Advances in Understanding Landscape Influences on Freshwater Habitats and Biological Assemblages

2019 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Anthropogenic Disturbances ◽  
Benthic Macroinvertebrate ◽  
Tolerance Index ◽  
Neotropical Savanna ◽  
Macroinvertebrate Assemblages ◽  
Future Challenges ◽  
Freshwater Habitats ◽  
Landscape Scales ◽  
The Many

<i>Abstract.</i>—Despite its importance as a global biodiversity hotspot, the Neotropical savanna is threatened by rampant agricultural, hydropower, and mining development. This chapter describes the influence of landscape patterns and land uses on the taxonomic composition and structure of benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages in wadeable streams and hydropower reservoirs in the Neotropical savanna, southeastern Brazil. We used the following approaches: (1) an environmental fragility (erodibility) index, (2) an integrated disturbance index, (3) a hemeroby index of natural vegetation change, (4) the spatial distribution of benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages, (5) macroinvertebrate multimetric indices, and (6) a simplified macroinvertebrate tolerance index for urban streams. We found that land use and anthropogenic disturbances at the catchment scale had significant effects on the structure and functioning of lotic ecosystems, thereby reducing their ability to deliver ecosystem services. Our results also showed that citizen science projects can successfully apply simple, inexpensive methodologies and open an important dialogue between academia and the society at large. This chapter is a synthesis of multistatus and multispatial scale assessment of landscape effects on benthic macroinvertebrates living in headwaters and hydropower dam reservoirs in the Neotropical savanna. Future challenges include incorporating novel ecological methodologies in ecological syntheses (e.g., eco-bioinformatics), functional trait-based indices and holistic thermodynamic indices, and standardized assessment methodologies. Doing so will further our understanding of the many-layered ecological effects of land use and other anthropogenic disturbances on aquatic biota at landscape scales.

Advances in Understanding Landscape Influences on Freshwater Habitats and Biological Assemblages

2019 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Human Activity ◽  
Human Activities ◽  
Census Data ◽  
Lessons Learned ◽  
Data Sources ◽  
Aquatic Biota ◽  
Human Environment ◽  
Freshwater Habitats ◽  
Landscape Scales

<i>Abstract.</i>—Over the past decade, numerous studies have identified correlative relationships between aquatic biota and human activities at landscape scales. In addition to demonstrating the pervasive effects of these activities on aquatic biota, these findings have encouraged researchers to suggest that predictive relationships between human activities and aquatic biota could be used to enhance diagnostic power of biological assessments, predict future changes in species distributions, and inform land-use planning. However, to achieve these important goals, descriptions of human activities will need to become more detailed than the simple land use/land cover classifications frequently used. Our purpose is to highlight four sources of human activity data (existing geographic information system layers, census data, remotely sensed images, and visual landscape surveys) that can be used to increase the level of detail with which the human environment is described. Strengths and weaknesses of each data source are discussed and methods for adapting those data to aquatic studies are described by drawing on experiences from studies in the agricultural landscapes of southern Manitoba and southwestern Ontario, Canada. Based on the observations and lessons learned from our previous experiences, we make recommendations for how researchers can identify and apply the data sources that best meet their needs. We also discuss challenges and possible solutions for applying the described data sources as well as for improving data availability in the future. Moreover, we encourage aquatic researchers to allot more time to detailed description of human activities because we believe this to be an effective approach to improving our ability to predict the effects of human activity and thus better assist decision makers in protecting aquatic ecosystems.

scholarly journals Influence of agricultural land-use and pesticides on benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages in an agricultural river basin in southeast Brazil

2012 ◽  
Vol 72 (3) ◽  
pp. 437-443 ◽  
Author(s):  
M Egler ◽  
DF. Buss ◽  
JC. Moreira ◽  
DF. Baptista
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Agricultural Land ◽  
Intensive Agriculture ◽  
Benthic Macroinvertebrate ◽  
Land Uses ◽  
Wet Season ◽  
Macroinvertebrate Assemblages ◽  
Lower Complexity ◽  
Agricultural Areas ◽  
Macroinvertebrate Fauna

Land-use alterations and pesticide run-offs are among the main causes for impairment in agricultural areas. We evaluated the influence of different land-uses (forest, pasture and intensive agriculture) on the water quality and on benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages on three occasions: in the dry season, wet season and at the end of the wet season. Macroinvertebrates responded to this gradient of impairment: agricultural sites had significantly lower richness numbers than forested and pasture sites, and all major invertebrate groups were significantly affected. Most taxa found in forested sites were found in pasture sites, but often with lower densities. In this case, the loss of habitats due to sedimentation and the lower complexity of substrates seem to be the disruptive force for the macroinvertebrate fauna.

Land-use impacts on benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages in pampean streams (Argentina)

2021 ◽  
Vol 279 ◽  
pp. 111608
Author(s):  
María Natalia Marrochi ◽  
Lisa Hunt ◽  
Marina Solis ◽  
Ana María Scalise ◽  
Silvia Laura Fanelli ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Benthic Macroinvertebrate ◽  
Land Use Impacts ◽  
Macroinvertebrate Assemblages ◽  
Pampean Streams

scholarly journals Using chemical biology to assess and modulate mitochondria: progress and challenges

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 20160151 ◽  
Author(s):  
Angela Logan ◽  
Michael P. Murphy
Keyword(s):  
Mitochondrial Function ◽  
Chemical Biology ◽  
Biomedical Sciences ◽  
Interdisciplinary Approaches ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Challenges And Opportunities ◽  
Future Challenges ◽  
The Many ◽  
Opening Up

Our understanding of the role of mitochondria in biomedical sciences has expanded considerably over the past decade. In addition to their well-known metabolic roles, mitochondrial are also central to signalling for various processes through the generation of signals such as ROS and metabolites that affect cellular homeostasis, as well as other processes such as cell death and inflammation. Thus, mitochondrial function and dysfunction are central to the health and fate of the cell. Consequently, there is considerable interest in better understanding and assessing the many roles of mitochondria. Furthermore, there is also a growing realization that mitochondrial are a promising drug target in a wide range of pathologies. The application of interdisciplinary approaches at the interface between chemistry and biology are opening up new opportunities to understand mitochondrial function and in assessing the role of the organelle in biology. This work and the experience thus gained are leading to the development of new classes of therapies. Here, we overview the progress that has been made to date on exploring the chemical biology of the organelle and then focus on future challenges and opportunities that face this rapidly developing field.

Effects of local land-use on riparian vegetation, water quality, and the functional organization of macroinvertebrate assemblages

2017 ◽  
Vol 609 ◽  
pp. 724-734 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pablo Fierro ◽  
Carlos Bertrán ◽  
Jaime Tapia ◽  
Enrique Hauenstein ◽  
Fernando Peña-Cortés ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Quality ◽  
Land Use ◽  
Riparian Vegetation ◽  
Functional Organization ◽  
Macroinvertebrate Assemblages ◽  
Vegetation Water

Scale, context, and application of traditional knowledge of the Canadian north

Polar Record ◽  
1998 ◽  
Vol 34 (188) ◽  
pp. 31-38 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frank Duerden ◽  
Richard G. Kuhn
Keyword(s):  
Land Use ◽  
Resource Management ◽  
Land Use Planning ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Primary Role ◽  
Land Claims ◽  
Land Use Patterns ◽  
Use Patterns ◽  
Physical Environments ◽  
The Many

AbstractThere is strong contemporary interest in the application of traditional environmental knowledge (TEK) of physical environments and land-use patterns in northern Canada. This interest relates to land claims, land-use planning, cultural preservation, resource management, and environmental monitoring. The application of TEK to land and resource management is critically examined and a typology relating scale, user group, and the transformation of knowledge is developed. Of the many challenges facing the incorporation of TEK in resource-management initiatives, perhaps the greatest is the recognition of the appropriateness of scale. The conclusions reached in this paper reaffirm the notion that scale and context are key components in maintaining the validity and integrity of TEK. The primary role of TEK appears to be with providing the most valid and intelligible interpretations of local geographies and prescribing locally appropriate resource-management strategies.

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