Hydropeaking affects germination and establishment of riverbank vegetation ...

• Main Authors: Bejarano, María D., Sordo-Ward, Álvaro, Alonso, Carlos, Jansson, Roland, Nilsson, Christer
• Format: Dataset
• Language: English
• Published: Dryad 2019
• Subjects: Drag; hydropower plant; inundation; phytometer; riverine vegetation; sub‐daily water‐level variables; Northern Sweden
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.5061/dryad.sqv9s4n0m; https://datadryad.org/stash/dataset/doi:10.5061/dryad.sqv9s4n0m

Hydropeaking, defined as frequent and rapid variation in flow in regulated rivers with hydropower plants over a short period of time, usually sub-daily to weekly, alters hydraulic parameters such as water levels or flow velocity and exerts strong impacts on fluvial ecosystems. We evaluated the effects of hydropeaking on riverbank vegetation, specifically assessing the germination and establishment of seedlings and cuttings of plant species representing a variation in traits. We used seeds and seedlings and cuttings varying in size as phytometers, and transplanted them to riverbanks both above and below dams used for hydropower production in northern Sweden, selected to represent a gradient in hydropeaking intensity, and along a free-flowing reach. We also analyzed sub-daily water level variables modified by hydropeaking to identify variables key in explaining the observed vegetation patterns. We found that plant responses to hydropeaking varied with species, with flood-intolerant species being the most ... : Water level data and vegetation performance data were collected from the Ume and Vindel rivers in Northern Sweden, along experimental riparian levels parallel to the water edge, in several experimental sites per river reach. Water levels were measured by pressure transducer data loggers (Rugged Baro and Diver TROLL 100 Data Logger) every 15 minutes, during the growing season. Vegetation performance involved in-situ measurements of the germination success, stem length and whether plants were alive or had been moved or displaced. They also involved lab measurements of dry plant biomass. ...