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Effects of decadal changes in the hydrological regime of the middle reach of the Paraná River (Argentina) on fish densities

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Abstract

Changes in fish densities recorded over 14 years (1996–2009) were studied for effects of long-term variation of the hydrologic regime. We collected field data with an echo sounder in scour holes of minor channels draining an area of floodplain in the middle reach of the Paraná River. Fish densities in 2000–2009 were significantly lower than in the previous decade. The decrease was associated with a marked reduction of water levels, flood magnitudes and connectivity of channels with the nearby floodplain lakes. This distortion of the flood pulse likely had an effect on the life history strategies of the fishes. The effects of damming in the upstream basin and other man-made perturbations are minor in the middle reach. However, the decadal alterations of regime are intimately linked to climate fluctuations in the Paraná River basin during the past century. Tendencies of observed fish densities are similar to results reported in literature on the influence on fishes for similar long-term alterations of the flood regime in river flood plain systems.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank Ambrosio Regner, Esteban Creus, Eduardo Lordi and Chichipio Wilson for field and laboratory assistance and the Instituto Nacional de Limnología (INALI) for the logistic support. They are also grateful to the anonymous reviewers whose suggestions undoubtedly improved the final manuscript. We are particularly grateful to Patricia Torres for statistical support. The authors declare that the present study does not contain any studies with human or animal subjects. Consequently, there are no ethical issues or conflicts. This investigation was financially supported by the Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET, Argentina).

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  1. Instituto Nacional de Limnología (INALI, CONICET/UNL), Ciudad Universitaria, Paraje el Pozo, Santa Fe, Argentina

    Luis A. Espínola, Mario L. Amsler, Aldo R. Paira, Edmundo E. Drago & Martin C. M. Blettler

  2. Universidade Estadual de Maringá – Nupélia, Maringá, Brazil

    Angelo A. Agostinho

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  1. Luis A. Espínola
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  2. Mario L. Amsler
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  3. Aldo R. Paira
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  4. Edmundo E. Drago
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  6. Angelo A. Agostinho
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Correspondence to Luis A. Espínola.

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Espínola, L.A., Amsler, M.L., Paira, A.R. et al. Effects of decadal changes in the hydrological regime of the middle reach of the Paraná River (Argentina) on fish densities. Environ Biol Fish 97, 757–771 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10641-013-0177-8

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