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Haase P, Bowler DE, Baker NJ, Bonada N, Domisch S, Garcia Marquez JR, Heino J, Hering D, Jähnig SC, Schmidt-Kloiber A, Stubbington R, Altermatt F, Álvarez-Cabria M, Amatulli G, Angeler DG, Archambaud-Suard G, Jorrín IA, Aspin T, Azpiroz I, Bañares I, Ortiz JB, Bodin CL, Bonacina L, Bottarin R, Cañedo-Argüelles M, Csabai Z, Datry T, de Eyto E, Dohet A, Dörflinger G, Drohan E, Eikland KA, England J, Eriksen TE, Evtimova V, Feio MJ, Ferréol M, Floury M, Forcellini M, Forio MAE, Fornaroli R, Friberg N, Fruget JF, Georgieva G, Goethals P, Graça MAS, Graf W, House A, Huttunen KL, Jensen TC, Johnson RK, Jones JI, Kiesel J, Kuglerová L, Larrañaga A, Leitner P, L'Hoste L, Lizée MH, Lorenz AW, Maire A, Arnaiz JAM, McKie BG, Millán A, Monteith D, Muotka T, Murphy JF, Ozolins D, Paavola R, Paril P, Peñas FJ, Pilotto F, Polášek M, Rasmussen JJ, Rubio M, Sánchez-Fernández D, Sandin L, Schäfer RB, Scotti A, Shen LQ, Skuja A, Stoll S, Straka M, Timm H, Tyufekchieva VG, Tziortzis I, Uzunov Y, van der Lee GH, Vannevel R, Varadinova E, Várbíró G, Velle G, Verdonschot PFM, Verdonschot RCM, Vidinova Y, Wiberg-Larsen P, Welti EAR. The recovery of European freshwater biodiversity has come to a halt. Nature 2023; 620:582-588. [PMID: 37558875 PMCID: PMC10432276 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-06400-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2022] [Accepted: 07/04/2023] [Indexed: 08/11/2023]
Abstract
Owing to a long history of anthropogenic pressures, freshwater ecosystems are among the most vulnerable to biodiversity loss1. Mitigation measures, including wastewater treatment and hydromorphological restoration, have aimed to improve environmental quality and foster the recovery of freshwater biodiversity2. Here, using 1,816 time series of freshwater invertebrate communities collected across 22 European countries between 1968 and 2020, we quantified temporal trends in taxonomic and functional diversity and their responses to environmental pressures and gradients. We observed overall increases in taxon richness (0.73% per year), functional richness (2.4% per year) and abundance (1.17% per year). However, these increases primarily occurred before the 2010s, and have since plateaued. Freshwater communities downstream of dams, urban areas and cropland were less likely to experience recovery. Communities at sites with faster rates of warming had fewer gains in taxon richness, functional richness and abundance. Although biodiversity gains in the 1990s and 2000s probably reflect the effectiveness of water-quality improvements and restoration projects, the decelerating trajectory in the 2010s suggests that the current measures offer diminishing returns. Given new and persistent pressures on freshwater ecosystems, including emerging pollutants, climate change and the spread of invasive species, we call for additional mitigation to revive the recovery of freshwater biodiversity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter Haase
- Department of River Ecology and Conservation, Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum Frankfurt, Gelnhausen, Germany.
- Faculty of Biology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany.
| | - Diana E Bowler
- Department of Ecosystem Services, German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
- Institute of Biodiversity, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Jena, Germany
- Department of Ecosystem Services, Helmholtz Center for Environmental Research-UFZ, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Nathan J Baker
- Department of River Ecology and Conservation, Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum Frankfurt, Gelnhausen, Germany
- Laboratory of Evolutionary Ecology of Hydrobionts, Nature Research Centre, Vilnius, Lithuania
| | - Núria Bonada
- FEHM-Lab (Freshwater Ecology, Hydrology and Management), Department of Evolutionary Biology, Ecology and Environmental Sciences, Facultat de Biologia, Institut de Recerca de la Biodiversitat (IRBio), University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Sami Domisch
- Department of Community and Ecosystem Ecology, Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB), Berlin, Germany
| | - Jaime R Garcia Marquez
- Department of Community and Ecosystem Ecology, Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB), Berlin, Germany
| | - Jani Heino
- Geography Research Unit, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Daniel Hering
- Faculty of Biology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany
| | - Sonja C Jähnig
- Department of Community and Ecosystem Ecology, Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB), Berlin, Germany
- Geography Department, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Astrid Schmidt-Kloiber
- Department of Water, Atmosphere and Environment, Institute of Hydrobiology and Aquatic Ecosystem Management, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria
| | - Rachel Stubbington
- School of Science and Technology, Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham, UK
| | - Florian Altermatt
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland
- Department of Aquatic Ecology, Eawag: Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Dübendorf, Switzerland
| | - Mario Álvarez-Cabria
- IHCantabria-Instituto de Hidráulica Ambiental de la Universidad de Cantabria, Santander, Spain
| | | | - David G Angeler
- Department of Aquatic Sciences and Assessment, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, Sweden
- IMPACT, The Institute for Mental and Physical Health and Clinical Translation, Deakin University, Geelong, Victoria, Australia
- Brain Capital Alliance, San Francisco, CA, USA
- School of Natural Resources, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE, USA
| | - Gaït Archambaud-Suard
- INRAE, UMR RECOVER Aix Marseille Univ, Centre d'Aix-en-Provence, Aix-en-Provence, France
| | | | | | | | - Iñaki Bañares
- Departamento de Medio Ambiente y Obras Hidráulicas, Diputación Foral de Gipuzkoa, Donostia-San Sebastián, Spain
| | - José Barquín Ortiz
- IHCantabria-Instituto de Hidráulica Ambiental de la Universidad de Cantabria, Santander, Spain
| | - Christian L Bodin
- LFI-The Laboratory for Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries, NORCE Norwegian Research Centre, Bergen, Norway
| | - Luca Bonacina
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences-DISAT, University of Milano-Bicocca, Milan, Italy
| | - Roberta Bottarin
- Institute for Alpine Environment, Eurac Research, Bolzano, Italy
| | - Miguel Cañedo-Argüelles
- FEHM-Lab (Freshwater Ecology, Hydrology and Management), Department of Evolutionary Biology, Ecology and Environmental Sciences, Facultat de Biologia, Institut de Recerca de la Biodiversitat (IRBio), University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
- FEHM-Lab, Institute of Environmental Assessment and Water Research (IDAEA), CSIC, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Zoltán Csabai
- Department of Hydrobiology, University of Pécs, Pécs, Hungary
- Department of Botany and Zoology, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Thibault Datry
- INRAE, UR RiverLy, Centre de Lyon-Villeurbanne, Villeurbanne, France
| | - Elvira de Eyto
- Fisheries Ecosystems Advisory Services, Marine Institute, Newport, Ireland
| | - Alain Dohet
- Environmental Research and Innovation Department, Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Gerald Dörflinger
- Water Development Department, Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment, Nicosia, Cyprus
| | - Emma Drohan
- Centre for Freshwater and Environmental Studies, Dundalk Institute of Technology, Dundalk, Ireland
| | - Knut A Eikland
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), Oslo, Norway
| | | | - Tor E Eriksen
- Norwegian Institute for Water Research, Oslo, Norway
| | - Vesela Evtimova
- Department of Aquatic Ecosystems, Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Sofia, Bulgaria
| | - Maria J Feio
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra, Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, ARNET, Coimbra, Portugal
| | - Martial Ferréol
- INRAE, UR RiverLy, Centre de Lyon-Villeurbanne, Villeurbanne, France
| | - Mathieu Floury
- Department of Community and Ecosystem Ecology, Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB), Berlin, Germany
- Univ Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, CNRS, ENTPE, UMR 5023 LEHNA, Villeurbanne, France
| | | | | | - Riccardo Fornaroli
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences-DISAT, University of Milano-Bicocca, Milan, Italy
| | - Nikolai Friberg
- Norwegian Institute for Water Research, Oslo, Norway
- Freshwater Biological Section, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
- water@leeds, School of Geography, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK
| | | | - Galia Georgieva
- Department of Aquatic Ecosystems, Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Sofia, Bulgaria
| | - Peter Goethals
- Department of Animal Sciences and Aquatic Ecology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Manuel A S Graça
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra, Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, ARNET, Coimbra, Portugal
| | - Wolfram Graf
- Department of Water, Atmosphere and Environment, Institute of Hydrobiology and Aquatic Ecosystem Management, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria
| | | | | | - Thomas C Jensen
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), Oslo, Norway
| | - Richard K Johnson
- Department of Aquatic Sciences and Assessment, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - J Iwan Jones
- School of Biological and Behavioural Sciences, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK
| | - Jens Kiesel
- Department of Community and Ecosystem Ecology, Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB), Berlin, Germany
- Department of Hydrology and Water Resources Management, Christian-Albrechts-University Kiel, Institute for Natural Resource Conservation, Kiel, Germany
| | - Lenka Kuglerová
- Department of Forest Ecology and Management, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Aitor Larrañaga
- Department of Plant Biology and Ecology, University of the Basque Country, Leioa, Spain
| | - Patrick Leitner
- Department of Water, Atmosphere and Environment, Institute of Hydrobiology and Aquatic Ecosystem Management, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria
| | - Lionel L'Hoste
- Environmental Research and Innovation Department, Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Marie-Helène Lizée
- INRAE, UMR RECOVER Aix Marseille Univ, Centre d'Aix-en-Provence, Aix-en-Provence, France
| | - Armin W Lorenz
- Faculty of Biology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany
| | - Anthony Maire
- Laboratoire National d'Hydraulique et Environnement, EDF Recherche et Développement, Chatou, France
| | | | - Brendan G McKie
- Department of Aquatic Sciences and Assessment, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Andrés Millán
- Department of Ecology and Hydrology, University of Murcia, Murcia, Spain
| | - Don Monteith
- UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster, UK
| | - Timo Muotka
- Department of Ecology and Genetics, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - John F Murphy
- School of Biological and Behavioural Sciences, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK
| | - Davis Ozolins
- Institute of Biology, University of Latvia, Riga, Latvia
| | - Riku Paavola
- Oulanka Research Station, University of Oulu Infrastructure Platform, Kuusamo, Finland
| | - Petr Paril
- Department of Botany and Zoology, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Francisco J Peñas
- IHCantabria-Instituto de Hidráulica Ambiental de la Universidad de Cantabria, Santander, Spain
| | | | - Marek Polášek
- Department of Botany and Zoology, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
| | | | - Manu Rubio
- Ekolur Asesoría Ambiental SLL, Oiartzun, Spain
| | | | - Leonard Sandin
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), Oslo, Norway
| | - Ralf B Schäfer
- Institute for Environmental Science, RPTU Kaiserslautern-Landau, Landau, Germany
| | - Alberto Scotti
- Institute for Alpine Environment, Eurac Research, Bolzano, Italy
- APEM, Stockport, UK
| | - Longzhu Q Shen
- Department of Community and Ecosystem Ecology, Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB), Berlin, Germany
- Institute for Green Science, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Agnija Skuja
- Institute of Biology, University of Latvia, Riga, Latvia
| | - Stefan Stoll
- Faculty of Biology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany
- Department of Environmental Planning / Environmental Technology, University of Applied Sciences Trier, Birkenfeld, Germany
| | - Michal Straka
- Department of Botany and Zoology, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
- T.G. Masaryk Water Research Institute, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Henn Timm
- Chair of Hydrobiology and Fishery, Centre for Limnology, Estonian University of Life Sciences, Elva vald, Estonia
| | - Violeta G Tyufekchieva
- Department of Aquatic Ecosystems, Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Sofia, Bulgaria
| | - Iakovos Tziortzis
- Water Development Department, Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment, Nicosia, Cyprus
| | - Yordan Uzunov
- Department of Aquatic Ecosystems, Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Sofia, Bulgaria
| | - Gea H van der Lee
- Wageningen Environmental Research, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Rudy Vannevel
- Department of Animal Sciences and Aquatic Ecology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
- Flanders Environment Agency, Aalst, Belgium
| | - Emilia Varadinova
- Department of Aquatic Ecosystems, Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Sofia, Bulgaria
- Department of Geography, Ecology and Environment Protection, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, South-West University 'Neofit Rilski', Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria
| | - Gábor Várbíró
- Department of Tisza River Research, Centre for Ecological Research, Institute of Aquatic Ecology, Debrecen, Hungary
| | - Gaute Velle
- LFI-The Laboratory for Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries, NORCE Norwegian Research Centre, Bergen, Norway
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
| | - Piet F M Verdonschot
- Wageningen Environmental Research, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, The Netherlands
- Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Ralf C M Verdonschot
- Wageningen Environmental Research, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Yanka Vidinova
- Department of Aquatic Ecosystems, Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Sofia, Bulgaria
| | | | - Ellen A R Welti
- Department of River Ecology and Conservation, Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum Frankfurt, Gelnhausen, Germany.
- Conservation Ecology Center, Smithsonian National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute, Front Royal, VA, USA.
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