Plant litter is the major source of energy and nutrients in stream ecosystems and its
decomposition is vital for ecosystem nutrient cycling and functioning. Invertebrates are key …

Streams and rivers provide important services to humans, and therefore, their ecological
integrity should be a societal goal. Although ecological integrity encompasses structural and …

River ecosystems are subject to multiple stressors that affect their structure and functioning.
Ecosystem structure refers to characteristics such as channel form, water quality or the …

Human‐induced global change dramatically alters individual aspects of river biodiversity,
such as taxonomic, phylogenetic or functional diversity, and is predicted to lead to losses of …

Urban streams and ecosystems are highly affected by the intense development of cities and
an increase of impervious surfaces. If these environments are close to their pristine state …

Biological monitoring has a long history in freshwaters, where much of the pioneering work
in this field was developed over a 100 years ago—but few of the traditional monitoring tools …

Biological quality elements have been developed worldwide to assess whether a water
body is in a good status or not. However, current studies mainly focus on a single taxonomic …

Excessive fine sediment (particles< 2 mm) deposition in freshwater systems is a pervasive
stressor worldwide. However, understanding of ecological response to excess fine sediment …

The hydrological and biological complexity of temporary rivers as well as their importance in
providing goods and services is increasingly recognized, as much as it is the vulnerability of …

Global patterns of biodiversity have emerged for soil microorganisms, plants and animals,
and the extraordinary significance of microbial functions in ecosystems is also well …