Thursday May 29, 2025
PhysOrg —
A global review of research around the impacts of dams has found they are significantly harmful to diadromous species—fish, eels, crustaceans and snails that rely on connected rivers and oceans to complete their life cycles.
University of Tasmania freshwater animal ecologist and lecturer, Dr. Jia Huan Liew, together with colleagues, including lead author Jeffrey Chan from the University of Hong Kong, found these disruptions to migratory species were far-reaching: reducing the abundance of species, species diversity and genetic diversity among populations.
Published in Biological Reviews, the study is the first comprehensive global synthesis of the impacts of dam-induced fragmentation on diadromous species.
Dr. Liew said the study, which looked at more than 100 prior research outcomes, confirmed that dams represented a major threat to freshwater biodiversity.