Catchment properties predict autochthony in stream filter feeders

Autor: Karolina Stenroth, Lina E. Polvi, Ryan A. Sponseller, Micael Jonsson
Rok vydání: 2018
Předmět:
Zdroj: Hydrobiologia. 815:83-95
ISSN: 1573-5117
0018-8158
DOI: 10.1007/s10750-018-3553-8
Popis: Stream ecological theory predicts that the use of allochthonous resources declines with increasing channel width, while at the same time primary production and autochthonous carbon use by consumers increase. Although these expectations have found support in several studies, it is not well known how terrestrial runoff and/or inputs of primary production from lakes alter these longitudinal patterns. To investigate this, we analyzed the diet of filter-feeding black fly and caddisfly larvae from 23 boreal streams, encompassing gradients in drainage area, land cover and land use, and distance to nearest upstream lake outlet. In five of these streams, we also sampled repeatedly during autumn to test if allochthony of filter feeders increases over time as new litter inputs are processed. Across sites, filter-feeder autochthony was 21.1-75.1%, did not differ between black fly and caddisfly larvae, was not positively related to drainage area, and did not decrease with distance from lakes. Instead, lake and wetland cover promoted filter-feeder autochthony independently of stream size, whereas catchment-scale forest cover and forestry reduced autochthony. Further, we found no seasonal increase in allochthony, indicating low assimilation of particles derived from autumn litter fall. Hence, catchment properties, rather than local conditions, can influence levels of autochthony in boreal streams.
Databáze: OpenAIRE
Externí odkaz:
Nepřihlášeným uživatelům se plný text nezobrazuje