Too much and not enough data: Challenges and solutions for generating information in freshwater research and monitoring

Ecosphere, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: 16(3)

Published: March 1, 2025

Abstract Evaluating progress toward achieving freshwater conservation and sustainability goals requires transforming diverse types of data into useful information for scientists, managers, other interest groups. Despite substantial increases in the volume collected worldwide, many regions ecosystems still lack sufficient collection and/or access. We illustrate how these challenges result from a set underlying mechanisms propose solutions that can be applied by individuals or organizations. discuss creative approaches to address scarcity, including use community science, remote‐sensing, environmental sensors, legacy datasets. highlight importance coordinated efforts among groups training programs improve At institutional level, we emphasize power prioritizing curation, incentivizing publication, promoting research enhances coverage representativeness. Some strategies involve technological analytical approaches, but necessitate shifting priorities incentives organizations such as academic government institutions, monitoring groups, journals, funding agencies. Our overarching goal is stimulate discussion narrow disparities hindering understanding processes their change across spatial scales.

Language: Английский

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Dry Me a River: Ecological Effects of Drought in the Upper San Francisco Estuary

San Francisco Estuary and Watershed Science, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 22(1)

Published: March 19, 2024

Droughts have major effects on estuaries because freshwater entry is one of the defining features an estuary, and flow important variable that determines interannual change in environment. In upper San Francisco Estuary (the Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta, Suisun Bay, Marsh), Mediterranean climate includes frequent multi-year droughts. To assess ecosystem responses to droughts Interagency Ecological Program Drought Synthesis Team assembled a set flow, water quality, chlorophyll, zooplankton, fish data from 1975 2021 test for differences between wet periods tested linear relationships each Sacramento Valley Hydrologic Index (see definitions as outlined Appendix A). Our models showed decreased Delta outflow, project exports, zooplankton some species. We also found increased clarity, salinity, nutrients, chlorophyll South residence time. Although our analyses only correlations, we hypothesized most food-web could be traced time, transport rates, or both. However, may been caused by secondary effects, including shifts salinity gradients, regional changes top-down predation grazing rates. With frequency future, this increasingly low-outflow, warming, clearing estuary—which invaded non-native species has low pelagic production—is rapidly becoming new “normal.”

Language: Английский

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Regional Diversity Trends of Nearshore Fish Assemblages of the Upper San Francisco Estuary

San Francisco Estuary and Watershed Science, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 22(2)

Published: June 11, 2024

The loss of biodiversity and biotic homogenization are on the rise in ecosystems around world as a result species invasions, habitat degradation, effects climate change. In Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta, non-native make up majority fish community, declines native have been well documented; however, little is known about whether these trends resulted homogenization. this study, we used data from long-term beach seine survey to analyze regional beta diversity nearshore assemblages Delta 1995 2019. Overall, found no evidence occurring over study period. Regional increased moderately time was significantly influenced by high interannual variability freshwater inflow. These patterns were driven Mississippi Silverside that has proliferated system recent years, but also handful such Sacramento Sucker, Tule Perch, Splittail. our results offer contrast other highly invaded suggest despite near extinction some species, there remain pockets suitable may play key role conservation remnant diversity.

Language: Английский

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A baseline assessment of contamination in the Sacramento deep water ship channel

Environmental Pollution, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 360, P. 124606 - 124606

Published: July 23, 2024

Language: Английский

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