Abstract
As anthropogenic influences push ecosystems past tipping points and into new regimes, complex management decisions are complicated by rapid ecosystem changes that may be difficult to reverse. For managers who grapple with how to manage ecosystems under novel conditions and heightened uncertainty, advancing our understanding of regime shifts is paramount. As part of an ecological resilience assessment, researchers and managers have collaborated to identify alternate regimes and build an understanding of the thresholds and factors that govern regime shifts in the Upper Mississippi River System. To describe the management implications of our assessment, we integrate our findings with the recently developed resist-accept-direct (RAD) framework that explicitly acknowledges ecosystem regime change and outlines management approaches of resisting change, accepting change, or directing change. More specifically, we developed guidance for using knowledge of desirability of current conditions, distance to thresholds, and general resilience (that is, an ecosystem’s capacity to cope with uncertain disturbances) to navigate the RAD framework. We applied this guidance to outline strategies that resist, accept, or direct change in the context of management of aquatic vegetation, floodplain vegetation, and fish communities across nearly 2000 river kilometers. We provide a case study for how knowledge of ecological dynamics can aid in assessing which management approach(es) are likely to be most ecologically feasible in a changing world. Continued learning from management decisions will be critical to advance our understanding of how ecosystems respond and inform the management of ecosystems for desirable and resilient outcomes.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
ACRCC (2021) Asian carp action plan. Asian Carp Regional Coordinating Committee. https://www.asiancarp.us/Documents/2021-Action-Plan.pdf
Angeler DG, Chaffin BC, Sundstrom SM, Garmestani A, Pope KL, Uden DR, Twidiell D, Allen CR (2020) Coerced regimes: management challenges in the Anthropocene. Ecol Soc 25:4. https://doi.org/10.5751/Es-11286-250104
Aplet GH, McKinley PS (2017) A portfolio approach to managing ecological risks of global change. Ecosyst Health Sustain 3. https://doi.org/10.1002/ehs2.1261
Bajer PG, Sullivan G, Sorensen PW (2009) Effects of a rapidly increasing population of common carp on vegetative cover and waterfowl in a recently restored Midwestern shallow lake. Hydrobiologia 632:235–245. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-009-9844-3
Bellard C, Bertelsmeier C, Leadley P, Thuiller W, Courchamp F (2012) Impacts of climate change on the future of biodiversity. Ecol Lett 15:365–377. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1461-0248.2011.01736.x
Biggs R, Peterson GD, Rocha JC (2018) The Regime Shifts Database: a framework for analyzing regime shifts in social-ecological systems. Ecol Soc 23:9. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-10264-230309
Biggs R, Schluter M, Biggs D, Bohensky EL, BurnSilver S, Cundill G, Dakos V, Daw TM, Evans LS, Kotschy K, Leitch AM, Meek C, Quinlan A, Raudsepp-Hearne C, Robards MD, Schoon ML, Schultz L, West PC (2012) Toward principles for enhancing the resilience of ecosystem services. Annu Rev Environ Resour 37:421. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-environ-051211-123836
Blackburn TM, Essl F, Evans T, Hulme PE, Jeschke JM, Kuhn I, Kumschick S, Markova Z, Mrugala A, Nentwig W, Pergl J, Pysek P, Rabitsch W, Ricciardi A, Richardson DM, Sendek A, Vila M, Wilson JRU, Winter M, Genovesi P, Bacher S (2014) A unified classification of alien species based on the magnitude of their environmental impacts. PLoS Biol 12. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.1001850
Bouska K (2020) Regime change in a large-floodplain river ecosystem: patterns in body-size and functional biomass indicate a shift in fish communities. Biol Invasions 22:3371–3389. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-020-02330-5
Bouska KL, Houser JN, De Jager NR, Drake DC, Collins SF, Gibson-Reinemer DK, Thomsen MA (2020a) Conceptualizing alternate regimes in a large floodplain-river ecosystem: Water clarity, invasive fish, and floodplain vegetation. J Environ Manage 264. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2020.110516
Bouska KL, Houser JN, De Jager NR, Hendrickson J (2018) Developing a shared understanding of the Upper Mississippi River: the foundation of an ecological resilience assessment. Ecol Soc 23. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-10014-230206
Bouska KL, Houser JN, De Jager NR, Van Appledorn M, Rogala JT (2019) Applying concepts of general resilience to large river ecosystems: a case study from the Upper Mississippi and Illinois rivers. Ecol Indic 101:1094–1110. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolind.2019.02.002
Bouska W, Glover DC, Trushenski JT, Secchi S, Garvey JE, MacNamara R, Coulter DP, Coulter AA, Irons K, Wieland A (2020b) Geographic-scale harvest program to promote invasivorism of bigheaded carps. Fishes 5. https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes5030029
Broaddus CL, Lamer JT (2022) Growth rates of non-native Bighead and Silver Carp in the Upper Mississippi River. Fishes 7:73. https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes7020073
Burdis RM, DeLain SA, Lund EM, Moore MJC, Popp WA (2020) Decadal trends and ecological shifts in backwater lakes of a large floodplain river: Upper Mississippi River. Aquat Sci 82. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00027-020-0703-7
Busse D, Dolrymple K, Strauser CN (1995) Environmental pool management. Proceedings of the Fifty-first Annual Meeting of the Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee, 1995 Rock Island, IL. Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee, 55–65. https://digitalcollections.uwlax.edu/jsp/RcWebImageViewer.jsp?doc_id=a74e2c2d-8889-4980-9f3e-91b37a0eea04/wlacu000/00000037/00000060
Byun K, Chiu CM, Hamlet AF (2019) Effects of 21st century climate change on seasonal flow regimes and hydrologic extremes over the Midwest and Great Lakes region of the US. Sci Total Environ 650:1261–1277. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.09.063
Byun K, Hamlet AF (2018) Projected changes in future climate over the Midwest and Great Lakes region using downscaled CMIP5 ensembles. Int J Climatol 38:E531–E553. https://doi.org/10.1002/joc.5388
Carhart AM, Kalas JE, Rogala JT, Rohweder JJ, Drake DC, Houser JN (2021) Understanding constraints on submersed vegetation distribution in a large, floodplain river: the role of water level fluctuations, water clarity, and river geomorphology. Wetlands 41. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13157-021-01454-1
Carpenter SR, Arrow KJ, Barrett S, Biggs R, Brock WA, Crepin AS, Engstrom G, Folke C, Hughes TP, Kautsky N, Li CZ, McCarney G, Meng K, Maler KG, Polasky S, Scheffer M, Shogren J, Sterner T, Vincent JR, Walker B, Xepapadeas A, de Zeeuw A (2012) General resilience to cope with extreme events. Sustainability 4:3248–3259. https://doi.org/10.3390/su4123248
Chaffin BC, Garmestani AS, Gunderson LH, Benson MH, Angeler DG, Arnold CA, Cosens B, Craig RK, Ruhl JB, Allen CR (2016) Transformative environmental governance. Annu Rev Environ Resour 41(41):399–423. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-environ-110615-085817
Chen YH, Simons DB (1986) Hydrology, hydraulics, and geomorphology of the Upper Mississippi River System. Hydrobiologia 136:5–20
Clifford KR, Cravens AE, Knaff CN (2022) Responding to ecological transformation: mental models, external constraints and manager decision-making. Bioscience 72:57–70
Clifford KR, Yung L, Travis WR, Rondeau R, Neely B, Rangwala I, Burkardt N, Wyborn C (2020) Navigating climate adaptation on public dands: How views on ecosystem change and scale interact with management approaches. Environ Manag 66:614–628. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-020-01336-y
Collier CJ, Adams MP, Langlois L, Waycott M, O’Brien KR, Maxwell PS (2016) Thresholds for morphological response to light reduction for four tropical seagrass species. Ecol Indic 67:358–366
Conover G, Simmonds R, Whalen M (2007) Management and control plan for bighead, black, grass, and silver carps in the United States. Aquatic Nuisance Species Task Force, Washington, DC, https://www.asiancarp.us/Documents/Carps_Management_Plan.pdf
Cooper AR, Infante DM, O’Hanley JR, Yu H, Neeson TM, Brumm KJ (2021) Prioritizing native migratory fish passage restoration while limiting the spread of invasive species: a case study in the Upper Mississippi River. Sci Total Environ 791. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.148317
Coulter AA, Adams SR, Flinn MB, Whiles MR, Burr BM, Sheehan RJ, Garvey JE (2019) Extended water-level drawdowns in dammed rivers enhance fish habitat: environmental pool management in the upper Mississippi River. Environ Manag 63:124–135. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-018-1116-4
Crausbay SD, Sofaer HR, Cravens AE, Chaffin BC, Clifford KR, Gross JE, Knapp CN, Lawrence DJ, Magness DR, Miller-Rushing AJ, Schuurman GW, Stevens-Rumann CS (2022) A science agenda to inform natural resource management decisions in an era of ecological transformation. Bioscience 72:71–90. https://doi.org/10.1093/biosci/biab102
De Jager NR, Rogala JT, Rohweder JJ, Van Appledorn M, Bouska KL, Houser JN, Jankowski KJ (2018) Indicators of ecosystem structure and function for the Upper Mississippi River System: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2018-1143. https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20181143
De Jager NR, Rohweder JJ (2017) Changes in aquatic vegetation and floodplain land cover in the Upper Mississippi and Illinois rivers (1989-2000-2010). Environ Monit Assess 189. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-017-5774-0
De Jager NR, Rohweder JJ, Yin Y, Hoy E (2016) The Upper Mississippi River floodscape: spatial patterns of flood inundation and associated plant community distributions. Appl Vegetation Sci 19:164–172. https://doi.org/10.1111/avsc.12189
De Jager NR, Thomsen M, Yin Y (2012) Threshold effects of flood duration on the vegetation and soils of the Upper Mississippi River floodplain, USA. For Ecol Manag 270:135–146. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2012.01.023
De Jager NR, Van Appledorn M, Fox TJ, Rohweder JJ, Guyon LJ, Meier AR, Cosgriff RJ, Vandermyde BJ (2019) Spatially explicit modelling of floodplain forest succession: interactions among flood inundation, forest successional processes, and other disturbances in the Upper Mississippi River floodplain, USA. Ecol Model 405:15–32. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2019.05.002
DeBoer JA, Thoms MC, Delong MD (2022) Ecosystem response through a resilience lens: do differences in the Illinois River over 150 Y indicate regime shifts? J Geophys Res Biogeosci 127. https://doi.org/10.1029/2021JG006553
DeLonay AJ, Jacobson RB, Papoulias DM, Simpkins DG, Wildhaber ML, Reuter JM, Bonnot TM, Chojnacki KA, Korschgen CE, Mestl GE, Mac MJ (2009) Ecological requirements for Pallid Sturgeon reproduction and recruitment in the Lower Missouri River: a research synthesis 2005-08. U.S. Geological Survey. https://doi.org/10.3133/sir20095201
Drake DC, Lund EM, Kreiling RM (2022) Annual summer submersed macrophyte standing stocks estimated from long-term monitoring data in the upper Mississippi River. J Fish Wildl Manag. https://doi.org/10.3996/JFWM-21-063
Dugger BD, Feddersen JC (2009) Using river flow management to improve wetland habitat quality for waterfowl on the Mississippi River, USA. Wildfowl 29:62–74
Faro D, Zolezzi G, Wolter C (2021) How much habitat does a river need? A spatially-explicit population dynamics model to assess ratios of ontogenetical habitat needs. J Environ Manage 286. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jenvman.2021.112100
Fisichelli NA, Schuurman GW, Hoffman CH (2016) Is ‘resilience’ maladaptive? Towards an accurate lexicon for climate change adaptation. Environ Manag 57:753–758. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-015-0650-6
Galat DL, Zweimuller I (2001) Conserving large-river fishes: is the highway analogy an appropriate paradigm? J North Am Benthological Soc 20:266–279. https://doi.org/10.2307/1468321
Garvey JE, Chick JH, Eicholz MW, Conover G, Brooks RC (2007) Swan Lake Habitat Rehabilitation and Enhancement Project: post-project monitoring of water quality sedimentation, vegetation, invertebrates, fish communities, fish movement, and waterbirds. Final Report prepared by Southern Illinois University Carbondale for U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, St. Louis District, Missouri, http://opensiuc.lib.siu.edu/fiaq_reports/1
Giblin S, Hoff K, Fischer J, Dukerschein T (2010) Evaluation of light penetration on Navigation Pools 8 and 13 of the Upper Mississippi River. U.S. Geological Survey, La Crosse, Wisconsin, http://pubs.usgs.gov/mis/LTRMP2010-T001/
Gibson-Reinemer DK, Chick JH, VanMiddlesworth TD, VanMiddlesworth M, Casper AF (2017) Widespread and enduring demographic collapse of invasive common carp (Cyprinus carpio) in the Upper Mississippi River System. Biol Invasions 19:1905–1916. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-017-1405-5
Glick P, Stein BA, Edelson NA (2011) Scanning the conservation horizon: a guide to climate change vulnerability assessment. National Wildlife Federation, Washington, DC
Green SJ, Grosholz ED (2021) Functional eradication as a framework for invasive species control. Front Ecol Environ 19:98–107. https://doi.org/10.1002/fee.2277
Hagy HM, Hine CS, Horath MM, Yetter AP, Smith RV, Stafford JD (2017) Waterbird response indicates floodplain wetland restoration. Hydrobiologia 804:119–137. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-016-3004-3
Hagy HM, Smith RV, Yetter AP, Hine CS, Horath MM (2012) Vegetation assessment of the south pool of Chautauqua National Wildlife Refuge. Forbes Biological Station, Illinois Natural History Survey, Havana, Illinois, https://core.ac.uk/reader/18618764
Herrmann DL, Schwarz K, Allen CR, Angeler DG, Eason T, Garmestani A (2021) Iterative scenarios for scial-ecological systems. Ecol Soc 26:8. https://doi.org/10.5751/ES-12706-260408
Hine CS, Hagy HM, Horath MM, Yetter AP, Smith RV, Stafford JD (2017) Response of aquatic vegetation communities and other wetland cover types to floodplain restoration at Emiquon Preserve. Hydrobiologia 804:59–71. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-016-2893-5
Hobbs RJ, Higgs E, Harris JA (2009) Novel ecosystems: implications for conservation and restoration. Trends Ecol Evolution 24:599–605. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tree.2009.05.012
Holling CS (1973) Resilience and stability of ecological systems. Annu Rev Ecol Syst 4:1–23. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.es.04.110173.000245
Holmlund CM, Hammer M (1999) Ecosystem services generated by fish populations. Ecol Econ 29:253–268
Houser JN (2022) Ecological status and trends of the upper Mississippi and Illinois Rivers. U.S. Geological Survey, La Crosse, WI
Houser JN, Bierman DW, Burdis RM, Soeken-Gittinger LA (2010) Longitudinal trends and discontinuities in nutrients, chlorophyll, and suspended solids in the Upper Mississippi River: implications for transport, processing, and export by large rivers. Hydrobiologia 651:127–144
Ibanez C, Alcaraz C, Caiola N, Rovira A, Trobajo R, Alonso M, Duran C, Jimenez PJ, Munne A, Prat N (2012) Regime shift from phytoplankton to macrophyte dominance in a large river: top-down versus bottom-up effects. Sci Total Environ 416:314–322
Ickes BS (2022) Fisheries indicators. In: Houser JN (ed.) Ecological status and trends of the upper Mississippi and Illinois Rivers. US Geological Survey, La Crosse, WI
Jankowski KJ (2022) Water quality. In: Houser JN (ed.) Ecological status and trends of the upper Mississippi and Illinois Rivers. US Geological Survey, La Crosse, WI
Janvrin J, Dieterman D, Hansen K, Sallee D, Moore T, Frietsche R, Benjamin R, Yess S, Boland T (2010) Upper Mississippi River Fisheries Plan. Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee—Fish Technical Committee, Onalaska, Wisconsin, https://3a3f4ae2-f3de-49d2-b0f5-e6e7cf38e6e1.filesusr.com/ugd/d70a05_e0a8c11a2f984bb2b86cb3e9afb46376.pdf
Johnson BL, Jennings CA (1998) Habitat associations of small fishes around islands in the Upper Mississippi River. North Am J Fish Manag 18:327–336. https://doi.org/10.1577/1548-8675(1998)018%3C0327:HAOSFA%3E2.0.CO;2
Keevin TM, Garvey JE (2019) Using marketing to fish-down bigheaded carp (Hypophthalmichthys spp.) in the United States: eliminating the negative brand name, “carp”. J Appl Ichthyol 35:1141–1146. https://doi.org/10.1111/jai.13951
Korschgen CE, George LS, GW L (1988) Feeding ecology of Canvasbacks staging on Pool 7 of the upper Mississippi River. In: Weller MW (ed.) Waterfowl in Winter. University of Minnesota Press, Minneapolis, MN
Larson D, Lund E, Carhart A, Drake D, Houser J, De Jager N, Bouska K, Bales K, Giblin S (2022) Aquatic vegetation. In: Houser JN (ed.) Ecological status and trends of the upper Mississippi and Illinois Rivers. US Geological Survey, La Crosse, Wisconsin
Lemke MJ, Walk JW, Lemke AM, Sparks RE, Blodgett KD (2017) Introduction: the ecology of a river floodplain and the Emiquon preserve. Hydrobiologia 804:1–17. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-017-3335-8
Love SA, Phelps QE, Tripp SJ, Herzog DP (2017) The importance of shallow-low velocity habitats to juvenile fish in the Middle Mississippi River. River Res Appl 33:321–327. https://doi.org/10.1002/rra.3075
Lund E (2019) Time lag investigation of physical conditions and submersed macrophyte prevalence in Upper Navigation Pool 4, Upper Mississippi River. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Upper Mississippi River Restoration Program Long Term Resource Monitoring Element Completion Report LTRM-2015A8
Lynch AJ, Rahel FJ, Limpinsel D, Sethi SA, Engman AC, Lawrence DJ, Mills KE, Morrison W, Peterson JE, Porath MT (2022) Ecological and social RAD strategies for managing fisheries in transforming aquatic ecosystems. Fish Manag Ecol. https://doi.org/10.1111/fme.12545
Lynch AJ, Thompson LM, Beever EA, Cole DN, Engman AC, Hawkins Hoffman C, Jackson ST, Krabbenhoft TJ, Lawrence DJ, Limpinsel D, Magill RT, Melvin TA, Morton JM, Newman RA, Peterson JO, Porath MT, Rahel FJ, Schuurman GW, Sethi SA, Wilkening JL (2021) Managing for RADical ecosystem change: applying the Resist-Accept-Direct (RAD) framework. Front Ecol Environ. https://doi.org/10.1002/fee.2377
Lynch AJ, Thompson LM, Morton JM, Beever EA, Clifford M, Limpinsel D, Magill RT, Magness DR, Melvin TA, Newman RA, Porath MT, Rahel FJ, Reynolds JH, Schuurman GW, Sethi SA, Wilkening JL (2022) RAD adaptive management for transforming ecosystems. Bioscience 72:45–56. https://doi.org/10.1093/biosci/biab091
MacNamara R, Glover D, Garvey J, Bouska W, Irons K (2016) Bigheaded carps (Hypophthalmichthys spp.) at the edge of their invaded range: using hydroacoustics to assess population parameters and the efficacy of harvest as a control strategy in a large North American river. Biol Invasions 18:3293–3307. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-016-1220-4
Magness DR, Hoang L, Belote RT, Brennan J, Carr W, Chapin FS, Clifford K, Morrison W, Morton JM, Sofaer HR (2022) Management foundations for navigating ecological transformation by resisting, accepting, or directing social-ecological change. Bioscience 72:30–44. https://doi.org/10.1093/biosci/biab083
McCain KNS, Schmuecker S, De Jager NR (2018) Habitat needs assessment-II for the Upper Mississippi River Restoration Program: linking science to management perspective. Rock Island, IL. https://pubs.er.usgs.gov/publication/70202203
Millar CI, Stephenson NL, Stephens SL (2007) Climate change and forests of the future: Managing in the face of uncertainty. Ecol Appl 17:2145–2151. https://doi.org/10.1890/06-1715.1
Miller-Adamany A, Baumann D, Thomsen M (2019) Facilitating natural succession in a heavily invaded ecosystem. For Ecol Manag 444:235–243. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.foreco.2019.04.043
Nestler JM, Galat DL, Hrabik RA (2016) Side channels of the impounded and Middle Mississippi River: opportunities and challenges to maximize restoration potential. ERDC/ EL CR-16-4. U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center, Vicksburg, MS, https://erdc-library.erdc.dren.mil/jspui/bitstream/11681/20335/1/ERDC-EL%20CR-16-4.pdf
O’Connell D, Walker BH, Abel N, Grigg N (2015) The resilience, adaptation and transformation assessment framework: from theory to application. CSIRO, Australia
Olson KR, Speidel DR (2020) Why does the repaired Len Small Levee, Alexander County, Illinois, US continue to breach during major flooding events. Open J Soil Sci 10:1643. https://doi.org/10.4236/ojss.2020.101002
Phelps QE, Tripp SJ, Garvey JE, Herzog DP, Ostendorf DE, Ridings JW, Crites JW, Hrabik RA (2010) Habitat use during early life history infers recovery needs for Shovelnose Sturgeon and Pallid Sturgeon in the Middle Mississippi River. Trans Am Fish Soc 139:1060–1068. https://doi.org/10.1577/T09-199.1
Reinhardt Adams C, Galatowitsch SM (2006) Increasing the effectiveness of reed canarygrass (Phalaris arundinacea L.) control in wet meadow restorations. Restor Ecol 14:441–451. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1526-100X.2006.00152.x
Remo JWF, Khanal A, Pinter N (2013) Assessment of chevron dikes for the enhancement of physical-aquatic habitat within the Middle Mississippi River, USA. J Hydrol 501:146–162. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhydrol.2013.07.007
Resilience Alliance (2010) Assessing the resilience social-ecological systems: workbook for practitioners. Version. 2.0 http://www.resalliance.org/3871.php.
Romano SP (2010) Our current understanding of the Upper Mississippi River System floodplain forest. Hydrobiologia 640:115–124. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-009-0063-8
Sass GG, Cook TR, Irons KS, McClelland MA, McClelland NN, O’Hara TM (2017) Experimental and comparative approaches to determine factors supporting or limiting submersed aquatic vegetation in the Illinois River and its backwaters. A completion report submitted to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Upper Mississippi River Restoration Program from the U.S. Geological Survey, LTRM-2008APE5. https://umesc.usgs.gov/documents/publications/2017/sass_b_2017.html
Schiemer F, Keckeis H, Kamler E (2003) The early life history stages of riverine fish: ecophysiological and environmental bottlenecks. Comp Biochem Physiol Part A 133:439–449. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1095-6433(02)00246-5
Schuurman GW, Hawkins Hoffman C, Cole DN, Lawrence DJ, Morton JM, Magness DR, Cravens AE, Covington S, O’Malley R, Fisichelle NA (2020) Resist-accept-direct (RAD)—a framework for the 21st-century natural resource manager. Natural Resource Report NPS/NRSS/CCRP/NRR—2020/ 2213. National Park Service, Fort Collins, CO, 10.36967/nrr-2283597
Sparks RE, Blodgett KD, Casper AF, Hagy HM, Lemke MJ, Velho LFM, Rodrigues LC (2017) Why experiment with success? Opportunities and risks in applying assessment and adaptive management to the Emiquon floodplain restoration project. Hydrobiologia 804:177–200. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-016-2785-8
Sparks RE, Nelson JC, Yin Y (1998) Naturalization of the flood regime in regulated rivers the case of the upper Misissippi river. Bioscience 48:706–720. https://doi.org/10.2307/1313334
Stein JA, King S, Stanhope K, McNamara T, Molinaro S, Leek T, Mattes J (2019) Research and analysis of fisheries in Illinois F-69-R (32) Final Performance Report July 1, 2018–June 30, 2019. Illinois Natural History Survey. https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/handle/2142/106611
Stoffers T, Buijse AD, Verreth JAJ, Nagelkerke LAJ (2021a) Environmental requirements and heterogeneity of rheophilic fish nursery habitats in European lowland rivers: current insights and future challenges. Fish Fish. https://doi.org/10.1111/faf.12606
Stoffers T, Collas FPL, Buijse AD, Geerling GW, Jans LH, van Kessel N, Verreth JAJ, Nagelkerke LAJ (2021b) 30 years of large river restoration: How long do restored floodplain channels remain suitable for targeted rheophilic fishes in the lower river Rhine? Sci Total Environ 755. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.142931
Theiling CH, Janvrin JA, Hendrickson J (2015) Upper Mississippi River restoration: implementation, monitoring, and learning since 1986. Restor Ecol 23:157–166. https://doi.org/10.1111/rec.12170
Thompson LM, Lynch AJ, Beever EA, Engman AC, Falke JA, Jackson ST, Krabbenhoft TJ, Lawrence DJ, Limpinsel D, Magill RT, Melvin TA, Morton JM, Newman RA, Peterson JO, Porath MT, Rahel FJ, Sethi SA, Wilkening JL (2021) Responding to ecosystem transformation: resist, accept, or direct? Fisheries 46:8–21. https://doi.org/10.1002/fsh.10506
Thomsen M, Brownell K, Groshek M, Kirsch E (2012) Control of Reed Canarygrass promotes wetland herb and tree seedling establishment in an upper Mississippi River floodplain forest. Wetlands 32:543–555. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13157-012-0289-5
Tonkin JD, Poff NL, Bond NR, Horne A, Merritt DM, Reynolds LV, Olden JD, Ruhi A, Lytle DA (2019) Prepare river ecosystems for an uncertain future. Nature 570:301–303. https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-019-01877-1
Tripp SJ, Colombo RE, Garvey JE (2009) Declining recruitment and growth of Shovelnose Sturgeon in the Middle Mississippi River: implications for conservation. Trans Am Fish Soc 138:416–422. https://doi.org/10.1577/T08-024.1
Tsehaye I, Catalano M, Sass G, Glover D, Roth B (2013) Prospects for fishery-induced collapse of invasive asian carp in the Illinois River. Fisheries 38:445–454. https://doi.org/10.1080/03632415.2013.836501
UMRCC (2003) Proposed water quality criteria necessary to sustain submersed aquatic vegetation in the Upper Mississippi River. Water Quality Technical Section, Upper Mississippi River Conservation Committee, La Crosse, Wisconsin, https://dnr.wi.gov/Water/wsSWIMSDocument.ashx?documentSeqNo=145712399
USACE (2011) Upper Mississippi River ecosystem restoration objectives. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Rock Island, IL, https://www.mvr.usace.army.mil/Portals/48/docs/Environmental/UMRR/UMRR_Ecosystem_Restoration_Objectives_2009.pdf
USACE (2017) Crains Island habitat rehabilitation and enhancement project feasibility report. US Army Corps of Engineers, St. Louis, MO. https://www.mvs.usace.army.mil/Portals/54/docs/pm/Reports/Crains/CrainsIslandHREPMainReport.pdf?ver=2017-11-16-161850-973
Van Appledorn M (2022) Hydrologic indicators. In: Houser JN (ed.) Ecological status and trends of the Upper Mississippi and Illinois Rivers. U.S. Geological Survey, La Crosse, WI
Walker B, Salt D (2012) Resilience practice: building capacity to absorb disturbance and maintain funciton. Island Press, Washington, DC
Acknowledgements
We thank the Resilience Working Group, a group of State and Federal biologists and resource managers working on the Upper Mississippi River System who have helped to frame important issues to address via an ecological resilience assessment. We thank Kirk Hansen, Abigail Lynch, and an anonymous reviewer for their helpful and insightful comments on an earlier draft. The work was funded as part of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Upper Mississippi River Restoration Program. Any use of trade, firm, or product names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government. An animal care and use protocol was not required for this research.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Contributions
Conceptualization: KLB; Methodology: KLB; Formal analysis and investigation: KLB, NRD, and JNH; Writing—original draft preparation: KLB and NRD; Writing—review and editing: KLB, NRD, and JNH; Funding acquisition: KLB, NRD, and JNH.
Corresponding author
Ethics declarations
Conflict of Interest
The authors declare no competing interests.
Additional information
Publisher’s note Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Bouska, K.L., De Jager, N.R. & Houser, J.N. Resisting-Accepting-Directing: Ecosystem Management Guided by an Ecological Resilience Assessment. Environmental Management 70, 381–400 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-022-01667-y
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00267-022-01667-y