HHL is Headed to JASM 2022!
JASM (Joint Aquatic Sciences Meeting) 2022 will be held in Grand Rapids, Michigan from May 14-20th. JASM is one of the largest gatherings of Aquatic Scientists and brings together researchers from diverse fields of Aquatic Science. The goal of JASM is for professionals in this field to gather together to educate each other and promote multi-disciplinary solutions for environmental problems. You can see the official JASM 2022 website here.
This year HHL is representing Stream Ecology with many great talks and projects over the week long conference. The abstracts for each session are below!
SESSIONS AND TALKS:
Monday, May 16th:
Shayenna Nolan: Streams of the Anthropocene: Carbon Dynamics across a Human-Impact Gradient Shows not all Impacts are Equal
2:45-3:00pm, DeVos Place - River Overlook D
Urban and agricultural land use pressures have easily become dominating forces shaping ecosystems today. Streams and rivers are among the most heavily impacted ecosystems due to the influence of catchment land use on stream water quality and ecological condition. Research on human-impacts is often framed in comparison to pre-degradation conditions, overshadowing more subtle changes to ecosystem functions thus limiting science-based applications in decision-making. In the present study we explore carbon-based indicators (dissolved organic matter (DOM) fluorescence spectroscopy, cotton strip decomposition, and benthic invertebrate sampling) to explore mechanisms of degradation and the potential for these indicators to inform management. We focused entirely on a human-impact gradient in the Windsor Essex region of southwestern Ontario, Canada. Over a multi-site, multi-season study, we interrogated the extent to which human-impacted streams exhibited predictable structural and functional attributes over space and time. A regional PARAFAC model confirmed four likely sources of DOM with higher microbial contributions to urban streams and humic contributions to agricultural streams. Ecosystem functioning rates were found to be more strongly correlated with climate than land use. Overall, our results suggest that urban and streams have contrasting temporal impact regimes, but directional effects on indicators are predictable for both land use categories and can be targeted strategically in restoration and monitoring programs. The application of carbon measures, namely DOM fluorometry together with decomposition rates offer mechanistic, robust, and cost-effective tools for diagnosing causes for impairment and pursuing stressor-specific responses to management in human-impacted landscapes.
Wednesday, May 18th:
Shayenna Nolan: Integrating Storytelling and Science Communication into Ecosystem Management Strategies
8:30-8:45am, DeVos Place - River Overlook F
Storytelling as a form of science communication is the perfect complement to research and management programs that seek to protect watersheds. Managing ecosystems also requires restoring a sense of place. While typical aims of success are quantitative targets/thresholds, we should also be paying attention to the human dimensions of watersheds. This presentation details communications and storyteller case studies by the Healthy Headwaters Lab at the University of Windsor, which focuses on mobilizing ecological knowledge. Storytelling is a huge part of our culture – it’s how we learn, share, and spread knowledge. When we know better, we do better, and increasing awareness and connection to the land and water inspires stewardship in the broader community. Collaborations with local communities highlight the significance of knowledge mobilization and transfer. Featuring farmer outreach materials, insights from Indigenous youth on preserving culture, community-based restoration guided by elder stories, and multi-dimensional investigations of endangered species habitat. The strong role of storytelling in humanity’s past and present are clear indicators of its place in the future of our ever changing world.
Dr. Catherine Febria: Pluralistic approaches in research advance farming and freshwater sustainability efforts in the Great Lakes basin
9:30-9:45am, DeVos Place - Grand Gallery Overlook C
The launch of the UN Decade of Restoration (2021-2030) calls for the acceleration of restoration efforts to curb ecosystem degradation through local and global pathways. Freshwater restoration requires coordinated efforts from multiple actors, across land and water, and thus restoration success remain elusive. To overcome barriers of scale, science teams must better integrate social and cultural dimensions as central components of research efforts. Pluralism is one pathway that has potential to overcome challenges and offer transformative solutions. Here we present two case studies from the Laurentian Great Lakes basin where an intentional pluralistic framework was developed to ensure that science-based research was community-responsive and locally relevant while also offering insights that could translate to other contexts. We initiated two parallel efforts – the Farm and Freshwater Ecology Research Network (FERN) and the Indigenous Knowledge Circle (IKC) – whereby individuals from a range of communities engaged with our team in varied ways. The FERN engages local farmers in southwestern Ontario to focus farm-based restoration research on the local, social, physical, and cultural context while facilitating deeper understanding of social barriers and enablers to implementing farm-based sustainability measures. The IKC facilitates a collaborative space for researchers to be responsive to community input, and engages communities as active drivers of, and participants in, research. The IKC involves Indigenous researchers across the region but also academic researchers, government agencies and representatives from aligned programs, such as the IJC. Here we describe how we conceptualized the framework and context-specific insights to illustrate how our research questions and approach became richer and more impactful when communities are engaged. We discuss short-term versus long-term benefits, co-benefits, and trade-offs in such an approach.
TRADESHOW AND POSTER RECEPTION (Day 2):
5:30-7:30pm, DeVos Place - Exhibit Hall AB
Brianna Curtis - Exploring indicators of good habitat quality for the reintroduction of Redside Dace (Clinostomus elongatus) in the Greater Toronto Area
Redside Dace require habitat conditions dependent on in-stream environments and riparian habitat. A few habitats requirements for the Redside Dace include
Overhanging vegetation
Benthic macroinvertebrate taxa
In stream water quality
We selected four sites in the Credit River Watershed located in the Greater Toronto Area (Ontario, Canada) where exploration of the re-introduction of the Redside Dace are underway. Locations were determined based on the presence and absence of the species among the headwaters of the watershed.
Two replicate detection sites: Dace Present
Two non-detection sites: Dace Absent
Dante Bresolin - Patterns of diversity in stream macroinvertebrate communities across the Sydenham River watershed (SW Ontario) complement Unionid species at risk
Benthic biomonitoring relies on differences in invertebrate communities which are shaped by factors at both broad and fine scales.
The Sydenham River watershed is a freshwater biodiversity hotspot, where conservation efforts have focused on unionid mussels and fish species at risk.
This research seeks to understand what factors drive differences in invertebrate communities within and across catchment scales.
Lauren Damphousse - Quantifying the effectiveness of Unionid species at risk translocations due to river infrastructure activity: A case study of the Grand River, Canada
By synthesizing data on 78 reports spanning 23 translocations, we are hoping to answer multiple questions regarding translocation processes and impacts up to this point, such as:
How are translocations currently being performed in southern Ontario?
What is the affect on freshwater mussel SAR in southern Ontario by these translocations?
Julia Willsie - Disentangling host fish and invertebrate community interactions to conserve imperiled freshwater mussels in the Sydenham River, Ontario, Canada
In order to help conserve freshwater mussels, we need to understand host-fish relationships and threats affecting the relationships. There is missing host-fish relationship data in the literature – our goal is to look at relationships between/among freshwater mussels and fish
• Host fish
• Habitat requirements
Julia’s research seeks to meet two objectives:
Increase the distribution knowledge of mussels classified as at risk of extinction in the Sydenham River watershed
Synthesize existing knowledge on host fish and freshwater mussel SAR relationships in the Sydenham River watershed
Jessica Robson - BENTHIC MACROINVERTEBRATES of DETROIT RIVER WETLANDS and TRIBUTARIES
The Detroit River is a Great Lakes Area of Concern(AOC) with beneficial use impairments to benthic communities along the U.S. locations and recently re-assessed unimpaired benthic communities in Canadian portions of the AOC. However, habitat assessments of wetlands have indicated possible stress at wetland locations receiving inflow from Turkey Creek and River Canard tributaries. The wetlands have been shown to range from degraded to unimpaired using a water quality index. This study seeks to compare benthic macroinvertebrate communities across five Detroit River wetlands inclusive of tributary influenced wetlands.
Thursday, May 19th:
Plenary: Collaborations with Communities
10:30am-12:00pm; DeVos Place - Exhibit Hall C
Dr. Catherine Febria will be wrapping up HHL’s lineup by holding a plenary with Dr. Andrea Reid from UBC. Check out Dr. Febria’s session Moving Forward in a Good Way: Transforming Collaborations Towards Ethical and Equitable Partnerships in Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, as well as Dr. Reid’s!
