Linkage Projects - Grant ID: LP0562434

Funded Activity Summary

How does flow regulation affect food web linkages between juvenile and larval fish and aquatic invertebrates in a coastal river? River regulation to supply water for human demands has altered flow regimes in many Australian rivers. These changes in flow impact on native invertebrate and fish community composition. Environmental flow allocations seek to alleviate these impacts but managers are hampered by lack of data on the effects of flow on food web linkages, particularly for juvenile and larval fish (JLF). We aim to compare food webs of invertebrates and JLF in six tributaries of the Hunter River, three of which are regulated, to determine how flow regulation changes trophic linkages. A flow release in one tributary will let us test the hypothesis that river regulation restricts food availability to JLF, reducing their viability, growth rates, and abundance.

Funded Activity Details

Start Date: 09-01-2006

End Date: 15-10-2009

Funding Scheme: Linkage Projects

Funding Amount: $144,888.00

Funder: Australian Research Council

Research Topics

ANZSRC Field of Research (FoR)

Invertebrate Biology | Conservation And Biodiversity | Ecology | Freshwater Ecology

ANZSRC Socio-Economic Objective (SEO)

Rights to environmental and natural resources | Integrated (ecosystem) assessment and management | Environmental and resource evaluation not elsewhere classified |

Other Keywords

Conservation And Biodiversity | Ecology | Environmental and resource evaluation not elsewhere classified | Freshwater Ecology | Integrated (ecosystem) assessment and management | Invertebrate Biology | Rights to environmental and natural resources

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