and groundwater interactions. Temperature is a natural tracer for identifying surface water and groundwater interactions, and the use of remote sensing techniques facilitates basin-scale temperature measurement. This study focuses on the Heihe River basin, the second largest inland river basin in the arid and semi-arid northwest of China where surface water and groundwater undergoes dynamic exchanges. The spatially continuous river-surface temperature of the midstream section of the Heihe River was obtained by using an airborne pushbroom hyperspectral thermal sensor system. By using the hot spot analysis toolkit in the ArcGIS software, abnormally cold water zones were identified as indicators of the spatial pattern of groundwater discharge to the river.

Discharge Estimation in a Backwater Affected River Junction Using HPG

This study presents a method for estimating discharge at a stage-gauging station located in a backwater affected river junction. A hydraulic performance graph (HPG) summarizing the backwater profiles on all possible flow conditions was applied to the river system at the juncture of the main stream and the tributary. The HEC-RAS model for dendritic river was created, and the unsteady simulation was implemented for calibration and verification. The relationship between two water levels from existing stage stations at the main stream and the tributary and the discharge at the backwater affected section was estimated, and kriging interpolation was carried out. During a flood, the discharge was calculated using kriging-interpolated HPG and the water level measurements at two stage stations. It was then validated by comparing the automatic discharge measurements from ADVM. The result provides an economical and practical method for estimating discharge in a junction with a high hysteresis of looped stage- discharge relationships. River discharge observation data has been used in several fields including water balance, flood prediction, dam and reservoir operation, the design of hydraulic structures, water supply, and aquatic ecosystem conservation. It is essential data for the examination and calibration of rainfall-runoff models and flood routing models. Generally, discharge is observed directly through a field survey, but in the consideration of time and cost, it is difficult to observe discharge continuously for a long period of time. Therefore, in order to observe discharge, we use an indirect method to prepare a stage-discharge relation curve from empirical relationships between the observed discharge and water level of river for a limited period and convert the measured water level into discharge by applying the measured water level to this curve.

Chironomids as indicators in freshwater ecosystems: an assessment of the literature

Abstract Freshwater assessment studies have been used changes on individuals and populations of Chironomidae assemblages as bioindicators to assay aquatic ecosystems changes and environmental quality. To assess the contribution of the studies with this family to response aquatic environmental changes, we carried out a scientometric analysis of the papers published from 1992 to 2012. We imported papers from ISI Web of Knowledge database (Thomson Reuters) in November 2013. A total of 2967 papers were evaluated and we carried out descriptive analysis to assay the main trends on Chironomidae research in freshwater assessments. The main ideas and approaches in these studies were related to the impact of human influence on aquatic ecosystems and the status of conservation of this environments, as well as to limitations and difficulties in the applications of the assessments. In view of our results, we suggest some ideas to contribute to the conservation of aquatic ecosystems, mainly in threatened environments in southern Hemisphere countries. However, Chironomidae identification for assessing aquatic environments, as well as the limitations of suitable tools and metrics, which still are strong issues that need more attention to make more robust approaches to assay aquatic ecosystems.

Subcellular energy balance of Odontesthes bonariensis exposed to a glyphosate-based herbicide

Water pollution by agrochemicals is currently one of the most critical problems for the conservation of aquatic ecosystems. Glyphosate [N-(phosphonomethyl) glycine); PMG] is the main broad-spectrum post emergence herbicide used for the control of a wide range of pests in soybean crops. Adenylate energy charge (AEC) reflects the energy balance of the cells, a measure of the energy available from the adenylate pool: adenosine triphosphate (ATP), adenosine diphosphate (ADP) and adenosine monophosphate (AMP). Background adenylates, phosphagens and the AEC index of two year old Odontesthes bonariensis were determined in some tissues by HPLC, and the impact on subcellular energy balance of sublethal glyphosate-based herbicide exposure was analyzed. The doses used were 0 (control tank), 1 or 10mg PMGL−1, trials were carried out during 15 days. AEC values in brain, liver and muscle from control fish were 0.37±0.02, 0.49±0.05 and 0.56±0.03, respectively (means±SEM). While brain ATP concentrations were undetectable (hence low values of AEC), the muscle tissue showed the highest concentrations of the more energetic molecules: 0.18μmole ATPg−1 and 8μmole phosphocreatineg−1 (PCrg−1). In the brain, no significant changes were detected in exposed fish compared to controls. Instead, in both the liver and muscle of animals exposed to the highest concentration of the herbicide, significant changes in the AEC (reduction of 26% and 15%, p<0.05) with respect to the control group were determined. Chronic exposure (15 days) of Odontesthes bonariensis to 1 and 10mgL−1 of formulated glyphosate did not affect brain AEC. However, the highest concentration of the herbicide produced a significant decrease in liver and muscle AEC manifesting adverse sublethal effects on the energy metabolism. These results suggest the usefulness of AEC as a biomarker of fish glyphosate exposure.

River Otter Distribution and Food Habits in Grand Teton National Park as Part of an Ongoing Project in the GYE

Grand Teton National Park is part of the known range of the North American river otter, however not much is known about this semi-aquatic mammal within the park. The results presented here are part of a larger project to investigate the potential of the river otter (Lontra canadensis) to serve as an aquatic flagship (species that engender public support and action) for the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. River otters, known for their charismatic behavior have the potential to serve as an aquatic flagship species to promote conservation of aquatic ecosystems. The primary objective of this portion of the study was to identify river otter latrines on portions of the Snake River, between Flagg Ranch and Jackson Lake, and between Jackson Lake Dam and Pacific Creek, collect river otter scats to determine diet of the river otter, and employ remote cameras to determine activity patterns of the river otters. Between 20 June and 1 July 2015, 26 river otter latrines were identified during shoreline surveys, 186 river otter scats were collected, and cameras were deployed at 6 latrines between 7 July and 24 August 2015. River otter scats have been cleaned and prepared for analysis, but have not all been processed to date. Camera traps recorded 222 images, of which 7% (n = 14) were of carnivores, 70% (n = 155) were of non-carnivore mammals, and 9% (n = 22) were of birds. River otters were detected at 1 of the 6 latrines, a total of 5 independent times during the study.

Impacts of land use conflicts on riverine ecosystems

Starting from a diagnosis of areas with different environmental land use conflicts located in various rural sub-basins of the River Sordo basin (northern Portugal), the present study analyzed the ecological quality of surface water in small mountain streams to establish a relationship between land use, water and aquatic biota. Environmental land use conflicts were set up on the basis of land use and land capability maps, coded as follows: 1 – agriculture, 2 – pasture, 3 – pasture/forest, and 4 – forest. Land capability was assessed by the ruggedness number methodology (RN). The difference between the codes of capability and use defines a conflict class, where a negative or null value means no conflict and a positive value means class i conflict. Within and without the conflict areas, ecological quality of surface water was evaluated by the metrics EPT taxa, IPtIN index, diversity of Shannon–Wiener and Evenness index. Macroinvertebrate communities are strongly correlated to conflict classes, because sites without (reference sites) or with minor physicochemical and hydromorphological degradation (Class 1) presented high diversity, evenness, EPT taxa and IPtIN index, while more impacted sites (Class 2) presented an ecological status not fulfilling the demands of the European Union Water Framework Directive (2000/60). The present study indicates a significant impact of land use on water quality which has straight influence on the distribution of biota, emphasizing the key role of riparian vegetation in the conservation of aquatic ecosystems. The highest impacts on macroinvertebrate assemblages were associated with changes in water quality parameters such as temperature, oxygen saturation (%), turbidity, total suspended solids (TSS), nitrates, phosphates and sulphates, conductivity and dissolved oxygen, as well as hydromorphological alterations driven by the total absence of riparian vegetation as a consequence of terrace building, agriculture and the resectioning/reinforcement of the banks associated with the culture of vine. Macroinvertebrates proved reliable to distinguish conflict classes and separate seasons. The main conservation measures required to improve the conflict areas in the short and medium term mainly include the adoption of agroforestry practices as these not only improve the quality of water and soil, maintaining land resources over a long period of use, but also brings many benefits to the landowner.