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Anthropogenic pressure explains variations in the biodiversity of pond communities along environmental gradients: a case study in south-eastern Serbia

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Abstract

While several studies have tested the effects of anthropogenic factors on specific taxa in ponds, the simultaneous effects of the overall anthropogenic pressure along the environmental gradient on the diversity of different groups of pond communities remain unknown. In this study, we evaluated the simultaneous effects of the overall intensity of human impact and characteristics of natural pond variability on the diversity and density of macrophytes, benthic and epiphytic macroinvertebrates, and fish community and water chemistry in pond ecosystems. We found a reduction in the diversity and density of macrophytes and in the diversity of epiphytic macroinvertebrates with an increased human pressure. The effects of the intensity of human impact on the diversity of epiphytic macroinvertebrates were mediated via changes in macrophyte diversity. Benthic macroinvertebrates were not affected by an increase in the intensity of human pressure. Fish community responded to the increased human pressure with shifts in abundance through the predominance of invasive species. Natural pond variability properties affected the pond communities and water chemistry in the majority of cases. Our results conclude that for understanding the effects of human activity on pond biodiversity, integrating the simultaneous effects of multiple anthropogenic and abiotic factors in ponds is desirable.

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Acknowledgements

This study was supported by Grant #43002 (“Biosensing technologies and global systems for the long-term research and integrated management of ecosystems”) and a bilateral cooperation scientific project between Serbia and Croatia, both funded by the Serbian Ministry of Education and Science.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biology and Ecology, Faculty of Science and Mathematics, University of Niš, Višegradska 33, Niš, 18000, Serbia

    Olivera Stamenković, Milica Stojković Piperac, Djuradj Milošević, Dragana Jenačković, Aca Đurđević & Danijela Nikolić

  2. Department of Biology, Chemistry, Pharmacy, Institute of Biology, Freie Universität Berlin, Altensteinstraße 34, 14195, Berlin, Germany

    Oksana Y. Buzhdygan

  3. Department of Ecology and Biomonitoring, Yuriy Fedkovych Chernivtsi National University, Kotsjubynskyi Str. 2, Chernivtsi, 58012, Ukraine

    Oksana Y. Buzhdygan

  4. Institute of Biology and Ecology, Faculty of Science, University of Kragujevac, Radoja Domanovića 12, Kragujevac, 34000, Serbia

    Ana Petrović & Vladica Simić

  5. Department of Biology, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, Trg Ljudevita Gaja 6, 31000, Osijek, Croatia

    Dubravka Čerba & Barbara Vlaičević

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  1. Olivera Stamenković
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Contributions

O.Y.B., V.S., M.S.P., D.M., and O.S. designed the study, and developed the analytical procedure. All authors except O.Y.B. contributed data. O.Y.B. performed statistical analysis. O.S. wrote the original draft, and all authors substantially reviewed and edited the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Olivera Stamenković.

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10750_2019_3978_MOESM9_ESM.tif

Online Resource 9 Mixed model partial residual plot showing the effect of road proximity on abundance of fish species (number of individuals) in the study ponds. Solid lines show significant mixed model results (p < 0.05; i.e., for Carassius auratus, Pseudorasbora parva, and Lepomis gibbosus). Gray dashed lines indicate non-significant mixed model results (i.e., for species Esox lucius, Perca fluviatilis, Silurus glanis, Cobitis taenia, Rutilus rutilus, Rhodeus sericeus, Alburnus alburnus, Cyprinus carpio, Ictalurus nebulosus, Squalius cephalus, and Chondrostoma nasus). Road proximity index (unitless) was measured for each study site as the site-specific distance to the nearby highway relative to its mean across all study sites (for details see Materials and methods). Supplementary material 9 (TIFF 125 kb)

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Stamenković, O., Stojković Piperac, M., Milošević, D. et al. Anthropogenic pressure explains variations in the biodiversity of pond communities along environmental gradients: a case study in south-eastern Serbia. Hydrobiologia 838, 65–83 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-019-03978-4

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