Samantha Jane Hughes

South East Rivers Trust

The demand for freshwater is projected to increase worldwide over the coming decades, resulting in severe water stress and threats to riverine biodiversity, ecosystem functioning, and services. A major societal challenge is to determine where environmental changes will have the greatest impacts on riverine ecosystem services and where resilience ca...

The Water Framework Directive or WFD constitutes a major step forward in the protection of the aquatic environment and associated habitats, since it legislates for the characterization of surface water bodies across defined ecoregions and the development of ecological monitoring systems based upon elements of the aquatic biota. The Macaronesian arc...

1. Reliable lotic ecological monitoring requires knowledge of river typology, environmental factors, the effect of stressors known here as ‘pressures’ and appropriate indicators of anthropogenically induced change. We sampled benthic macroinvertebrate, fish, bird and macrophyte communities along an intermittent Mediterranean river and analysed comm...

Editorial This Special Issue covers the themes and subthemes discussed during the 4th International Conference on Ecohydrology, Soil and Climate Change, EcoHCC’2017, held in Figueira da Foz, Portugal in September 2017. The subthemes involved overall water issues, such as Water quality, Water resources and management, Operational and dynamical hydro...

De forma a demonstrar a aplicabilidade das metodologias apresen-tadas, são descritos vários casos de estudo, organizados de uma forma hierárquica da base para o topo tendo em consideração as escalas de estudo da ecologia, isto é, num gradiente que vai das aplicações em contextos onde o enfoque recai sobre a importância de populações/espécies como i...

As paisagens atuais são sistemas dinâmicos, moldados pela interação de processos naturais e antropogénicos (e.g., TURNER, 2010; SANTOS et al., 2016b). Essa dinâmica acarreta alterações que, em muitos casos, modificam de forma os sistemas naturais, nomeadamente distribuição das espécies, estrutura das comunidades e o funcionamento dos ecossistemas....

The ecosystem services approach represents an important and still evolving concept that has the potential to redefine perspectives in ecosystem management by linking different scientific areas within a common framework. Birdwatching is a recreational ecosystem service whose importance has grown in recent years, providing support for rural economies...

A Diretiva Quadro da Água veio obrigar todos os estados membros a procederem a uma monitorização ecológica dos seus rios tendo em vista a avaliação da sua qualidade. Esta classificação deve refletir a qualidade de diversos compo-nentes de um ecossistema ribeirinho, tais como os elementos biológicos, físico-químicos e hidromorfológicos. Com base nes...

Although different organisms and metrics are used in aquatic ecosystem assessment, deciding which organism group(s) or community level to apply tends to be based on the local level of taxonomic expertise, rather than the discriminatory power or precision of a given response to specific stressors. We compare the response of two different organism gr...

Despite the environmental benefits associated with wind energy, studies have confirmed the occurrence of significant levels of bat and bird fatalities at windfarms, which raise concerns about the long-term effects of these infra-structures on these populations. Reliable estimates of windfarm fatalities are fundamental for accurate environmental ass...

Worldwide ecological impact assessments of wind farms have gathered relevant information on bat activity patterns. Since conventional bat study methods require intensive field work, the prediction of bat activity might prove useful by anticipating activity patterns and estimating attractiveness concomitant with the wind farm location. A novel frame...

The study of processes driving diversification requires a fully sampled and well resolved phylogeny, although a lack of phylogenetic markers remains a limitation for many non-model groups. Multilocus approaches to the study of recent diversification provide a powerful means to study the evolutionary process, but their application remains restricted...

The study of processes driving diversification requires a fully sampled and well resolved phylogeny. Multilocus approaches to the study of recent diversification provide a powerful means to study the evolutionary process, but their application remains restricted because multiple unlinked loci with suitable variation for phylogenetic or coalescent a...

http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/14747065

Freshwater systems on the volcanic oceanic islands of Macaronesia and the macroinvertebrate communities that occupy them differ strongly from mainland systems. This is a result of their geological origin, relatively small size, catchment morphology and distance from potential sources of colonization. The spatial distribution patterns of benthic mac...

This study presents preliminary results (year 1) on the use of chironomid pupal exuviae as bioindicators in the assessment of lotic habitats in northern Portugal. The exuviae were collected seasonally (summer - winter) over two years across a quality gradient in several rivers in northern Portugal, using the European standard method. The collected...

Evaluating the effects of fishing and environmental factors on fish populations are fundamental tenets of fisheries science. In this study, we assess associations between environmental variables (sea surface temperature; North Atlantic Oscillation index; upwelling; wind magnitude; westerly winds; northerly winds; river discharge) and fishing variab...

The Fluvial Ecology Laboratory at the University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro (LEF-CITAB) uses the River Habitat Survey (RHS) methodology a Water Framework Directive accepted method for assessing the character and habitat quality of rivers, which involves the use of a paper questionnaire, GPS and photographic camera for the collection of data i...

Knowledge of plant community structure and how it can confer resistance to climate change effects is required for the management of fluvial ecosystems. Findings from such studies can be applied in decision making processes to implement measures to maintain, conserve or improve fluvial quality. Floristic and environmental data from 100 sample statio...

Located in a sensitive Natura 2000 protected area, the construction of the River Odelouca dam in the Algarve region of southern Portugal was subject to diverse compensation measures, including environmental requalification of selected river segments. We cover the whole sequence of the project: a) characterization and selection of reaches to rehabil...

Despite the fundamental importance of reservoirs and dams for socioeconomic development, their presence results in large-scale alterations to the natural flow regime of the rivers and profoundly influences aquatic processes and biodiversity. This study compared macroinvertebrate community composition and structure metrics, as well as biological and...

Detailed results of all model approaches (MAFA, DFA and GLS), including all explanatory variables related to D. sargus LPUE in the northwest (IXaCN), southwest (IXaCS) and south (IXaS-Algarve), regions and total area (IXa) of Portugal

Inter-annual and annual variation in precipitation levels in Mediterranean temporary river systems strongly influence riverine flow regimes and as a result habitat’ availability for biological assemblages. Under-sampling of less well-presented microhabitats in such changeable, dynamic systems can result in information loss leading to misclassificat...

Chironomids form an essential part of the diet of insectivorous birds that feed on emerging aquatic insects in both riparian areas (Lynch et al. 2002, Beck et al. 2013) and other aquatic habitats, thereby providing an important trophic link between the aquatic and the terrestrial environment. High altitude lakes in mountain landscapes are relativel...

The widespread urbanization of river catchments has resulted in the degradation of many fluvial ecosystems. We examined the hypothesis that riparian vegetation corridors form effective buffers, mitigating the effects of anthropogenic disturbances in urban river systems. We aimed to identify the principal factors affecting ecological status and biol...

The Canary Islands and Madeira are reportedly home to seven recognised species of baetid mayflies (Ephemeroptera, Baetidae), two of which also occur on the European mainland. Their species status remains unsure, and loss of habitat suggests they are of conservation concern. We applied morphological characters and a general mixed Yule‐coalescent (gm...

Damming disrupts lotic continuity, creating a lentic water body upstream of the dam and a lotic stretch downstream that is highly vulnerable to temporal fluctuations in flow and physiochemical quality depending on the operational regime of the dam. Thus, an essential part of any dam operation programme must take into account a typologically suitabl...

Distinct levels of organization were combined to improve environmental quality assessment under the WFD,, namely sensitive ecological information and evidence of cause-effect relations. This procedure took place in northern Portuguese rivers covering a quality gradient ranging from reference conditions to high disturbance. Two communities were incl...

The EU Water Framework Directive legislates for sustainable, catchment level water management across the European Union. Principal goals of the Directive are that water bodies achieve Good status by 2015 and the use of biological quality elements in routine monitoring of surface water bodies. The bryophytes form a significant biotic component of ri...

Freshwater systems on the volcanic oceanic islands of Macaronesia and the macroinvertebrate communities that occupy them differ strongly from European mainland systems. This is a result of their geological origin, relatively small size, catchment morphology and distance from potential sources of colonization. The spatial and temporal distribution p...

The quality and availability of freshwater are cornerstone determinants for both ecosystem and human health worldwide but are deleteriously affected by complex impacts and pressures associated with an increasing world population and developing economies. The deleterious effects of habitat destruction, land use change, chemical pollution, eutrophica...

Reservoirs are fundamental for water and energy supply but vulnerable to impacts including climate change. This paper outlines the steps in the development of a model to predict how climate, land use and hydrological change could affect the physiochemical and ecological quality of reservoirs in Portugal's Douro region. Climatic data will be downsca...

REQUALIFICATION PROGRAM OF THE ODELOUCA RIVER (ARADE BASIN, PORTUGAL). The construction of the Odelouca dam, located in a Nature 2000 area, has determined many compensation measures, such as the environmental requalification of the aquatic ecosystems in the river segment not submerged by the reservoir. We surveyed and identified the more disturbed...

Effects of landscape metrics and land-use variables on macroinvertebrate communities and habitat characteristics The growing number of studies establishing links between stream biota, environmental factors and river classification has contributed to a better understanding of fluvial ecosystem function. Environmental factors influencing river system...

The Water Framework Directive (WFD), which established the use of hydromorphological quality elements to assess the ecological status of water bodies, has influenced the purpose and content of several European methods for characterizing physical structure and assessing habitat quality in rivers. The River Habitat Survey (RHS) is a WFD compliant met...

Freshwater systems on volcanic oceanic islands have very particular characteristics as a result of their geological origins, relatively small size, distances from source areas for colonizers, and distinct catchment morphology. These factors result in freshwater communities that are clearly distinct from continental systems. Chironomid spatial and t...

This study assesses the potential of an integrated methodology for predicting local trends in invasive exotic plant species (invasive richness) using indirect, regional information on human disturbance. The distribution of invasive plants was assessed in North Portugal using herbarium collections and local environmental, geophysical and socio-econo...

This paper presents an updated catalogue of the freshwater invertebrates of the Azores archipelago and reviews the published records to account for the current taxonomic status and changes in the nomenclature of the listed taxa. The number of freshwater invertebrate species that has been recorded in the Azores has risen sharply throughout the 20th...

Freshwater systems in volcanic oceanic islands have very particular characteristics as a result of their geological origin and youth, small size, and distinct catchment morphology resulting in freshwater communities that are clearly distinct from continental systems. In accordance with the objectives of the Water Framework Directive the Azorean gov...

The distribution of aquatic communities is dependent on processes that act at multiplescales. This study comprised 270 samples distributed over 2 years and used a nested sampling design to estimate the variance associated with three spatial scales: basin, site and microhabitat. Habitat assessment was made using River Habitat Survey. The derived Hab...

Bioindicators are essential for detecting environmental degradation and for assessing the success of river restoration initiatives. River restoration projects require the identification of environmental and pressure gradients that affect the river system under study and the selection of suitable indicators to assess habitat quality before, during a...

A construção da barragem de Odelouca, inserida em Rede Natura 2000, implicou a definição de medidas de compensação, tais como a requalificação ambiental do ecossistema aquático no segmento não afectado pela albufeira. Assim, identificaram-se previamente troços mais degradados, possibilitando o planeamento de um elevado conjunto de acções integradas...

The Water Framework Directive (WFD) requires the hydromorphological assessment of water bodies, thereby acknowledging the importance of these features in supporting biological quality elements and providing a more complete ecological characterization of surface water bodies. Using a dataset covering mainland Portugal (about 300 sites spread along t...

Oceanic islands freshwater systems are unique due to their volcanic origin, oceanic situation, catchment morphology and the presence of distinct freshwater communities when compared with continental systems. This study provides an update of Azorean chironomid fauna records, distribution data and includes biogeographical comments, based on collectio...

The purpose of our visit was threefold: (i) to test River Habitat Survey (RHS) and macrophyte surveys on a selection of Mediterranean rivers in southern Portugal (16- 18 April 2009); (ii) to provide training for RHS surveyors in Portugal (20-23 April 2009); (iii) to give advice on an effective sampling and training strategy for RHS in Portugal.

A comprehensive revision of the mayflies (Ephemeroptera) inhabiting the island of Madeira (Portugal) is presented, based on newly collected specimens and DNA sequence analysis. Disregarding a report of a single Centroptilum female subimago that is very likely a misidentification, the Madeira mayfly fauna encompasses three species, all belonging to...

1.The imminent damming of the Odelouca River, an intermittent Mediterranean river situated in the south-west Algarve region of Portugal with valuable stands of riparian vegetation, has called for the compulsory implementation of compensatory measures.2.In order to assess the primary environmental and human factors that drive change in the benthic m...

El River habitat Survey (RHS) es una t´ecnica ampliamente utilizada para caracterizar el h´abitat a nivel de sector fluvial y para cuantificar la magnitud de las perturbaciones f´ýsicas. En este estudio probamos la habilidad de este m´etodo para discriminar puntos a lo largo de un gradiente de perturbaci´on y analizar su relaci´on con las caracter´...

This special supplement of the Boletim do Museu Municipal do Funchal contains extended abstracts, based upon communications given at the 16th International Chironomid Symposium which took place at the Casa da Luz Museum in Funchal, 25th - 28th July 2006, and was hosted and organized by the Centre for Macaronesian Studies (CEM) of the University of...

Descripción de una ninfa peculiar de Rhithrogena para la Península Ibérica (Ephemeroptera, Heptageniidae) Una especie poco frecuente de Rhithrogena, que posiblemente pertenece al llamado grupo Rh. sowai ha sido descubierta en unos muestreos realizados recientemente en el sur de Portugal (Algarve). En este trabajo se describe la ninfa de la especie...

Nos próximos anos será realizado um esforço importante de conservação e de restauro de troços fluviais, exigidos pela Directiva Quadro da Água. É importante que esse esforço assente numa classificação adequada do estado de conservação dos corredores fluviais. O Aproveitamento Hidráulico de Odelouca e a consequente necessidade de adopção de medidas...

Mestre, Centm de Estudos FLorestais, lnstituto Superior de Agmnomia, Tapada da Ajuda.1349-017 Lisboa, pjpinheim(aisa.utl.pt RESUMO: Nos pr6xirnos anos se@ realizado um esforgo irnportante de conservaglo e de restauro de troqos fluviais, exigidos pela Directiva Quadro da Agua. 6 importante que esse esforqo assente nurna classificaqiio adequada do es...

New descriptions of the larvae of Meladema lanio (Fabricius), M . coriacea Laporte and Hoperius planatus Fall are provided. Characters from larval morphology are analyzed to infer the phylogenetic relationships of the genera Meladema Laporte and Hoperius Fall with other genera of the tribe Colymbetini (Colymbetinae). Larvae of Meladema are unique a...

Temporal and spatial distribution patterns of lotic larval trichopteran assemblages in relation to environmental variables were investigated in Madeiran streams using multivariate analyses. TWINSPAN classification detected distinct faunal assemblages related to spatial factors between non-polluted high altitude sites and lower lying enriched sites...

The EU Water Framework Directive (2000/60/CE) legislates for catchment level sustainable water management, including the protection of the aquatic environment, with the specific aim of attaining 'good ecological status' */as defined in Annex V of the directive */for all surface waters by 2015. Ecological status is assessed by monitoring elements of...

Collections of Chironomidae from aquatic habitats on the Azores islands of São Miguel and Flores during August 1997 and on São Miguel, Terceira and Graciosa in September-October 1998, yielded 33 species-level taxa. Representatives of 16 taxa in three subfamilies are new generic / species records for the Azores archipelago: Tanypodinae - Procladius...

acrivity on rivers. The results are quantified and expressed as biotic index values. Many ecological assessment mehods exist and the results are used in catchment management planning. Methods developed for the surface waters of continental Europe are not readily applied to Madeira because of the very low biodiversity of the Madeiran macro-invertebr...

O CONTRIBUTO DO PROJECTO INTERFRUTA II PARA O DESENVOLVIMENTO DA FRUTICULTURA NA ILHA TERCEIRA, AÇORES