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Larval Chironomid Community Organization in Four Tropical Rivers: Human Impacts and Longitudinal Zonation

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Abstract

Chironomid (Diptera) larvae were collected between February 1997 and December 1998 from four Trinidadian rivers, two relatively impacted (the Arima and Guanapo Rivers), and two comparatively pristine (the Marianne and Paria Rivers), in order to assess community changes as a result of both land-use and the natural longitudinal gradient. Multivariate analyses indicated changes in chironomid community composition at the impacted sites, with the most dramatic changes occurring in the low-reaches of the Arima and Guanapo Rivers, which were subjected to nutrient enrichment and general urban runoff. For example, genus richness, measured using Marglef’s Index, was lower in the low-reaches of both the Arima and Guanapo Rivers (0.9 and 1.1, respectively), compared with the low-reaches of the Marianne and Paria Rivers (1.8 and 2.8, respectively). The average chironomid densities in the low-reaches of both the Arima and Guanapo Rivers (1346 and 1029 chironomids/1 m2, respectively) were also much higher compared with those of the Marianne and Paria Rivers (130 and 123 chironomids/1 m2, respectively), most likely being the result of nutrient enrichment. Furthermore, the low-reaches of both the Arima and Guanapo Rivers demonstrated a shift in community structure, favouring those taxa more tolerant of non-point source pollution, including Thienemanniella spp., Paratrichocladius sp., Corynoneura spp., Polypedilum spp., Chironomus spp., Saetheria sp., Rheotanytarsus sp., and Thienemannimyia sp. In terms of natural longitudinal changes, the chironomid community shifted from one numerically dominated by Orthocladiinae in the headwaters to one numerically dominated by Chironominae in the low-reaches. Overall, this study shows that land-use can have a greater influence on the structure and diversity of chironomid communities than the natural longitudinal gradient.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Life Sciences, University of Toronto at Scarborough, 1265 Military Trail, M1C 1A4, Scarborough, Ontario, Canada

    Julie E. Helson, D. Dudley Williams & Dorothea Turner

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  1. Julie E. Helson
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  2. D. Dudley Williams
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  3. Dorothea Turner
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Correspondence to D. Dudley Williams.

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Helson, J.E., Williams, D.D. & Turner, D. Larval Chironomid Community Organization in Four Tropical Rivers: Human Impacts and Longitudinal Zonation. Hydrobiologia 559, 413–431 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-005-0977-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-005-0977-8

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