Collaborative Research: Influences of Predators, Habitat Structure and Disturbance on Corridor Movement by Stream Fish

9520469乔里安人类活动极大地破坏了这片土地，因此，关键的栖息地往往是孤立的。虽然人们普遍认为通过走廊重新连接这些与世隔绝的栖息地是可取的，但人们对动物在走廊中的活动知之甚少。这项研究的目的是调查河流廊道的特性，该特性可能促进或阻碍鱼类在支流之间的移动。在研究系统中，一种捕食性鱼类将分水岭分为两个区域：一个较低的区域，捕食者在河流中很常见，但没有毗邻的支流，而较高的区域，没有捕食者。这项研究将测试三个假设，即捕食者、河流的物理结构和季节性洪水如何相互作用，促进或减缓被捕食者沿着连接支流的河流走廊的运动。这些假设将通过以下方式得到检验：(1)对流域上下游地区的鱼类进行大型标记实验，跟踪整个雨季和旱季的活动；(2)在试验性溪流设施中进行现场研究，可以操纵捕食者和物理结构；以及(3)对流域上游和下游支流的种群进行比较遗传分析。通过重点研究走廊的物理和生物特性如何促进或减缓生物在走廊中的移动，该项目将有助于我们未来设计重新连接栖息地碎片的现实走廊的能力。因此，本研究适用于物种保护和生物多样性管理。

9520469 Gilliam Human activities have greatly fragmented the landscape, and as a result, critical habitats are often isolated. While it is generally considered desirable to reconnect such isolated habitats by means of corridors, little is known about the movement of animals through corridors. The goal of this study is to investigate the properties of a river corridor that may facilitate or retard the movement of a fish between tributaries. In the study system a predatory fish divided the watershed into two zones: a lower zone in which the predator is common in the river but not adjoining tributaries, and an upper zone in which the predator is absent. The research will test three hypotheses about how the predator, physical structure of the river, and seasonal floods can interact to promote or retard movement of the prey fish along the river corridor connecting tributaries. The hypotheses will be tested by: (1) a large marking experiment with fish in the upper and lower zones of the watershed, in which movement will be followed through wet and dry seasons, (2) a study in an experimental stream facility, on-site, in which predators and physical structure can be manipulated, and (3) a comparative genetic analysis of the populations in the tributaries in the upper and lower zones of the watershed. By focusing on how physical and biological properties of corridors can work to facilitate or retard movement of an organism through a corridor, this project will contribute to our future ability to design realistic corridors reconnecting habitat fragments. Therefore, the research is applicable to conservation of species and management of biodiversity.