Landscape and Urban Planning 99 (2011) 115–122 Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Landscape and Urban Planning journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/landurbplan Flooding-induced landscape changes along dendritic stream networks and implications for wildlife habitat Humberto L. Perotto-Baldivieso a,* , X. Ben Wu a , Markus J. Peterson b , Fred E. Smeins a , Nova J. Silvy b , T. Wayne Schwertner c,1 a Department of Ecosystem Science and Management, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843-2138, United States b Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843-2258, United States c Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Mason, TX 76856, United States article info Article history: Received 19 February 2010 Received in revised form 22 July 2010 Accepted 19 September 2010 Available online 3 November 2010 Keywords: Dendritic network Flooding disturbance Habitat fragmentation Landscape change Meleagris gallopavo intermedia Semi-arid landscapes abstract Severe low frequency natural disturbances along stream networks can substantially alter urban and rural landscapes and impact habitat and population dynamics of wildlife species. In 1978, severe flooding along the North Prong of the Medina River significantly altered the habitat for the Rio Grande wild turkey and may have contributed to the decreased abundance of this species observed during recent decades in the southeastern Edwards Plateau, TX, USA. The objective of our study was to examine the changes in land- scape structure caused by this flooding event and their potential impact on wild turkey habitat. Aerial photography from 1972, 1984, and 1995 was used to quantify habitat changes in riparian zones and adjacent bottomlands along the Medina River. We documented substantial reductions in habitat suit- ability and connectivity caused by the flooding, followed by a partial recovery over 17 years. Analysis using patch-level metrics in conjunction with class-level metrics, provided insights to the pattern and possible mechanisms of the landscape changes. Habitat along higher-order streams was most affected, reducing not only the suitable habitat locally, but also the habitat connectivity throughout the riparian network. This loss of connectivity rendered numerous habitat patches along lower-order streams unavail- able to Rio Grande wild turkeys as this species depends on riparian corridors for dispersal and movement among habitat patches. Our results illustrate the critical importance of multiple-scale analysis based on hierarchical dendritic structures of river networks when assessing habitat changes and their impact on populations of terrestrial wildlife species dependent on riparian habitats in semi-arid landscapes. © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction Spatial and temporal habitat changes are critical to the distri- bution and abundance of wildlife (Fahrig, 1997, 2001). Changes in the type, size, and spatial arrangement of habitat patches can influence avian population dynamics (Ambuel and Temple, 1983; Estades, 2001; Holmes and Sherry, 2001; Saveraid et al., 2001; Stephens et al., 2003). Connectivity between habitat patches and the presence and the quality of dispersal routes also influences avian numbers (Van Dorp and Opdam, 1987). Recent studies, both * Corresponding author. Present address: Natural Resources Department, Cran- field University, Cranfield, Bedfordshire, MK43 0AL, United Kingdom. Tel.: +44 01324 750111; fax: +44 01234 752970. E-mail addresses: h.perotto@cranfield.ac.uk (H.L. Perotto-Baldivieso), xbw@tamu.edu (X. Ben Wu), mpeterson@tamu.edu (M.J. Peterson), f-smeins@tamu.edu (F.E. Smeins), n-silvy@tamu.edu (N.J. Silvy), tschwertner@bio-west.com (T. Wayne Schwertner). 1 Present address: BIO-WEST, Inc., 1812 Central Commerce Court, Round Rock, TX 78664-8546, United States. in rural and urban landscapes, provide evidence that connectivity at multiple spatial scales is critical to avian diversity (Fernandez- Jurisic, 2000; Viles and Rosier, 2001; Fitzsimons and Wescott, 2008; Parker et al., 2008; Hepcan et al., 2009; Leibenath et al., 2010). Changes in habitat structure are critical factors influencing wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo) population dynamics in the United States (Lindzey and Wanless, 1973; Weinstein et al., 1995). Sev- eral studies have addressed the relationship between landscape spatial structure, especially woody vegetation, and the abundance of eastern wild turkeys (M. g. silvestris). Thogmartin (1999) found that woody patch size was positively related to nesting success in Arkansas. Habitat factors such as topographic position, amount of edge, and patch type (hardwood and mixed pine–hardwood forest patches) also affect eastern wild turkey nesting success (Thogmartin and Schaeffer, 2000; Thogmartin, 2001). Miller et al. (1999) found habitat-use patterns were similar for males and females across spatial scales in Mississippi. Chamberlain et al. (2000) noted patch type (pine and hardwood sawtimber patches) was key to eastern wild turkey habitat use, and the presence of tall, mature tree stands was critical for roosting. Lack of suitable 0169-2046/$ – see front matter © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. doi:10.1016/j.landurbplan.2010.09.002