Appeal for a Comprehensive Assessment of the Potential Ecological Impacts of the Proposed Platte-Republican Diversion Project

Caven, Andrew J.; Buckley, Emma M. Brinley; Wiese, Joshua D.; Taddicken, Bill; Krohn, Brice; Smith, Timothy J.; Pierson, Andrew

doi:10.1353/gpr.2019.0019

Cited by 5 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…(2014) documented a 31.7% increase in “lowland grasses” between Chapman and Lexington, Nebraska, within 5.6 km of Platte River from 1982 to 1998. Similarly, Caven et al., 2019a , Caven et al., 2019b documented a relatively modest increase in “meadow-prairie” landcover from 1998 to 2016 within 800 m of the main channel of the Platte River between Chapman and Overton, Nebraska ( x̄ = +2.8% per river segment, range = -0.9% to +12.1%, n = 11). However, in both cases these gains were uneven and concentrated around lands owned and managed by conservation organizations ( Krapu et al., 2014 ; Caven et al., 2019b ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 92%

“…Lowland prairie and wetland landcover have been significantly reduced as a result of agricultural expansion, as this biologically important area is also one of the most productive agricultural regions in the Great Plains ( Currier et al., 1985 , Sidle et al., 1989 ; Dappen et al., 2008 ). Furthermore, the hydrology of the Platte River has been profoundly altered by damming, diversion (e.g., canals), and groundwater pumping, resulting in large decreases in annual discharge, peak flows, river width, and groundwater levels that maintain riparian wetlands ( Currier 1989 ; Wesche et al., 1994 ; Simons and Associates 2000 ; Henszey et al., 2004 ; Murphy et al., 2006 ; Caven et al., 2019a ). Additionally, the removal of natural and periodic disturbances from the river valley, such as significant flood pulses and wildfires, resulted in large increases in riparian woodland and shrubland landcover manifest as accretion within the former channel bed as well as encroachment into remaining herbaceous habitats ( Williams 1978 ; Currier 1982 ; Caven et al., 2019b ; Fogarty et al., 2020 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Reinventory of the vascular plants of Mormon Island Crane Meadows after forty years of restoration, invasion, and climate change

Caven¹,

Wiese²

2022

Heliyon

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 92%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Reinventory of the vascular plants of Mormon Island Crane Meadows after forty years of restoration, invasion, and climate change

Caven¹,

Wiese²

2022

Heliyon

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“…Further investigations regarding specific sites used and water conditions during extended stopovers may provide insight to appropriate land management and restoration techniques that could be incorporated when compatible with the diverse array of primary objectives of reservoirs in the Great Plains (McConnell, 2018;Vanausdall & Dinsmore, 2021). Nonetheless, impoundment of rivers across the Great Plains has greatly affected hydroperiods and vegetation communities of riparian areas (Costigan & Daniels, 2012), reducing the quality of riverine stopover sites in regulated rivers for waterbirds (Caven et al, 2019;Krapu et al, 2014).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Flexible migration and habitat use strategies of an endangered waterbird during hydrological drought

Pearse,

Caven,

Baasch

et al. 2024

Conservat Sci and Prac

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Wildlife species confront threats from climate and land use change, exacerbating the influence of extreme climatic events on populations and biodiversity. Migratory waterbirds are especially vulnerable to hydrological drought via reduced availability of surface water habitats. We assessed how whooping cranes (Grus americana) modified habitat use and migration strategies during drought to evaluate their resilience to changing conditions and adaptive capacity. We categorized >8000 night‐roost sites used by 146 cranes from 2010 to 2022 and examined relative use during non‐drought, moderate drought, and extreme drought conditions. We found cultivated and uncultivated palustrine and lacustrine wetlands were generally used less during droughts than non‐drought conditions. Conversely, impounded palustrine and lacustrine systems and rivers served more frequently as drought refugia (i.e., used more during drought than non‐drought conditions). Night roosts occurred primarily on private lands (86% overall); public land use decreased with latitude and increased with drought severity, with greatest use (56%) occurring during severe autumn drought in the southern Great Plains. Quantifying use of identified critical habitats in the United States indicated that Cheyenne Bottoms State Waterfowl Management Area and Quivira National Wildlife Refuge were used less during drought, and the Central Platte River and Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge received similar use during drought compared to non‐drought conditions. Our findings provide insights into compensatory use of habitats, where impounded surface water may function in a complementary fashion with natural wetlands. Collectively, these and other types of wetlands distributed across the migration corridor provided a reliable network of habitat available across the Great Plains. A diversity of wetlands available during variable environmental conditions would be useful in supporting continued recovery of whooping cranes and likely have benefits for a wide array of migratory birds.

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“…Wet meadows have been reduced in the CPRV to 5% of their historic area (Currier et al 1985, Sidle et al 1989. A myriad of hydrologic, climatic, and anthropic changes (Johnson et al 2012, Fassnacht et al 2018, Pauley et al 2018, Caven et al 2019b) have resulted in encroachment of woody vegetation and channel incisions that threaten to lower the shallow groundwater table (Williams 1978, Currier 1982, Eschner et al 1983, Randle and Samad 2003. In turn, this has resulted in the drying of some wet meadow systems, causing a change in stable state to lowland prairie ecosystems, thus rendering the previous wet meadows drier and more viable for agricultural row-crop conversion (Sidle and Faanes 1997).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessing the hydroregime of an archetypal riverine wet meadow in the central Great Plains using time‐lapse imagery

Buckley

Caven²,

Wiese³

et al. 2021

Ecosphere

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Wet meadows are a declining and increasingly degraded ecosystem type. They contribute numerous ecosystem services, including nutrient cycling, water storage, and filtration, and provision of wildlife habitat, particularly for wetland-dependent species such as the Whooping Crane (Grus americana). Conservation and restoration of wet meadows rely on understanding their hydrology but characterization of wet meadow hydroregimes is difficult given their hydrologic complexity, high variability, and distinct regional differences. To address this challenge, we used ground-based time-lapse imagery to assess inundation dynamics of an archetypal wet meadow over a six-year period in the Central Platte River Valley, Nebraska, USA. We analyzed over 6500 images from March 2011 to May 2017 in the open-source javabased image processing software ImageJ. We also obtained data on groundwater, streamflow, precipitation, and evapotranspiration. We assessed the relationship between wet meadow inundation and hydrologic variables using wavelet coherence to look at fluctuations across a time-frequency spectrum and used random forest to identify seasonally specific variables of importance. We found hydroperiod, the duration surface water ponded within the wet meadow, had a mean of 141 d, on average lasting from 10 December to 1 May, but varied annually. Inundation generally peaked in the early spring, on average 10 March, but demonstrated a bimodal distribution, peaking again in late spring during wetter years. While inundation responded rapidly to precipitation events, it was highly related to streamflow, while an elevated groundwater table was necessary for sustained inundation. Overall, our study provided a comprehensive hydrological characterization of a reference wet meadow and demonstrated the utility of time-lapse cameras for high-resolution monitoring and assessment of highly variable wetland systems. Considering the uncertainties surrounding land-and water-use changes, climate change, and the increasing demand for freshwater resources by growing human communities, understanding functional wet meadow hydroregimes and interrelated drivers is essential to inform wet meadow restoration, conservation, and management efforts.

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Appeal for a Comprehensive Assessment of the Potential Ecological Impacts of the Proposed Platte-Republican Diversion Project

Cited by 5 publications

References 40 publications

Reinventory of the vascular plants of Mormon Island Crane Meadows after forty years of restoration, invasion, and climate change

Reinventory of the vascular plants of Mormon Island Crane Meadows after forty years of restoration, invasion, and climate change

Flexible migration and habitat use strategies of an endangered waterbird during hydrological drought

Assessing the hydroregime of an archetypal riverine wet meadow in the central Great Plains using time‐lapse imagery

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