Researchers Map Fish Species at Risk from Dams

May 2012

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Dams are believed to be one of the biggest threats to freshwater organisms worldwide: They disrupt normal patterns of water and sediment flow, impede migration, and alter the character of spawning and feeding grounds. A shortage of data has until now prevented a thorough global assessment of the threat dams pose to fish species, but a study described in the June issue of BioScience attempts just that.

The report, by Catherine Reidy Liermann of Umeå University, Sweden, and three coauthors, analyzed 397 ecologically distinct freshwater regions around the world and plotted the occurrence of dams greater than 15 meters high. This approach enabled the researchers to assess the amount of obstruction the dams caused. The authors then examined location data for fish species believed to be at risk of extinction because they are restricted to a specific region or because they have to migrate up rivers as part of their life cycle. This allowed the researchers to identify regions where dams pose the biggest risk to fish species. Factoring in where there has been additional habitat alteration—a known risk for many fishes—allowed the authors to further refine their list of the danger zones.

The results pointed to Murray-Darling Province (Australia), Southern Italy, the Lower and Middle Indus Basin, West Korea, the Upper Paraná (southern Brazil), the South Atlantic coast of the United States, and Mobile Bay ecoregions as having notable numbers of fish species at risk and heavy dam obstruction. Other parts of the United States in the 18 ecoregions deemed to present the greatest risks worldwide include the Great Lakes and part of the Gulf of Mexico. Much of the Danube, Iberia, and the Southern Temperate Highveld in South Africa are also on the list. These 18 ecoregions, the authors write, "merit immediate conservation attention." Eels, shads, lampreys, sturgeons, and salmonids stand out as being especially vulnerable.

The authors explain that their findings will help researchers and planners in identifying important regions where conservation is feasible because the watercourses are relatively unobstructed and are home to at-risk species. The results also flag regions where restoration—possibly even including dam removal—is desirable if fishes are to be conserved.

The complete list of peer-reviewed articles in the June 2012 issue of BioScience is as follows. Articles 1,2,4,5, 6, and 7 are now published ahead of print. Article 3 will be published with the June issue's full contents next month.

1. Implications of Dam Obstruction for Global Freshwater Fish Diversity
Catherine Reidy Liermann, Christer Nilsson, James Robertson, and Rebecca Y. Ng

2. The Effects of Forest Fuel-Reduction Treatments in the United States
Scott L. Stephens, James D. McIver, Ralph E. J. Boerner, Christopher J. Fettig, Joseph B. Fontaine, Bruce R. Hartsough, Patricia Kennedy, and Dylan W. Schwilk

3. Oil Impacts on Coastal Wetlands: Implications for the Mississippi River Delta Ecosystem after the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill
Irving A. Mendelssohn, Gary L. Andersen, Donald Baltz, Rex Caffey, Kevin R. Carman, John W. Fleeger, Samantha B. Joye, Qianxin Lin, Edward Maltby, Edward Overton, and Lawrence Rozas

4. Legacy Effects in Material Flux: Structural Catchment Changes Predate Long-Term Studies
Daniel J. Bain, Mark B. Green, John L. Campbell, John F. Chamblee, Sayo Chaoka, Jennifer M. Fraterrigo, Sujay S. Kaushal, Sherry L. Martin, Thomas E. Jordan, Anthony J. Parolari, William V. Sobczak, Donald E. Weller, Wilfred M. Wolheim, Emery R. Boose, Jonathan M. Duncan, Gretchen M. Gettel, Brian R. Hall, Praveen Kumar, Jonathan R. Thompson, James M. Vose, Emily M. Elliott, and David S. Leigh

5. Education Improves Plagiarism Detection by Biology Undergraduates
Emily A. Holt

6. Integrating Theoretical Components: A Graphical Model for Graduate Students and Researchers
David M. Choate, Chelse M. Prather, Matt J. Michel, Ashley K. Baldridge, Matthew A. Barnes, David Hoekman, Christopher J. Patrick, Janine Rüegg, and Todd A. Crowl

7. Planetary Opportunities: A Social Contract for Global Change Science to Contribute to a Sustainable Future
Ruth S. DeFries, Erle C. Ellis, F. Stuart Chapin III, Pamela A. Matson, B. L. Turner II, Arun Agrawal, Paul J. Crutzen, Chris Field, Peter Gleick, Peter M. Kareiva, Eric Lambin, Diana Liverman, Elinor Ostrom, Pedro A. Sanchez, and James Syvitski

Timothy M. Beardsley
Editor in Chief, BioScience

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