Immediate effects of an Amazonian mega hydroelectric dam on phyllostomid fruit bats

Large losses of tropical forests result from the flooding of terrestrial ecosystems by mega hydroelectric dams. Because run-of-the-river dams operate based on smaller reservoirs with limited water storage, they have been generally considered less harmful to the environment, but their actual effects...

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Autores principales:	Paulo Estefano Dineli Bobrowiec, Carla Clarissa Nobre, Valéria da Cunha Tavares
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	Elsevier 2021
Materias:	Amazon Environmental impact assessment Habitat loss Long-term monitoring Run-of-river dam Várzea forest Ecology QH540-549.5
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/deaceca1ba5d478bae50beb5c4bff240
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:deaceca1ba5d478bae50beb5c4bff2402021-12-01T05:02:42ZImmediate effects of an Amazonian mega hydroelectric dam on phyllostomid fruit bats1470-160X10.1016/j.ecolind.2021.108322https://doaj.org/article/deaceca1ba5d478bae50beb5c4bff2402021-12-01T00:00:00Zhttp://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1470160X21009870https://doaj.org/toc/1470-160XLarge losses of tropical forests result from the flooding of terrestrial ecosystems by mega hydroelectric dams. Because run-of-the-river dams operate based on smaller reservoirs with limited water storage, they have been generally considered less harmful to the environment, but their actual effects on biodiversity have been rarely measured. We herein estimate immediate impacts resulting from the flooding of the run-of-the-river Santo Antônio Hydroelectric on phyllostomid bat assemblages, based on the variation of their richness, abundance and species composition over the first two years after the establishment of the dam. We designed a standardized study integrating temporal sampling in areas that would and would not be flooded, before and after the establishment of the dam. We sampled 12 Pre-flood plots, and 34 plots that remained unflood. Among the non-flood plots, 25 were resampled after the river damming. We captured 3096 bats belonging to 59 species and found that the abundance of fruit bats decreased posterior to the formation of the dam. Moreover, the composition of fruit bats was different between the sampling periods, with a clear segregation of the várzea plots of the pre-flood period. Comparisons between pre- and post-unflood plots revealed that 60% of the plots decreased in abundance of bats, and 68% decreased in abundance of phyllostomid fruit bats. Our results demonstrate that the run-of-the-river dam altered the phyllostomid species composition in the non-flooded areas after the establishment of the dam, reducing the abundance of frugivorous bats. Also, the remaining unflood areas did not incorporate bat assemblages from the várzea forests that were permanently flooded by the reservoir. Based on our results, we suggest that environmental policies regulating the licensing processes for the implementation of large hydroelectric power stations should include orientation for the establishment of protected areas, as a condition for their operation. These areas can work as systematic instruments for biodiversity conservation, with special attention to the protection of the irreplaceable floodplain forests.Paulo Estefano Dineli BobrowiecCarla Clarissa NobreValéria da Cunha TavaresElsevierarticleAmazonEnvironmental impact assessmentHabitat lossLong-term monitoringRun-of-river damVárzea forestEcologyQH540-549.5ENEcological Indicators, Vol 132, Iss , Pp 108322- (2021)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	Amazon Environmental impact assessment Habitat loss Long-term monitoring Run-of-river dam Várzea forest Ecology QH540-549.5
spellingShingle	Amazon Environmental impact assessment Habitat loss Long-term monitoring Run-of-river dam Várzea forest Ecology QH540-549.5 Paulo Estefano Dineli Bobrowiec Carla Clarissa Nobre Valéria da Cunha Tavares Immediate effects of an Amazonian mega hydroelectric dam on phyllostomid fruit bats
description	Large losses of tropical forests result from the flooding of terrestrial ecosystems by mega hydroelectric dams. Because run-of-the-river dams operate based on smaller reservoirs with limited water storage, they have been generally considered less harmful to the environment, but their actual effects on biodiversity have been rarely measured. We herein estimate immediate impacts resulting from the flooding of the run-of-the-river Santo Antônio Hydroelectric on phyllostomid bat assemblages, based on the variation of their richness, abundance and species composition over the first two years after the establishment of the dam. We designed a standardized study integrating temporal sampling in areas that would and would not be flooded, before and after the establishment of the dam. We sampled 12 Pre-flood plots, and 34 plots that remained unflood. Among the non-flood plots, 25 were resampled after the river damming. We captured 3096 bats belonging to 59 species and found that the abundance of fruit bats decreased posterior to the formation of the dam. Moreover, the composition of fruit bats was different between the sampling periods, with a clear segregation of the várzea plots of the pre-flood period. Comparisons between pre- and post-unflood plots revealed that 60% of the plots decreased in abundance of bats, and 68% decreased in abundance of phyllostomid fruit bats. Our results demonstrate that the run-of-the-river dam altered the phyllostomid species composition in the non-flooded areas after the establishment of the dam, reducing the abundance of frugivorous bats. Also, the remaining unflood areas did not incorporate bat assemblages from the várzea forests that were permanently flooded by the reservoir. Based on our results, we suggest that environmental policies regulating the licensing processes for the implementation of large hydroelectric power stations should include orientation for the establishment of protected areas, as a condition for their operation. These areas can work as systematic instruments for biodiversity conservation, with special attention to the protection of the irreplaceable floodplain forests.
format	article
author	Paulo Estefano Dineli Bobrowiec Carla Clarissa Nobre Valéria da Cunha Tavares
author_facet	Paulo Estefano Dineli Bobrowiec Carla Clarissa Nobre Valéria da Cunha Tavares
author_sort	Paulo Estefano Dineli Bobrowiec
title	Immediate effects of an Amazonian mega hydroelectric dam on phyllostomid fruit bats
title_short	Immediate effects of an Amazonian mega hydroelectric dam on phyllostomid fruit bats
title_full	Immediate effects of an Amazonian mega hydroelectric dam on phyllostomid fruit bats
title_fullStr	Immediate effects of an Amazonian mega hydroelectric dam on phyllostomid fruit bats
title_full_unstemmed	Immediate effects of an Amazonian mega hydroelectric dam on phyllostomid fruit bats
title_sort	immediate effects of an amazonian mega hydroelectric dam on phyllostomid fruit bats
publisher	Elsevier
publishDate	2021
url	https://doaj.org/article/deaceca1ba5d478bae50beb5c4bff240
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Immediate effects of an Amazonian mega hydroelectric dam on phyllostomid fruit bats

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