Effects of travertine and flow on leaf retention in Fossil Creek,Arizona |
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Authors: | Zacchaeus G Compson Mead Z Mier Jane C Marks |
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Institution: | (1) Merriam Powell Center for Environmental Research, Department of Biological Sciences, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ 86001, USA;(2) Present address: Pima Association of Governments, 177 N. Church Ave., Suite 405, Tucson, AZ 85701, USA |
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Abstract: | Leaf retention is important in transferring energy from riparian trees to stream food webs. Retention increases with geomorphic
complexity such as substrate coarseness, sinuosity, and the presence of debris dams. High discharge can reduce retention,
particularly when streams lack physical trapping features. Travertine formations, caused by calcium carbonate deposition,
can alter stream morphology. To date, however, we know of no study testing the effect of travertine on leaf retention. This
study capitalized on a river restoration project in Fossil Creek, Arizona, where water was returned to the channel after a
century of diversion. We examined how the fixed factors Flow (before and after restoration) and Morphology (travertine and
riffle-pool sites) affected leaf retention. Leaf retention was higher in sites where travertine forms barriers across the
river, relative to sites with riffle-pool morphology. Most leaves retained in travertine reaches were concentrated at the
bottom of pools formed between dams. Although flow restoration did not alter retention rates across all sites, it diminished
them at travertine sites, indicating an interaction between stream flow and morphology. We conclude that stream complexity
and leaf retention are enhanced by travertine deposition but that high discharge can reduce the retentive capacity of in-stream
structures.
Handling editor: Darren Ryder |
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Keywords: | Leaf retention Flow restoration Travertine CPOM Fossil Creek |
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