Longtitudinal changes of macroinvertebrate communities along an Appalachian stream continuum. Grubaugh, J. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, 1996.
Longtitudinal changes of macroinvertebrate communities along an Appalachian stream continuum. [pdf]Paper  abstract   bibtex   
Richness and mean annual abundance and biomass of benthic taxa were measured in prevalent habitats along a first-through seventh-order stream continuum in the southern Appalachian Mountains (United States). Richness was greatest in midorder reaches, and benthic densities were highest in cobble habitat, followed by bedrock, pebble-gravel, and depositional areas. Abundance-based estimates of function feeding-group composition were dominated by collector-gatherers and changed little with habitat. In contrast, biomass-based estimates differed greatly among habitats: collector-filterers generally dominated cobble and bedrock areas; collector-gatherers, in pebble-gravel; and shredders and collector-gatherers, in depositional habitats. When functional-group biomass estimates were weighted for relative habitat availability along the continuum, patterns of benthic community composition generally matched predictions of the river continuum concept (RCC), although localized changes in stream geomorphology also influenced community structure. Habitat-weighted abundance estimates did not produce similar trends. Because RCC predictions are based on benthic biomass, caution and qualification must be exercised when using abundance data to test RCC predictions.

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