Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / Low-order forested streams are dependent on allochthonous material input and the main energy source is obtained from leaf litter provided by the surrounding vegetation. Several gaps need to be filled to the knowledge of this process in subtropical environments and, accordingly, the thesis aimed to conduct some investigations considering the decomposition of leaf litter in streams. Four studies were conducted in subtropical streams with the following objectives: a) to verify the quantitative importance of the leaf input into streams, the main sources of input and its variation over the year; b) to analyze the influence of the leaf litter quality on decomposition and macroinvertebrate colonization; c) to evaluate the influence of the land use on the decomposition process, including the macroinvertebrate community and fungi; d) to conduct an initial investigation about the influence of insecticide application on the macroinvertebrate community that colonizes leaves in streams. Leaf litter was the main plant component to come in stream and the main route of entry allochthonous material was vertical. We observed the influence of season on this entry, with an increase mainly in the autumn and in the months with high rainfall. The chemical characteristic of leaves influenced the decomposition of leaf litter and its colonization by the macroinvertebrate community. Leaves with higher nitrogen content and lower amount of components that hinder decomposition were processed more quickly and, for these reasons, showed a higher amount of shredders. Moreover, different land uses did not significantly influence the decomposition process, just modifying some aspects of the macroinvertebrate community, especially in streams with urban influence. The results may be due to high currents found in local streams that make homogeneous its consequences for water quality, for the biological component and hence for ecological processes such as decomposition. We observed an influence of insecticide application on the macroinvertebrate community, decreasing the abundance of the target groups of the product, but generating an increase in the richness and abundance of other groups after an initial period of colonization. / Os riachos florestados de baixa ordem são dependentes da entrada de material alóctone e a principal fonte de energia é obtida de detritos foliares provenientes da vegetação de entorno. Várias lacunas precisam ser preenchidas para o conhecimento desse processo em ambientes subtropicais e, nesse sentido, esta tese teve como objetivo realizar algumas investigações considerando o processamento de detritos foliares em riachos. Foram conduzidos quatro estudos em riachos subtropicais com os seguintes objetivos: a) verificar a importância quantitativa da entrada foliar em riachos, as principais vias de entrada e sua variação ao longo do ano; b) analisar a influência da qualidade do detrito foliar sobre a decomposição e colonização por macroinvertebrados; c) avaliar a influência do uso e ocupação da terra sobre o processo de decomposição, incluindo a comunidade de macroinvertebrados e fungos; d) realizar uma investigação inicial acerca da influência da aplicação de inseticida sobre a comunidade de macroinvertebrados que coloniza folhas em riachos. Detritos foliares foram o principal componente vegetal a entrar no riacho e a principal via de entrada do material alóctone foi a lateral. Foi observada influência da época do ano sobre esta entrada, com aumento principalmente nos meses do outono e com alta pluviosidade. A característica química das folhas influenciou a decomposição de detritos foliares e sua colonização pela comunidade de macroinvertebrados. Folhas com maior teor de nitrogênio e menor quantidade de componentes que dificultam a decomposição foram processadas mais rapidamente e apresentaram maior quantidade de fragmentadores. Por outro lado, diferentes usos da terra não influenciaram significativamente o processo de decomposição, apenas modificando alguns aspectos da comunidade de macroinvertebrados, principalmente em riachos com influência urbana. Os resultados podem ter ocorrido devido às altas correntezas encontradas nos riachos da região, que tornam homogêneas suas consequências para a qualidade da água, para o componente biológico e, consequentemente, para os processos ecológicos como a decomposição. Foi observada uma influência da aplicação de inseticida sobre a comunidade de macroinvertebrados, diminuindo a abundância dos grupos-alvo do produto, mas gerando um aumento na riqueza e abundância dos demais grupos após um período inicial de colonização.

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Abstract Human activities have increasingly altered freshwater ecosystems. Land use is a major driver of habitat loss and land use-related input of nutrients and other pollutants from agriculture, forestry and urbanization have deteriorated water quality. Freshwater research has mainly focused on lakes and streams while the effects of anthropogenic stressors on groundwater-dependent ecosystems (GDEs) are poorly known. Likewise, the effectiveness of ecological restoration in mitigating human disturbance in GDEs remains understudied. In this thesis, I studied the effects of two main anthropogenic stressors – land drainage and groundwater contamination – on boreal spring ecosystems and evaluated the recovery of spring biodiversity and ecosystem functioning after habitat restoration. I applied several structural (macroinvertebrates, bryophytes, leaf-decomposing fungi and groundwater bacteria) and functional (organic matter decomposition and primary productivity) measures to provide a comprehensive insight into these issues. Both stressors modified spring ecosystems. Land drainage reduced the key ecosystem processes. Long-term monitoring of drainage-impacted springs showed a marked biodiversity loss and change of spring-dwelling bryophytes, and no signs of recovery were observed after about 20 years since the intial land drainage. Groundwater contamination, indicated by elevated nitrate and chloride concentrations, altered the structure of spring biota, reduced their taxonomic diversity and suppressed primary productivity in the most severely contaminated springs. Spring restoration improved habitat quality by reducing drainage-induced inflow of surface water, thus re-establishing groundwater-dominated hydrological conditions. Restoration increased abundance of habitat-specialist bryophytes and shifted macroinvertebrate composition towards natural conditions, despite the restoration actions being fairly recent. Anthropogenic activities can thus cause severe structural and functional degradation of spring ecosystems, and their self-recovery potential from these stressors seems low. Habitat restoration bears great promise as a cost-effective approach to mitigate drainage-induced impacts on spring ecosystems, but protection and co-management of groundwater resources are urgently needed to secure the role of springs as biodiversity hotspots in the boreal forest landscape. / Tiivistelmä Ihmistoiminta muuttaa yhä enemmän vesiekosysteemejä. Maankäyttö on johtanut elinympäristöjen häviämiseen, ja siihen liittyvä ravinne- ja haitta-ainekuormitus maa- ja metsätaloudesta sekä kaupunkiympäristöistä on merkittävästi huonontanut veden laatua johtaen maailmanlaajuiseen vesiluonnon monimuotoisuuden heikentymiseen. Vesiekosysteemien tutkimus on keskittynyt pääasiassa järvi- ja jokiympäristöihin, kun ihmistoiminnan vaikutukset pohjavesiriippuvaisiin ekosysteemeihin tunnetaan edelleen huonosti. Samoin kunnostusten merkitys pohjavesiriippuvaisten ekosysteemien tilan parantamiseksi on selvittämättä. Väitöskirjassani tarkastelin kahden keskeisen ihmistoiminnan – metsäojituksen ja pohjaveden laadun heikkenemisen – vaikutuksia lähde-ekosysteemeihin sekä arvioin elinympäristökunnostusten vaikutuksia niiden rakenteeseen ja toimintaan. Sovelsin työssäni rakenteellisia (pohjaeläimet, sammalet, lehtikariketta hajottavat sienet ja pohjavesibakteerit) ja toiminnallisia (eloperäisen aineksen hajoaminen ja perustuotanto) mittareita tuottamaan kattavan käsityksen tutkimuskysymyksiini. Sekä metsäojitukset että pohjaveden laadun heikkeneminen aiheuttavat muutoksia lähteiden rakenteessa ja toiminnassa. Metsäojitukset hidastavat keskeisiä ekosysteemitoimintoja ja johtavat lähdesammallajiston muutokseen ja monimuotoisuuden taantumiseen. Pohjaveden pilaantuminen, jota työssä ilmennettiin kohonneilla nitraatti- ja kloridipitoisuuksilla, heikentää lähdelajiston monimuotoisuutta, muuttaa lajikoostumusta ja johtaa perustuotannon laskuun voimakkaimmin kuormitetuissa lähteissä. Kunnostus parantaa lähde-elinympäristön laatua vähentämällä metsäojien aiheuttamaa pintavesivaikutusta palauttaen pohjavesivaltaisen hydrologisen tilan. Lähdekunnostusten myötä lähdesammaleet runsastuvat ja pohjaeläinyhteisön rakenne palautuu luonnontilaisten lähteiden kaltaiseksi, vaikka kunnostuksista on kulunut vasta muutamia vuosia. Väitöskirjan tulokset osoittavat, että ihmisen toiminta voi aiheuttaa muutoksia lähde-ekosysteemien rakenteessa ja toiminnassa ja lähteiden luontainen palautuminen häiriöstä on hidasta. Lähde-elinympäristöjen kunnostus vaikuttaa lupaavalta suojelutoimenpiteeltä metsäojitusten vaikutusten vähentämisessä, mutta lähteiden säilyttäminen monimuotoisena ja suojelullisesti arvokkaana luontotyyppinä edellyttää pohjavesivarojen hallinnan ja tilan suojelun tehostamista.