From Fragmentation to Recovery: Hydropower Impacts on River Connectivity and Fish Diversity Conservation in China's Dongjiang River.

ABSTRACT: This study quantified the Habitat Connectivity Index (DCI) of cascade dams in the mainstream of the Dongjiang River, revealing the non-linear relationship between dam passability (p) and connectivity restoration. Results showed that DCI increased slowly when p < 0.6 (with the magnitude of increase not exceeding 10.41), whereas an exponential response emerged when p > 0.8 (specifically, DCI rose by 16.53 as p increased from 0.8 to 0.9). Time-series analysis indicated that the number of dams increased from 3 to 16 between 1970 and 2020, which plunged the natural-state DCI (set at 100) to 9.01 (representing a 90.99% decrease); notably, 78.14% of the total connectivity loss occurred during the 2000-2010 period. Spatial heterogeneity analysis demonstrated that enhancing the passab

SUBMITTER: Li H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12466410 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature