# Before and After: A Multiscale Remote Sensing Assessment of the Sinop Dam, Mato Grosso, Brazil
## 2 Materials and Methods
### Aquatic Biodiversity  
The annual migrations of the keystone species of the Amazon consist of millions of large fishes swimming up the various tributaries such as the Teles Pires [54]. The migrating fishes include well known giant caftishes such as _Brachuplatystoma_ spp., _Pseudoplatystoma_ spp. and _Phractoccephalus hemiolopterus_ as well as many other fishes such as _Hydro-lycus_ spp., _Prochilodus_ spp., and _Leporinus_ spp. Within the impact zone of the HPPS, _Prochilodus nigricans_ (curimba), _Brycon falcatus_ (matrinxa), _Zungaro zungaro_ (jau) and _Pseudoplatystoma punctifer_ (pintado) also have reproductive migrations and are of interest as commercial species for fishermen in the region.  
The upper middle Teles Pires river where the HPPS was constructed is one of the most biodiverse sectors of the river for fish. Rapids in the main channel are home to distinct rheophilic fauna and flora with adaptations for the extreme environment [55]. Species of Loricariidae (e.g., _Peckoltia_ aff. _cavatica_, _Sobinancistrus pariolispos_), Anostomidae (e.g.,  
Figure 3: Photographs of one of the small Creek tributaries prior to inundation from the HPPS reservoir. (**A**) unmodified Creek on the eastern side of the Teles Pires river; (**B**) photograph taken a few hours after (**A**) at the same location illustrating sedimentation due to construction upstream; (**C**) _Curculonichthys luteofrenatus_ feed on algae in the current; (**D**) _Corydons ajaka_ are restricted to sandy areas of low flow in these small creeks. Both species are endemic to the small clear water tributaries of the Teles Pires, Preto and Arinos rivers [53].  
Leporinus vanezi, Sartor cf. elongatus), Serrasalmidae (e.g., _Tometes_ sp. \"Teles Pires\"), Gymnotiformes (e.g., _Sternacorlynchus_ aff. _mormorrus_, _Archolacnus luciae_), and Characteriformes (e.g., _Brycon falcatus_, _Bryconexodon trombetasi_) were known to occur in the rapids at Corredeira do Supplicio prior to inundation. Fishes highly adapted to the sectors with the strongest current and dense masses of Podostomaceae occur in the whitewater zone of the rapids. Highly specialized macroinvertebrate predators such as the _Teleocichla_ sp. (Figure 4) and the rheophile catfish _Pseudoancistrus kayabi_ (Figure 4) were commonly found at Ilha do Lair prior to inundation.  
The fish communities in the streams are vastly different from the main river, with the predominantly smaller species that require both highly oxygenated fast flowing water and the three-dimensionally complex, silt free substrate for cover and feeding. Small characins such as _Moenkhausia phanota_, _Hyphesobrycon heliacus_, and others were found in the creeks alongside small catfishes such as _Corydora spiaka_, _Curculonichthys luteofrentatus_ (Figure 3), _Hisonotus chromodontus_, and _Centromochus meridionalis_. Prior to inundation, during the rainy season the flooding of the lower course of the creeks allowed species such as _Brycon falcatus_ (a commercially important migratory species whose population is declining in this region) to travel upstream to the headwaters to breed [56]. Among the frugivorous fishes in the region, _B. falcatus_ consumes the greatest abundance of fruits, and even young individuals can act as seed dispersers [57].  
Figure 4: Underwater photographs of rheophile fishes endemic to the middle Teles Pires which were found at the UAS study sites prior to inundation: _Leporinus vanezi_ (**A**), _Bryconexodon trombetasi_ (**B**), _Pseudoancistrus kayabi_ (**C**) and _Teleocichla_ sp. (**D**).