eDNA Metabarcoding Analysis of the Composition and Spatial Patterns of Fish Communities in the Sanbanxi Reservoir, China

Xiuhui Ma, Hanwei Yang, Xue Zhong, Peng Zeng, Xianjun Zhou, Sheng Zeng, Xianghong Dong, Wenwu Min and Fujiang Huang ()
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Xiuhui Ma: School of Animal Science, Guizhou University, Guiyang 550025, China
Hanwei Yang: School of Animal Science, Guizhou University, Guiyang 550025, China
Xue Zhong: School of Animal Science, Guizhou University, Guiyang 550025, China
Peng Zeng: School of Animal Science, Guizhou University, Guiyang 550025, China
Xianjun Zhou: School of Animal Science, Guizhou University, Guiyang 550025, China
Sheng Zeng: Fisheries Research Institute, Academy of Agricultural Sciences of Guizhou, Guiyang 550025, China
Xianghong Dong: School of Animal Science, Guizhou University, Guiyang 550025, China
Wenwu Min: Fisheries Research Institute, Academy of Agricultural Sciences of Guizhou, Guiyang 550025, China
Fujiang Huang: Fisheries Research Institute, Academy of Agricultural Sciences of Guizhou, Guiyang 550025, China

Sustainability, 2022, vol. 14, issue 20, 1-14

Abstract: The construction of a reservoir dam alters the environment within its basin, including composition of the fish community, fish biodiversity, and the river ecosystem itself. This study was conducted in the Sanbanxi Reservoir and used eDNA metabarcoding technology comprising eDNA capture and extraction, PCR amplification, sequencing and database comparison analysis, and other environmental DNA metabarcoding standardized analysis processes to characterize the composition and diversity of fish communities and assess their current status. A total of 48 species of fish were detected. Previously, 68 species of fish were screened and identified in this reservoir based on the reports of Dai and Gu. The results for fish community composition showed that species of the order Cypriniformes are still the most dominant in the Reservoir with 38 species of cyprinids, accounting for 90.81% of all OTUs. Carp were no longer the dominant species, and Spinibarbus denticulatus, Homalopteridae, Cobitidae, and Sisoridae were not detected, with the exception of Misgurnus anguillicaudatus (Cobitidae). These families have the common characteristic of being adapted to survive in fast-water, sandstone substrate habitats. The results also show that two of the sampling sites, sbx03 and sbx10, significantly differed from other sampling sites due to their geographical environment. The impact of the construction of reservoirs on freshwater fish communities is extreme, since the transformation from a lotic to a lentic habitat contributes to habitat destruction and constrains fish in movement. The change in the aquatic environment before and after the storage of water in the Sanbanxi Reservoir has reduced the number of fish species found in the reservoir, and species characteristically found in fast moving, rapids habitats are virtually absent. The profound change in the aquatic environment from that of a lotic to a lentic habitat leads to changes in the composition of fish populations in the reservoir and to a certain extent a reduction in the ecological stability and species diversity within the reservoir. Therefore, the protection of fish diversity in the reservoir is of great significance to the stability of the ecosystem.

Keywords: fish diversity; river ecosystem; eDNA metabarcoding; Sanbanxi Reservoir (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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