Short-term effects of a catastrophic beaver dam collapse on a stream fish community

The short-term effects of the natural catastrophic collapse of a beaver dam on downstream benthic insect density and fish community structure in a headwater tributary of the Mississippi River were examined. The catastrophic collapse of the dam and ensuing flash flood resulted in a dramatic (> 90%...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Environmental biology of fishes 1991-06, Vol.31 (2), p.123-129
Main Authors: STOCK, J. D, SCHLOSSER, I. J
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animal, plant and microbial ecology
Applied ecology
Biological and medical sciences
Castor canadensis
Freshwater
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Pisces
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Summary:The short-term effects of the natural catastrophic collapse of a beaver dam on downstream benthic insect density and fish community structure in a headwater tributary of the Mississippi River were examined. The catastrophic collapse of the dam and ensuing flash flood resulted in a dramatic (> 90%) decrease in benthic insect density in riffle and pool habitats. Sixty days after collapse of the dam, insect densities in riffles were 62% of pre-collapse densities. Insect recolonization of pools was slower than for riffles; 60 days after collapse of the dam insect densities in pools were 8% of pre-collapse levels. Collapse of the beaver dam altered the structure of the downstream fish community by causing a short-term (2-4 days) influx of pond species, resulting in a brief increase in species richness and abundance. Fish species richness and abundance then decreased for 4-60 days to levels below those prior to the collapse.
ISSN:0378-1909
1573-5133
DOI:10.1007/BF00001012