Bücker, A.; Sondermann, M.; Frede, H. & Breuer, L. (2010): <b>The influence of land-use on macroinvertebrate communities in montane tropical streams - a case study from Ecuador</b>. <i>Fundamental and Applied Limnology</i> <b>177</b>, 267-282.
Resource Description
Title:
The influence of land-use on macroinvertebrate communities in montane tropical streams - a case study from Ecuador
email:
hans-georg.frede <at> umwelt.uni-giessen.de
Heinrich-Buff-Ring 26
Institute for Landscape Ecology and Resources Management
Justus-Liebig-University Gießen
35392 Gießen
Germany
Individual:
Lutz Breuer
Contact:
email:
lutz.breuer <at> umwelt.uni-giessen.de
Heinrich-Buff-Ring 26
Institute for Landscape Ecology and Resources Management
Justus-Liebig-University Gießen
35392 Gießen
Germany
Abstract:
Despite the importance of tropical montane cloud forest streams, studies investigating aquatic communities<br/>
in these regions are rare and knowledge on the driving factors of community structure is missing. The objectives<br/>
of this study therefore were to understand how land-use infl uences habitat structure and macroinvertebrate<br/>
communities in cloud forest streams of southern Ecuador. We evaluated these relationships in headwater streams<br/>
with variable land cover, using multivariate statistics to identify relationships between key habitat variables and<br/>
assemblage structure, and to resolve differences in composition among sites. Results show that shading intensity,<br/>
substrate type and pH were the environmental parameters most closely related to variation in community composition<br/>
observed among sites. In addition, macroinvertebrate density and partly diversity was lower in forested sites,<br/>
possibly because the pH in forested streams lowered to almost 5 during spates. Standard bioindicator metrics were<br/>
unable to detect the changes in assemblage structure between disturbed and forested streams. In general, our results<br/>
indicate that tropical montane headwater streams are complex and heterogeneous ecosystems with low invertebrate<br/>
densities. We also found that some amount of disturbance, i.e. patchy deforestation, can lead at least initially to an<br/>
increase in macroinvertebrate taxa richness of these streams.
Additional Infos:
The underlying research data are available on Pangaea database: http://doi.pangaea.de/10.1594/PANGAEA.777749
