Not all dams are equal: complex interactions between small dams and mussels in the southeastern USA
Michael Gangloff, Appalachian State University, Boone, North Carolina;
Rachael Hoch, North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, Marion, North Carolina;
Jordan Holcomb, Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission, Gainesville, Florida;
Megan McCormick, Appalachian State University, Boone, North Carolina;
Erin Singer-McCombs, American Rivers, Asheville, North Carolina; Erin Abernethy, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia;
Robert Nichols, North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, Raleigh, North Carolina
Abstract:
Dams are widely regarded by the conservation community as ecologically profound disturbances in stream ecosystems. A large body of literature attests to their role in altering physicochemical habitat conditions and stream communities. Dam-mediated habitat changes are seen as instrumental in the global decline of many freshwater mollusk taxa. However a growing (if diffuse) body of literature suggests that some dams may actually benefit mussel populations by supplementing food resources, moderating sedimentation and possibly stabilizing streambeds.
To date, there have been few attempts to synthesize information about the size, position and other physicochemical aspects of small dams and their watersheds to understand which structures are most likely to benefit mussels. Here we examine how dam attributes mediate effects on mussel populations in the context of planning and prioritizing structures for management actions using a multivariate dam-attribute dataset. Results of this study may have potentially profound implications for managing small dams as well as for preserving and recovering imperiled mussel taxa.
Michael Gangloff, Appalachian State University, Boone, North Carolina;
Rachael Hoch, North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, Marion, North Carolina;
Jordan Holcomb, Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission, Gainesville, Florida;
Megan McCormick, Appalachian State University, Boone, North Carolina;
Erin Singer-McCombs, American Rivers, Asheville, North Carolina; Erin Abernethy, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia;
Robert Nichols, North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, Raleigh, North Carolina
Abstract:
Dams are widely regarded by the conservation community as ecologically profound disturbances in stream ecosystems. A large body of literature attests to their role in altering physicochemical habitat conditions and stream communities. Dam-mediated habitat changes are seen as instrumental in the global decline of many freshwater mollusk taxa. However a growing (if diffuse) body of literature suggests that some dams may actually benefit mussel populations by supplementing food resources, moderating sedimentation and possibly stabilizing streambeds.
To date, there have been few attempts to synthesize information about the size, position and other physicochemical aspects of small dams and their watersheds to understand which structures are most likely to benefit mussels. Here we examine how dam attributes mediate effects on mussel populations in the context of planning and prioritizing structures for management actions using a multivariate dam-attribute dataset. Results of this study may have potentially profound implications for managing small dams as well as for preserving and recovering imperiled mussel taxa.