Species-environment relationships of fish and map-based variables in
small boreal streams: linkages with climate change and bioassessment
Abstract
Species-environment relationships were studied between the occurrence of
13 fish and lamprey species and 9 mainly map-based environmental
variables of Finnish boreal small streams. A self-organizing map (SOM)
analysis showed strong relationships between the fish species and
environmental variables in a single model (explained variance 55.9%).
Besides basic environmental variables such as altitude, catchment size,
and mean temperature, landcover variables were also explored. A logistic
regression analysis indicated that the occurrence probability of brown
trout, Salmo trutta L., decreased with an increasing percentage
of peatland ditch drainage in the upper catchment. Ninespine
stickleback, Pungitius pungitius (L.), and three-spined
stickleback, Gasterosteus aculeatus L., seemed to benefit from
urban areas in the upper catchment. Discovered relationships between
fish species occurrence and land-use attributes are encouraging for the
development of fish-based bioassessment for small streams. The presented
ordination of the fish species in the mean temperature gradient will
help in predicting fish community responses to climate change.