Evaluation of River Fragmentation and Implications for the Conservation of Migratory Fish in Southeastern Brazil

Zambaldi, Ludimilla

doi:10.1007/s00267-020-01266-9

Cited by 8 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 35 publications

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“…Furthermore, although we observed fish recolonization in the study area after the TSF rupture, it is 300 km from the TSF. The middle Rio Doce has two hydroelectric reservoirs, but also has long free‐flowing segments (Zambaldi & Pompeu, 2020). It would be interesting to evaluate the mainstem recovery from the TSF over the entire Rio Doce, thereby incorporating a study perspective based on Riverscape (Fausch et al, 2002; Herlihy et al, 2022) and Serial Discontinuity (Ward & Stanford, 1995) concepts.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Influences of multiple anthropogenic disturbances coupled with a tailings dam rupture on spatiotemporal variation in fish assemblages of a tropical river

et al. 2022

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The Mariana disaster, resulting from the rupture of the Fundão tailings storage facility (TSF) in 2015, was a large‐scale environmental disaster that drastically affected the entire channel of the Rio Doce, southeastern Brazil. The disaster produced substantial channel siltation, increased turbidity, riparian damage and a massive fish kill. However, the Rio Doce basin has a long history of environmental degradation, including hydroelectric dams. The latter are major threats to the ichthyofauna because they affect flow regimes, trap sediments and large wood, select generalist species, impair fish migrations and favour non‐native invasive species. In this study, we analysed the effects of the rupture as well as impacts from the construction of a run‐of‐the‐river hydroelectric dam on native and non‐native fish abundances, and species richness and composition in the middle Rio Doce. To do this, we examined fish survey data collected before and after each disturbance upriver of the reservoir, in the reservoir area and downriver of the dam. The data were separated into three temporal intervals: free‐flowing river, post‐filling reservoir and post‐TSF disaster. To assess temporal changes in native and non‐native fish species richness, we used a rarefaction method and tested it with two‐way ANOVA, which also was used to compare fish abundances. To test temporal changes in fish assemblage composition we used a PERMANOVA test. We observed no significant differences in total native or non‐native species richness as a result of the dam or the disaster. However, we did observe increased non‐native individual abundances after the TSF rupture as well as native individual abundances, depending on the location studied. The assemblage composition also changed after dam construction and the TSF rupture, except for the upriver reach after dam construction. We conclude that both the dam and the TSF rupture affected fish assemblages, favouring increased non‐native abundances, and also changed fish assemblage composition. Our results suggest that a century of landscape and riverscape pressures had extirpated the sensitive fishes from the Rio Doce before the TSF rupture. We conclude that multiple long‐term chronic disturbances can be as harmful to aquatic biota as the acute effects of a major environmental disaster.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…There are 40 hydroelectric power plants throughout the major tributaries of the Rio Doce. They include 10 large‐sized hydropower plants (LHP, with gross production >30 MW/hr) and 30 small hydropower plants (SHP, <30 MW/hr) (Zambaldi & Pompeu, 2020). There are another 97 such plants in the planning phase (22 LHP and 75 SHP) in this basin.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Influences of multiple anthropogenic disturbances coupled with a tailings dam rupture on spatiotemporal variation in fish assemblages of a tropical river

et al. 2022

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“…Still in this context, another related concern is the fracturing of the longitudinal continuity of rivers. In a recent study, Zambaldi and Pompeu (2020) showed that a greater number of migratory species in southeastern Brazil are found in stretches over 100 km without fragmentation. However, by simulating future scenarios, the authors showed a possible increase in stretches of only 50 km, which is inadequate for the maintenance of migratory species.…”

Section: Section 3: Illustrative Examples On the Effect Of Dams On Fi...mentioning

confidence: 99%

The environmental licensing of hydroelectrics and the interface with migratory fish and aquaculture in Brazil

Vidal

Batlouni

2023

Bol. Inst. Pesca

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In this review, we present a background on the Brazilian Federal Legislation on the environmental licensing of hydroelectric plants focusing on the procedure of the repair of environmental damage caused by dams to migratory fish. To that end, the Brazilian electrical matrix was first addressed, thus highlighting the significant contribution of the energy produced by hydroelectric projects. To better contextualize the characteristics of the legislation, separate sections concerning illustrative reports of the effects of dams on migratory fish and the current panorama of aquaculture in Brazil and in the world were included. In this review, we also present a discussion on the specific legislation concerning a mitigation measure, the “fish restocking programs,” which have the potential to promote fishing and aquaculture, but still lack a scientific basis on their effectiveness and correct application. An assessment of this historical process in Brazil indicates that different mitigation measures imposed to obtain operating licenses by hydroelectric plants vary among different hydroelectric projects and that this heterogeneity in the conditions imposed may have effects (of unknown proportions) on local fish communities. Considering the absence of a specific device foreseen in the law that requires the owner or concessionaire of dams in watercourses to provide for fish restocking programs or specific ichthyofauna conservation programs, the issue seems to depend on the discretion of the licensing agency to demand that the hydroelectric plant operators carry out the reintroduction of fish in their reservoirs. This review concludes that there are political and scientific issues to be debated and explored in order to improve public policies on this topic of extreme relevance for society.

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“…Consequently, rehabilitation of golden perch populations would benefit from the reinstatement of bidirectional connectivity at this structure, and others throughout the Barwon-Darling river system, to facilitate the upstream migration of juveniles and adults and the downstream dispersal of eggs, larvae and YOY. For all life stages, movements may occur over hundreds to thousands of kilometres, thus requiring the restoration of hydrological, hydraulic and physical connectivity at these scales (Mallen-Cooper and Zampatti 2020;Stuart and Sharpe 2020;Zambaldi and Pompeu 2020).…”

Section: Management Implications and Conclusionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Population demographics of golden perch (

Zampatti

Fanson

Baumgartner

et al. 2021

Mar. Freshwater Res.

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An understanding of population demographics and life history processes is integral to the rehabilitation of fish populations. In Australia's highly modified Murray-Darling Basin, native fish are imperilled and fish deaths in the Darling River in 2018-19 highlighted their vulnerability. Golden perch (Macquaria ambigua) is a long-lived percichthyid that was conspicuous in the fish kills. To guide population rehabilitation in the Darling River, pre-fish kill age structure, provenance and movement of golden perch were explored using otolith microstructure and chemistry ( 87 Sr/ 86 Sr). Across the Lower and Mid-Darling River, recruitment was episodic, with dominant cohorts associated with years characterised by elevated discharge. There was substantial variability in age structure, recruitment source and movement patterns between the Lower and Mid-Darling River. In the Mid-Darling River, tributaries were an important recruitment source, whereas in the Lower Darling fish predominantly originated in the Darling River itself. Downstream movement of juveniles, upstream migration of adults and return movements to natal locations were important drivers of population structure. Restoring resilient golden perch populations in the Darling River will be reliant on mitigating barriers to movement, promoting a connected mosaic of recruitment sources and reinstating the hydrological and hydraulic factors associated with spawning, recruitment and dispersal. Globally, increasing water resource development and climate change will necessitate such integrated approaches to the management of long-lived migratory riverine fishes.

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Evaluation of River Fragmentation and Implications for the Conservation of Migratory Fish in Southeastern Brazil

Cited by 8 publications

References 35 publications

Influences of multiple anthropogenic disturbances coupled with a tailings dam rupture on spatiotemporal variation in fish assemblages of a tropical river

Influences of multiple anthropogenic disturbances coupled with a tailings dam rupture on spatiotemporal variation in fish assemblages of a tropical river

The environmental licensing of hydroelectrics and the interface with migratory fish and aquaculture in Brazil

Population demographics of golden perch (

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