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Characteristics, Main Impacts, and Stewardship of Natural and Artificial Freshwater Environments: Consequences for Biodiversity Conservation Cantonati, Marco; Poikane, Sandra; Pringle, Catherine M.; Stevens, Lawrence E.; Turak, Eren; Heino, Jani; Richardson, John Stuart; Bolpagni, Rossano; Borrini, Alex; Cid, Núria; Čtvrtlíková, Martina; Galassi, Diana M. P.; Hájek, Michal; Hawes, Ian; Levkov, Zlatko; Naselli-Flores, Luigi; Saber, Abdullah A.; Cicco, Mattia Di; Fiasca, Barbara; Hamilton, Paul B.; Kubečka, Jan; Segadelli, Stefano; Znachor, Petr

Abstract

In this overview (introductory article to a special issue including 14 papers), we consider all main types of natural and artificial inland freshwater habitas (fwh). For each type, we identify the main biodiversity patterns and ecological features, human impacts on the system and environmental issues, and discuss ways to use this information to improve stewardship. Examples of selected key biodiversity/ecological features (habitat type): narrow endemics, sensitive (groundwater and GDEs); crenobionts, LIHRes (springs); unidirectional flow, nutrient spiraling (streams); naturally turbid, floodplains, large-bodied species (large rivers); depth-variation in benthic communities (lakes); endemism and diversity (ancient lakes); threatened, sensitive species (oxbow lakes, SWE); diverse, reduced littoral (reservoirs); cold-adapted species (Boreal and Arctic fwh); endemism, depauperate (Antarctic fwh); flood pulse, intermittent wetlands, biggest river basins (tropical fwh); variable hydrologic regime—periods of drying, flash floods (arid-climate fwh). Selected impacts: eutrophication and other pollution, hydrologic modifications, overexploitation, habitat destruction, invasive species, salinization. Climate change is a threat multiplier, and it is important to quantify resistance, resilience, and recovery to assess the strategic role of the different types of freshwater ecosystems and their value for biodiversity conservation. Effective conservation solutions are dependent on an understanding of connectivity between different freshwater ecosystems (including related terrestrial, coastal and marine systems).

Item Metadata

Title
Characteristics, Main Impacts, and Stewardship of Natural and Artificial Freshwater Environments: Consequences for Biodiversity Conservation
Creator
Cantonati, Marco; Poikane, Sandra; Pringle, Catherine M.; Stevens, Lawrence E.; Turak, Eren; Heino, Jani; Richardson, John Stuart; Bolpagni, Rossano; Borrini, Alex; Cid, Núria; Čtvrtlíková, Martina; Galassi, Diana M. P.; Hájek, Michal; Hawes, Ian; Levkov, Zlatko; Naselli-Flores, Luigi; Saber, Abdullah A.; Cicco, Mattia Di; Fiasca, Barbara; Hamilton, Paul B.; Kubečka, Jan; Segadelli, Stefano; Znachor, Petr
Publisher
Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute
Date Issued
2020-01-16
Description
In this overview (introductory article to a special issue including 14 papers), we consider all main types of natural and artificial inland freshwater habitas (fwh). For each type, we identify the main biodiversity patterns and ecological features, human impacts on the system and environmental issues, and discuss ways to use this information to improve stewardship. Examples of selected key biodiversity/ecological features (habitat type): narrow endemics, sensitive (groundwater and GDEs); crenobionts, LIHRes (springs); unidirectional flow, nutrient spiraling (streams); naturally turbid, floodplains, large-bodied species (large rivers); depth-variation in benthic communities (lakes); endemism and diversity (ancient lakes); threatened, sensitive species (oxbow lakes, SWE); diverse, reduced littoral (reservoirs); cold-adapted species (Boreal and Arctic fwh); endemism, depauperate (Antarctic fwh); flood pulse, intermittent wetlands, biggest river basins (tropical fwh); variable hydrologic regime—periods of drying, flash floods (arid-climate fwh). Selected impacts: eutrophication and other pollution, hydrologic modifications, overexploitation, habitat destruction, invasive species, salinization. Climate change is a threat multiplier, and it is important to quantify resistance, resilience, and recovery to assess the strategic role of the different types of freshwater ecosystems and their value for biodiversity conservation. Effective conservation solutions are dependent on an understanding of connectivity between different freshwater ecosystems (including related terrestrial, coastal and marine systems).
Subject
freshwater; habitat; biodiversity; ecosystem; impact; conservation; stewardship; foundation species; least-impaired habitat relicts
Genre
Article
Type
Text
Language
eng
Date Available
2020-01-29
Provider
Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
Rights
CC BY 4.0
DOI
10.14288/1.0388484
URI
http://hdl.handle.net/2429/73420
Affiliation
Forestry, Faculty of; Non UBC; Forest and Conservation Sciences, Department of
Citation
Water 12 (1): 260 (2020)
Publisher DOI
10.3390/w12010260
Peer Review Status
Reviewed
Scholarly Level
Faculty
Rights URI
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Aggregated Source Repository
DSpace

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CC BY 4.0