Patterns of dispersal through stream networks respond simply to multiple structural modifications

Abstract

Planning of catchment-scale programs of stream restoration requires an ability to predict the combination of small-scale projects that will provide the greatest ecological benefit. However, we lack the tools to predict where within stream systems restoration should be undertaken to achieve maximum ecological benefit, or to quantify the cumulative effect of multiple small-scale projects. Stream systems form Dendritic Ecological Networks (DENs), which differ from other ecological networks in terms of their complexity, and possible routes of dispersal for organisms. The restricted topography of a DEN means that a single intervention in a network may have greater consequences than would such an ..