Author : Farron F. Fiedler (Jr.)
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 52 pages
Book Rating : 4.:/5 (123 download)
Book Synopsis Impact of Land Use Practices on Fisheries Ecology on Two Rivers in North Central Texas by : Farron F. Fiedler (Jr.)
Download or read book Impact of Land Use Practices on Fisheries Ecology on Two Rivers in North Central Texas written by Farron F. Fiedler (Jr.) and published by . This book was released on 2019 with total page 52 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Land use, habitat quality index (HQI), fish index of biotic integrity (IBI), and water quality measures were made at four equidistant sites along each of two rivers in North Central Texas. The major land use and chemistry differences in the North Bosque River (NBR) and Paluxy River (PR) were concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFO) and permitted cows, orthophosphate (OP) levels, and algal growth. The NBR has numerous CAFOs and two wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), mainly concentrated within the upper reach of the river. The PR has only four CAFOs and no WWTP, within the study area. Despite the environmental impacts to the NBR, habitat quality indices on both rivers were similar except for algal abundance. Fish IBI measures indicated presence of intolerant fish species and benthic invertivores (darters) at all sites on the PR, while no intolerant species or benthic invertivores (darters) were found at any NBR sites. The percentage of piscivore fish was greater in the PR than in the NBR. However, the percentage of total fish that were piscivores in the NBR increased with the distance from the area of concentrated nonpoint source pollution. The PR had greater biodiversity and more natural OP levels when compared to the NBR. The PR lowest reach had only 0.0011 mg/L OP compared to 0.2607 mg/L OP in the NBR upper most reach. Fish species located in PR but, are absent from NBR are sensitive to dissolved oxygen and nutrient levels. Environmental factors which may have caused the sensitive species to be extirpated from NBR are assumed to be due to land use differences.