Fig 2 - uploaded by Evan T. Harrison
Content may be subject to copyright.
The Upper Murrumbidgee River catchment. The location of each macroinvertebrate sampling site is shown with a number and the BMA depth predicted by SedNet in that river link is shown by the accompanying symbols. Aerially photomapped river links are shown in bold and reservoirs in dark grey
Source publication
The accumulation of sand and fine gravel (<5mm diameter) on riverbeds can adversely affect benthic macroinvertebrates, which
are good indicators of the ecological health of rivers. The possibility arises, therefore, that predictions of sedimentation
could form a useful proxy for indicating the health of a river. The Sediment River Network Model (Se...
Similar publications
Species traits have been identified as a component of biodiversity that is worthy of investigation as a tool for exploring ecological effects of anthropogenic disturbances. We used meta-analysis to show how selected species traits of Ephemeroptera and Plecoptera can be used to examine the ecological effects of flow and water-level regulation in fre...
We examined the influence of elevation on benthic macroinvertebrate community responses to heavy metals at 33 sites in six Colorado streams where zinc (Zn) concentration ranged from 2 to 691 μg/L and elevation ranged from 2200 to 3500 m above sea level. We assigned the 33 sites to one of four categories, on the basis of the total Zn concentration a...
Citations
... Larsen and Ormerod (2010) concluded that low-level and short-term increases in fine sediment reduces benthic diversity in cobbled headwater streams. Harrison et al. (2008) described the detrimental impacts of fine sediment accumulation on benthic invertebrates in the same river reaches as is site MR1. However, Suren et al. (2005) reported that in an experimental setting, mayflies were resilient to hours to weeks of high turbidity. ...
Feral horses preferentially utilise aquatic landscape elements. Damage to stream banks by feral horses potentially degrades water quality and affects aquatic ecosystems. Despite the global predominance of horse activity in or near water, there is poor understanding of instream impacts. Motion sensing cameras were used near sub-alpine streams to quantify frequency and behaviour of horses interacting with streams. Deployed turbidity loggers were used to indicate presence of suspended sediment from interactions and to assess long-term (3 year) seasonal suspended sediment regime at sites with very small and large amounts of horse activity. In summer 99.9% of large grazer interactions with streams were horses and we estimate 130 horse interactions per kilometre of stream per day resulting in stream turbidity increases up to 100 NTU. Long term turbidity at sites with greater riparian damage from horses had significantly greater average turbidity than control sites. Turbidity in horse affected streams peaked at 50 times the national turbidity guideline and in summer averaged 8 times the guideline. Suspended sediment leads to a high risk of loss of aquatic diversity and impairment of ecosystem function. Linear relationships between turbidity and riparian damage suggest that any level of horse presence impacts subalpine waterways.
... Rivers having freshwater environmental flows represents the lifeline of human civilization by acting as resources of drinking water, water for irrigation, other agricultural activities, energy production, ecotourism, and varied forms of industries. The intimate association of rivers with human life since the inception of human civilization mostly due to the immense benefits derived from this productive, sensitive, vulnerable, and threatened landscape of the world has necessitated a systematic study of the freshwater river ecosystem, along with eco-dynamics of biotic and abiotic factors with the prime objective of sustainable eco-management of rivers (Chakraborty and Choudhury 1992;Jonnalagadda and Mhere 2001;Harrison et al. 2008;Chakraborty 2020a, b). Knowledge bases pertaining to the ecology and behavioral manifestations of many of these life forms of rivers contribute significantly toward the eco-monitoring process and program after being determined by their specific ecological niche, habitat overlapping patterns, and heterogeneity of the riverine flows from upstream to downstream. ...
The increasing trend of eco-degradation of the different landscapes of the world, mostly because of human-mediated pollution has emerged as a burning environmental issue across the globe. This has necessitated to undertake sustainable eco-management in order not only to achieve proper eco-restoration of the disturbed and degraded ecosystems but also to ensure a continuous supply of ecosystem services. The embedded complexity and dynamism of the ecological problems of the riverine ecosystem require an in-depth analysis to achieve flexible, transparent, and viable environmental planning and management approaches incorporating and integrating a diversity of knowledge and values. Both the biomonitoring (an important component of eco-monitoring) and bioremediation (an integral part of any eco-restoration effort) help achieving the goal of sustainability of the functioning of the river ecosystem. This chapter of the book has dealt with the different merits and demits of such recent developments in the arena of aquatic ecosystem management practices citing case studies emphasizing on the functional roles of benthic mollusks and fungi from a transboundary river, named as Subarnarekha, India. In dealing with such studies, meticulous and detailed analyses of the ecology of these major groups of the organisms, both from the field-based and experimental studies have been made in order to justify their contribution to the biomonitoring and bioremediation process. Deduction of Water Quality Index (WQI), Biotic Community Indices, Pollution Load Index (PLI), and Bio-Concentration Factor (BCF) based on the major prevailing water quality parameters such as Dissolved oxygen (DO), Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), Chemical oxygen demand (COD), temperature, pH, turbidity, Total dissolved solids (TDS), conductivity, alkalinity, calcium, magnesium, chloride, total hardness, etc.; geo-chemical parameters of soils such as moisture content, pH, texture (sand, silt, and clay), organic matter, available nitrogen, and toxic substances such as heavy metals alongside documenting the diversity, distribution, and abundance of studied species across the studied stretch of the riverine flows, have been correlated with the biomonitoring and bioremediation of the riverine ecosystem, alongside citing an update on the recent literature concerning the strategies available for biomonitoring and bioremediation focusing mainly on the metal-contaminated water bodies using aquatic biota with a critical discussion on their main advantages and limitations.
... Their complete absence from station 6 was probably because of enormous organic load contributed by the sewage. The Planorbid, Indoplanorbis exustus (Deshayes) and Lymnaea acuminata (Lamarck) also was present in all the stations 1-8 in much lesser number except stations 5 and 6 ( (Fisher & Williams, 2006;Harrison et al., 2008). Besides, an overall pattern in the recovery of different molluscan species irrespective of the taxa in terms of their number were noted at stations 7 and 8. ...
The present study explores the effects of municipal sewage on the malacofaunal diversity from eight sampling stations across River Ichamati. Altogether, 14 species (10 gastropod and 4 bivalve species) were recorded during the study period. The molluscan community were represented by two classes- Gastropoda and Bivalvia. astropoda was represented by two orders (Mesogastropoda and Basommatophora), three families (Viviparidae, Thiaridae, Planor Didae, six genera and ten species. Class Bivalvia had two orders (Unionida and Veneroidea), two families and four genera with a total Of four species. Among gastropoda, Brotia costula episcopalis (Lea) and Thiara tuberculata (Müller) were the most dominant species recorded from all stations and in bivalvia Lamellidens marginalis Lamarck) and Corbicula striatella (Deshayes) were found at six stations out of eight. Stations 5 and 6 showed a dwindling distri- bution of most of the malacofaunal species because of municipal Sewage discharge. The identification of the ditferent malacofaunal species may be used for future studies on nutrient cycling and their role in biomonitoring of the river ecosystem.
... However, several of our findings are also consistent with those obtained from other regional stream surveys, despite differences in approaches, protocols and biological end points. Notably, elevated fine sediment accumulation has been shown to contribute to impairment of macroinvertebrate communities in many places, including Australia (Harrison et al., 2007;Harrison et al., 2008), Spain (Buendia et al., 2013), China (Zhao et al., 2011) and elsewhere. Additionally, elevated nutrient concentrations have been observed to be important stressors in European streams (Johnson and Hering, 2009) and loss of riparian vegetation has been shown to contribute to impairment of stream macroinvertebrate communities in regions such as South America (Jiménez-Valencia et al., 2014), Canada (Rios and Bailey, 2006), and Europe (Johnson and Hering, 2009). ...
We report results from the first statewide assessment of biological health in perennial streams in Washington State. Using a probabilistic sampling survey design, we were able to make unbiased estimates of biological condition of macroinvertebrate communities throughout the state based on 346 sites sampled from 2009 to 2012. Results from randomly sampled sites were classified as either good, fair, poor in comparison with 75 regional reference sites that were sampled concurrently. We determined that approximately 34 percent of stream kilometers assessed were in poor biological condition as measured with a multi-metric index, the Benthic Index of Biotic Integrity. Additionally, we evaluated a variety of chemical and physical habitat stressors known to negatively influence macroinvertebrate communities and determined that poor substrate conditions were the most prevalent and important stressors impacting stream macroinvertebrates, with relative bed stability and percent sand/fines being the most prevalent. A relative risk/attributable risk analysis suggests that improving physical habitat conditions in streams, most notably a reduction in percent sand/fines, will have the greatest impact for improving biological condition for macroinvertebrate communities. It is estimated that approximately 60% of stream kilometers now classified as in poor biological condition in Washington could be improved by reducing the amount of percent sand/fines in the substrate. These results are consistent with those obtained from EPA's national stream surveys and suggest that poor habitat conditions are the most prevalent stressors im-pacting stream macroinvertebrates in Washington State.
... The abrupt decline in fauna abundance and diversity was reported during the post monsoon season is the result of these factors. Similar observations were reported in southeast Australia21 where it was observed that addition of sand and gravels adversely affect the macrobenthic invertebrate's population in the Upper Murrumbidee River bed. The study showed moderate positive correlations of gastropods with factors like EC, temperature, Cl-and TDS in their declining order. ...
... High molluscan diversity in River Barak and its tributaries in Assam were reported and it was observed that gastropods were in dominant position than bivalves and recorded sixteen molluscan taxa belonging to two classes [14] . Similar observations were obtained in River Nile [10] and in the Upper Murrumbidee River in southeast Australia [5] . ...
The study presents the molluscan fauna from eighteen sampling stations of River Narmada. Altogether 19 species (13 gastropod and 6 bivalve species) were recorded during the period of study. Among gastropoda Thiara (Melanoides) tuberculata (Muller) and Tarebia granifera (Lamarck) were most dominant species recorded from all stations and in bivalvia Parreysia (Radiatula) occata (Lea) and Corbicula striatella (Deshayes) were found at sixteen sites out of eighteen. The study revealed that the molluscan community could be explored for possible use as biomonitors in River Narmada.
... Flow regulation alters downstream transportation of sediments (Svendsen et al. 2009) as the physical connectivity along the longitudinal profile is impeded (Kondolf 1997). This can also lead to sedimentation downstream of dams, changing habitat availability for macroinvertebrates, thereby impacting taxa sensitive to these conditions (Harrison et al. 2008). ...
River regulation impacts lotic ecosystem processes; however, the effect of a gradient of regulation on these attributes has rarely been studied. This study examined the effects of a river regulation gradient on longitudinal trends in water quality and benthic algal and macroinvertebrate assemblages in three tributaries of the Hunter River, New South Wales, Australia. Longitudinal patterns were expected to differ across rivers, with recovery being proportional to its regulation gradient. Significant differences in longitudinal trends were tested using permutational multivariate analysis of variance (PERMANOVA) through exploration of the river by distance from source interaction. Multi-dimensional scaling (MDS) ordination plots identified sites responsible for any significant interaction observed. Similarity percentage analysis (SIMPER) analyses identified variables/taxa responsible for differences at sites below dams. BEST analyses identified environmental variables best explaining biological assemblage patterns. Significant differences in longitudinal trends were observed for all attributes. Increases in the regulation gradient most affected macroinvertebrate assemblages, followed by water quality and benthic algal assemblages respectively. Downstream recovery was absent in the heavily regulated river at its most downstream site, whereas recovery was observed on corresponding sites of the moderately regulated river. The study suggests that a gradient in river regulation increases the magnitude of disruption of lotic ecosystems, with recovery dependent on this gradient.
... This approach provides improved predictive capacity over spatially lumped models (Wilkinson et al., 2006). River links predicted to have bed material accumulation have impaired biological health, with lower abundance Ratio of hillslope to channel (gully and bank) erosion of habitat-sensitive macro-invertebrate taxa (Harrison et al., 2008). ...
This chapter reviews the recent development and status of work in the field of erosion and sediment yield. It highlights the growing importance of sediment as an environmental problem and associated changes in emphasis of work in this field, including increased interest in sediment quality. The central importance of the sediment budget concept is introduced and techniques for establishing and modeling sediment budgets are reviewed. Key current issues related to sediment quality are outlined.
... Fine sediment abundance can greatly influence the physical and behavioral biology of aquatic life (Brusven and Prather 1974;Merritt and Cummins 1996;Harrison et al. 2008). ...
Streams and riparian areas can be intricately connected via physical and biotic interactions that influence habitat conditions and supply resource subsidies between these ecosystems. Streambed characteristics such as the size of substrate particles influence the composition and the abundance of emergent aquatic insects, which can be an important resource for riparian breeding birds. We predict fine sediment abundance in small headwater streams directly affects the composition and number of emergent insects while it may indirectly affect riparian bird assemblages. Streams with abundant fine sediments that embed larger substrates should have lower emergence of large insects such as phemeroptera, Plecoptera and Trichoptera. Streams with lower emergent insect abundance are predicted to support fewer breeding birds and may lack certain bird species that specialize on aquatic insects. This study examined relationships between streambed characteristics, and emergent insects (composition, abundance and biomass), and riparian breeding birds (abundance and richness) along headwater streams of the Otter River Watershed. The stream bed habitats of seven stream reaches were characterized using longitudinal surveys. Malaise traps were deployed to sample emergent aquatic insects. Riparian breeding birds were surveyed using fixed-radius point-counts. Streams differed within a wide range of fine sediment abundances. Total emergent aquatic insect abundance increased as coverage by instream substrates increased in diameter, while bird community was unresponsive to insect or stream features. Knowledge of stream and riparian relationships is important for understanding of food webs in these ecosystems, and it is useful for riparian forest conservation and improving land-use management to reduce sediment pollution in these systems.
... Freshwater habitats in the Wet Tropics support significant aquatic biodiversity (Pearson and Stork, 2008). The disruption of freshwater aquatic biodiversity assemblages including fish and macro-invertebrates is likely to be a result of declining riparian vegetation extent and condition, prolonged periods of high sediment load and low levels of dissolved oxygen resulting from nutrient enrichment (Ryan, 1991; Connolly and Pearson, 2007; Harrison et al., 2008). Clearance of riparian vegetation also allows sunlight to promote the growth of invasive aquatic weeds which restrict flows, promoting anoxic conditions (Bunn et al., 1998). ...
Hydrological processes have been identified as delivering ecosystem services that are fundamental to both human well-being and the maintenance of biodiversity. If we can map the hydrological processes and the threats to them, the integrity of the provision of ecosystem services from the catchment can be identified, highlighting areas in need of further protection. Using the Tully-Murray catchment in the Wet Tropics as a case study, we constructed a simplified description of the ecosystem functions and related processes, and identified the roles of the ecosystem service providers and beneficiaries. Mapping the riparian zone and adjacent land uses enabled us to visualise areas where non-remnant vegetation existed and also vegetation that was classified as ‘Endangered’ or ‘Of Concern’. An assessment of the riparian vegetation and adjacent land use revealed that 51% of the catchment contained non-remnant riparian vegetation (i.e. was cleared or under agricultural production) and 36% of remnant vegetation was described as “Endangered” with a further 35% being classified as “Of Concern”. This is consistent with the reported current threats from water quality degradation, habitat fragmentation and other anthropogenic influences driven by rapid economic growth. The findings and data derived from this project can be used for a range of purposes in managing the riparian zone. Mapping the riparian zone and adjacent land use has shown the different types of land uses that impact on waterways and this will assist natural resource managers in prioritizing areas where remnant vegetation should be retained or rehabilitated. With this information, adjacent landholders can improve their management of the riparian zone and remnant vegetation through gaining the ecosystem service benefits, and further are able to profit from grant applications and incentives. Maintaining a healthy waterway and retaining remnant riparian vegetation will offer the possibility to obtain many economic, biodiversity and aesthetic benefits both within the catchment and downstream as far as the Great Barrier Reef.
