Conference Paper
Conservation status of stygobionts in Texas, United States.
Hutchins, B.T.
Record Number:
3894
Year:
2016
Abstract:
Conservation status assessments for rare species can be an important tool to 1) prioritize allocation of limited resources for conservation and management, 2) identify common factors threatening multiple taxa, 3) identify data gaps, and 4) highlight vulnerable and overlooked taxa. Using NatureServe methodology, conservation status assessments were performed for all sixty-four stygobiontic invertebrates known from Texas, U.S.A: a large, geographically diverse state harboring an interesting assemblage of stygobionts of both freshwater and marine origin. Thirty-six species (56%) were identified as imperiled or critically imperiled and only a single species was identified as apparently secure. Small-range endemism was the most important factor affecting conservation ranks, and 50% of species occupy an area less than or equal to 5 km2. Despite substantial pressures on groundwater resources throughout the state, threats facing most species were of low or medium severity. Threats varied by aquifer and habitat and were greatest for species in shallow habitats in areas of intense urbanization. Species richness was greatest in the Edwards Aquifer where geology and regulation for federally protected species function to reduce threat severity despite increasing urbanization. Additional protective measures are needed in the adjacent Edwards-Trinity and Trinity Aquifers, which have lower levels of species richness, but fewer water quantity and quality protections. Beetles and snails were the most imperiled taxa, but insufficient data precluded rankings for several species of mites, ostracods, and copepods. Additionally, undescribed stygobionts are known from throughout the state, but are unrankable because of insufficient data. Stygobionts throughout the world face comparable threats, and levels of imperilment calculated for Texas stygobionts are probably not unusual. If so, stygobionts, although not a monophyletic taxon, should be included among the most imperiled of freshwater organisms
Times Cited:
4
Conference Name:
23rd International Conference on Subterranean Biology
Conference Year:
2016
Conference Location:
2016
Conference Location:
2016