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Habitat alteration and habitat fragmentation differentially affect beta diversity of stream fish communities

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Abstract

Context

The cumulative impact of broad scale environmental change includes altered land-cover and fragmentation. Both altered land-cover and fragmentation have a negative effect on species diversity, but the scale they act on may differ because land-cover alters environmental characteristics, whereas fragmentation alters movement among sites.

Objectives

We evaluated the scale specific effects of land-cover, fragmentation, and habitat size on alpha and beta diversity (total, turnover, and nestedness).

Methods

Stream fish communities were sampled across five urbanizing watersheds. Generalized mixed linear models were used to test how diversity (alpha and beta) is affected by land-cover, connectivity, and habitat size. Indices of land-cover were calculated from correspondence analyses on land-cover data, fragmentation was estimated with the dendritic connectivity index, and habitat size was calculated as the length of the stream segment (alpha diversity) or the length of the stream network (beta diversity).

Results

Alpha diversity was most strongly related to land-cover variables associated with urban development and agriculture (negative relationship with urbanization). Whereas, beta diversity was most strongly influenced by habitat size (positive relationship) and fragmentation (positive relationship). Turnover was positively correlated with fragmentation and habitat size, whereas species loss was negatively correlated with habitat size.

Conclusions

Land-cover has a larger effect on alpha diversity because it alters the environmental conditions at a site, whereas fragmentation has a larger effect on beta diversity because it affects the movement of individuals among sites. Assessing the cumulative impact of environmental change requires a multiscale approach that simultaneously considers alpha and beta diversity.

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Acknowledgements

This study would not have been possible without the staff at the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority who conducted the majority of the fish sampling and all of the barrier assessments. Additional fish sampling data provided by the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry is appreciated greatly. All fish sampling was approved by and carried out under appropriate animal care and use guidelines. Funding for manuscript preparation was provided by the Canadian Water Network, the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority, and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto, 25 Harbord St., Toronto, ON, M5S 3G5, Canada

    Christopher B. Edge, Marie-Josée Fortin & Donald A. Jackson

  2. Toronto and Region Conservation Authority, 5 Shoreham Drive, Downsview, ON, M3N 1S4, Canada

    David Lawrie & Namrata Shrestha

  3. Ecohealth Solutions, 538 Morrison Point Road, Milford, ON, K0K 2A0, Canada

    Les Stanfield

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  1. Christopher B. Edge
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  2. Marie-Josée Fortin
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  3. Donald A. Jackson
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  4. David Lawrie
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  6. Namrata Shrestha
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Correspondence to Christopher B. Edge.

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Edge, C.B., Fortin, MJ., Jackson, D.A. et al. Habitat alteration and habitat fragmentation differentially affect beta diversity of stream fish communities. Landscape Ecol 32, 647–662 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10980-016-0472-9

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