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The Water Framework Directive (WFD) is now well established as the key management imperative in river basins across Europe. However, there remain significant concerns with the way WFD is implemented and there is now a need for water managers and scientists to communicate better in order to find solutions to these concerns. To address this, a Science-Policy Interface (SPI) activity was launched in 2010 led by Directorate-General for Research and Innovation and Onema (the French national agency for water and aquatic ecosystems), which provided an interactive forum to connect scientists and WFD end-users. One major aim of the SPI activity was to establish a list of the most crucial research and development needs for enhancing WFD implementation. This paper synthesises the recommendations from this event highlighting 10 priority issues relating to ecological status. For lakes, temporary streams and transitional and coastal waters, WFD implementation still suffers from a lack of WFD-compliant bioassessment methods. For rivers, special attention is required to assess the ecological impacts of hydromorphological alterations on biological communities, notably those affecting river continuity and riparian covering. Spatial extrapolation tools are needed in order to evaluate ecological status for water bodies for which no data are available. The need for more functional bioassessment tools as complements to usual WFD-compliant tools, and to connect clearly good ecological state, biodiversity and ecosystem services when implementing WFD were also identified as crucial issues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim We investigated the relationship between geographic range size ( GRS), longitude and latitude ( Rapoport's rule) in Canadian freshwater fishes. We tested hypotheses regarding the phenotypic and phylogenetic determinants of GRS to unravel processes driving the spatial patterns of GRS in Canada. Because GRS is negatively correlated with extinction risk, we also aimed at identifying biological proxies that may be used to predict extinction risks. Location North- America, Canadian Shield. Methods We built a database combining range area, seven ecological traits, and a molecular phylogeny for native Canadian freshwater fishes. We tested latitudinal and longitudinal patterns in GRS by the mean of Pearson correlations. We combined phylogenetic generalized least squares (PGLS) models and a model selection procedure to tease apart hypotheses (and hence ecological traits) that best explained GRS in our dataset. PGLSs were also used to explore relationships between ecological traits, phylogeny, and species mid-range latitude and longitude. Partial regressions were used to determine direct and indirect relationships driving spatial patterns of GRS in Canadian freshwater fishes. Results There was a significant and positive correlation between GRS, latitude and longitude. According to PGLSs, three ecological traits, related to the habitat use, migratory and thermal tolerance hypotheses, were significantly correlated with GRS, mid-range longitude and mid-range latitude. Two traits related to locomotion were further related to GRS. There was no phylogenetic effect on GRS (i.e. no phylogenetic conservatism). Partial regressions revealed complex direct and indirect relationships between ecological traits, mid-range latitude, mid-range longitude and GRS. Main conclusions Our results show that traits related to the ability to use dispersal corridors, as well as traits directly related to mobility, are useful in understanding biodiversity patterns such as Rapoport's rule. However, because of a weak explanatory power, we conclude that using biological proxies of GRS to predict species at risk of extinction would be premature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We quantified fish abundance and environmental variables at 170 sites distributed among 11 tributaries of the Ottawa River, Quebec, Canada, to assess the relative importance of among- and within-tributary variation in riverine fish assemblages. Additionally, we determined (i) which environmental variables were most strongly associated with each type of variation and (ii) whether ecomorphological traits in fish assemblages were predictably related to environmental gradients. Partitioning of variation by means of partial ordination indicated that assemblages were less variable among (38.7% of the total variation) than within (61.3%) tributaries. Water transparency singly accounted for 33.3% of the variation among tributaries, whereas macrophyte cover and river width jointly accounted for 8.3% of the variation within tributaries. These results suggests that differences in habitat features among tributaries may account for a substantial fraction of the predictable variation in assemblage structure at the watershed scale, an aspect not emphasized in previous studies of riverine fish assemblages. Mixed regression analyses relating ecomorphological traits to environmental variables showed that the environmental variables most strongly associated with assemblage structure were significantly related to traits associated with predator avoidance or foraging efficiency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim To analyse the patterns in species richness and endemism of the native European riverine fish fauna, in the light of the Messinian salinity crisis and the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). Location European continent. Methods After gathering native fish faunistic lists of 406 hydrographical networks, we defined large biogeographical regions with homogenous fish fauna, based on a hierarchical cluster analysis. Then we analysed and compared the patterns in species richness and endemism among these regions, as well as species–area relationships. Results Among the 233 native species present in the data set, the Cyprinidae family was strongly dominant (> 50% of the total number of species). Seven biogeographical regions were defined: Western Peri-Mediterranea, Central Peri-Mediterranea, Eastern Peri-Mediterranea, Ponto-Caspian Europe, Northern Europe, Central Europe and Western Europe. The highest regional species richness was observed for Central Peri-Mediterranea and Ponto-Caspian Europe. The highest endemic richness was found in Central Peri-Mediterranea. Species–area relationships were characterized by high slope values for Peri-Mediterranean Europe and low values for Central and Western Europe. Main conclusions The results were in agreement with the ‘Lago Mare’ hypothesis explaining the specificity of Peri-Mediterranean fish fauna, as well as with the history of recolonization of Central and Western Europe from Ponto-Caspian Europe following the LGM. The results also agreed with the mechanisms of speciation and extinction influencing fish diversity in hydrographical networks. We advise the use of the seven biogeographical regions for further studies, and suggest considering Peri-Mediterranean Europe and Ponto-Caspian Europe as ‘biodiversity hotspots’ for European riverine fish. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

One of the most fundamental feature of freshwater systems is the spatiotemporal structure of their communities. In the present study, we used an artificial neural network model, i.e., self-organizing mapping, together with a likelihood ratio χ2 statistic for proportions to investigate the influence of each factor of a complex sampling scheme (i.e., site, year, month, and time of day) on the littoral fish community of Lake Constance (south Germany). Based on self-organizing mapping, four clusters of samples were defined characterized by distinct fish communities. The samples gathered in clusters 1 and 2 were significantly related to the factors month and time of the day, while those in cluster 3 were related to the factors month and site and those in cluster 4 to each of the four factors. The results are discussed with regard to the temporal patterns of species succession in lakes and their similarities with the spatial patterns observable in streams, the importance of plasticity with regard to the fish nycthemeral preferences, the partitioning of habitat at a large spatial scale and its importance for the coexistence of species, and the effects of the reoligotro phica tion process in lakes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Light pollution could represent one of the main drivers behind the current biodiversity erosion. While the effects of many light components on biodiversity have already been studied, the influence of flicker remains poorly understood. The determination of the threshold frequency at which a flickering light is perceived as continuous by a species, usually called the Critical Fusion Frequency (CFF), could thus help further identify the impacts of artificial lighting on animals. Objective: This review aimed at answering the following questions: what is the distribution of CFF between species? Are there differences in how flicker is perceived between taxonomic classes? Which species are more at risk of being impacted by artificial lighting flicker? Methods: Citations were extracted from three literature databases and were then screened successively on their titles, abstracts and full-texts. Included studies were critically appraised to assess their validity. All relevant data were extracted and analysed to determine the distribution of CFF in the animal kingdom and the influence of experimental designs and species traits on CFF. Results: At first, 4881 citations were found. Screening and critical appraisal provided 200 CFF values for 156 species. Reported values of CFF varied from a maximum of between 300 Hz and 500 Hz for the beetle Melanophila acuminata D. to a mean of 0.57 (± 0.08) Hz for the snail Lissachatina fulica B. Insects and birds had higher CFF than all other studied taxa. Irrespective of taxon, nocturnal species had lower CFF than diurnal and crepuscular ones. Conclusions: We identified nine crepuscular and nocturnal species that could be impacted by the potential adverse effects of anthropogenic light flicker. We emphasize that there remains a huge gap in our knowledge of flicker perception by animals, which could potentially be hampering our understanding of its impacts on biodiversity, especially in key taxa like bats, nocturnal birds and insects. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Growing evidence suggests that forest management practices are threatening the long-term conservation of a number of animal, fungi, and plant species worldwide. Although unmanaged forests are considered important for biodiversity, forest management continues to affect these vital habitats. We systematically reviewed the scientific literature to gain insight into the effects of forest management abandonment on biodiversity. We calculated log response ratio effect sizes to perform a meta-analysis on species richness between still managed (MAN) and no longer managed (NLM) forests, throughout the world's boreal and temperate forest ecosystems. Our statistical approach included improvements relative to a rigorous treatment of pseudo-replication, an objective choice of taxonomic resolution, and new forms of residual heterogeneity. In our simplest model, plant species richness was significantly lower in NLM than in MAN stands (−14.7 %), while fungi (+10.2 %) and animal (+10.6 %) richness were higher in NLM sites but not significantly (at the 5 % level). Models were improved by adding precipitation, time since abandonment of management (TSA), and their interaction. Effect size estimate for total species richness in NLM forests significantly increased with TSA in wetter climates (+14.3 %), but decreased with TSA in drier climates; fungi richness (+18.1 %) became significantly higher in NLM. These results underline the taxa-dependent responses to management abandonment as well as the slow but real context-dependant recovery capacity of biodiversity after management abandonment. Our findings support the call for further coordinated research to confirm identified patterns, then context-relevant policies aiming to set aside forest zones in production forest systems for conservation purposes. • Stopping forest management may improve biodiversity recovery. • Species richness was analysed using a robust meta-analytical approach. • Plant richness was significantly higher in managed stands. • Fungi richness was significantly higher in no longer managed stands. • Diversity increased with time since management abandonment in wetter climates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Diadromous fishes have drastically declined over the last century, especially in Europe. Several authors have highlighted the role of large dams in this decline, but in fact, its causes are potentially multiple and cumulative, including degradation of local environmental conditions and widespread fragmentation of hydrographic networks associated with the pervasive establishment of smaller barriers. Consequently, there is a need to improve the identification and prioritization of the drivers of diadromous species loss in order to identify and apply the most appropriate conservation and restoration measures. In this study, we used both historical sources (from mid-18th to early 20th century) and current data to quantify the long-term loss of diadromous taxa over 555 sites throughout the French river network. Then, we modeled the effects of several anthropogenic pressures (e.g. barriers, water quality, hydrological and river morphological alterations) on diadromous taxon loss. Lastly, we assessed the potential consequences of four different scenarios of anthropogenic pressure reduction. Due to uncertainties in historical sources, some species were grouped into taxa leading to a potential underestimation of actual species extinctions. Despite this limitation, our results showed that the decline in diadromous assemblages is widespread but with contrasting magnitudes depending on site locations. The maximum height and density of barriers appeared as the major factors of taxon loss. Over the scenarios tested, we observed that exclusively improving local conditions have much more limited effects than restoring river continuity. Focusing actions on large dam removal did not show the strongest responses compared to removing medium and small-sized barriers. For effective and sustainable restoration of diadromous fish assemblage, (1) historical occurrences of diadromous fishes should be used as an indicator for assessing recovery, and (2) undertaken measures must be adapted to each basin to target and limit the number of barriers to remove while allowing diadromous fish recovery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Assessment of ecological status for the European Water Framework Directive (WFD) is based on “Biological Quality Elements” (BQEs), namely phytoplankton, benthic flora, benthic invertebrates and fish. Morphological identification of these organisms is a time-consuming and expensive procedure. Here, we assess the options for complementing and, perhaps, replacing morphological identification with procedures using eDNA, metabarcoding or similar approaches. We rate the applicability of DNA-based identification for the individual BQEs and water categories (rivers, lakes, transitional and coastal waters) against eleven criteria, summarised under the headlines representativeness (for example suitability of current sampling methods for DNA-based identification, errors from DNA-based species detection), sensitivity (for example capability to detect sensitive taxa, unassigned reads), precision of DNA-based identification (knowledge about uncertainty), comparability with conventional approaches (for example sensitivity of metrics to differences in DNA-based identification), cost effectiveness and environmental impact. Overall, suitability of DNA-based identification is particularly high for fish, as eDNA is a well-suited sampling approach which can replace expensive and potentially harmful methods such as gill-netting, trawling or electrofishing. Furthermore, there are attempts to replace absolute by relative abundance in metric calculations. For invertebrates and phytobenthos, the main challenges include the modification of indices and completing barcode libraries. For phytoplankton, the barcode libraries are even more problematic, due to the high taxonomic diversity in plankton samples. If current assessment concepts are kept, DNA-based identification is least appropriate for macrophytes (rivers, lakes) and angiosperms/macroalgae (transitional and coastal waters), which are surveyed rather than sampled. We discuss general implications of implementing DNA-based identification into standard ecological assessment, in particular considering any adaptations to the WFD that may be required to facilitate the transition to molecular data. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

• Development of a machine-learning based process to map current habitats. • Forecasting of future habitats based on submersion-duration simulations. • Evaluation of the importance of habitats for a selection of taxa and functions. • Graphical representation of effects of coastal realignment on biodiversity. In the context of climate change and sea-level rise, coastal realignment consists in reopening polders to marine waters to favor 'nature-based' mitigation measures. Such operations have consequences on biodiversity, which vary depending on the parameters studied and site features. In this study, a multimetric indicator aiming to evaluate and predict the potential ecological quality of sites undergoing a realignment operation was developed. This indicator is based on the combination of two tools, (i) a biological-capacity matrix to assess the importance of different habitats of a defined typology for taxonomical, patrimonial and functional parameters; (ii) habitat maps obtained by photointerpretation for past habitats, by machine learning using space-borne imagery for present habitats and by forecasting using submersion models for future habitats. The indicator is presented in the form of a radar chart, with each axis corresponding to one parameter of the biological-capacity matrix and highlighting its different values for different coastal-realignment scenarios or different time horizons. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In the context of increasing pressure on water bodies, many fish-based indices have been developed to evaluate the ecological status of rivers. However, most of these indices suffer from several limitations, which hamper the capacity of water managers to select the most appropriate measures of restoration. Those limitations include: (i) being dependent on reference conditions, (ii) not satisfactorily handling complex and non-linear biological responses to pressure gradients, and (iii) being unable to identify specific risks of stream degradation in a multi-pressure context. To tackle those issues, we developed a diagnosis-based approach using Random Forest models to predict the impairment probabilities of river fish communities by 28 pressure categories (chemical, hydromorphological and biological). In addition, the database includes the abundances of 72 fish species collected from 1527 sites in France, sampled between 2005 and 2015; and fish taxonomic and biological information. Twenty random forest models provided at least good performances when evaluating impairment probabilities of fish communities by those pressures. The best performing models indicated that fish communities were impacted, on average, by 7.34 ± 0.03 abiotic pressure categories (mean ± SE), and that hydromorphological alterations (5.27 ± 0.02) were more often detected than chemical ones (2.06 ± 0.02). These models showed that alterations in longitudinal continuity, and contaminations by Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons were respectively the most frequent hydromorphological and chemical pressure categories in French rivers. This approach has also efficiently detected the functional impact of invasive alien species. Identifying and ranking the impacts of multiple anthropogenic pressures that trigger functional shifts in river biological communities is essential for managers to prioritize actions and to implement appropriate restoration programmes. Actually implemented in an R package, this approach has the capacity to detect a variety of impairments, resulting in an efficient assessment of ecological risks across various spatial and temporal scales. Unlabelled Image • Rivers are threatened by multiple pressures acting at various spatio-temporal scales. • We used a machine learning technique to assess functional shifts in fish communities. • Hydromorphological alterations were more often detected than chemical ones. • Models handle linear and non-linear ecological responses to pressure gradients. • Our approach can be used to tackle a variety of conceptual and applied issues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]