Article
Taxonomic and Functional Responses of Species-Poor Riverine Fish Assemblages to the Interplay of Human-Induced Stressors
Registro en:
Colin, N., Habit, E., Manosalva, A., Maceda-Veiga, A., & Górski, K. (2022). Taxonomic and functional responses of species-poor riverine fish assemblages to the interplay of human-induced stressors. Water (Switzerland), 14(3) doi:10.3390/w14030355
2073-4441
Autor
Colin, Nicole
Habit, Evelyn
Manosalva, Aliro
Maceda Veiga, Alberto
Górski, Konrad
Resumen
Artículo de publicación SCOPUS - WOS The effects of human-induced stressors on riverine fish assemblages are still poorly un-
derstood, especially in species-poor assemblages such as those of temperate South American rivers.
In this study we evaluated the effects of human-induced stressors on the taxonomic and functional
facets of fish assemblages of two central-southern Chilean rivers: the Biobío River (flow regulated
by multiple dams) and the Valdivia River (free-flowing). The study design considered reference
condition, urban polluted, and urban-industrial polluted sites. To evaluate the effects of stressors on
fish assemblages we assessed: (i) components of beta diversity; (ii) spatial and temporal patterns of
fish structure using a multivariate approach; and (iii) functional diversity (specialization, originality,
dispersion, and entropy) using linear models. We found a strong association between taxonomic
and functional fish assemblage facets with a predominance of natural processes in the Valdivia
River reflected in marked temporal dynamics. In contrast, the Biobío River showed a clear loss of
association with seasonal pattern, and both taxonomic and functional facets appeared to respond
significantly to pollution zones. Implementation of stricter environmental policies and integrated
river basin management are instrumental for conserving species-poor fish assemblages in Chilean
temperate rivers characterized by low functional traits redundancy.