Habitat use and distribution of lithophilic spawning and riffle fishes in the East Fork Black River

Résumé fourni par la source

Freshwater streams are dynamic ecosystems that house diversity of taxa adapted to and dependent on habitat characteristics these flowing systems. Conservation of these ecosystems, requires an understanding of the abiotic and biotic factors and relationships that influence the presence, survival, and persistence of stream organisms. Stream fishes face natural challenges inherent to stream life and anthropogenic threats such as fragmentation and impoundment of streams. In addition to inhibiting movement of fish, dams influence habitat characteristics such as substrate distribution and size. Dams alter downstream substrate characteristics, which in turn influences availability of habitat characteristics necessary for native lithophilic spawning fishes. The goal of our project was to determine if substrate size and distribution are limiting habitat characteristics for lithophilic spawning fishes of the East Fork Black River downstream of Taum Sauk Reservoir in the Missouri Ozarks. Our questions were: 1) What habitat characteristics do Hornyhead Chubs, Nocomis biguttatus, select for spawning in the East Fork Black River? and 2) What habitat characteristics are associated with fish communities within riffles and runs in the East Fork Black River?

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