Abstract

Human land use has been well documented as an influencing factor in riverine systems, impairing the chemical, hydrological and biotic properties of streams (Warren et al. 2000). This study quantified fish assemblages within 15 different tributaries of the upper French Broad River basin, previously sampled by the USGS in 1997. Fish assemblages were determined to be related to changing land use through a correlation analysis comparing changes in fish metrics since 1997 and land use change over a nine year period. Fish metrics were found to be most significantly affected by increasing high intensity development (>80% impervious surface), characterized by a significant positive correlation with the relative abundance in tolerant species and a negative significant correlation with that of intolerant species. Additionally, it was found that herbivorous species were positively correlated with an increase in grass/herbaceous land, likely stemming from the land’s recent agricultural influences promoting algal growth and providing a food resource for populations of the basin’s primary herbivore, Campostoma anomalum. The findings of this study provide an example of the importance of environmental indicators, such as fish metrics, for identifying effects of anthropogenic land disturbance. The identified relationships between these biological characteristics in streams and land use change can contribute to future land management’s ability to mitigate the inevitable effects on streams, followed by biological alterations, in the face of increasing urbanization.

How to Cite