With her Ramón y Cajal grant, Alexia González is developing a line of research that will contribute to the conservation and management of salmonids

Her work focuses on spatiotemporal patterns of biophysical features in river networks, and the connection between adjacent aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, with a focus on nature-based solutions

The postdoctoral researcher Alexia María González Ferreras has launched the development of the research line at the Environmental Hydraulics Institute of the Universidad de Cantabria (IHCantabria), for the development of which she has a Ramón y Cajal Grant, financed by the Ministry of Science, Innovation and Universities (MICIU), through the State Research Agency (AEI), and co-financed by the European Union – ESF+.

This prestigious distinction, corresponding to one of the most important calls in the scientific field in Spain, will allow Alexia María González Ferreras to advance in her scientific career and develop her line of research at the Fundación Instituto de Hidráulica Ambiental de Cantabria (FIHAC).

The line of research that she is developing at IHCantabria, with a Ramón y Cajal grant, will allow a detailed analysis of the decline of salmonid populations, with special attention to the Atlantic areas, and will identify the existing knowledge gaps, in order to promote an adequate management and conservation of these populations.

Background of your line of research

During her predoctoral stage, Alexia María González Ferreras developed a research focused on determining the spatial patterns of brown trout in river networks and analyzing the role that connectivity and niche have in determining the spatial variability of these populations, extending this line of research during her postdoctoral stage to analyze the effects of hydrological alteration, temperature, connectivity and other anthropogenic impacts on the structure and function of river ecosystems. Alexia has made two international stays, a predoctoral stay in Switzerland and a postdoctoral stay in the United Kingdom, which have allowed her to collaborate with high-level international researchers.

The research line developed by Alexia in the Continental Ecosystems Group of IHCantabria, with the Ramón y Cajal grant, focuses on the spatiotemporal patterns of biophysical characteristics in river networks, and on the connection between adjacent aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, with an approach oriented to nature-based solutions (NBS) for the conservation and management of salmonids.

Importance of your line of research

Salmonid populations have great social, economic and environmental value, but in many areas of their native ranges they are experiencing population declines or even becoming extinct. Increasing water temperature, food availability and loss of connectivity are some of the most influential factors in the distribution, migration and survival of salmonid populations that could potentially be improved through NBSs, and could be an effective tool for salmonid conservation and management. Alexia will analyze the role of different BNS on productivity, connectivity and extreme weather events and how NBS could minimize or mitigate the negative impacts of human activities and global change on salmonid populations.

An important aspect of NBS is their capacity not only to respond to the challenges for which they are designed, but also to generate additional environmental, social and economic co-benefits. In this sense, other derived aspects such as fisheries or tourism, among others, could also be analyzed. To identify the benefits and co-benefits of BNS application, a combination of empirical data and a modeling framework will be used to simulate different scenarios, as well as the use of participatory approaches and stakeholder integration.

The results of the research line developed by Alexia María González Ferreras, as well as the methods, tools and/or procedures generated by her work, will be available to numerous interested parties, including local and regional managers, water sector companies, NGOs, fishermen’s associations, scientific communities and policy makers at different administrative levels, among many others.

The Cares River is a mountain river in northern Spain that flows through the province of León and the autonomous community of Asturias; it is a tributary of the Deva River. This river is of great importance for salmonids, especially Atlantic salmon, due to its water quality, its fluvial characteristics and its location, in a protected natural environment. The Cares River, together with the Deva River, forms a river ecosystem that supports populations of salmon, trout and other fish species