Floods represent frequent hazards in both low- and first-order catchments; however, to date, the investigation of peak flow discharges in the latter catchments has been omitted due to the absence of gauging stations. The quantification of flood parameters in a first-order catchment (1.8 km²) was realised in the moderate relief of NE Czechia, where the last flash flood event in 2014 caused considerable damage to the infrastructure. We used an integrated approach that included the dendrogeomorphic reconstruction of past flood activity, hydraulic modelling of the 2014 flash flood parameters using a two-dimensional IBER model, and evaluation of the channel stability using sedimentological parameters. Based on 115 flood scars, we identified 13 flood events during the period of 1955 to 2018, with the strongest signals recorded in 2014, 2009 and 1977. The modelled peak flow discharge of the last 2014 flood was equal to 4.5 m³·s⁻¹ (RMSE = 0.32 m) using 26 scars as palaeostage indicators. The excess critical unit stream power was observed at only 24.2% of the reaches, representing predominantly bedrock and fine sediments. Despite local damage during the last flood, our results suggest relatively stable geomorphic conditions and gradual development of stream channels under discharges similar to that in 2014.

A distributed hydrological model was applied to a 69km² experimental catchment, Eddleston Water, Scotland, UK. The impact on model outputs of applying progressively simpler representations of spatial variability in land use and superficial geology was assessed. Alternative representations of the spatial distribution of superficial geology and land use produced differences in model outputs. These differences were generally small with the exception of the maximum absolute error (E_max). Inter-model differences were most sensitive to the largest precipitation events. Although variations in superficial geology dominated over those for land use, exceptions were seen in two sub-catchments. These were connected with particularly large variations in land use and/or the small spatial extent of superficial geology. Lower resolution spatial data produced superior model performance in the majority of sub-catchments. This has implications for modelling other catchments especially in situations where the high resolution data employed herein are not available.

The assessment of the hydromorphological condition of river corridors represents an established approach for evaluating the quality of fluvial systems. However, the potential to utilize existing hydromorphological assessment protocols and their indicators for the evaluation of ecosystem services remains largely unexplored. This study examines the applicability and robustness of such an indicator – transfer approach using two hydromorphological assessment protocols developed in Czechia (HEM and HYMOS), linked to the CICES 5.1 classification framework. The approach was tested across eight morphologically distinct reaches of the Bečva River, encompassing channelized, renaturalized, and restored segments. Relevant hydromorphological indicators were successfully identified and assigned to eight selected ecosystem services, including regulating, cultural, and provisioning categories. The comparison of HEM and HYMOS, including their respective indicator sets and the resulting ecosystem service assessments, showed that the HYMOS-based transfer generally yielded estimates reflecting a higher ecosystem service capacity. The results also indicate substantially higher ecosystem service capacity in renaturalized and restored reaches, a pattern that is particularly pronounced in the process-oriented HYMOS protocol. At the same time, the study highlights notable uncertainties in the assessment of cultural ecosystem services based solely on hydromorphological indicators. These services are strongly influenced by human perception, suggesting that their robust evaluation requires the integration of sociological data, including stakeholder surveys and participatory research. Overall, the findings demonstrate that hydromorphological assessment protocols can serve as a practical and conceptually consistent basis for the at least a preliminary evaluation of ecosystem service capacity associated with habitat quality, hydrological functioning, and channel-floodplain structure in river corridors.