Biomonitoring in Limnic Environments: A Scientometric Approach

In the face of increasing human impacts, biomonitoring emerges as an approach to evaluate the status of these ecosystems. Our purpose was to evaluate the publications on biomonitoring in limnic environments and to answer the following questions: (i) What are the approaches in biomonitoring studies around the world? (ii) Are the countries' human development index (HDI) and the available water volume capable to influence publications on biomonitoring? (iii) How are distributed biomonitoring publications by biological groups (e.g., fish, plants, phytoplankton, zooplankton, periphyton, insects) and by environments (lotic and lentic)? To access the publications about biomonitoring in limnic environments, we performed a search in the Web of Science database, restricted between 1991 and 2016. The scientific interest in biomonitoring in limnic environments showed an increasing trend over the years. Furthermore, the countries that presented the highest number of biomonitoring publications had also high HDI values, which reflected high investments in research and development or specific legislation for water quality monitoring. Despite the significant relationship, the water volume was not a major factor influencing the research development. Our study revealed that fish, macroinvertebrates, and lotic environments were the most used for biological monitoring purposes

É possível simplificar o monitoramento ambiental? Abordagens com o zooplâncton em um reservatório hidroelétrico

Objetivo: a fim de contribuir para o conhecimento a respeito da simplificação de levantamentos biológicos, o presente estudo avaliou o uso de grupos substitutos, resolução taxonômica e numérica para os três principais grupos da comunidade zooplanctônica (cladóceros, copépodes e rotíferos) em uma Usina Hidrelétrica (UHE). As seguintes questões foram abordadas: (i) Os padrões de ordenação espacial e/ou temporal gerados entre cada grupo zooplanctônico são concordantes? (ii) A concordância se mantém utilizando dados de presença e ausência em substituição a dados de densidade? (iii) A identificação dos organismos em nível de espécie pode ser substituída por gênero ou família? Métodos: foram realizadas coletas em sete unidades amostrais ao longo de cinco campanhas entre os anos de 2009 e 2010 na UHE de Serra da Mesa (Goiás, Brasil). Para avaliar a correlação entre cada par de matrizes foi utilizado o teste de Mantel. Resultados: não se deve realizar substituições entre os grupos zooplanctônicos, sendo necessário o monitoramento dos três grupos (copépodes, cladóceros e rotíferos). Além disso, sugerimos a utilização de dados de densidade de indivíduos ao invés de apenas dados de presença/ausência de espécies. Por fim, os resultados deste estudo indicam a possibilidade de dados em nível de espécies serem substituídos por dados em nível de gênero ou família. Conclusão: para fins de monitoramento da comunidade zooplanctônica, apenas o uso da resolução taxonômica mostrou-se eficiente para esta área de estudo, não sendo recomendado o uso de substitutos nem resolução numérica entre os grupos.Aim: in order to contribute to the knowledge about the simplification of biological surveys, this study evaluated the use of substitute groups, numeric and taxonomic resolution for the three main groups of zooplankton (cladocerans, copepods and rotifers) in a Hydropower Plant (UHE). The following issues were addressed: (i) the patterns of spatial and/or temporal ordering generated between each zooplankton group are in concordance? (ii) The concordance is maintained using presence/absence data instead of density data? (iii) The identification of organisms to the species level can be replaced by genus or family level? Methods: samples were taken in seven sample units over five campaigns between 2009 and 2010 in the UHE Serra da Mesa (Goiás, Brazil). To evaluate the correlation between each pair of matrices was used the Mantel test. Results: the results demonstrate that the replacements should not be made among the zooplanktonic groups, requiring the monitoring of three groups (copepods, cladocerans and rotifers). Furthermore, the results suggest the use of density data of individuals rather than just presence/absence of species. Finally, the results of this study indicate the possibility to use data at species level instead of data at genus or family level. Conclusion: for zooplankton community monitoring purposes only the use of taxonomic resolution showed to be efficient for this area of study, not being recommended the use of surrogate groups or numerical resolution

Impact of dams on fishes : from worldwide publications to regional temporal variations

Tese (Doutorado em Ciências Ambientais)—Universidade de Brasília, Faculdade UnB - Planaltina, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências Ambientais, Planaltina, 2020.A inserção de barragens em rios é um dos principais fatores de degradação ambiental dos ecossistemas aquáticos atualmente. Esse tipo de interferência antrópica promove alterações limnológicas e da paisagem, consequentemente, tem provocado uma redução global na biodiversidade de peixes e despertado a atenção da comunidade científica mundial. Assim, com o objetivo de contribuir para uma melhor compreensão das discussões que esse tema tem gerado, realizamos uma revisão cienciométrica para avaliar os principais direcionamentos, lacunas e fatores determinantes da produção científica mundial com foco na biodiversidade de peixes sob a influência de barragens (capítulo 1). Além disso, foram avaliadas as mudanças temporais, ao longo de 15 anos, na composição taxonômica e funcional das comunidades de peixes à montante de uma grande barragem, localizada na parte alta de um importante afluente do sistema fluvial amazônico (capítulo 2). Observamos que entre 1991 e 2016, houve um aumento no número de trabalhos com esse tema. A distribuição dos artigos entre os países não é aleatória, pois alguns fatores socioeconômicos e ambientais (por exemplo, produto interno bruto, número de pesquisadores em proporção ao tamanho da população e número de barragens instaladas) são determinantes para a distribuição das pesquisas. Além disso, essas pesquisas são principalmente em escalas locais e direcionadas aos impactos negativos das barragens nas comunidades de peixes e vários estudos demonstram a preocupação em mitigar esses impactos. Para o alto rio Tocantins, mesmo não havendo variação no número absoluto de espécies, espécimes e suas características, as substituições de espécies e traços funcionais promovem uma dissimilaridade e modificam a composição taxonômica e funcional das assembleias de peixes ao longo dos anos. Verificamos que algumas espécies, com comportamentos mais restritos, são mais sensíveis as mudanças, em contrapartida, as que possuem maior plasticidade comportamental se tornaram mais presentes e em maiores quantidades. Ressaltamos também, que há uma dissimilaridade temporal entre as assembleias de peixes e essa corresponde às alterações ambientais regionais (paisagem) de acordo com as pré-adaptações das espécies diante ao novo ecossistema formado.The insertion of dams in rivers is one of the main factors of environmental degradation of aquatic ecosystems today. This type of anthropic interference promotes limnological and landscape changes, consequently, it has caused a global reduction in fish biodiversity and has attracted the attention of the world scientific community. Thus, in order to contribute to a better understanding of the discussions that this theme has generated, we carried out (chapter 1) a scientometric review to assess the main directions, gaps and determinants of world scientific production with a focus on the biodiversity of fish under the influence dams. Temporal changes over 15 years were assessed (chapter 2) in the taxonomic and functional composition of fish communities upstream of a large dam, located at the top of an important tributary of the Amazonian river system. We observed that between 1991 and 2016, there was an increase in the number of works with this theme. The distribution of articles among countries is not random, as some socioeconomic and environmental factors (for example, gross domestic product, number of researchers in proportion to the size of the population and number of dams installed) are decisive for the distribution of research. In addition, these researches are mainly at local scales and are targeted at the negative impacts of dams on fish communities and several studies demonstrate the concern to mitigate these impacts. For the upper Tocantins River, even though there is no variation in the absolute number of species, specimens and their characteristics, the substitutions of species and functional traits promote dissimilarity and modify the taxonomic and functional composition of fish assemblages over the years. We found that some species, with more restricted behaviors, are more sensitive to changes, in contrast, those with greater behavioral plasticity have become more present and in greater quantities. We also emphasize that there is a temporal dissimilarity between the fish assemblages, and this corresponds to regional environmental changes (landscape) according to the pre-adaptations of the species to the new formed ecosystem

Is it possible to simplify environmental monitoring? Approaches with zooplankton in a hydroelectric reservoir

Abstract Aim: In order to contribute to the knowledge about the simplification of biological surveys, this study evaluated the use of substitute groups, numeric and taxonomic resolution for the three main groups of zooplankton (cladocerans, copepods and rotifers) in a Hydropower Plant (UHE). The following issues were addressed: (i) the patterns of spatial and/or temporal ordering generated between each zooplankton group are in concordance? (ii) The concordance is maintained using presence/absence data instead of density data? (iii) The identification of organisms to the species level can be replaced by genus or family level? Methods Samples were taken in seven sample units over five campaigns between 2009 and 2010 in the UHE Serra da Mesa (Goiás, Brazil). To evaluate the correlation between each pair of matrices was used the Mantel test. Results The results demonstrate that the replacements should not be made among the zooplanktonic groups, requiring the monitoring of three groups (copepods, cladocerans and rotifers). Furthermore, the results suggest the use of density data of individuals rather than just presence/absence of species. Finally, the results of this study indicate the possibility to use data at species level instead of data at genus or family level. Conclusion For zooplankton community monitoring purposes only the use of taxonomic resolution showed to be efficient for this area of study, not being recommended the use of surrogate groups or numerical resolution

Alternatives for the biomonitoring of fish and phytoplankton in tropical streams

Biomonitoring programs need to balance accurate responses in assessments of changes in biological communities with sampling that is fast and low cost. In this study, we evaluated the concordance among fish and phytoplankton communities of streams. We tested the cross-taxa surrogacy, taxonomic, numerical resolution and ecological substitute group (habitat use and trophic guilds) resolution with Procrustes analyses aim of simplifying the biomonitoring process. We collect a total fish abundance of 8,461 individuals, represented by the ecological classes of habitat, including benthic, nektonic, nektobenthic, marginal and trophic guilds by detritivore, terrestrial invertivore, aquatic invertivore, piscivore, algivore and herbivore. We sampled a phytoplankton total density of 1,466.68 individuals/ml, represented by four Morphology-Based Functional Groups and nine Reynolds Functional Groups. Our results don’t support the use of substitute groups among fish and phytoplankton. For fish, habitat use and trophic guild are good surrogates for species-level data. Additionally, our results don’t support the use of functional groups as surrogates for phytoplankton. We suggest the use of higher taxonomic levels (genus and family) and record only the occurrence of species and/or genus for fish and phytoplankton. Our findings contribute to decreasing the costs and time of biomonitoring programs assessments and/or conservation plans on fish and phytoplankton communities of headwater streams

Mercury Contamination as an Indicator of Fish Species’ Trophic Position in the Middle Araguaia River, Brazil

This study evaluates the use of mercury (Hg) concentrations in fish muscle tissue to determine a species’ trophic position (TP) in its environment. A campaign conducted in 2019 along 375 km in the middle Araguaia River basin, Brazil, resulted in 239 organisms from 20 species collected. The highest total mercury (THg) concentrations were found in Pellonacastelnaeana (6.93 µg·g−1, wet weight) and in Triportheus elongatus (3.18 µg·g−1, wet weight), whose TPs were different according to the FishBase database. However, they occupied the same trophic level in this study. The intra-specific comparison showed a difference in Hg concentrations between individuals captured in distinct sites. The study of the biota–sediment accumulation factor (BSAF) showed that spatiality interferes with a species’ TP. Statistical analyses revealed that when we used a predicted species’ TP based on each individual’s size, it explained 72% of the variability in THg concentration across all fish species. Multiple regression analysis confirmed that standard length and FishBase values are positively associated with THg (R2 = 0.943). These results point to Hg as a viable indicator of a fish species’ TP since it reflects regional, biological, and environmental factors, as demonstrated here for the middle Araguaia River

NEOTROPICAL FRESHWATER FISHES: A dataset of occurrence and abundance of freshwater fishes in the Neotropics

The Neotropical region hosts 4225 freshwater fish species, ranking first among the world's most diverse regions for freshwater fishes. Our NEOTROPICAL FRESHWATER FISHES data set is the first to produce a large-scale Neotropical freshwater fish inventory, covering the entire Neotropical region from Mexico and the Caribbean in the north to the southern limits in Argentina, Paraguay, Chile, and Uruguay. We compiled 185,787 distribution records, with unique georeferenced coordinates, for the 4225 species, represented by occurrence and abundance data. The number of species for the most numerous orders are as follows: Characiformes (1289), Siluriformes (1384), Cichliformes (354), Cyprinodontiformes (245), and Gymnotiformes (135). The most recorded species was the characid Astyanax fasciatus (4696 records). We registered 116,802 distribution records for native species, compared to 1802 distribution records for nonnative species. The main aim of the NEOTROPICAL FRESHWATER FISHES data set was to make these occurrence and abundance data accessible for international researchers to develop ecological and macroecological studies, from local to regional scales, with focal fish species, families, or orders. We anticipate that the NEOTROPICAL FRESHWATER FISHES data set will be valuable for studies on a wide range of ecological processes, such as trophic cascades, fishery pressure, the effects of habitat loss and fragmentation, and the impacts of species invasion and climate change. There are no copyright restrictions on the data, and please cite this data paper when using the data in publications

Neotropical freshwater fisheries : A dataset of occurrence and abundance of freshwater fishes in the Neotropics

The Neotropical region hosts 4225 freshwater fish species, ranking first among the world's most diverse regions for freshwater fishes. Our NEOTROPICAL FRESHWATER FISHES data set is the first to produce a large-scale Neotropical freshwater fish inventory, covering the entire Neotropical region from Mexico and the Caribbean in the north to the southern limits in Argentina, Paraguay, Chile, and Uruguay. We compiled 185,787 distribution records, with unique georeferenced coordinates, for the 4225 species, represented by occurrence and abundance data. The number of species for the most numerous orders are as follows: Characiformes (1289), Siluriformes (1384), Cichliformes (354), Cyprinodontiformes (245), and Gymnotiformes (135). The most recorded species was the characid Astyanax fasciatus (4696 records). We registered 116,802 distribution records for native species, compared to 1802 distribution records for nonnative species. The main aim of the NEOTROPICAL FRESHWATER FISHES data set was to make these occurrence and abundance data accessible for international researchers to develop ecological and macroecological studies, from local to regional scales, with focal fish species, families, or orders. We anticipate that the NEOTROPICAL FRESHWATER FISHES data set will be valuable for studies on a wide range of ecological processes, such as trophic cascades, fishery pressure, the effects of habitat loss and fragmentation, and the impacts of species invasion and climate change. There are no copyright restrictions on the data, and please cite this data paper when using the data in publications