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Sierra Nevada (southern Iberian Peninsula) harbours a great biodiversity and the studies on some aquatic insect groups have been and continue to be numerous there. This database brings together information on Plecoptera, Trichoptera and Coleoptera inhabiting running waters of this mountain system above 800 m of altitude. It includes data on the number, life stage and sex of individuals as well as the available information on abiotic characteristics of their habitats. The dataset is composed of 1,718 sampling events carried out between 1901 and 2022 in approximately 60 different water bodies, 15,347 occurrences pertaining to more than 203,000 individuals, and 10,173 records of associated measurements (23 physico-chemical parameters). The dataset is the result of a comprehensive review of scientific literature and of integrating data from recent research projects and the Sierra Nevada Global-Change Observatory's long-term monitoring data. This information is valuable for those studying past distributions and abundances of the species in the dataset, for building predictive models or just studying temporal trends in the current context of climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Identifying and quantifying global change impacts on biotic and abiotic components of ecosystems is critical to promote an effective adaptation that increases the success of conservation strategies. To achieve this goal, global and regional assessment efforts require certain degree of harmonization on local monitoring programs to establish relevant comparisons at different spatio-temporal scales. Otherwise, the lack of harmonization might hinder the detection and assessment on the effects of human impacts. In this work we have compiled information on freshwater monitoring programs located in areas of intensive research and conservation interest: International Long Term Ecological Research (ILTER) nodes and mountain National Parks. We aimed at evaluating the quality and robustness of these programs to assess the impact of global change, addressing from the worldwide to the European and Spanish national scale. Results highlighted that freshwater monitoring programs lack a common strategy to monitor these ecosystems. Even at the continental and national scales, contrasting strategies and level of detail have been historically applied. Water quality, habitat and biodiversity are more commonly monitored than community structure and ecosystem functioning. Monitoring efforts on the Spanish Mountain National parks indicated differences on the targeted aquatic ecosystems. Rivers and lakes received a higher attention, while mires were rarely considered. Our results provide evidence that greater efforts should be directed towards constructing a coordinated strategy to monitor freshwater ecosystems at national, continental, and global scales. This strategy should involve a shared backbone of biophysical and biogeochemical variables for each habitat type on agreed protocols that are implemented across regions and administrative borders. Achieving this will support a substantial advance on the ecological research to further delineate proper conservation strategies to face the challenges imposed by global change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rivers in Mediterranean high mountains are especially vulnerable to climate change because these areas are characterized by extreme climatic conditions of snowy winters and relatively frequent summer droughts. Climate induced alterations in temperature and the magnitude of high and low river flows are expected to have significant effects on aquatic fauna. Here, we analysed changes in the caddisfly communities of the Sierra Nevada during a 20-year period on an altitudinal gradient range of 952-3050 m. Furthermore, we related these changes to an observed increase in air temperature and decrease in river flow over the last 40 years. Overall, caddisfly species richness increased but patterns varied depending on altitude in a non-linear shape. Richness increased in altitude with maximum values at sites of intermediate-high altitude (1800-2000 m). The effects of the observed climate change may be explained by the colonization of headwaters and middle reaches from mid-lowland species or by those from streams and rivers in nearby mountain chains at lower altitude. The observed richness increase and its association with environmental conditions suggest that mountains with a considerable altitudinal gradient may function as refuges for species and populations during periods of climatic change, which strength the importance of the conservation of mountainous habitat. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]