What are the threats to river ecosysstem hyadrological modification?
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Hydrological modifications pose significant threats to river ecosystems. Climate change-induced alterations in river flows can trigger ecological changes globally, with risks increasing as temperatures rise, particularly affecting low flows in regions like South America and Australia . Anthropogenic contaminants, such as heavy metals, pesticides, and plastics, continuously threaten river ecosystems, impacting aquatic biota like macroinvertebrates through oxidative stress and physiological disturbances . River regulation, including flow modifications by dams, can lead to genetic diversity loss and population isolation in river-dependent organisms like foothill yellow-legged frogs, jeopardizing their long-term persistence . Overall, human activities like river regulation and poor land management have caused extensive disturbances, dewatering wetlands, reducing fisheries productivity, and altering landscapes globally, posing severe threats to freshwater ecosystems .
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| Papers (4) | Insight |
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6 Citations | Flow modification, such as dams and diversions, poses a significant threat to river ecosystems by altering natural flow patterns, restricting population connectivity, and leading to genetic diversity loss in river-breeding organisms. |
8 Citations | River modification reduces climate resilience of brown trout populations due to degraded eco-hydromorphological state, impacting thermal buffering capacity and fish community composition, favoring thermally plastic species like minnows and stone loach. |
1 Citations | Contaminants like heavy metals, fertilizers, pesticides, and plastics from human activities threaten river ecosystems by altering water quality and impacting macroinvertebrate physiology, leading to oxidative stress. |
9 Citations | Climate change-induced hydrological modifications pose risks to river ecosystems, increasing the likelihood of significant ecological changes in high and low flows, particularly pronounced in regions like South America, southern Africa, and Australia. |
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