No abstract

the amazon Basin is an unquestionable biodiversity hotspot, containing the highest freshwater biodiversity on earth and facing off a recent increase in anthropogenic threats. The current knowledge on the spatial distribution of the freshwater fish species is greatly deficient in this basin, preventing a comprehensive understanding of this hyper-diverse ecosystem as a whole. Filling this gap was the priority of a transnational collaborative project, i.e. the AmazonFish project -https://www.amazon-fish.com/. Relying on the outputs of this project, we provide the most complete fish species distribution records covering the whole Amazon drainage. The database, including 2,406 validated freshwater native fish species, 232,936 georeferenced records, results from an extensive survey of species distribution including 590 different sources (e.g. published articles, grey literature, online biodiversity databases and scientific collections from museums and universities worldwide) and field expeditions conducted during the project. This database, delivered at both georeferenced localities (21,500 localities) and sub-drainages grains (144 units), represents a highly valuable source of information for further studies on freshwater fish biodiversity, biogeography and conservation.Scientific Data | (2020) 7:96 | https://doi.collections from Peru 25,26 and by initiating sampling campaigns in detected gaps in Colombia, Peru and Brazil. All these spatial gaps in the database will also be prioritized in future updates through literature and web-based sources checking. Researchers holding fish distribution data from any of the current gaps or under-sampled areas (Fig. 2) and that wish to share these data are welcome to join the project. This information will be included with the complete source, after validation, in the next update of the database.

Oil palm plantations have expanded around the world, increasing concern about its pressure on deforestation rates and the homogenization of the landscape. In this context, the present study aimed to evaluate the impact of oil palm plantations on the physical characteristics of streams in Amazonia and their effects on Heteroptera, Odonata and Fish assemblages. A total of 23 streams were sampled, eight within fragments of primary forest, while 15 were in oil palm plantations. Data were collected on characteristics of the channel morphology, substrate, hydraulics, instream cover for aquatic organisms, riparian vegetation, human impacts and woody debris. Instream cover and proximity of human impacts were the variables that had the greatest effects on the physical structure of the streams, showing variation between streams of forest in pristine areas and oil palm plantations. Of the analyzed parameters, substrate, instream cover and woody debris influence the richness of Heteroptera, Odonata and Fish. The impact of oil palm plantations on local streams depended on the size of the plantations, and they cannot be considered an adequate substitute for lost habitats in efforts to preserve the physical habitat of Amazonian streams. Any type of conversion of the natural forest can have direct or indirect impacts on the dynamics and structure of these environments, with potentially negative consequences for their biodiversity. The maintenance of an adequate buffer zone of native riparian vegetation adjacent to the streams that flow through the plantations recommended, because this appears to be the principal factor determining the physical conditions of these streams.

Protecting riparian vegetation around streams is vital in reducing the detrimental effects of environmental change on freshwater ecosystems and in maintaining aquatic biodiversity. Thus, identifying ecological thresholds is useful for defining regulatory limits and for guiding the management of riparian zones towards the conservation of freshwater biota. Using nationwide data on fish and invertebrates occurring in small Brazilian streams, we estimated thresholds of native vegetation loss in which there are abrupt changes in the occurrence and abundance of freshwater bioindicators and tested whether there are congruent responses among different biomes, biological groups and riparian buffer sizes. Mean thresholds of native vegetation cover loss varied widely among biomes, buffer sizes and biological groups: ranging from 0.5% to 77.4% for fish, from 2.9% to 37.0% for aquatic invertebrates and from 3.8% to 43.2% for a subset of aquatic invertebrates. Confidence intervals for thresholds were wide, but the minimum values of these intervals were lower for the smaller riparian buffers (50 and 100 m) than larger ones (200 and 500 m), indicating that land use should be kept away from the streams. Also, thresholds occurred at a lower percentage of riparian vegetation loss in the smaller buffers, and were critically lower for invertebrates: reducing only 6.5% of native vegetation cover within a 50‐m riparian buffer is enough to cross thresholds for invertebrates. Synthesis and applications. The high variability in biodiversity responses to loss of native riparian vegetation suggests caution in the use of a single riparian width for conservation actions or policy definitions nationwide. The most sensitive bioindicators can be used as early warning signals of abrupt changes in freshwater biodiversity. In practice, maintaining at least 50‐m wide riparian reserves on each side of streams would be more effective to protect freshwater biodiversity in Brazil. However, incentives and conservation strategies to protect even wider riparian reserves (~100 m) and also taking into consideration the regional context will promote a greater benefit. This information should be used to set conservation goals and to create complementary mechanisms and policies to protect wider riparian reserves than those currently required by the federal law.

No abstract

Summary Length–weight (LWR) and length–length relationships (LLR) are presented for 135 freshwater fish species sampled by several types of fishing gear between April 2012 and July 2014 in the middle and lower Xingu River Basin, northern Brazil. The report represents the first references on LWRs and LLRs for 114 and 119 species, respectively, and also provides a new maximum size for 96 species.

The Amazon rainforest has experienced rapid land-use changes over the last few decades, including extensive deforestation that can affect riparian habitats and streams. The aim of this study was to assess responses of stream fish assemblages to deforestation and land cover change in the eastern Amazon. We expected that percentage of forest in the catchment is correlated with local habitat complexity, which in turn determines fish assemblage composition and structure. We sampled 71 streams in areas with different land uses and tested for relationships between stream fish assemblages and local habitat and landscape variables while controlling for the effect of inter site distance. Fish assemblage composition and structure were correlated with forest coverage, but local habitat variables explained more of the variation in both assemblage composition and structure than landscape variables.Inter site distance contributed to variance explained by local habitat and landscape variables, and the percentage of variance explained by the unique contribution of local habitat was approximately equivalent to the shared variance explained by all three factors in the model. In these streams of the eastern Amazon, fish assemblages were most strongly influenced by features of instream and riparian habitats, yet indirect effects of deforestation on fish assemblage composition and structure were observed even though intact riparian zones were present at most sites. Long-term monitoring of the hydrographic basin, instream habitat and aquatic fauna is needed to test for potential legacy effects and time lags, as well as assess species responses to continuing deforestation and land-use changes in the Amazon. Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) for PROCAD/ CAPES funding (project no 88881.068425/2014-01), the graduate scholarship for TOB and senior internship scholarship for LFAM to conduct research at Texas A&M University (process 88881.119097/2016-1). The manuscript was improved during the review process by addressing the thoughtful comments from Philip Kaufmann and an anonymous reviewer.

Summary Reduced‐impact logging (RIL) has been considered as the main activity of forestry management in the Amazon. However, little is known of the effects of RIL on the region's ecosystems or in their biodiversity, and such information would be useful to inform forest management. Accordingly, this study aimed to investigate the effects of RIL on physical habitat and fish assemblages in Eastern Amazonia streams. We predicted that changes caused by RIL affect stream habitat, leading to a loss of diversity and changes in species composition with a predominance of generalist species. We sampled 13 streams in basins dominated by native vegetation without evidence of logging activity (unlogged areas) and 23 in areas that had been logged at different times between 2001 and 2011. Stream physical habitat structure was characterized using a standardized protocol, and the abundance, richness and composition of fish assemblages were assessed. Biotic and abiotic data were compared between unlogged and logged areas, and among streams in areas with different logging years. The relationship between the stream habitat structure and fish assemblages was assessed using a distance‐based linear model using a forward procedure, followed by application of the Akaike information criterion. Variations in tree canopy cover, channel morphology, water temperature and dissolved oxygen and conductivity accounted for most of the differences in habitat characteristics between unlogged and logged areas. A total of 53 fish species was collected, belonging to 20 families and 6 orders. Fish abundances did not vary consistently between streams in unlogged areas and those that had undergone RIL, and showed minor evidence of species‐specific changes in response to logging years. Likewise, there were no obvious differences in species richness, composition and biomass between logged and unlogged sites, regardless of logging years. RIL in Eastern Amazonia is performed in compliance with technical guidelines, but this practice has resulted in changes in stream physical habitat. Nonetheless, in the headwater streams that we sampled, the effects of RIL on fish assemblages were minor.