Fifty years of environmental changes of the Amacuzac riparian ecosystem: a social perceptions and historical ecology approach

Abstract

Critical aspects of hydrological science need to include historical perspectives about land and water use, and to understand the kind of knowledge policymakers and society require, so that this expertise can be translated into actions directed to water management challenges. We combined environmental perceptions with historical ecology techniques to understand the past and present relationships between people and the riparian environment, and to highlight the overriding influences of historic landuse changes in the region. We analyzed the perceptions of elderly stakeholders who have lived for >50 years in ten localities established inside and outside a protected area along the Amacuzac, one of the largest rivers in Morelos, Mexico. The river was and still is an important part of community life, in spite of its present poor condition. Perspectives of elders living inside the protected area were mostly related to conservation aspects of ecosystem functioning, impact on vegetation, and water problems related to land use. The loss of biodiversity and ecosystem services were recognized as the leading cause of the loss of ecosystem products and of their commercialization, as well as other changes in local economies. We conclude that effectively protected areas can improve the biological quality of watercourses if a decidedly more conservationist focus is placed upon streams and the surrounding territory.

Seed dispersal by rivers in tropical dry forests: An overlooked process in tropical central Mexico

“…Common crops in the area include corn, bean and squash, as well as sorghum, mango and jicama (Mexican yam; Beltrán‐Rodríguez, Ortiz‐Sánchez, Mariano, Maldonado‐Almanza, & Reyes‐García, ). Soils of riparian ecosystems are particularly rich in nutrients and remain humid when the rest of the deciduous forest is dry (Eufracio‐Torres et al., ). Twenty‐three years ago the Sierra de Huautla Biosphere Reserve (REBIOSH) was declared in the southern part of Morelos, which covers half of the Amacuzac River (Dorado et al., ; Figure ).…”

“…In the State of Morelos, due to several factors, such as the expansion of human settlements and an increase in productive activities, Trejo and Dirzo () estimated a 1.4% rate of annual deforestation. This is also a consequence of degradation and defective management of the State's hydrological resources and ecosystems, which has led to a decline in riparian ecosystem products and their commercialization, with associated negative impacts on local economies (Eufracio‐Torres, Wehncke, López‐Medellín, & Maldonado‐Almanza, ; Vargas, Soares, & Guzman, ). Deforestation and anthropogenic flow regulation alter the natural flow regime of a river and subsequently the hydrochory and distribution of riverine plant communities (Greet, Cousens, & Webb, , ).…”

Physical environmental conditions determine ubiquitous spatial differentiation of standing plants and seedbanks in Neotropical riparian dry forests

“…Geomorphologically suitable for crop establishment and agricultural developments, tropical dry forests riparian vegetation covers the discharge area of many rivers constituting the most productive landscape in the studied region [ 137 ], and have a long history of changes in land use mainly related to the sugarcane production [ 138 ]. Therefore, common problems have historically involved high anthropogenic pressure and natural disasters of overflowing rivers [ 21 , 139 ]. This is also evidenced from the representative herbaceous species in the riparian soil seedbanks resulting from the indicator species analysis in this study, in which three non-native species- Polygonum tomentosum , Commelina diffusa and Desmodium sericophyllum- were representative of natural vegetation areas.…”

“…Throughout history, humans have settled at these locations because of their proximity to essential resources such as water and fertile land, but also for recreation and spirituality [ 17 , 18 ]. Over time, human activity and land use conversion to agriculture and grazing have led to loss of natural vegetation, seedbanks and biodiversity [ 19 , 20 , 21 ]. Stream alteration, agriculture and logging in and around riparian zones severely threaten their integrity, functionality and sustainability [ 17 , 22 , 23 , 24 ], and it has been estimated that 65% of river habitats in the world are threatened by land use change [ 25 ].…”

The use of photos to investigate ecological change

“…Historical photographs were initially often not taken for scientific purposes. For example, Eufracio‐Torres et al (2016) used private family pictures dating back to 1925 to study vegetation changes along river banks. Repeat photography is also used on smaller time‐scales compared to repeat historical photographs, when new timeseries are started by researchers who frequently (e.g.…”