Flow requirements of non-salmonids

Research into the relationships between non-salmonid fish population dynamics and discharge is in its infancy compared with salmonids, thus compromising the ability to manage flows in rivers and maintain ecological status. This study reviews the potential role of 'natural' hydrographical variability on fish life-history characteristics and develops a fish typology based on flow preference and conservation importance criteria that can be used to underpin the needs of hydrological management to support these fish community types. It highlights important characteristics of the natural flow regime that need to be maintained to ensure sustainability of populations of these species and offers a mechanism to categorise the fish community types, thus allowing generic management scenarios to be developed rather than complex single-species scenarios that are impractical. © 2012 Blackwell Publishing Ltd