Impact of River-Reservoir Hybrid System on Zooplankton Community and River Connectivity

• Main Authors: Do, Y. (Author), Jo, H. (Author), Joo, G.-J (Author), Jung, E. (Author), Kim, H.-W (Author), Ko, E.-J (Author)
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI 2022
• Subjects: dynamic time warping; longitudinal connectivity; long-term monitoring; Nakdong River; weir effect
• Online Access: View Fulltext in Publisher

 Anthropogenic connectivity regulation in rivers, such as via weirs and dams, affects the plankton community. We hypothesized that the longitudinal similarity of the zooplankton community in a river could change in a river–reservoir hybrid system (RRHS). The impact of weir construction on zooplankton communities in terms of species diversity, abundance, and community structure was examined biweekly at six sites on the Nakdong River for 14 years (before construction: 2002–2008; after construction: 2012–2018). We checked time-series alignment using a dynamic time-warping method between longitudinal survey sites. After RRHS, the zooplankton community showed an increasing number of species. However, RRHS decreased the longitudinal similarity in terms of number of zooplankton species and population density. Our results demonstrate the negative effect of lateral infrastructures on zooplankton populations due to river fragmentation and habitat alteration. © 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.