Climate change has dramatically altered freshwater ecosystems and will continue to affect them further. As water-level fluctuations increase in frequency and intensity, the tolerance of aquatic organisms to abiotic stressors will become critical determinants of survival. Apple snail species in the genus Pomacea (Ampullariidae) live in freshwater throughout the tropics and subtropics, but deposit egg clutches on terrestrial substrates. Two species, Pomacea canaliculata and Pomacea maculata, are amongst the world’s most invasive species and are expanding their invasive ranges. To evaluate their survival during extreme dry-down conditions in their native range, we collected 156 apple snails (Pomacea spp.) from 4 permanent water bodies in Uruguay and buried them in dry sand to simulate drought. We placed the snails outside, sheltered from sun and rain (ambient temperature: 15.2–28.1°C, ambient humidity: 44.9–100.6% below sand surface, 34.2–98.7% in outside air), and checked survival daily. Genetic identification confirmed the presence of P. canaliculata, P. maculata, and a morphologically indistinguishable undescribed congeneric among these snails. Thirty-six percent of snails survived the entire period (47 d) buried in the sand. Fewer males survived than females. Median lethal exposure time (LT₅₀) was 33 d for the total group of Pomacea species. After re-immersion in water, 93% of survivors resumed normal activities, including feeding, within 24 h and mated during later observations, indicating resistance to drying conditions and resilience during recovery. Offspring from 1 clutch laid after recovery survived >1 y after this experiment. We found high tolerance to prolonged drying and rapid recovery after re-immersion for 3 Pomacea species. As drought frequency increases with climate change, tolerance to these conditions and rapid restoration of normally high reproductive rates after dry-down may confer an advantage to these species, contribute to long-term persistence in their native range, and facilitate continued invasions.

Ponds are key freshwater habitats supporting biodiversity and ecosystem services, yet they remain understudied in the context of land use and climate change. We examined 240 ponds across eight countries (seven in Europe and Uruguay) to assess how internal pond characteristics, surrounding land cover and livestock intensity, seasonal climatic variation, and climate influence nutrient concentrations across spatial and temporal scales. Nutrient concentrations were strongly associated with internal features: shallow ponds and short hydroperiods had higher total nitrogen (TN) and total phosphorus (TP) concentrations, while thermal stratification, typically found in deeper ponds, was associated with higher TN, indicating enhanced internal nutrient recycling. Land use also played a significant role with agricultural intensity increasing nutrient concentration (both TN and TP), whereas forest cover reduced TP. Seasonal variation modulated these patterns, with higher TP concentrations observed in summer, and with dilution effects during wetter and cooler periods, particularly for TN in semi-permanent ponds. These findings underscore the combined influence of physical characteristics, landscape context, and climate variability on nutrient concentrations in ponds and highlight the need for integrated, multi-scale approaches to anticipate the impacts of global climate change effects on these ecologically valuable ecosystems.

Sudden increases in temperature and turbidity in aquatic ecosystems are expected for different regions in the future, as a result of the more frequent extreme climatic events that are predicted. The consequences of these abrupt changes in the outcomes of predator–prey interactions are unknown. Here, we tested the effects of a heat wave and a turbidity pulse on the foraging success of a subtropical cichlid fish (Gymnogeophagus terrapurpura) on amphipods (Hyalella curvispina). We carried out a short-term experiment combining treatments of turbidity (3 and 100 nephelometric turbidity units [NTU]) and water temperature (19.2, 22.2, 25.2 and 27.0 °C), considering potential differences given by fish length. Changes in water temperature did not promote significant changes in prey consumption. Higher turbidity, in contrast, decreased prey consumption. Also, we found that fish with different body lengths consumed a similar amount of prey under clear waters, but, in turbid waters, bigger individuals were more efficient than the smaller individuals. This finding is an empirical demonstration that the effect of increased turbidity on predation rate depends upon predator body size, and it suggests that bigger body sizes may help overcome turbidity-associated limitations in finding and capturing prey. Our short-term results suggest that, if turbidity pulses and heat waves become more frequent in the future, the outcome of fish–invertebrate interaction can be affected by local characteristics such as fish population size distribution.