Thesis (M. Sc.)--University of Canterbury, 2005. / Typescript (photocopy). Includes bibliographical references (leaves 160-181). Also available via the World Wide Web.

This study was undertaken to assess the effectiveness of implanted substrates in sampling aquatic macroinvertebrate assemblages associated with stone dikes on the Lower Mississippi River and to obtain basic information on assemblage composition, structure, and patterns of distribution over a dike. For study purposes, stone-filled baskets were implanted into a dike near Vicksburg, Mississippi, in February 1979, and retrieved four months later. The resulting data indicated the presence of a diverse and productive assemblage (38 taxa; average of 101,968 organisms/m²), characterized by net-spinning caddisflies, tube-building chironomids, isopods, and clinging mayflies. The caddisfly, Hydropsyche spp., accounted for over 60 percent of the total organisms collected. A comparison of assemblage data obtained from the surface stones of the implanted substrates with data obtained from adjacent surface stones of the dike indicated close agreement in estimates of both assemblage composition and structure. However, on an average basis, over seventy percent of the total organisms collected in the substrate implants were found below the surface layer of substrate. The importance of this finding to future sampling efforts is discussed. Statistically significant differences in assemblage estimates were encountered over both the length and width of the structure sampled. These findings are discussed both in terms of their potential ecological significance and in terms of future sampling design considerations. / Master of Science

Thesis (M.S.)--Oregon State University, 1989. / Typescript (photocopy). Includes bibliographical references. Also available on the World Wide Web.

This study was an investigation of lotic macroinvertebrate distribution in northeastern Oregon at two different spatial and biological scales. Examination of assemblages at a limited spatial scale revealed relationships with natural and disturbance gradients and led to questions about distribution of a population at broader spatial scales. In a 16 kilometer section of the North Fork John Day River, I examined the relationship of invertebrate assemblages to habitat and fine sediment deposition. This river section was subjected to sediment inputs resulting from several years of floodplain mine-tailing leveling, and erosion and tributary channel scouring following a forest fire. Invertebrate assemblages differed between habitat types. The proportion of sediment tolerant invertebrates, especially oligochaete worms, increased with higher amounts of deposited fine sediment, but total invertebrate abundance was not related to deposited sediment. The response of sediment tolerant invertebrates appeared to reflect cumulative impacts from multiple input points and downstream transport of sediment and cumulative and/or increasing impacts over the two years of sampling. In studying assemblages in the North Fork, I noticed an unusual abundance of the caddisfly, Lopidostoma pluviale (Milne). In a more spatially extensive examination of a population, I investigated distribution of this caddisfly in the Blue Mountain region of northeastern Oregon. L. pluviale was more common and/or abundant further downstream than would be expected for a shredding feeder based on the River Continuum Concept (Vannote, et al., 1980). Through gut content analyses, I demonstrated that this species is much more of a generalist feeder than its designation as a shredder would imply. Consequently, its distribution is not limited to headwaters where allochthonous food resources are abundant. I hypothesize that non-food environmental factors may be more important in determining the distribution of this species. Results of this research indicate that assemblage studies can reveal interesting relationships with environmental conditions. In addition, paying attention to unusual distributions of taxa in assemblage studies can lead to further studies that can improve our understanding of the biology and ecology of species. / Graduation date: 2004

It can be difficult to disentangle the factors that determine population success in freshwater systems, particularly for organisms with disturbance-resistant life stages like aquatic invertebrates. Nevertheless, the effects of environmental variation and habitat structure on animal population success in wetlands are important for understanding both trophic interactions and biodiversity. I performed two experiments to determine the factors limiting crayfish (Procambarus fallax) and dragonfly (Family: Libellulidae) populations in wetland environments. A simulation of a dry-disturbance and subsequent sunfish (Family: Centrarchidae) re-colonization revealed that crayfish populations are sensitive to sunfish, while dragonfly naiads seemed to be limited by other drying-related factors. A second manipulation revealed that small-bodied fishes and habitat structure (submerged vegetation) shaped dragonfly communities primarily through postcolonization processes. / by Natalie Knorp. / Thesis (M.S.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2013. / Includes bibliography. / Mode of access: World Wide Web. / System requirements: Adobe Reader.

Aravaipa Creek is one of the few, small, permanent desert streams in Arizona. It has diverse fish and invertebrate faunas but the invertebrates are not well-known. I collected benthic and 24 hr. drift samples there during 1980-1981 and found 31 taxa. The most abundant species were Baetis insignificans and Choroterpes inornata (Ephemeroptera), which exhibited the nocturnal drift periodicity characteristic of drifting invertebrates studied elsewhere. In the laboratory, observations of the drifting behaviors of five species of mayflies were made in 5 and 10 cm/s current speeds. These provided evidence that drifting insects are not necessarily swept away by the current (accidental drift), but are probably exhibiting a specific behavior triggered by local conditions such as lack of cover or food (active drift). I also tested the relationship between drift rates and the presence and absence of food (periphyton) using B. insignificans and C. inornata. With both species, the number of insects drifting increased significantly when periphyton was not present; therefore lack of food may be an important cause of drift. The sizes of the nymphs used in these experiments were determined; I found that drifters were either similar in size to non-drifters (C. inornata), or that drifters were larger than nymphs that did not drift (B. insignificans). These results suggest that direct competition by size does not play a role in determining which individuals drift. Drifting appears to be a dispersal mechanism for benthic invertebrates; it maintains the numbers and distribution of the benthos according to the rapidly changing distribution of their food resources which occurs in streams. This process fits some recent models of population regulation by dispersal.

Data for a study of the benthic macroinvertebrates in Imperial Reservoir in Yuma County, Arizona was collected 1970-1973. Imperial Reservoir is an old, heavily sedimented reservoir on the lower Colorado River. An extensive dredging program revealed that the benthic habitat supported a low number of invertebrate species (four insects and two oligochaets) in comparison to other bodies of water. Probable reasons for the low number of species included high salinity, low organic detrital input into the reservoir, low habitat and substrate diversity, temporary low dissolved oxygen concentration, possible contamination with agricultural chemicals, and the remoteness of Imperial Reservoir from other aquatic environments. Within Imperial Reservoir the benthic macroinvertebrate community was restricted to more isolated, calm, side lakes which altogether made up only 23% of the entire surface area of the reservoir. Within these side lakes benthic macroinvertebrates were found primarily on mud substrate. Invertebrates were not found beneath dense stands of Najas marina, a rooted submersed macrophyte. Only two species of invertebrates appear to inhabit rocky substrates. Community analysis suggested that there were no large differences among most habitats where benthic invertebrates were found. A study of the microdistribution of each species of invertebrate indicated that there were two patterns of spatial dispersion: (1) taxa which bred continuously appeared to have no life history related change in dispersion; and (2) taxa which formed recognizable cohorts appeared to spread out from initial egg mass and dispersion changed with time from clumped to random. Secondary net production measures were made directly on predominant benthic invertebrates at two sites in Imperial Reservoir. Both sites had similar production values which were low when compared to production values from other bodies of water. Low benthic production in Imperial Reservoir was related to several environmental factors including high water temperature and temporary low oxygen concentration near the bottom during the summer, low input of organic detritus into the reservoir, and high predation on benthic invertebrates by fish. Collection and analysis of the stomach contents of the bass, bluegill and redear sunfish revealed that the smaller fish of a species were more dependent on benthic invertebrates for food. Large bass did not use benthic invertebrates as heavily as either bluegill or redear.

1. Realigning rivers is becoming common as a solution to conflicting needs of land development and ecosystem preservation. Although an increasing number of projects are monitored, exactly how these channels develop as functional stream ecosystems is still poorly understood. Mining in the upper catchment of the River Nith (Scotland) required the realignment of 3km (approx.) of river. The engineered channel was designed around sound geomorphological principles of sediment transport and supply with a sinuous planform and pool-riffle sequences along the installed gravel-bed. 2. A comprehensive survey covering biotic and abiotic development was devised and implemented to test models and hypotheses relating to the development riverine habitats over the first three years. 2. Physical habitat development at the reach scale was investigated using fixed-point photography and differential GPS surveys of the thalweg and of cross-sectional form every 100m. This revealed the development of a relatively diverse streambed habitat in response to both the channel slope and planform. However, other than at meander bends where asymmetry developed over several years, little change was observed to the form of the engineered riverbanks. 3. Kick-net surveys of benthic invertebrate communities at 10 sites showed a negative relationship between specific measures of diversity and downstream distance during the early stages of development. (e.g. Richness with chainage at the 6 month stage) but the relationship degrades rapidly and is likely in part to appear as a result of low population densities. 4. Survey of transects through the riparian zone perpendicular to the river indicated that colonisation by vegetation is also related to distance along the realignment but physical habitat and geographical factors play a more dominant role over development (Canonical correspondence analysis of vegetation data in 2007) 5. Many of the indices of diversity for both biotic and abiotic elements of the ecosystem proved ineffective at detecting development at the reach scale. This may be because significant changes occur at a smaller scale than was detected by the surveys. It is likely that greater resolution is required to detect more ecologically meaningful relationships and patterns. 6. Overall study shows constructed realignments can rapidly develop a diverse streambed community within 24 months. Riparian communities are slower to develop because of the slow development of riverbank habitat diversity. Other ecosystem properties such as resilience and connectivity may take much longer.

There is a paucity of information concerning the invertebrate food resources available to juvenile salmonids in the Columbia River as they migrate seaward. Construction of mainstream dams has altered the temperature cycle, flow regime, and substrate which indigenous invertebrates were adapted to. Studies on how the macroinvertebrate community has adapted to these alterations have been neglected. This study was undertaken to help fill this void. Macroinvertebrate drift samples were collected over a three year period in the Columbia . River downstream from Bonneville Dam. Samples were collected with a D-ring plankton net fished on the bottom for one-half hour. Two sites were sampled; Ives Island (RKM 230), from 1987 through 1989, and Lady Island (RKM 193), in 1988 and 1989.

No description available.