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Unique habitat and macroinvertebrate assemblage structures in spring-fed stream: a comparison among clastic lowland tributaries and mainstreams in northern Japan

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Abstract

The stable flow and temperature regimes of spring-fed streams are distinct from the dynamic regimes of other streams. We investigated differences in habitat and macroinvertebrate assemblages among three stream types (spring-fed tributary, non-spring-fed tributary, and mainstream) in a clastic lowland of northern Japan. Current velocity was the slowest in the spring-fed reach, where the percent of fine sediment deposition was also 3.8–11.4 times higher than in the other stream types. The standing stock of detritus was also greater in the spring-fed reach. These results suggest that the stable flow regime in the spring-fed stream leads to the accumulation of fine sediment and detritus on the streambed. Oligochaeta and chironomids, which are burrower-gatherers, were remarkably abundant in the spring-fed reach. Total macroinvertebrate abundance was 3.8–12.2 times greater in the spring-fed reach than in the other stream types. Sprawler-grazer ephemeropterans were the most abundant in the mainstream reaches, likely due to higher primary productivity. Allomyia sp, which depend on cool spring-fed habitats, was found only in the spring-fed reach. The indicator species analysis also indicated multiple taxa of detritivores and Allomyia sp. for the spring-fed tributary. The macroinvertebrate assemblage in the spring-fed reach was characterized by numerous burrowers, collector-gatherers, and crenobiont taxa, highlighting the uniqueness and its contribution to enhance beta diversity in river networks.

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Data availability

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

Dr. Izumi Washitani provided invaluable comments on the study plan. We thank the field assistance by Dr. Kosei Takahashi, Mr. Hitoshi Saito, Nobuo Hatai, and Kengo Ebihara.

Funding

A portion of this study was supported by JSPS KAKENHI Grant numbers 2629181 and 19K20491, and Kuromatsunai Biodiversity Conservation Research Grant (2017) to Masaru Sakai. David Bauman is supported by the Belgian American Educational Foundation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Fukushima Regional Collaborative Research Center, National Institute for Environmental Studies, Japan, 10-2 Fukasaku, Miharu Town, Tamura District, Fukushima, 963-7700, Japan

    Masaru Sakai

  2. Graduate School of Science and Engineering, Chuo University, 1-13-27 Kasuga, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 112-8551, Japan

    Katsuya Iwabuchi

  3. Smithsonian Environmental Research Center, 647 Contees Wharf Road, Edgewater, MD, 21037, USA

    David Bauman

  4. Environmental Change Institute, School of Geography and the Environment, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3QY, UK

    David Bauman

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  1. Masaru Sakai
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  2. Katsuya Iwabuchi
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  3. David Bauman
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Contributions

MS, KI, and DB conceived and designed the study. MS and KI conducted the field investigations, and MS and DB performed the statistical analyses. MS and KI wrote the first draft, and all authors contributed to the writing of the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Masaru Sakai.

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Sakai, M., Iwabuchi, K. & Bauman, D. Unique habitat and macroinvertebrate assemblage structures in spring-fed stream: a comparison among clastic lowland tributaries and mainstreams in northern Japan. COMMUNITY ECOLOGY 22, 193–202 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42974-021-00048-5

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