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Many ecologists and managers tend to treat the roles and effects of each species on river corridors individually. According to Naiman and Rogers, this focus on individual species often results in the failure to recognize fundamental, synergistic forces that result from interactions among large animals in river corridors. As the authors show in this article, community interactions among species have long-term, complex ecosystem-level consequences. In this article, the authors show that large animals greatly influence habitat creation and maintenance. They have also provided a conceptual framework in the form of functional groupings, using case studies from North America and southern Africa, to support their assertion that animals are key elements in the structure and function of riverine ecosystems. Wildlife, water, and vegetation need to be thought of as an integrated system that is constantly changing over space and time. The authors propose that principles for wildlife management in river corridors adhere to guidelines that recommend maintaining viable populations of all species, across their natural range of variation, managing over time periods that are long enough to maintain the evolutionary and ecological potential of species and ecosystems, and accommodating human use and occupancy within these constraints. They suggest that viewing animals in the context of patch dynamics has value for scientists and managers for two reasons: riparian corridors are inherently disturbance-driven systems, and functional groupings provide a valuable framework for translating detailed ecological knowledge into resource plans. As interactions intensify among cultural values, societal behavior, and the environment, it will become increasingly important that ecosystem management be based on sound ecological principles.