Response of benthic macroinvertebrates to dam removal in the restoration of the Boardman River, Michigan, USA

Mahan, David C.; Betts, Joel T.; Nord, Eric A.; Dyke, Fred Van; Outcalt, Jessica M.

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0245030

Cited by 10 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 41 publications

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“…Additionally, on the Rhone River, France, just 1 year after restoration to restore floodplain connectivity, macroinvertebrate communities had reestablished and were skewed toward “pioneering” taxa with short generation times and multiple generations a year (Paillex et al, 2009). Similar findings have been observed in dam removal studies, where macroinvertebrate communities can quickly re‐establish in downstream and former reservoir habitats following the removal of the dam (Bellmore et al, 2019; Mahan et al, 2021).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 81%

Effects of process‐based floodplain restoration on aquatic macroinvertebrate production and community structure

Jennings

Bellmore

Armstrong

et al. 2023

River Research & Apps

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Recent stream restoration approaches, such as Stage 0 restoration, aim to restore natural processes to regain lost ecosystem functions, but project implementation can also represent a reach‐scale disturbance. Assumed outcomes of these restoration actions, like greater biological productivity, are rarely evaluated. In this study, we examined the short‐term effects of Stage 0 floodplain restoration on the secondary production of aquatic macroinvertebrate communities in the South Fork McKenzie River, Oregon, 1–2 years following project implementation. We seasonally sampled macroinvertebrates from benthic and submerged wood surfaces in the restored reach, and two unrestored reference reaches located upstream, to estimate annual secondary production. Macroinvertebrate production estimates were 3× lower on a per‐meter‐squared basis in the restored reach than in the upstream unrestored reference reaches (9764 vs. 29,636 mg DM/m2/yr). However, because there was 4.5‐times greater wetted area available in the restored reach, overall macroinvertebrate production per unit of valley length was 3.4× higher in the restored reach than in unrestored reference reaches (2744 vs. 802 kg DM/km). Additionally, the mosaic of aquatic habitats created via restoration (main‐channel, side‐channel, and wetted forest habitats) supported a diversity of macroinvertebrate assemblages both within and among reaches. Our findings suggest Stage 0 project implementation, which can include dewatering and filling incised channels, may reduce aquatic macroinvertebrate production on a per‐unit‐area basis for at least 1 or 2 years following restoration. However, this short‐term disturbance effect may be offset by channel aggradation and widening, which can provide a more wetted area for macroinvertebrate production and may support greater macroinvertebrate community diversity. Future studies are needed to examine the longer term (2–10 years) aquatic macroinvertebrate response to Stage 0 restoration, and the impacts of shifting resource availability on stream fishes.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 81%

Effects of process‐based floodplain restoration on aquatic macroinvertebrate production and community structure

Jennings

Bellmore

Armstrong

et al. 2023

River Research & Apps

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“…Long-term trends also agree on overall positive effects of river restoration on fish populations (Birnie-Gauvin et al, 2017) and fish communities (Whittum et al, 2023). Aquatic macroinvertebrate communities show more mitigated responses to dam removal compared to fish with first decreases in diversity, most likely due to high downstream sedimentation (Chiu et al, 2013;Renöfält et al, 2013;Rubin et al, 2017), followed by increases in diversity over time (Orr et al, 2008;Kil and Bae, 2012;Mahan et al, 2021). Yet, macroinvertebrate communities may not recover completely even after three years following dam removals (Hansen and Hayes, 2012;Renöfält et al, 2013;Poulos et al, 2019;Mahan et al, 2021).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 60%

Fast but transient recovery of aquatic and terrestrial communities after a large dam removal

Dézerald,

Roussel,

Lanoë

et al. 2023

Front. Ecol. Evol.

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IntroductionEcological restoration through dam removals receives increasing attention from scientists, environmental managers and policy makers. However, most dam removal projects focus on small structures (< 10 m in height) and on few ecosystem compartments at a time (e.g. river morphology, reservoir sedimentation, aquatic invertebrates, terrestrial vegetation), but rarely aquatic and riparian ecosystems simultaneously.MethodsWe explored the joint taxonomic recovery (temporal patterns in α- and β-diversity) of three communities after the removal of the Vezins dam (36 m in height; Sélune River, France): aquatic benthic invertebrates, riparian invertebrates, and the riparian vegetation. These communities were monitored yearly, during three years after the dam removal, on sites located within (n = 3; restored sites) and outside (n = 3; two upstream and one downstream; non-impounded sites) the former reservoir.ResultsResults showed a fast recovery of the three ecological communities, as patterns in α-diversity between restored and non-impounded sites were not necessarily different from each other 1.5 years after complete reservoir dewatering. The mean number of species or morphospecies (± standard deviation) reached up to 28.2 ± 5.2, 17.0 ± 2.3 and 77.5 ± 11.2 for the aquatic invertebrates, and the riparian vegetation and invertebrates, respectively. Relative to the sampled area, the riparian invertebrates were the most diversified of all ecological communities with > 500 taxa (i.e., pooling all sites and years). In addition, in some restored sites, α-diversity kept increasing over time while species turnover (β-diversity) remained high after three years for all ecological communities suggesting a transient recovery (i.e., still facing temporal changes in species diversity and composition). This recovery was mediated by the identity of the ecological community as inter-annual changes in α- and β-diversity of the riparian vegetation were less pronounced compared to those of aquatic and terrestrial invertebrates. This recovery depended also on site-specific features as the most distant restored site from the former dam had more time for recovery following the slow reservoir dewatering and through increased sedimentation in the downstream site.DiscussionDifferential patterns of recovery in α- and β-diversity found in this study are discussed in light of species functional traits and ecosystem functioning.

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“…Rates of dam removal are accelerating, (Mouchliantis, 2022), yet facilitating the spread of invasive species by removing dispersal barriers is a common concern among managers (Tullos et al, 2016). Indeed, the removal of three dams on the Boardman River, Michigan, USA, facilitated the spread of the New Zealand mud snail Potamopyrgus antipodarum (Mahan et al, 2021), and there has been a recent drive to include the potential spread of invasive species in barrier removal prioritisation models (e.g. Terêncio et al, 2021).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

River infrastructure and the spread of freshwater invasive species: Inferences from an experimentally‐parameterised individual‐based model

Daniels

Kerr

Kemp

2023

Journal of Applied Ecology

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Invasive species and river infrastructure are major threats to freshwater biodiversity. These stressors are commonly considered in isolation, yet the construction and maintenance of river infrastructure can both enhance and limit the expansion of invasive species. Spatial and temporal limitations of laboratory and field studies, coupled with little consideration of population‐level responses (e.g. invasion rate), have limited understanding of the efficacy of infrastructure for long‐term, catchment‐scale containment of invasive species. This study utilised an individual‐based model (IBM) to investigate the ability of a partial riverine barrier to contain the spread of invasive species at large spatio‐temporal scales, using American signal crayfish Pacifastacus leniusculus as a model species. The base model (no barrier) accurately recreated longitudinal expansion rates of signal crayfish reported in existing literature. A virtual riverine barrier was added to the base model, with passage at the structure parameterised using existing literature and the results of an experiment that demonstrated no clear relationship between crayfish density and passage efficiency at a Crump weir. Model outputs indicated a weir downstream of the release point had no effect on longitudinal expansion of crayfish, whereas an upstream barrier slowed the invasion rate for 6.5 years after it was first encountered. After the invasion rate had recovered to pre‐barrier levels, the invasion front was 2.4 km further downstream than predicted in the absence of a barrier, representing a 1.73 year delay in longitudinal range expansion. Synthesis and applications. Despite substantial negative impacts on native biodiversity, river infrastructure can also delay the spread of freshwater invasive species, representing a trade‐off. This demonstrates the need to consider positive ecological consequences of river infrastructure when designing prioritisation techniques for barrier removal and mitigation (e.g. selective fish passage), and suggests that in some cases barriers may provide a useful integrated pest management tool.

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Response of benthic macroinvertebrates to dam removal in the restoration of the Boardman River, Michigan, USA

Cited by 10 publications

References 41 publications

Effects of process‐based floodplain restoration on aquatic macroinvertebrate production and community structure

Effects of process‐based floodplain restoration on aquatic macroinvertebrate production and community structure

Fast but transient recovery of aquatic and terrestrial communities after a large dam removal

River infrastructure and the spread of freshwater invasive species: Inferences from an experimentally‐parameterised individual‐based model

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