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Blue network

Network structure

A physically connected system of rivers, streams, wetlands, and other water bodies, together with their associated riparian areas and floodplains. Watercourses commonly establish the principal spatial architecture of a blue network because hydrologic connections link landscape elements and their physical locations are comparatively stable. Individual blue elements may be disconnected from the larger network. The term describes physical spatial relationships without implying habitat quality, ecological function, or functional connectivity, which are evaluated separately.

Ward, J. V. (1989). The four-dimensional nature of lotic ecosystems. Journal of the North American Benthological Society, 8(1), 2–8. https://doi.org/10.2307/1467397 Forman, R. T. T. (1995). Land Mosaics: The Ecology of Landscapes and Regions. Cambridge University Press.