Abstract
Benthic invertebrates in a tropical river (Menik Ganga) recolonised denuded substrates within 2–3 weeks, though full diversity was not achieved until 4 weeks. No well defined succession was observed. All taxa apparently colonised at random from drift, upstream and vertical sources. Traps colonised from only one of these sources developed as abundant and diverse a fauna as control traps in 5 weeks. Strong spatial heterogeneity in the number and composition of colonisers was observed between replicate traps. It is suggested that colonisation resulted from random foraging activities and most colonists were derived from veryshort distances.
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Benzie, J.A.H. The colonisation mechanisms of stream benthos in a tropical river (Menik Ganga: Sri Lanka). Hydrobiologia 111, 171–179 (1984). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00007196
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00007196