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• This is the pre-peer reviewed version of the article, which has been published in final form at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/rra.933

1. Methods are needed to relate changing river flows to ecological response, particularly those which do not require collection of extensive new data for river segments that lack historical data. Using time-series of river biomonitoring data from wadeable lowland streams in Denmark and the East Midlands of the U.K., we describe how local-scale habitat features (indexed through River Habitat Survey or Danish Habitat Quality Survey) and changing river flow (discharge) influence the response of a macroinvertebrate community index. The approach has broad applicability in developing regional flow-ecological response models. 2. We analysed the data using multilevel linear regression, combining sample-level and site-level characteristics as predictors. We focused on the potential for common responses across sites; hence for each sample, the macroinvertebrate community was summarised into an index, Lotic Invertebrate index for Flow Evaluation (LIFE), an average of abundance-weighted flow groups which indicate the microhabitat preferences of each taxon for higher velocities and clean gravel ⁄ cobble substrata or slow ⁄ still velocities and finer substrata. 3. For the Danish fauna, the LIFE score responded to three predictors in an additive manner: high flows in the preceding 4 months (positive), substratum composition and whether the channel was meandering or straight. The East Midlands fauna responded to three predictors: high and low flows in the preceding 6 months (positive) and the degree of resectioning of the channel (negative). In both cases, LIFE responded negatively to features associated with historical channel modification. We suggest that there are several mechanisms for these relationships, including the narrower tolerances of taxa preferring high velocity habitat; these taxa are also continually recovering from extreme flow events over an inter-annual timescale. 4. At the East Midlands sites, there was an interaction between degree of resectioning and antecedent low flow. At sites with a greater extent of resectioning, the LIFE-discharge relationship was also steeper than at less modified sites. Consideration of the underlying data suggests that there are two mechanisms for this response. Firstly, in less modified sites, refugia are present during low flows for taxa preferring higher velocities such as riffle beetles, caseless caddis, mayflies and Gammarus pulex. Secondly, high flows are associated with decreasing abundances of taxa such as molluscs, flatworms and leeches at more resectioned sites, but with stable or increasing abundances at less modified sites. 5. The LIFE index responded to both antecedent flow and habitat modification in two separate data sets from lowland wadeable streams. This is the first time that the combined importance of these two factors has been demonstrated using routine invertebrate biomonitoring data. These results complement other site-specific studies that have shown how channel structure interacts with flow to create physical habitat, and should assist future work aiming to...

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Increased fine sediment deposition and entrainment in rivers can arise from a combination of factors including low flows, habitat modification and excessive sediment delivery from the catchment. Physical and visual methods have traditionally been used to quantify the volume of deposited fine sediment (<2 mm in size), but here we propose an alternative, the development and utilization of a sediment‐sensitive macro‐invertebrate metric (PSI — Proportion of Sediment‐sensitive Invertebrates) which provides a proxy to describe the extent to which the surface of river beds are composed of, or covered by, fine sediments. Where suitable biomonitoring data exists, the index can be calculated retrospectively to track trends in fine sediment deposition, and its ecological impact, through time. Furthermore, the utilization of reference condition models such as RIVPACS (River InVertebrate Prediction And Classification System), allows site‐specific unimpacted conditions to be defined, opening‐up the possibility of standard classification and assessment systems being developed. In Europe, such systems are vital if the Water Framework Directive is to be implemented. Knowledge regarding spatial differences in sediment/flow interdependencies may provide valuable information on diffuse sources of fine sediment to rivers and we illustrate this with an example from the UK (Laceby Beck). Further UK case studies are presented to show a range of applications, including the demonstration of improvements in habitat heterogeneity following river restoration (rivers Chess and Rib) and the detection of fine sediment impacts downstream of an impoundment (Eye Brook). The PSI metric offers a readily deployable, cost‐effective and hydroecologically relevant methodology for the assessment of fine sediment impacts in rivers. The technique has potential for application outside of the UK and an adaptation of the methodology for use in the Simandou Mountains (Guinea) is used to illustrate this. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Benthic macroinvertebrates were sampled at regular intervals from rural and urban sections of the River Roding, Essex, England, in 1975 and1976 . During the latter year a severe drought led to a marked decline in flows and to desiccation of parts of the river bed . In general, drought conditions resulted in an increase in invertebrate populations and possible reasons for this are presented . A considerable number of individuals of certain groups such as cased caddisfly larvae and prosobranch molluscs were, however, eliminated from the river at this time, mainly as a result of stranding and chemical changes in the environment . The effect of reduced flows on river faunas is briefly discussed .

Sediment transport is regarded as an abiotic process driven by geophysical energy, but zoogeomorphological activity indicates that biological energy can also fuel sediment movements. It is therefore prudent to measure the contribution that biota make to sediment transport, but comparisons of abiotic and biotic sediment fluxes are rare. For a stream in the UK, the contribution of crayfish bioturbation to suspended sediment flux was compared with the amount of sediment moved by hydraulic forcing. During base flow periods, biotic fluxes can be isolated because nocturnal crayfish activity drives diel turbidity cycles, such that nighttime increases above daytime lows are attributable to sediment suspension by crayfish. On average, crayfish bioturbation contributed at least 32% (474 kg) to monthly base flow suspended sediment loads; this biotic surcharge added between 5.1 and 16.1 t (0.21 to 0.66 t km−2 yr−1) to the annual sediment yield. As anticipated, most sediment was moved by hydraulic forcing during floods and the biotic contribution from baseflow periods represented between 0.46 and 1.46% of the annual load. Crayfish activity is nonetheless an important impact during baseflow periods and the measured annual contribution may be a conservative estimate because of unusually prolonged flooding during the measurement period. In addition to direct sediment entrainment by bioturbation, crayfish burrowing supplies sediment to the channel for mobilization during floods so that the total biotic effect of crayfish is potentially greater than documented in this study. These results suggest that in rivers, during base flow periods, bioturbation can entrain significant quantities of fine sediment into suspension with implications for the aquatic ecosystem and base flow sediment fluxes. Energy from life rather than from elevation can make significant contributions to sediment fluxes.

ABSTRACT1. There is a need to relate changing river flows to ecological response, particularly using methods which do not require extensive new data for water bodies without historical data. This paper describes how local-scale habitat features and changing discharge appear to influence a macroinvertebrate-based biotic index.2. The study used 87 time-series of river biomonitoring data from upland, wadeable streams with quasi-natural flow regimes across England and Wales. Twenty-seven of the sites were matched to a nearby flow gauging station, and historical, natural flows using a generalized rainfall-runoff model were synthesized for 60 sites. All sites were matched to a River Habitat Survey (RHS) within 1 km.3. The data were analysed using multilevel linear regression, combining sample-and site-level characteristics as predictors. Common responses were assessed across sites, using the biotic index LIFE (Lotic Invertebrate index for Flow Evaluation), an average of abundance-weighted Flow Groups which indicate the relative preference among taxa for higher velocities with gravel/cobble substrates or slow velocities with finer substrates. The aim was to understand the influence of physical habitat on macroinvertebrate response to antecedent high and low flow magnitude.4. There was a positive relationship between LIFE score calculated from spring and autumn samples and antecedent high (Q10) and low flows (Q95). The relationship between summer Q10 and autumn LIFE score was steeper than the relationship between winter Q10 and spring LIFE score. Bed and bank resectioning reduced overall LIFE and increased the steepness of the response of LIFE to low (Q95) flow.5. The models derived may be used to guide environmental flow allocations and to quantify the relative influence of flow and physical habitat change on macroinvertebrate responses. The interaction between resectioning and low flow has particular implications for the conservation of macroinvertebrate taxa with requirements for faster flowing water.