development and validation of models to assess the threat to freshwater fishes from environmental...
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Development and validation of models to assess the threat to freshwater fishes from environmental change and invasive species
Kansas State
University
PIs:Craig PaukertJoanna WhittierJulian Olden
School of Fisheries and Aquatic SciencesUniversity of Washington
Funded by USGS, Status and Trends
Prioritize watersheds for conservation
Linked to Desert Fish Habitat Partnership
Final report: June 2012
Background
Previously developed multimetric indexone score for each watersheduseful, but limitations
Not all threats created equal:
hydrological alterationhabitat fragmentationwater qualityinvasive species
Should all these be combined into one index?
Background
Example:threats scores developed at smaller scale (e.g., Verde River) different than entire basin
Index values most sensitive to road crossing/road density
One index…….
Phoenix
Las Vegas
Many indices do not test the relationship between biotic integrity and threats
Previous work in Lower COR indicted limited response from biotic communities
Why?one multimetric index may mask effects
What about responses to biotic integrity?
What are the primary anthropogenic and biotic threats to freshwater in the Lower Colorado River Basin, and how do they vary across spatial scales?
Which regional fish faunas are at greatest risk to anthropogenic and biotic threats?
What is the association between species distributions and community composition and specific threat indices at different spatial scales?
Objectives
Based on Lower COR Aquatic GAP (with updates)
e.g., road density, land cover, land use, road crossings, diversions, 303d streams, etc.
Additional metrics:number of invasive species,distance to nearest invasive species, etc.
Methods-Threats
Tier 1: identify and summarize threats
• Several spatial scales (ecological drainage unit, catchment, segment)
Tier 2: quantify threat index
• Presence/absence, weighting by biotic influence, etc.• Calculate for different threat types (hydrological
alteration, habitat fragmentation, invasive species, etc.)
Tiered Approach
Tier 3: test biological relevance
Use existing fish data collected through Aquatic GAP (1.5 million fish records)
Are fish communities and traits more responsive to threats at certain scales or threat types?
Tiered Approach
DFHP more interested in state- and non-listed speciesenough research on federally listed species
Focus on species identified by DFHP
Linking of Desert Fish Habitat Partnership
Examples:
How does the presence of flannelmouth sucker respond to threats?
How does the fish community and functional traits respond to threats?
Lower COR basin as pilot studybecause of the existing data and diversity of threats
Can we use these methods for other regions of the DFHP and other FHP?
Linking of Desert Fish Habitat Partnership
Models that can be used for conservation planning
Graphical user interfaceGIS-based
Allows user to view different threat scores based on different methods and scales
Products
Many threats identified and summarizedFish data updated
Selection of post doctoral researcherDr. Angela Strecker-began Oct. 2009
Progress to Date