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The Effects of Flow Extremes on Native and Non-Native Stream Fishes in Puerto Rico (Deprecated July 2024)

Metadata Updated: July 27, 2024

Freshwater fish are among the most vulnerable taxa to climate change globally but are generally understudied in tropical island ecosystems. Climate change is predicted to alter the intensity, frequency, and variability of extreme flow events on the Caribbean island of Puerto Rico. These changes may impact Caribbean native and non-native stream ecosystems and biota complex ways. We compiled an extensive dataset of native and non-native fish assemblages collected at 119 sites across Puerto Rico from 2005 to 2015. We coupled these data with stream flow indices and dam height to understand how flow dynamics drive fish assemblage structure. Sixteen percent of sites contained exclusively non-native species, 34% contained exclusively native species, and 50% contained a mix of native and non-native species. We built generalized linear models to identify the most critical flow variables for explaining variation in native and non-native species richness and biomass. Mean daily flow was the most important flow variable in driving native species richness (β=-0.06; p<0.05), while flashiness was the most important for non-native species richness (β=1.47; p<0.05). Extreme flow durations were important in explaining variations in native and non-native biomass. Native and non-native biomass decreased by -12.13 kg/ha and -5.93 kg/ha, respectively, with longer annual average low flow durations (p<0.05). Non-native biomass increased by 2.16 kg/ha with longer maximum low flow durations (p<0.05). Annual average low flow durations had a negative effect on both native and non-native assemblages, but the effect on native biomass was twice as large. Native species may be more resilient to one-off extreme low flow events, and non-native species may be more tolerant to the natural flashy flows in the Caribbean than expected. Our results are informative for island ecosystems globally and can guide management and conservation of native fish, particularly in the context of non-native species and climate change. Managers may prioritize maintaining connectivity, refugia and habitat complexity in rivers while preventing non-native fish introductions and establishment to conserve native fish diversity and biomass in Caribbean rivers.

Access & Use Information

Public: This dataset is intended for public access and use. License: No license information was provided. If this work was prepared by an officer or employee of the United States government as part of that person's official duties it is considered a U.S. Government Work.

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Dates

Metadata Created Date December 7, 2023
Metadata Updated Date July 27, 2024

Metadata Source

Harvested from DOI EDI

Additional Metadata

Resource Type Dataset
Metadata Created Date December 7, 2023
Metadata Updated Date July 27, 2024
Publisher U.S. Geological Survey
Maintainer
@Id http://datainventory.doi.gov/id/dataset/fcba7edf3773b561111018c7d951834a
Identifier USGS:6500afbfd34ed30c2057f980
Data Last Modified 20240724
Category geospatial
Public Access Level public
Bureau Code 010:12
Metadata Context https://project-open-data.cio.gov/v1.1/schema/catalog.jsonld
Metadata Catalog ID https://datainventory.doi.gov/data.json
Schema Version https://project-open-data.cio.gov/v1.1/schema
Catalog Describedby https://project-open-data.cio.gov/v1.1/schema/catalog.json
Harvest Object Id 279ab7c6-87a5-4fac-9496-595f60537a20
Harvest Source Id 52bfcc16-6e15-478f-809a-b1bc76f1aeda
Harvest Source Title DOI EDI
Metadata Type geospatial
Old Spatial -67.26,17.92,-65.3,18.51
Publisher Hierarchy White House > U.S. Department of the Interior > U.S. Geological Survey
Source Datajson Identifier True
Source Hash d594ac1112283759d4eb2c719d70233bbaa8e6f962fc7a69bec820d5d5e32866
Source Schema Version 1.1
Spatial {"type": "Polygon", "coordinates": -67.26, 17.92, -67.26, 18.51, -65.3, 18.51, -65.3, 17.92, -67.26, 17.92}

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