Recent land‐use changes affect stream ecosystem processes in a subtropical island in Brazil

Land‐use changes such as conversion of natural forest to rural and urban areas have been considered as main drivers of ecosystem functions decline, and a large variety of indicators has been used to investigate these effects. Here, we used a replicated litter‐bag experiment to investigate the effects of land‐use changes on the leaf‐litter breakdown process and leaf‐associated invertebrates along the forest–pasture–urban gradient located in a subtropical island (Florianópolis, SC, Brazil). We identified the invertebrates and measured the litter breakdown rates using the litter bags approach. Litter bags containing 3 g of dry leaf of Alchornea triplinervia were deployed on forest rural and urban streams. Principal component analysis, based on physico‐chemical variables which, confirmed a gradient of degradation from forest to urban streams with intermediate values in rural areas. In accordance, shredder richness and abundance were lower in rural and urban than in forest streams. The land‐use changes led also to the dominance of tolerant generalist taxa (Chironomidae and Oligochaeta) reducing the taxonomic and functional diversity in these sites. Leaf‐litter breakdown rates decreased from forest to rural and finally to urban areas and were associated with changes in pH, water velocity, dissolved oxygen and abundance of leaf‐shredding invertebrates, although global decomposition rates did not differ between rural and urban streams. Overall, this study showed that land‐use changes, namely to rural and urban areas, have a strong impact on tropical streams ecosystems, in both processes and communities composition and structure. Despite of being apparently a smaller transformation of landscape, rural land use is comparable to urbanisation in terms of impact in stream functioning. It is thus critical to carefully plan urban development and maintain forest areas in the island of Florianópolis in order to preserve its natural biodiversity and aquatic ecosystems functioning.     

Leaf litter decomposition and macroinvertebrate assemblages along an urban stream gradient in Puerto Rico

Urbanization is a major land use form that has large impacts on ecosystems. Urban development in the watershed impacts stream ecosystems by increasing nutrient and organic matter loads, altering hydrology, and reducing biodiversity. Puerto Rico is an ideal location to assess and monitor the effects of urbanization on streams, because it is increasingly urbanized and streams do not receive inputs of untreated sewage, characteristic of many other tropical urban areas. The objective of this study was to determine how leaf litter decomposition and aquatic macroinvertebrate assemblages varied along a tropical urban gradient. We conducted the study in the Río Piedras watershed, San Juan Metropolitan Area, in six low‐order streams that formed an urban gradient ranging from 10% to 70% urban land cover. At each stream, we placed six 5 g leaf bags of Ficus longifolia in three different pools and collected one bag on each sampling date. Decomposition rates were fast in forested streams (range 0.021–0.039/day) and decreased with increasing urbanization (range 0.007–0.008/day). Rates were strongly and negatively correlated with percent impervious surface cover (R = 0.81, p = 0.01). Functional feeding group diversity was higher in forested streams, with the presence of shredders. Decomposition rates were significantly and positively correlated with functional feeding group diversity and abundance (R = 0.66, p = 0.04). Overall, our results show that urbanization affected the environment and macroinvertebrate diversity resulting in large negative effects on stream ecosystem function. Abstract in Spanish is available with online material.     

Shifts in leaf litter breakdown along a forest–pasture–urban gradient in Andean streams

Tropical montane ecosystems of the Andes are critically threatened by a rapid land‐use change which can potentially affect stream variables, aquatic communities, and ecosystem processes such as leaf litter breakdown. However, these effects have not been sufficiently investigated in the Andean region and at high altitude locations in general. Here, we studied the influence of land use (forest–pasture–urban) on stream physico‐chemical variables (e.g., water temperature, nutrient concentration, and pH), aquatic communities (macroinvertebrates and aquatic fungi) and leaf litter breakdown rates in Andean streams (southern Ecuador), and how variation in those stream physico‐chemical variables affect macroinvertebrates and fungi related to leaf litter breakdown. We found that pH, water temperature, and nutrient concentration increased along the land‐use gradient. Macroinvertebrate communities were significantly different between land uses. Shredder richness and abundance were lower in pasture than forest sites and totally absent in urban sites, and fungal richness and biomass were higher in forest sites than in pasture and urban sites. Leaf litter breakdown rates became slower as riparian land use changed from natural to anthropogenically disturbed conditions and were largely determined by pH, water temperature, phosphate concentration, fungal activity, and single species of leaf‐shredding invertebrates. Our findings provide evidence that leaf litter breakdown in Andean streams is sensitive to riparian land‐use change, with urban streams being the most affected. In addition, this study highlights the role of fungal biomass and shredder species (Phylloicus; Trichoptera and Anchytarsus; Coleoptera) on leaf litter breakdown in Andean streams and the contribution of aquatic fungi in supporting this ecosystem process when shredders are absent or present low abundance in streams affected by urbanization. Finally, we summarize important implications in terms of managing of native vegetation and riparian buffers to promote ecological integrity and functioning of tropical Andean stream ecosystems.     

Leaf breakdown in streams differing in catchment land use

1. The impact of changes in land use on stream ecosystem function is poorly understood. We studied leaf breakdown, a fundamental process of stream ecosystems, in streams that represent a range of catchment land use in the Piedmont physiographic province of the south‐eastern United States. 2. We placed bags of chalk maple (Acer barbatum) leaves in similar‐sized streams in 12 catchments of differing dominant land use: four forested, three agricultural, two suburban and three urban catchments. We measured leaf mass, invertebrate abundance and fungal biomass in leaf bags over time. 3. Leaves decayed significantly faster in agricultural (0.0465 day^?1) and urban (0.0474 day^?1) streams than in suburban (0.0173 day^?1) and forested (0.0100 day^?1) streams. Additionally, breakdown rates in the agricultural and urban streams were among the fastest reported for deciduous leaves in any stream. Nutrient concentrations in agricultural streams were significantly higher than in any other land‐use type. Fungal biomass associated with leaves was significantly lower in urban streams; while shredder abundance in leaf bags was significantly higher in forested and agricultural streams than in suburban and urban streams. Storm runoff was significantly higher in urban and suburban catchments that had higher impervious surface cover than forested or agricultural catchments. 4. We propose that processes accelerating leaf breakdown in agricultural and urban streams were not the same: faster breakdown in agricultural streams was due to increased biological activity as a result of nutrient enrichment, whereas faster breakdown in urban streams was a result of physical fragmentation resulting from higher storm runoff.     

Storage and decomposition of particulate organic matter along the longitudinal gradient of an agriculturally-impacted stream

An agriculturally-impacted stream in northern Idaho was examined over a two-year period to determine seasonal and longitudinal patterns of the storage and decomposition of particulate organic matter. Biomass of benthic organic matter (BOM) was considerably less than values reported in the literature for comparable, undisturbed streams. Coarse, fine, and total benthic particulate organic matter were not correlated with parameters pertaining to stream size (e.g., stream order), but were correlated with sample site and amount of litterfall. The association of BOM with site and litterfall suggests that storage of particulate organic matter is a function of local characteristics rather than stream size. Low biomass of stored organic matter is a response to the low input of terrestrially-derived organic matter resulting from removal of climax vegetation.Leaf packs of alder, Alnus sp., were placed in the stream seasonally for 30 and 60 d. While there were significant differences for months, there was no significant difference among sites for leaf packs exposed for 30 d. Significant differences were observed among both sites and months for leaf packs exposed for 60 d; however, differences among sites accounted for only 5% of the variance. The absence of differences in decomposition of organic matter along the gradient of Lapwai Creek, despite heterogeneity of the drainage basin and availability of organic matter, may be in response to the overall low biomass of stored benthic organic matter. This study demonstrates that agricultural activity can substantially influence instream heterotrophic processes through reduced availability of organic matter and can shape community structure and ecosystem dynamics of streams flowing through agricultural drainage basins.     

Experimental wood addition in streams: effects on organic matter storage and breakdown

1. Channel complexity affects the physical structure, biotic communities and functioning of stream ecosystems. Large wood (LW) is a key element in the creation and maintenance of physically complex stream channels in forested areas. 2. In an attempt to enhance stream habitat quality and ecosystem functioning and to reduce inputs of organic matter to a downstream reservoir, LW was experimentally introduced into four mountain streams in the Basque Country (northern Spain), ranging in channel width from 3 to 13 m. Following a before–after/control–impact (BACI) design, streams were monitored during 1 year prior to wood addition and during 2 years after addition in one control and one experimental reach per stream. 3. Areal cover of benthic organic matter in the entire channel was measured from regular transects and the mass of stored organic matter from random Surber samples. Breakdown of organic matter was assessed in litter bag experiments performed with black alder leaves. When 50% of the initial mass in the bags remained, invertebrates associated with leaf bags were collected. 4. Wood placement produced a 2‐ to 70‐fold increase in the storage of organic matter, especially in thick deposits upstream from wood jams, with values in excess of 2 kg AFDM per m² in the small streams. The accumulation of organic matter produced by wood introduction decreased with increasing stream size. 5. Despite the large increase in the availability of organic matter, litter breakdown rates were unaffected by the experimental reaches, suggesting large increases in the total amount of organic matter consumed at the reach scale. 6. Numbers of invertebrates and shredders per gram of leaf litter did not respond to wood addition. Average body mass of invertebrates associated with leaf litter showed a non‐significant decreasing trend, which might reflect increased recruitment. 7. Although the effects of wood addition can depend on wood stability and stream size, adding LW to restore channel complexity can improve environmental conditions for invertebrate communities and affect stream ecosystem functioning, enhancing the efficiency to use organic matter inputs on a reach scale.     

Ecosystem Linkages between Southern Appalachian Headwater Streams and Their Banks: Leaf Litter Breakdown and Invertebrate Assemblages

We examined red maple (Acer rubrum L.) leaf litter breakdown in streams and riparian zones at two sites in the southern Appalachian Mountains to understand how differences in abiotic and biotic factors influence leaf breakdown rates. Litterbags were placed in three riparian habitats differing in litter layer moisture: stream > bank > upland. Invertebrates colonizing litterbags at one site were also examined to determine how variations in community and functional structure affect breakdown rates. Leaves broke down fastest in streams and slowest in upland habitats, whereas bank habitats were intermediate and characterized by high variability. Faster leaf breakdown rates in streams appeared to be a function of greater moisture availability, a more stable thermal regime, and a higher biomass of leaf-shredding invertebrates, especially the stonefly Tallaperla. In addition, patterns of leaf breakdown and invertebrate community structure provided evidence for a stronger than expected ecological connection between the stream and the bank. Overall, detritus processing within this narrow riparian ecosystem varied considerably depending on the availability of moisture. Results from this study show that stream channel–floodplain interactions in riparian ecosystems of steep forested mountains are analogous to ones in larger downstream or low-gradient systems. Riparian zones throughout a river network display a remarkable heterogeneity in their ability to process organic matter, which is ultimately driven by changes in hydrological conditions. Received 6 March 2001; accepted 3 July 2001.     

Urbanization and exotic plants in northern Sydney streams

The vegetation and sediment of urban and non‐urban streams in the northern Sydney region were compared to examine the possible effects of urbanization on within‐stream vegetation. Many sediment characteristics were significantly different in urban streams. At least one exotic plant species was found in each urban stream sampled, but none were found in the non‐urban streams. The presence of exotic species led to the overall number and abundance of plant species being significantly higher in urban streams. Interestingly, the number and abundance of native species at the urban sites were the same as non‐urban sites, but a different suite of species was usually present. This suggests that urban streams favour exotic plants and certain native plants that are adapted to the modified conditions. The differences between the plant communities in the urban and non‐urban streams appeared to be associated with the increased level of nutrients in the urban stream sediment. Several multivariate techniques were used to assess the relative importance of individual nutrients, but no nutrients were directly associated with the observed differences. In particular, total phosphorus levels were less important in explaining the vegetation patterns than a combination of nutrients. It is therefore likely that the general increase of nutrients in stream sediment has enhanced exotic invasion and altered stream plant communities in Sydney streams.     

Inter‐regional comparison of land‐use effects on stream metabolism

1. Rates of whole‐system metabolism (production and respiration) are fundamental indicators of ecosystem structure and function. Although first‐order, proximal controls are well understood, assessments of the interactions between proximal controls and distal controls, such as land use and geographic region, are lacking. Thus, the influence of land use on stream metabolism across geographic regions is unknown. Further, there is limited understanding of how land use may alter variability in ecosystem metabolism across regions. 2. Stream metabolism was measured in nine streams in each of eight regions (n = 72) across the United States and Puerto Rico. In each region, three streams were selected from a range of three land uses: agriculturally influenced, urban‐influenced, and reference streams. Stream metabolism was estimated from diel changes in dissolved oxygen concentrations in each stream reach with correction for reaeration and groundwater input. 3. Gross primary production (GPP) was highest in regions with little riparian vegetation (sagebrush steppe in Wyoming, desert shrub in Arizona/New Mexico) and lowest in forested regions (North Carolina, Oregon). In contrast, ecosystem respiration (ER) varied both within and among regions. Reference streams had significantly lower rates of GPP than urban or agriculturally influenced streams. 4. GPP was positively correlated with photosynthetically active radiation and autotrophic biomass. Multiple regression models compared using Akaike’s information criterion (AIC) indicated GPP increased with water column ammonium and the fraction of the catchment in urban and reference land‐use categories. Multiple regression models also identified velocity, temperature, nitrate, ammonium, dissolved organic carbon, GPP, coarse benthic organic matter, fine benthic organic matter and the fraction of all land‐use categories in the catchment as regulators of ER. 5. Structural equation modelling indicated significant distal as well as proximal control pathways including a direct effect of land‐use on GPP as well as SRP, DIN, and PAR effects on GPP; GPP effects on autotrophic biomass, organic matter, and ER; and organic matter effects on ER. 6. Overall, consideration of the data separated by land‐use categories showed reduced inter‐regional variability in rates of metabolism, indicating that the influence of agricultural and urban land use can obscure regional differences in stream metabolism.     

Water abstraction impacts stream ecosystem functioning via wetted‐channel contraction

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Leaf Litter as a Source of Dissolved Organic Carbon in Streams

Dissolved organic carbon (DOC) is an abundant form of organic matter in stream ecosystems. Most research has focused on the watershed as the source of DOC in streams, but DOC also comes from leaching of organic matter stored in the stream channel. We used a whole-ecosystem experimental approach to assess the significance of leaching of organic matter in the channel as a source of DOC in a headwater stream. Inputs of leaf litter were excluded from a forested Appalachian headwater stream for 3 years. Stream-water concentration, export, and instream generation of DOC were reduced in the litter-excluded stream as compared with a nearby untreated reference stream. The proportion of high molecular weight (HMW) DOC (more than 10,000 daltons) in stream water was not altered by litter exclusion. Mean DOC concentration in stream water was directly related to benthic leaf-litter standing stock. Instream generation of DOC from leaf litter stored in the stream channel contributes approximately 30% of daily DOC exports in this forested headwater stream. This source of DOC is greatest during autumn and winter and least during spring and summer. It is higher during increasing discharge than during base flow. We conclude that elimination of litter inputs from a forested headwater stream has altered the biogeochemistry of DOC in this ecosystem. Received 2 September 1997; accepted 27 January 1998.     

Watershed urbanization alters the composition and function of stream bacterial communities

Watershed urbanization leads to dramatic changes in draining streams, with urban streams receiving a high frequency of scouring flows, together with the nutrient, contaminant, and thermal pollution associated with urbanization. These changes are known to cause significant losses of sensitive insect and fish species from urban streams, yet little is known about how these changes affect the composition and function of stream microbial communities. Over the course of two years, we repeatedly sampled sediments from eight central North Carolina streams affected to varying degrees by watershed urbanization. For each stream and sampling date, we characterized both overall and denitrifying bacterial communities and measured denitrification potentials. Denitrification is an ecologically important process, mediated by denitrifying bacteria that use nitrate and organic carbon as substrates. Differences in overall and denitrifying bacterial community composition were strongly associated with the gradient in urbanization. Denitrification potentials, which varied widely, were not significantly associated with substrate supply. By incorporating information on the community composition of denitrifying bacteria together with substrate supply in a linear mixed-effects model, we explained 45% of the variation in denitrification potential (p-value<0.001). Our results suggest that (1) the composition of stream bacterial communities change in response to watershed urbanization and (2) such changes may have important consequences for critical ecosystem functions such as denitrification.     

Urban catchment hydrology overwhelms reach scale effects of riparian vegetation on organic matter dynamics

1. Urbanisation severely affects stream hydrology, biotic integrity and water quality, but relatively little is known about effects on organic matter dynamics. Coarse particulate organic matter (CPOM) is a source of energy and nutrients in aquatic systems, and its availability has implications for ecosystem productivity and aquatic communities. In undisturbed environments, allochthonous inputs from riparian zones provide critical energy subsidies, but the extent to which this occurs in urbanised streams is poorly understood. 2. We investigated CPOM inputs, standing stocks, retention rates and retention mechanisms in urban and peri‐urban streams in Melbourne, Australia. Six streams were chosen along a gradient of catchment urbanisation, with the presence of reach scale riparian canopy cover as a second factor. CPOM retention was assessed at baseflow via replicate releases of marked Eucalyptus leaves where the retention distance and mechanism were recorded. CPOM and small wood (>1 cm diameter) storage were measured via cores and direct counts, respectively, while lateral and horizontal CPOM inputs were assessed using riparian litter traps. Stream discharge, velocity, depth and width were also measured. 3. CPOM inputs were not correlated with urbanisation, but were significantly higher in ‘closed’ canopy reaches. Urbanisation and riparian cover altered CPOM retention mechanisms, but not retention distances. Urban streams showed greater retention by rocks; while in less urban streams, retention by small wood was considerably higher. CPOM and small wood storage were significantly lower in more urban streams, but we found only a weak effect of riparian cover. 4. These findings suggest that while riparian vegetation increases CPOM inputs and has modest/weak effects on storage, catchment scale urbanisation decreases organic matter availability. Using an organic matter budget approach, it appears likely that the increased frequency and magnitude of high flows associated with catchment urbanisation exerts an overriding influence on organic matter availability. 5. We conclude that to maintain both organic matter inputs and storage, the restoration and protection of streams in urban or rapidly urbanising environments relies on the management of both riparian vegetation and catchment hydrology.     

Organic matter breakdown as a measure of stream health in New Zealand streams affected by acid mine drainage

Functional indicators of stream health have the potential to provide insights into stream condition that cannot be gained by traditional structural indices. We examined breakdown of leaves, wood, and cotton cloth strips at 18 sites along a gradient of effects of drainage from coal mines in New Zealand to determine the usefulness of these methods as functional indicators of stream health. The pH varied from 2.7 to neutral across the streams, and the more acidic streams typically had higher concentrations of aluminum, iron, zinc, and other metal ions. Precipitates of metal (mainly iron) hydroxides were present in most streams affected by mine drainage, especially in those with a pH of 4–5. Breakdown rates of all organic matter types were highest in several reference streams with neutral pH and lowest in sites with high rates of metal hydroxide deposition. Breakdown was relatively fast in the most acidic streams (pH < 3), in some cases as fast as at reference sites; these sites also had elevated nutrient concentrations. Shredding invertebrates were absent in litterbags from acidic streams and common at only 2 reference sites; their presence contributed to fast breakdown of leaves in the field and in lab microcosms. Microbial respiration was closely related to breakdown rates of leaves and wood; it was high at neutral and highly acidic streams, but lower at sites with pH 4–5, where metal hydroxides were precipitating onto solid surfaces. In these metal hydroxide-stressed streams, leaf and wood breakdown was slower, and associated biota, including microbes, were more affected than by water chemistry stressors (pH, dissolved metals) associated with mine drainage. Litter breakdown and microbial respiration provide insight into the functioning of streams, yielding different responses than traditional structural measures based on macroinvertebrates, which did not accurately distinguish impacts from acid mine drainage.     

Effects of land cover on chemical characteristics of streams in the Cerrado region of Brazil

The Cerrado is the second largest Brazilian biome and contains the headwaters of three major hydrological basins in Brazil. In spite of the biological and ecological relevance of this biome, there is little information about how land use changes affect the chemistry of low-order streams in the Cerrado. To evaluate these effects streams that drain areas under natural, rural, and urban land cover were sampled near Brasília, Brazil. Water samples were collected between September 2004 and December 2006. Chemical concentrations generally followed the pattern of Urban > Rural > Natural. Median conductivity of stream water of 21.6 (interquartile: 22.7) ??S/cm in urban streams was three and five-fold greater relative to rural and natural areas, respectively. In the wet season, despite of increasing discharge, concentration of many solutes were higher, particularly in rural and natural streams. Streams also presented higher total dissolved N (TDN) loads from natural to rural and urban although DIN:DON ratios did not differ significantly. In natural and urban streams TDN was 80 and 77% dissolved organic N, respectively. These results indicate that alterations in land cover from natural to rural and urban are changing stream water chemistry in the Cerrado with increasing solute concentrations, in addition to increased TDN output in areas under urban cover, with potential effects on ecosystem function.     

Stream detritus dynamics: Regulation by invertebrate consumers

Summary Insecticide treatment of a small, Appalachian forest stream caused massive downstream insect drift and reduced aquatic insect densities to <10% of an adjacent untreated reference stream. Reduction in breakdown rates of leaf detritus was accompanied by differences in quantity and composition of benthic organic matter between the two streams. Following treatment, transport of particulate organic matter was significantly lower in the treated stream than in the reference stream whereas no significant differences existed prior to treatment. Our results indicate that macroinvertebrate consumers, primarily insects, are important in regulating rates of detritus processing and availability to downstream communities.     

Urbanization drives contemporary evolution in stream fish

Human activities reduce biodiversity but may also drive diversification by modifying selection. Urbanization alters stream hydrology by increasing peak water velocities, which should in turn alter selection on the body morphology of aquatic species. Here, we show how urbanization can generate evolutionary divergence in the body morphology of two species of stream fish, western blacknose dace (Rhinichthys obtusus) and creek chub (Semotilus atromaculatus). We predicted that fish should evolve more streamlined body shapes within urbanized streams. We found that in urban streams, dace consistently exhibited more streamlined bodies while chub consistently showed deeper bodies. Comparing modern creek chub populations with historical museum collections spanning 50 years, we found that creek chub (1) rapidly became deeper bodied in streams that experienced increasing urbanization over time, (2) had already achieved deepened bodies 50 years ago in streams that were then already urban (and showed no additional deepening over time), and (3) remained relatively shallow bodied in streams that stayed rural over time. By raising creek chub from five populations under common conditions in the laboratory, we found that morphological differences largely reflected genetically based differences, not velocity–induced phenotypic plasticity. We suggest that urbanization can drive rapid, adaptive evolutionary responses to disturbance, and that these responses may vary unpredictably in different species.     

Leaf-litter processing in headwater streams of northern Iberian Peninsula: moderate levels of eutrophication do not explain breakdown rates

Agricultural and urban runoffs result in increased nitrogen and phosphorus inputs in rivers and are the cause of eutrophication. Headwater streams are less frequently affected by these impairments because of the low-to-moderate human activities there. Eutrophication can affect the structure and function of benthic communities in headwater streams, stimulating the activity of heterotrophic microorganisms and macroinvertebrates on a pivotal process such as leaf-litter decomposition. In this study, we monitored the breakdown of alder leaves in six headwater streams that constitute a moderate nutrient enrichment gradient. Breakdown experiments were conducted in autumn–winter and leaf carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus, and associated aquatic hyphomycetes and macroinvertebrates were determined. The increase in nutrient availability in the stream water enhanced leaf-litter quality and led to an increase in the hyphomycete assemblage evenness and a reduction of shredder densities. However, contrary to our expectations, dissolved nutrient availability did not explain the breakdown rates. Thus, the absence of a clear effect of nutrient enrichment of stream water on the leaf breakdown rate highlights the difficulties of predicting the response of this ecosystem process to slight levels of eutrophication in headwater streams.     

Recovery of a tropical stream after a harvest-related chlorine poisoning event

1. Harvest‐related poisoning events are common in tropical streams, yet research on stream recovery has largely been limited to temperate streams and generally does not include any measures of ecosystem function, such as leaf breakdown. 2. We assessed recovery of a second‐order, high‐gradient stream draining the Luquillo Experimental Forest, Puerto Rico, 3 months after a chlorine‐bleach poisoning event. The illegal poisoning of freshwater shrimps for harvest caused massive mortality of shrimps and dramatic changes in those ecosystem properties influenced by shrimps. We determined recovery potential using an established recovery index and assessed actual recovery by examining whether the poisoned reach returned to conditions resembling an undisturbed upstream reference reach. 3. Recovery potential was excellent (score = 729 of a possible 729) and can be attributed to nearby sources of organisms for colonisation, the mobility of dominant organisms, unimpaired habitat, rapid flushing and processing of chlorine, and location within a national forest. 4. Actual recovery was substantial. Comparison of the reference reach with the formerly poisoned reach indicated: (1) complete recovery of xiphocaridid and palaemonid shrimp population abundances, shrimp size distributions, leaf breakdown rates, and abundances of oligochaetes and mayflies on leaves, and (2) only small differences in atyid shrimp abundance and community and ecosystem properties influenced by atyid shrimps (standing stocks of epilithic fine inorganic and organic matter, chlorophyll a, and abundances of chironomids and copepods on leaves). 5. There was no detectable pattern between any measured variables and distance downstream from the poisoning. However, shrimp size‐distributions indicated that the observed recovery may represent a source‐sink dynamic, in which the poisoned reach acts as a sink which depletes adult shrimp populations from surrounding undisturbed habitats. Thus, the rapid recovery observed in this study is consistent with results from other field studies of pulse chlorine disturbances, harvest‐related fish poisonings, and recovery of freshwater biotic interactions, but it is unlikely to be sustainable if multiple poisonings deplete adult populations to the extent that juvenile recruitment does not offset adult shrimp mortality.     

Response of epilithic diatom assemblages to urbanization influences

Urbanization has long been recognized to alter the hydrology, water quality and channel form of waterways. Recently, consideration of urban impacts on waterways has expanded to include assessment of the aquatic biota, generally focusing upon the macroinvertebrate fauna. This study compares the impacts of urbanization on the structure of stream benthic diatom communities in 16 first- and second-order streams in the east of Melbourne, Australia. Relationships between the physical elements of urbanization, water quality and diatom communities were examined using multivariate analyses with compositional similarity, and univariate analyses with selected diatom species and indices,. There was a strong negative correlation between urban density and the diatom indices of water quality. The element of urbanization most strongly related to the measured decline in the diatom community was drainage connection. Electrical conductivity was the most influential water quality variable. It is hypothesized that, in addition to increasing electrical conductivity, drainage connection may be impacting the diatom community by increasing the delivery of phosphorus during small storm events. The study suggests that reducing directly piped drainage connection using infiltration and retention is a logical step in the mitigation of urban impacts upon receiving streams. A corollary part of the project indicated strong potential for using overseas diatom indices in studies on water quality in southeastern Australia.