Visfauna - Juvenile and adult fishes in riparian habitats along the river Yser in Flanders, Belgium

Ans Mouton; Dimitri Brosens; Peter Desmet

doi:10.15468/keplkx

Visfauna - Juvenile and adult fishes in riparian habitats along the river Yser in Flanders, Belgium

Citation

Mouton A, Brosens D, Desmet P (2021). Visfauna - Juvenile and adult fishes in riparian habitats along the river Yser in Flanders, Belgium. Version 9.5. Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO). Occurrence dataset https://doi.org/10.15468/keplkx accessed via GBIF.org on 2025-05-17.

Description

Visfauna - Juvenile and adult fishes in riparian habitats along the river Yser in Flanders, Belgium is a species occurrence dataset published by the Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO). The dataset contains over 5,800 fish occurrences sampled in 2008 in riparian habitats along the river Yser. The dataset includes 22 fish species. The data are collected to evaluate the role of restored riparian habitats for the spawning and nursery of juvenile fish and are discussed in Mouton et al. 2011. The dataset also includes the length of the caught fishes. Issues with the dataset can be reported at https://github.com/LifeWatchINBO/data-publication/tree/master/datasets/visfauna-ijzer-occurrences

To allow anyone to use this dataset, we have released the data to the public domain under a Creative Commons Zero waiver (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/). We would appreciate it however if you read and follow these norms for data use (http://www.inbo.be/en/norms-for-data-use) and provide a link to the original dataset (https://doi.org/10.15468/keplkx) whenever possible. If you use these data for a scientific paper, please cite the dataset following the applicable citation norms and/or consider us for co-authorship. We are always interested to know how you have used or visualized the data, or to provide more information, so please contact us via the contact information provided in the metadata, opendata@inbo.be or https://twitter.com/LifeWatchINBO.

Purpose

For many years, navigable lowland rivers have been embanked artificially or suffered from substantial shipping wave action, leading to habitat degradation. Recently, riparian habitats were restored by creating foreshores and spawning grounds in the river Yser, a lowland river in Flanders, Belgium. The aim of the research was to evaluate the role of these restored habitats for spawning and nursery of juvenile fish. To cover a wide range of anthropogenic disruption, four riparian mesohabitat types were selected and compared, ranging from semi‐natural, over artificial spawning grounds and foreshores, to artificial embankments. Juvenile fish were subjected to sampling by using electrofishing between June and September 2009 at different microhabitats located in five sites of each riparian mesohabitat type. The study (Mouton et al. 2011) found that juvenile fish strongly preferred natural riparian habitats, whereas artificial embankments showed the lowest species richness, abundance and functional organization of juvenile fish species. Restored riparian habitats appeared to be an appropriate alternative for artificial embankments in navigable lowland rivers, but still score significantly less than natural habitats. Juvenile fish avoided bare microhabitats, but did not prefer any other microhabitat type (reed, woody or grassy vegetation), emphasizing the importance of microhabitat diversity.

Sampling Description

Study Extent

Five microhabitat sites for each of the four riparian mesohabitat types along the river Yser in Flanders, Belgium.

Sampling

The juvenile fish were sampled using electrofishing, between June and September 2009. The number of individuals was recorded, as well as fork length (tip of snout to fork of tail in millimeter).

Quality Control

All records are validated.

Method steps

Electrofishing was used to sample the riparian habitats.

Taxonomic Coverages

All 22 species in this dataset are fishes (Actinopterygii). The top 3 recorded species are Abramis brama (29%), Rutilus rutilus (29%), and Gasterosteus aculeatus (14%).

Animalia
common name: animals rank: kingdom
Actinopterygii
common name: ray-finned fishes rank: class
Abramis brama
common name: common bream rank: species
Alburnus alburnus
common name: bleak rank: species
Anguilla anguilla
common name: European eel rank: species
Barbatula barbatula
common name: stone loach rank: species
Blicca bjoerkna
common name: silver bream rank: species
Carassius gibelio
common name: Prussian carp rank: species
Cobitis taenia
common name: spined loach rank: species
Cyprinus carpio
common name: common carp rank: species
Esox lucius
common name: northern pike rank: species
Gasterosteus aculeatus
common name: three-spined stickleback rank: species
Gobio gobio
common name: gudgeon rank: species
Gymnocephalus cernuus
common name: Eurasian ruffe rank: species
Leuciscus idus
common name: ide rank: species
Perca fluviatilis
common name: European perch rank: species
Platichthys flesus
common name: European flounder rank: species
Pseudorasbora parva
common name: stone moroko rank: species
Pungitius pungitius
common name: ninespine stickleback rank: species
Rhodeus amarus
common name: European bitterling rank: species
Rutilus rutilus
common name: common roach rank: species
Sander lucioperca
common name: zander rank: species
Scardinius erythrophthalmus
common name: common rudd rank: species
Tinca tinca
common name: tench rank: species

Geographic Coverages

Riparian habitats along the river Yser in Flanders, Belgium. The river enters Belgium in the province of West Flanders and drains into the sea near the town of Nieuwpoort.

Bibliographic Citations

Mouton A, Buysse D, Stevens M, Van den Neucker T, Coeck J (2011) Evaluation of riparian habitat restoration in a lowland river. River Research and Applicatioins 28(7): 845-857. https://doi.org/10.1002/rra.1500 -

Contacts

Ans Mouton
originator
Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO)
BE
email: ans.mouton@inbo.be

Dimitri Brosens
originator
Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO) / Belgian Biodiversity Platform
BE
email: dimitri.brosens@inbo.be
userId: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0846-9116

Peter Desmet
originator
Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO)
BE
email: peter.desmet@inbo.be
userId: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-8442-8025

Ans Mouton
metadata author
Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO)
BE
email: ans.mouton@inbo.be

Dimitri Brosens
metadata author
Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO) / Belgian Biodiversity Platform
BE
email: dimitri.brosens@inbo.be
userId: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0846-9116

Peter Desmet
metadata author
Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO)
BE
email: peter.desmet@inbo.be
userId: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-8442-8025

Ans Mouton
administrative point of contact
Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO)
BE
email: ans.mouton@inbo.be