Project: Balancing biOdiversity conservatioN with Development in Amazon wetlandS
| Acronym | BONDS (Reference Number: 116) |
| Duration | 01/02/2019 - 31/03/2022 |
| Project Topic | Threats to the integrity of biodiverse Amazon floodplain habitats from deforestation, dams, and climate change are increasingly severe but to date, Amazon biodiversity scenarios have not considered these critical environments. Building on decades of floodplain-focused research in the Amazon by consortium members, we will improve characterization of Amazonian whitewater floodplain habitats and inundation dynamics, allowing us to 1) scale up existing fish, floodplain forest, and phytoplankton biodiversity datasets, 2) evaluate the potential impacts of regional drivers such as climate, land use change, and dams on floodplain habitats, and 3) engage at local and regional scale a large panel of stakeholders in looking for sustainable strategies for wetlands preservation. The scenarios produced at both scales will be compared in terms of wetlands conservation and biodiversity descriptors including Essential Biodiversity Variables and Sustainable Development Goals indicators. Our study framework focusing on the floodplains of the mainstem Amazon river (Brazil and Colombia) and Juruá river (Brazil) allows comparison between whitewater floodplain sites contrasting greatly in terms of floodplain geomorphology, land use and management history, commercial fishing pressure, and human population density. Innovative aspects of our work include 1) testing a remote-sensing-based approach for mapping phytoplankton biodiversity in floodplain lakes; 2) use of new satellite data to greatly increase the spatiotemporal resolution of floodplain habitat and inundation maps; 3) use of environmental eDNA metabarcoding to examine the distribution and relative abundance of phytoplankton, zooplankton, and fish in floodplain lakes; 4) individual-based modeling of Lévy-flight fish foraging patterns across a network of oxbow lakes; and 5) nested-scale agent-based participatory models to develop scenarios. The proposed work will greatly expand available information for decision-making to support the vast biodiversity and extensive ecosystem services provided by Amazon whitewater floodplains. |
| Website | visit project website |
| Network | BiodivScen |
| Call | Scenarios of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services |
Project partner
| Number | Name | Role | Country |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Institut de Recherche pour le Développement | Coordinator | France |
| 2 | University of Lausanne | Partner | Switzerland |
| 3 | Centre de coopération internationale en recherche agronomique pour le développement | Partner | France |
| 4 | Friedrich-Schiller-University | Partner | Germany |
| 5 | Universidad Nacional de Colombia | Partner | Colombia |
| 6 | Institut national de Recherche en sciences et technologies pour l'environnement et l'agriculture | Partner | France |
| 7 | Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais | Partner | Brazil |
| 8 | Norwegian University of Life Sciences | Partner | Norway |
| 9 | University of California, Santa Barbara | Partner | United States |
| 10 | Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University | Partner | United States |
| 11 | University of Brasilia | Partner | Brazil |
| 12 | University of East Anglia | Partner | United Kingdom |