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A biologia da conservacao, historicamente, alicercou seus principios e fundamentos tendo os ambientes terrestres como palco principal; ambientes aquaticos, sempre estiveram nos bastidores. Embora com foco terrestre, as areas protegidas oferecem algum tipo de protecao aos organismos aquaticos, porem comumente deixam de fora alguns elementos fundamentais da paisagem de ambientes aquaticos, como a conectividade de rios, lagos e riachos, o que compromete a reproducao e persistencia dos organismos aquaticos. A preservacao dos ecossistemas terrestres e fundamental, mas a reflexao que gostariamos de suscitar e a de valorizacao dos ecossistemas aquaticos, nao em detrimento aos terrestres, e sim em adicao a eles. Os ambientes de aguas continentais sao sistemas hierarquicos e aninhados, possuindo conexoes tanto longitudinais (montante-jusante) quanto laterais (afluentes, lagos e planicie de inundacao), e ainda conexoes temporais (inundacoes sazonais) e verticais (aquiferos, lencol freatico). A metodologia utilizada para conservacao na escala de paisagem e o Planejamento Sistematico para a Conservacao (PSC). Essa analise espacial leva em consideracao relacoes de custo-beneficio baseadas em fatores ecologicos, normalmente area de distribuicao, e socioeconomicos, e resulta em mapas tematicos de areas prioritarias para conservacao. Originalmente, o PSC nao levou em consideracao a conectividade dos ecossistemas de aguas continentais, recentemente incorporada aos algoritmos de priorizacao espacial para conservacao. Os mapas gerados a partir dessa priorizacao espacial ajudam a direcionar acoes para a conservacao e manejo de especies, e para a confeccao de planos de reducao de impacto (PRIM) e planos de acao para especies ameacadas (PAN). Esses planos devem ser viaveis nao so em termos ecologicos, mas tambem economicos. Os PRIM e PAN tambem utilizam informacoes sobre a ecologia das especies, e focam em acoes para combater ou diminuir os riscos de ameaca as populacoes ou ao ambiente onde vivem as especies ou grupos taxonomicos, foco desses planos, que sao instrumentos importantes de politicas publicas ambientais no Brasil. Com isso, o PSC tem sido uma ferramenta importante de integracao entre academia, sociedade e tomadores de decisoes, com potencial para melhorar a gestao de recursos e ecossistemas. STREAM FISH CONSERVATION: PLANNING AND PUBLIC POLICIES: Conservation biology has historically been based on principles to protect terrestrial ecosystems, with marine and freshwater ecosystems left behind. As a result, often, protected areas are defined with bases in forest cover and terrestrial characteristics overseeing important components of connectivity of riverine landscapes, such as the connectivity between rivers, lakes, and streams. It is important to emphasize that forest protection is extremely important, but that alone cannot safeguard the protection of freshwater ecosystems. Therefore, our discussion should lead, not to the disregard of terrestrial efforts but to the complementation of existing efforts for forest protection with the addition of areas that can also protect freshwater ecosystems. Fluvial ecosystems are hierarchical and nested systems, with multidimensional connectivity including longitudinal (upstream-downstream), lateral (floodplains and lakes), temporal (seasons) and vertical (groundwaters) connections. Systematic Conservation Planning (SCP) is the most well accepted and used method for designing conservation plans based on cost-effective scenarios that include ecological and socio-economic values resulting in thematic maps of priority areas for conservation. Recently, methods to consider the connectivity of freshwater ecosystems were incorporated into spatial prioritization tools. Maps produced using spatial prioritization tools can help decision making on species management and conservation actions, such as plans for species’ impact reduction (PRIM) and action plans for threatened species (PAN). PRIM and PAN use information about species ecology to focus conservation actions onto target species. These conservation action plans must be viable not only ecologically but also economically. In this context, using SCP to guide designs of PRIM and PAN can help stakeholders to achieve better conservation actions in Brazil. Thus, the SCP can improve the conservation and management of freshwater ecosystems, through the integration of science, society and stakeholder.