Long-term studies are essential for understanding how and to what extent various stressors impact long-lived species, such as turtles. Turtle populations are declining globally. Empirical data from long-term studies of turtles are largely lacking, which hinders the development of effective conservation programs. We evaluated a river turtle assemblage over a 50 year study period (1969–2019), during which the assemblage was impacted by harvesting, habitat degradation, a record-shattering flood, and the removal of a small dam. Our objective was to determine how the turtle assemblage, Graptemys geographica population (i.e., predominant species), and habitat changed in light of a recent record-shattering flood and the removal of a small dam, and place those changes within the context of other stressors documented within the 50 year study period. The record-shattering flood changed the stream and riparian habitat and, along with the dam removal, the turtle assemblage. In the short term, G. geographica and other turtle species within the assemblage, with the exception of Sternotherus odoratus, either exhibited positive or neutral impacts from the flood. We conclude that turtle species adapted to lotic habitats can cope with extreme flooding if their populations are secure prior to flooding and if the riparian and stream habitats are intact. However, as more threats simultaneously impact turtle populations, we expect fewer populations to be able to withstand such additional stressors. Within the context provided by the fifty year study period, we found that harvesting had more immediate negative impacts on the G. geographica population than did flooding.

长期研究对于了解各种压力因素如何以及在多大程度上影响长寿命物种（例如海龟）至关重要。全球海龟数量正在减少。长期缺乏对海龟研究的经验数据，这阻碍了有效保护计划的发展。我们在为期50年的研究期（1969-2019年）中对河龟的组装进行了评估，在此期间，组装受到了收获，栖息地退化，破纪录的洪水以及拆除小水坝的影响。我们的目标是，以确定如何乌龟组合，Graptemys属内地理人口（即主要物种）和栖息地因近期破纪录的洪灾和小水坝的拆除而发生了变化，并将这些变化置于50年研究期内记录的其他压力源的背景下。破纪录的洪水改变了河流和河岸的栖息地，连同拆除大坝，改变了龟的组合。在短期内，该种群中的G. geoa和其他海龟物种，Sodorotherus odoratus除外，无论是受到洪水的正面影响还是中性影响。我们得出的结论是，如果适应洪水前栖息地的龟类种群在洪灾之前是安全的，并且河岸和河流栖息地完好无损，则可以应对极端洪水。但是，随着越来越多的威胁同时影响海龟种群，我们预计更少的种群能够承受这种额外的压力。在五十年研究期提供的背景下，我们发现收获比洪灾对地理地理种群更具直接的负面影响。