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Influences of low-head dams on the fish assemblages in the headwater streams of the Qingyi watershed, China

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Abstract

The influences of low-head dams on the fish assemblages were examined in this study, using fish data collected in six treatment and five reference sites at three low-head dams in the headwater streams of the Qingyi watershed, China. Comparing with those in the reference sites, local habitat variables were significantly altered by low-head dams in the treatment sites, involving wider channel (only in the impoundment area), deeper water and slower flow. Fish species richness varied significantly across seasons, not across site categories, suggesting that these low-head dams did not alter species richness. However, significant decreases in fish abundance and density were observed in the impoundment areas immediately upstream of dams, but not in the plunge areas downstream. Fish assemblage structures kept relative stability across seasons, and their significant difference between-site was only observed between the impoundment areas and the sites far from dams upstream. This variation in assemblage structures was due to the differing relative abundance of some co-occurring species; more lentic but less lotic fish was observed in the impoundment areas. The spatial and temporal patterns of fish assemblages were correlated with local habitat in this study area. Wetted width had negative correlation with fish species richness, abundance and density, respectively. Water temperature also positively affected species richness. In addition, wetted width, water depth, current velocity and substrate were the important habitat variables influencing assemblage structures. Our results suggested that, by modifying local habitat characteristics, low-head dams altered fish abundance and density in the impoundment areas immediately upstream of dam, not in the plunge areas immediately downstream, and thereby influenced fish assemblage structures in these stream segments.

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Acknowledgements

This study was supported by National Basic Research Program of China (2009CB119200), the Natural Science Foundation of China (31172120), and Anhui Provincial Natural Science Foundation (090413080). We are grateful to two anonymous referees for their insightful comments on an earlier draft of this manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Life Sciences, Provincial Key Laboratory of Biotic Environment and Ecological Safety in Anhui, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu, 241000, China

    Yunzhi Yan, Hong Wang, Ren Zhu & Ling Chu

  2. Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, 430072, China

    Yifeng Chen

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  1. Yunzhi Yan
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  2. Hong Wang
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  3. Ren Zhu
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  4. Ling Chu
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  5. Yifeng Chen
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Correspondence to Yunzhi Yan.

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Yan, Y., Wang, H., Zhu, R. et al. Influences of low-head dams on the fish assemblages in the headwater streams of the Qingyi watershed, China. Environ Biol Fish 96, 495–506 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-012-0035-0

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