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Stream morphology, water dynamics, and agrochemicals are important drivers of periphyton biomass in subtropical streams

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Abstract

Several factors affect periphyton biomass by acting at local and landscape levels simultaneously. Thereunder, we quantified local and land-use variables in a gradient of subtropical streams at the transboundary border between Brazil and Paraguay to determine the influence of some factors (morphology, water dynamics, nutrients, light availability, land use, and number of agrochemicals) on periphyton biomass. We sampled 24 streams (12 in Brazil and 12 in Paraguay) in three different moments (February, July, and November 2019). Biomass was proxied by chlorophyll-a and ash-free dry mass. We also estimated the autotrophic index of periphytic communities as the ratio between ash-free dry mass and chlorophyll-a values. We found that periphyton biomass was structured mainly by stream morphology, water dynamics, and the number of agrochemicals (pesticides) present in the water. Surprisingly, we also found that light availability influenced biomass to a smaller extent, whereas nutrients did not exhibit a significant effect. Our results highlight the influence of stream morphology, water dynamics, and agrochemicals on aquatic biota, demonstrating the importance of conservation of local and regional environments to support the primary productivity and ecosystem functions in streams.

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Data availability

The datasets generated during and analyzed during the current study are available in the Limnologica repository, https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0075951121000566?via%3Dihub

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Acknowledgements

This study was funded by Itaipu Technological Park Foundation (FPTI), Itaipu Binacional and Federal University of Latin American Integration (UNILA) (Project 4500048483/2018).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Limnology, Federal University of Latin-American Integration (UNILA), Foz do Iguaçu, Paraná, Brazil

    Elaine C. R. Bartozek, Marina R. Auricchio & Cleto K. Peres

  2. Limnological Institute, University of Konstanz, Konstansz, Germany

    Richard W. Lambrecht

  3. Departamento de Oceanografia e Ecologia, Universidade Federal do Espírito Santo, Vitória, Espírito Santo, Brazil

    Stéfano Zorzal-Almeida

Authors
  1. Elaine C. R. Bartozek
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  2. Richard W. Lambrecht
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  4. Marina R. Auricchio
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  5. Cleto K. Peres
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Contributions

All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Material preparation, data collection and analysis were performed by ECRB, RWL, SZ-A, MRA and CKP. The first draft of the manuscript was written by ECRB and SZ-A and all authors commented on previous versions of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Elaine C. R. Bartozek.

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Bartozek, E.C.R., Lambrecht, R.W., Zorzal-Almeida, S. et al. Stream morphology, water dynamics, and agrochemicals are important drivers of periphyton biomass in subtropical streams. Hydrobiologia 849, 3031–3039 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-022-04911-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-022-04911-y

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