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Field Museum CI AquaRAP

Rapid Assessment of Aquatic Ecosystems

An Interdisciplinary, International Program

Developing Integrated Solutions

For a Sustainable Future

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International:• scientists from 7 countries in

South America

Interdisciplinary• 5 scientific disciplines

AquaRAP

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Conservation of Aquatic Ecosystems

• Include Humans in Ecosystem

• Integrated, Sustainable Use Plans

• Watershed is Unit of Conservation

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River Basin -- Watershed

• headwaters• springs• streams• lakes• flooded areas• riffles - rapids• main channels• deltas

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River Basin -- Watershed

• fishes and the forest

• long distance migrations

• dynamic life histories

• ecological services

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Rainy Season – High Water

Fishes in Forest

Flooded Forests: Feeding Reproduction Nursery Area 28

Early Rainy Season:Upstream Migration

(adults)

Early – Mid Dry Season:Downstream Migration

(adults, juveniles, larvae)

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Rapid Assessment (RAP) is an important toolin Conservation Biology

RAP provides a critical across taxon perspectiveat the distributions within a watershed

Landscape level approach that results in first passscientific information and conservation

strategy

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RAP Programs face a number of challenges:

• Turn lists of taxa into conservation strategies

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Fishes collected during AquaRAP expedition to Pando, Bolivia inSeptember 1996.Jaime Sarmiento, Barry Chernoff, Soraya Barrera, Antonio Machado-Allison, NarcioMenezes, and Hernan OrtegaTAXA Upper

NareudaLower

NareudaUpper

TahuamanuMiddle

TahuamanuLower

TahuamanuManuripi

RajiformesPotamotrygonidae

Potamotrygon motoro - - - -

ClupeiformesEngraulidae

Anchoviella cf. carrikeri - - - -

CharaciformesAnostomidae

Abramites hypselonotus - - - Laemolyta sp. - - - - - Leporinus cf. fasciatus - - - - - Leporinus friderici - - - Leporinus cf. nattereri - - - - Schizodon fasciatum - - -

CharacidaeAphyocharax alburnus - - - -Aphyocharax dentatus - Aphyocharax pusillus - - - Astyanax cf. abramis Astyanax sp. - - - - -Brachychalcinus copei - - -Bryconamericus cf. caucanus - - - - -

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RAP Programs face a number of challenges:

• Turn lists of taxa into conservation strategies

• Adhere to scientific principles

• Use data to test basic null hypotheses

• Establish preliminary hypotheses upon which longer term studies can be based

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Are species distributed:

Randomly?

Homogeneously?

Heterogeneously?

Among subregions or macrohabitats within watershed or area of interest

Conservation Strategy depends upon Answer

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Testing hypotheses of distribution with RAP data can lead to Type I Error -- the false rejection of a true null hypothesis!

But we are willing to take this risk in order todevelop conservation strategies that are over determined with the effect that they will help topreserve more rather than fewer species.

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R Cspecies 1 1 species 2 1 1species 3 1 species 4 1 1species 5 1 species 6 1 1species 7 1 1species 8 1 species 9 1 1species 10 1

How similarare these habitats?

50% or 100% ?

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Solution:depends uponinterpretationof absences!

R Cspecies 1 1 species 2 1 1species 3 1 species 4 1 1species 5 1 species 6 1 1species 7 1 1species 8 1 species 9 1 1species 10 1

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R Cspecies 1 1 species 2 1 1species 3 1 species 4 1 1species 5 1 species 6 1 1species 7 1 1species 8 1 species 9 1 1species 10 1

For RapidAssessmentData:

Absences areambiguous!

Therefore:similarity is100%, discountabsences.

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