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Elevated chloride and consumer presence independently influence processing of stream detritus

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Abstract

Headwater streams are in close contact with the landscape and known to mediate disturbances to downstream waterways through important ecological interactions. We studied how elevated chloride from road deicer, a pollutant of rising concern in urban ecosystems, influenced the leaf-microbial matrix in streams, and subsequent processing of C and N. In a multi-factorial laboratory experiment, we determined if elevated chloride interacts with nitrogen loading and invertebrate consumer feeding to alter rates of leaf litter breakdown and N immobilization. Naturally colonized leaf litter, the dominant C source in small streams, was collected from five Piedmont streams (Maryland, USA) and subjected to a gradient of NaCl (0, 1,000, 5,000 mg Cl l−1) and dissolved nitrogen (ambient, elevated), and an invertebrate treatment (presence, absence) in a total of 60 microcosms. Loss rate and C:N content were determined from remaining leaf litter after 16 d of incubation. Chloride loading significantly (P < 0.05) reduced loss rate regardless of N loading, and C:N content significantly (P < 0.05) increased with Cl concentration, interacting marginally (P < 0.10) with N loading. Invertebrate feeding had a marginally-significant (P < 0.10), negative effect on loss rate, but not C:N content. Overall, elevated chloride significantly influenced organic matter loss rate and N immobilization, despite N loading and the presence of invertebrates. We conclude that there is the potential for chloride loading as road deicer runoff to negatively influence microbial processing of C and N by stream-dwelling microbial communities.

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Acknowledgements

We gratefully acknowledge support from the US National Science Foundation (NSF), Long- Term Ecological Research the program (DEB-0423476), and from the Power Plant Research Program of the Maryland Department of Natural Resources through its Biology Integrator contract (KOOB5200176) with Versar, Inc., and the US Geological Survey (Project # 2008MD171B). The opinions and findings expressed in this paper are those of the authors and not of the National Science Foundation.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Geography & Environmental Systems, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, 1000 Hilltop Circle, Baltimore, MD, 21250, USA

    Christopher M. Swan & Carrie A. DePalma

  2. Center for Urban Environmental Research & Education, University of Maryland, Baltimore County, 1000 Hilltop Circle, Baltimore, MD, 21250, USA

    Christopher M. Swan

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  1. Christopher M. Swan
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  2. Carrie A. DePalma
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Correspondence to Christopher M. Swan.

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Swan, C.M., DePalma, C.A. Elevated chloride and consumer presence independently influence processing of stream detritus. Urban Ecosyst 15, 625–635 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11252-011-0210-7

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