New Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research abstracts

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Effects of logging with and without riparian strips on fish species abundance, mean size, and the structure of native fish assemblages in Coromandel, New Zealand, streams

David K. Rowe

Joshua Smith

John Quinn

Ian Boothroyd

National Institute of Water & Atmospheric Research Ltd
P.O. Box 11 115
Hamilton, New Zealand
email: d.rowe@niwa.cri.nz

Abstract   We determined the effects of logging, both with and without a riparian buffer strip, on the native fish fauna at 27 stream sites in an exotic pine (mainly Pinus radiata ) forest on the Coromandel Peninsula, New Zealand. Fish abundance at the logged sites was compared with reference sites in both unlogged pine and native forest. The abundance of Anguilla dieffenbachii (Gray) and Anguilla australis (Richardson) was not significantly affected by logging. However, the abundance of Galaxias fasciatus (Gray) and Gobiomorphus huttoni (Ogilby) was. There were fewer Ga. fasciatus at the logged sites without buffers than at the reference sites, but more at the logged sites with buffers. The abundance of Go. huttoni was higher at the logged sites than at the reference sites, and was highest at the logged sites with riparian buffers. Overall, the different, species-specific responses to logging maximised total fish numbers at the logged sites. As total fish numbers, the abundance of Ga. fasciatus , and species equitability, a measure of fish assemblage structure, were all highest at the logged sites with riparian buffer strips, we concluded that riparian strips enhanced the native fish community of streams within these logged catchments.

Keywords   banded kokopu; redfinned bullies; longfinned eels; shortfinned eels; fish numbers; forestry; pine trees; land use

M01006 Received 5 January 2001; accepted 21 September 2001
New Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research, 2002, Vol. 36 : 67–79
0028–8330/02/3601–0067 $7.00 © The Royal Society of New Zealand 2002

PDF file of entire paper: Print-quality

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