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Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences
Effects Of Dams On Fish And Macroinvertebrate Communities In The Vermilion River, Il, Ryan Patrick Hastings
Effects Of Dams On Fish And Macroinvertebrate Communities In The Vermilion River, Il, Ryan Patrick Hastings
Masters Theses
Dams are a main source of anthropogenic disturbances on river systems and can affect rivers in a variety of ways. Dams have the ability to change rivers from lotic to lentic habitats, affect sediment transportation, connectivity, water quality, linkages with wetlands and the quality of in-stream and riparian habitats. The Danville Dam was constructed in 1914 on the Vermilion River in Danville, Illinois and is becoming a safety hazard for human recreation on the Vermilion River, resulting in three deaths in the last 10 years. The Illinois Department of Natural Resources in conjunction with the city of Danville has proposed …
Do Artificial Riffles Enhance Nutrient Retention In Restored Streams?, Adam Thomas Hughes
Do Artificial Riffles Enhance Nutrient Retention In Restored Streams?, Adam Thomas Hughes
Masters Theses
Kickapoo Creek, a tributary of the Embarrass River in Central Illinois, has undergone a stream restoration that included the construction of two artificial riffles. These structures were designed to slow flood waters, increase channel and substrate stability, and increase habitat heterogeneity in a stream impacted by erosion and sediment deposition. They may also provide stable substrates that affect the algal community, leading to shifts in algal community composition, increases in the biomass of primary producers, and subsequent increases in nutrient retention. I explored the effects of the restoration on instream nutrient retention by measuring and comparing phosphate uptake lengths, velocities, …
Habitat Associations Of Larval And Juvenile Fishes In A Large Unimpounded River, Sharon V. Rayford
Habitat Associations Of Larval And Juvenile Fishes In A Large Unimpounded River, Sharon V. Rayford
Masters Theses
Larval and juvenile life stages of fish are numerically the dominant component of fish populations. These early life stages experience high levels of mortality due, in part, to anthropogenic disturbances, but little is known about which habitats they utilize in large-rivers, as they are often difficult to sample and identify. My study examined the larval and juvenile fish assemblages in different habitats within the lower 322 km of the Wabash River. Fish were sampled with a conical-cylindrical ichthyoplankton net (larvae) and a DC-electrified mini-Missouri trawl (juveniles) between May and October 2013. Larval fish were collected every two weeks from mid-May …
Effects Of Instream Habitat Restoration On Macroinvertebrate And Fish Communities In A Small Midwestern Stream, Manisha Pant
Effects Of Instream Habitat Restoration On Macroinvertebrate And Fish Communities In A Small Midwestern Stream, Manisha Pant
Masters Theses
Although millions of dollars are spent annually on stream habitat restoration, the biological responses to these restorations are rarely monitored. I assessed the impact of habitat enhancement on fish and macroinvertebrate abundance and diversity in a small Midwestern stream. Fish and macroinvertebrate communities were sampled annually in two restored and two unrestored sites beginning two years before and continuing four years after restoration. Habitat heterogeneity increased in the restored sites following the restoration, but there were no significant changes in most macroinvertebrate and fish community indices. Macroinvertebrate composition was significantly different between spring and fall, but in general, assemblages within …