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Analysis of fish communities along a rural–urban gradient in a neotropical stream (Piracicaba River Basin, São Paulo, Brazil)

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Abstract

This study investigated the fish fauna of a stream in southeastern Brazil that runs through sugar cane-growing and urban areas that are subject to sewage discharge. It aimed to determine the importance of spatial and environmental factors on fish distributions and to assess the use of fish as indicators of the environmental conditions. A longitudinal pattern of chemical water quality was observed, with more disturbed conditions at the urban sites. Several opportunistic or tolerant and omnivorous species such as Astyanax altiparanae, Poecilia reticulata, and Astyanax fasciatus were numerically abundant at these urban sites, which resulted in a consistent increase in species density and biomass along the stream. Redundancy analysis extracted three axes, identifying a nutrient–productivity gradient associated with different species composition patterns, as also detected by the indicator species analysis. No species could be considered a potential indicator of the agricultural area in the dry season, whereas four different species were judged potential indicators of three urban sites. In order to explain species distribution, variation in species abundance was partitioned into spatial and environmental components. The latter was more important, explaining 25.4% of the variation. We concluded that the fish assemblage of the Guamium stream is undergoing the initial stages of disturbance, with pronounced effects at the urbanized area, but no detectable changes at the sugar cane sites. Therefore, fish assemblages might be used as ecological indicators to detect urban impacts in similar rivers. However, the potential use of fish to diagnose stressors in areas of sugar cane plantations should be complementary to more comprehensive studies aimed at understanding the influence of this crop on freshwater resources.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank the Instituto de Pesca (APTA/SAA) for facilities, FAPESP (Proc.05/02182-2) for financial support, José Roberto Ferreira for supervision of the general project financed by CNPq (Proc. 480764/04-2), Heraldo A. Britski and Osvaldo T. Oyakawa for fish identification and Sérgio Luis da Silva for help with the field work. We are also grateful to Eduardo Pereira Cabral Gomes for help in statistical analysis and Rosana Mazzoni Buchas for suggestions on the manuscript.

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  1. Postgraduate Course in Aquaculture and Fisheries, Instituto de Pesca, Secretaria da Agricultura e Abastecimento do Estado de São Paulo, Av. Francisco Matarazzo 455, São Paulo, CEP 05001-900, Brazil

    Cleber Valim Alexandre

  2. Centro de Pesquisa e Desenvolvimento em Recursos Hídricos, Instituto de Pesca, Secretaria da Agricultura e Abastecimento do Estado de São Paulo, Av. Francisco Matarazzo 455, São Paulo, CEP 05001-900, Brazil

    Katharina Eichbaum Esteves

  3. Laboratório da Ciência das Plantas Daninhas, Centro Experimental Central do Instituto Biológico, Rodovia Heitor Penteado, km 03, Jardim das Palmeiras, C.P. 70, Campinas, São Paulo, CEP 13092-543, Brazil

    Mônica Accaui Marcondes de Moura e Mello

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Alexandre, C.V., Esteves, K.E. & de Moura e Mello, M.A.M. Analysis of fish communities along a rural–urban gradient in a neotropical stream (Piracicaba River Basin, São Paulo, Brazil). Hydrobiologia 641, 97–114 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-009-0060-y

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