Spatiotemporal Connectivity of Macrozoobenthos Habitat - a Modeling Approach

Research output: Contribution to book/Conference proceedings/Anthology/ReportConference contributionContributedpeer-review

Abstract

Changes in climate, flow, and morphology threaten aquatic biodiversity by altering habitat quantity, quality, and distribution, affecting the habitat resources accessible to freshwater species during their life cycles. This results in spatial and temporal discontinuity (e.g., fragmented habitats and long durations of habitat loss). The decrease in habitat connectivity is critical for population persistence, particularly for species with lower mobility like macrozoobenthos. Habitat modeling, used to evaluate environmental changes, generally quantifies habitat suitability but not habitat connectivity, another important factor in species-habitat relationships. This study shows how spatiotemporal habitat variations and species dispersal are used to assess habitat connectivity for benthic species. We use a spatiotemporally explicit approach to estimate patch-scale habitat dynamics due to altered river conditions. The spatial configuration of habitat patches within a river reach influences species colonization. Similarly, the continuous sequence of time during which the patches disappear affects the species’ survival. Dispersal simulation using 2D micro-scale flow field information was carried out to derive spatial connections between habitat patches. Moreover, patch loss duration was considered in the analysis of the connectivity of habitat networks. Our findings showed that fragmented dynamic habitats impacted spatiotemporal connectivity, especially during hydrological extreme events (e.g., rapid augmented flow or prolonged hot summer). Increasing habitat availability may not be enough if species cannot establish themselves due to a loss of spatial or temporal connectivity between patches. The introduced approach can improve knowledge of how spatial arrangements and temporal dynamics affect habitat connectivity across space and time, which may support or optimize habitat management plans.

Details

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationProceedings of the 40th IAHR World Congress
EditorsHelmut Habersack, Michael Tritthart, Lisa Waldenberger
PublisherIAHR – International Association for Hydro-Environment Engineering and Research
Pages1292 - 1300
Number of pages9
ISBN (electronic)978-90-833476-1-5
Publication statusPublished - 2023
Peer-reviewedYes

Conference

Title40th IAHR World Congress 2023
SubtitleRivers - Connecting Mountains and Coast
Conference number40
Duration21 - 25 August 2023
Website
CityWien
CountryAustria

External IDs

Scopus 85187689381
ORCID /0000-0003-0986-9952/work/166761900
ORCID /0000-0002-3729-0166/work/166764256

Keywords

Sustainable Development Goals