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Ecological Status of a Patagonian Mountain River: Usefulness of Environmental and Biotic Metrics for Rehabilitation Assessment

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Abstract

This work evaluates the consequences of anthropogenic pressures at different sections of a Patagonian mountain river using a set of environmental and biological measures. A map of risk of soil erosion at a basin scale was also produced. The study was conducted at 12 sites along the Percy River system, where physicochemical parameters, riparian ecosystem quality, habitat condition, plants, and macroinvertebrates were investigated. While livestock and wood collection, the dominant activities at upper and mean basin sites resulted in an important loss of the forest cover still the riparian ecosystem remains in a relatively good status of conservation, as do the in-stream habitat conditions and physicochemical features. Besides, most indicators based on macroinvertebrates revealed that both upper and middle basin sections supported similar assemblages, richness, density, and most functional feeding group attributes. Instead, the lower urbanized basin showed increases in conductivity and nutrient values, poor quality in the riparian ecosystem, and habitat condition. According to the multivariate analysis, ammonia level, elevation, current velocity, and habitat conditions had explanatory power on benthos assemblages. Discharge, naturalness of the river channel, flood plain morphology, conservation status, and percent of urban areas were important moderators of plant composition. Finally, although the present land use in the basin would not produce a significant risk of soil erosion, unsustainable practices that promotes the substitution of the forest for shrubs would lead to severe consequences. Mitigation efforts should be directed to protect headwater forest, restore altered riparian ecosystem, and to control the incipient eutrophication process.

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Acknowledgments

This paper was supported by the UNPSJB (PI- R/7-388), PIP-CONICET 11220080101907. We greatly appreciate the reviews of Dr. Sarah Morley for her thoughtful and constructive suggestions. Thanks to anonymous reviewers for valuable comments that greatly improved the manuscript. This is Scientific Contribution No 113 from LIESA-CIEMEP-CONICET.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. CIEMEP-CONICET, UNPSJB, Roca 780, Esquel, Chubut, Argentina

    Miserendino M. Laura, Brand Cecilia & Prinzio Y. Di Cecilia

  2. Facultad de Ciencias Naturales, UNPSJB, Ruta 259 km 16, 4, Esquel, Chubut, Argentina

    M. Kutschker Adriana & Papazian Gabriela

  3. Facultad de Ingeniería, UNPSJB y CONICET, Ruta 259 km 16, 4, Esquel, Chubut, Argentina

    Manna La Ludmila

  4. Centro de Investigación y Extensión Forestal Andino-Patagónico, Esquel, Chubut, Argentina

    Bava José

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  1. Miserendino M. Laura
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  2. M. Kutschker Adriana
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  3. Brand Cecilia
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  4. Manna La Ludmila
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  5. Prinzio Y. Di Cecilia
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  6. Papazian Gabriela
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Correspondence to Miserendino M. Laura.

Appendix

Appendix

See Tables 4, 5 and 6.

Table 4 Distribution and relative abundance (%) of riparian plants per site, total richness, and coverage of exotics at Percy River basin during the study (February 2011), Chubut, Argentina
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Table 5 Mean density of macroinvertebrate taxa (ind m−2), total density, and total richness per site, at Percy River basin during the study (February 2011), Chubut, Argentina
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Table 6 Status of conservation (percentage of basin area) upstream of each site (1: high, 2: moderate, 3: low or none), component values of QBRp and habitat condition indexes at Percy River sites during the study (February 2011), Chubut, Argentina
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Laura, M.M., Adriana, M.K., Cecilia, B. et al. Ecological Status of a Patagonian Mountain River: Usefulness of Environmental and Biotic Metrics for Rehabilitation Assessment. Environmental Management 57, 1166–1187 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-016-0688-0

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