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Visually determined stream mesohabitats influence benthic macroinvertebrate assessments in headwater streams

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Abstract

Mesohabitat components such as substrate and surface flow types are intimately related to benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages in streams. Visual assessments of the distribution of these components provide a means of evaluating physical habitat heterogeneity and aid biodiversity surveys and monitoring. We determined the degree to which stream site and visually assessed mesohabitat variables explain variability (i.e., beta-diversity) in the relative abundance and presence-absence of all macroinvertebrate families and of Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, and Trichoptera (EPT) genera. We systematically sampled a wide variety of mesohabitat arrangements as they occured in stream sites. We also estimated how much of the explanation given by mesohabitat was associated with substrate or surface flow types. We performed variation partitioning to determine fractions of explained variance through use of partial redundancy analysis (pRDA). Mesohabitats and stream sites explained together from 23 to 32 % of the variation in the four analyses. Stream site explained 8–11 % of that variation, and mesohabitat variables explained 13–20 %. Surface flow types accounted for >60 % of the variation provided by the mesohabitat component. These patterns are in accordance with those obtained in previous studies that showed the predominance of environmental variables over spatial location in explaining macroinvertebrate distribution. We conclude that visually assessed mesohabitat components are important predictors of assemblage composition, explaining significant amounts of beta-diversity. Therefore, they are critical to consider in ecological and biodiversity assessments involving macroinvertebrates.

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Acknowledgments

Colleagues from the Pontifícia Universidade Católica-Minas Gerais, Universidade Federal de Lavras, and Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais assisted with field collections and sample processing. We thank Péter Sály for help with data analyses. We received funding from CEMIG (Companhia Energética de Minas Gerais) Programa Peixe-Vivo and Pesquisa & Desenvolvimento/Agência Nacional de Energia Elétrica - P&D ANEEL/CEMIG GT- 487, CNPQ (Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico), CAPES (Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior), FAPEMIG (Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerais), and Fulbright-Brasil (for RMH). The manuscript was first drafted while the first author was a guest researcher at the USEPA Corvallis Laboratory. MC received a research grant and a research fellowship from the Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq nos. 302960/2011-2 and 475830/2008-3) and from the Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerais (FAPEMIG nos. PPM-00077/13 and APQ-2593-3.12-07).

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  1. Departamento de Biologia Geral, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Av. Antônio Carlos 6627, CP 486, CEP 30161-970, Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil

    Déborah R. O. Silva, Raphael Ligeiro & Marcos Callisto

  2. Amnis Opes Institute, Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Oregon State University, Nash Hall, Corvallis, OR, 97331-4501, USA

    Robert M. Hughes

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  1. Déborah R. O. Silva
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Silva, D.R.O., Ligeiro, R., Hughes, R.M. et al. Visually determined stream mesohabitats influence benthic macroinvertebrate assessments in headwater streams. Environ Monit Assess 186, 5479–5488 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-014-3797-3

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