TY - JOUR
T1 - Riverine macrosystems ecology
T2 - Sensitivity, resistance, and resilience of whole river basins with human alterations
AU - McCluney, K.E.
AU - POFF, LeRoy
AU - Palmer, M.A.
AU - Thorp, J.H.
AU - Poole, G.C.
AU - Williams, B.S.
AU - Williams, M.R.
AU - Baron, J.S.
N1 - Funding Information:
We thank the participants of the March 2012 NSFMacroSystems Biology PI meeting in Boulder, Colorado, for providing the impetus for this paper and this Special Issue. In particular, we thank E Blood and H Gholz (NSF) for their support and M Bremigan, M Moore, and N Vermeulen for helpful comments on earlier drafts. SJG thanks C Gruzling, N Gruzling, and A Goring for support, and the PalEON project for providing a rewarding collaborative environment. We also acknowledge the MacroSystems Biology Program, in the Emerging Frontiers Division of the Biological Sciences Directorate at NSF, for support. SJG is supported by NSF grant EF1065656, KCW is supported by grant EF1137327, WKD and JR are supported by grant EF1065255, PAS and KSC are supported by grant EF1065986, LCS is supported by grant EF1065864, JSK is supported by grant EF1064998, and RMU is supported by NSF cooperative agreement EF1138160. For author contributions, see WebPanel 1.
PY - 2014/2
Y1 - 2014/2
N2 - Riverine macrosystems are described here as watershed-scale networks of connected and interacting riverine and upland habitat patches. Such systems are driven by variable responses of nutrients and organisms to a suite of global and regional factors (eg climate, human social systems) interacting with finer-scale variations in geo-logy, topography, and human modifications. We hypothesize that spatial heterogeneity, connectivity, and asynchrony among these patches regulate ecological dynamics of whole networks, altering system sensitivity, resistance, and resilience. Long-distance connections between patches may be particularly important in riverine macrosystems, shaping fundamental system properties. Furthermore, the type, extent, intensity, and spatial configuration of human activities (eg land-use change, dam construction) influence watershed-wide ecological properties through effects on habitat heterogeneity and connectivity at multiple scales. Thus, riverine macrosystems are coupled social–ecological systems with feedbacks that influence system responses to environ-mental change and the sustainable delivery of ecosystem services.
AB - Riverine macrosystems are described here as watershed-scale networks of connected and interacting riverine and upland habitat patches. Such systems are driven by variable responses of nutrients and organisms to a suite of global and regional factors (eg climate, human social systems) interacting with finer-scale variations in geo-logy, topography, and human modifications. We hypothesize that spatial heterogeneity, connectivity, and asynchrony among these patches regulate ecological dynamics of whole networks, altering system sensitivity, resistance, and resilience. Long-distance connections between patches may be particularly important in riverine macrosystems, shaping fundamental system properties. Furthermore, the type, extent, intensity, and spatial configuration of human activities (eg land-use change, dam construction) influence watershed-wide ecological properties through effects on habitat heterogeneity and connectivity at multiple scales. Thus, riverine macrosystems are coupled social–ecological systems with feedbacks that influence system responses to environ-mental change and the sustainable delivery of ecosystem services.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84890218168&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1890/120367
DO - 10.1890/120367
M3 - Article
SN - 1540-9295
VL - 12
SP - 48
EP - 58
JO - Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment
JF - Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment
IS - 1
ER -
