Structural and functional responses of benthic invertebrates to imidacloprid in outdoor stream mesocosms

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Pestana, J.L.T., E-mail: jpestana@ua.p [CESAM and Departamento de Biologia, Universidade de Aveiro, Campus Universitario de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro (Portugal); Environment Canada at Canadian Rivers Institute, Department of Biology, University of New Brunswick, 10 Bailey Drive, Fredericton, NB (Canada); Alexander, A.C., E-mail: alexa.alexander@unb.c [Environment Canada at Canadian Rivers Institute, Department of Biology, University of New Brunswick, 10 Bailey Drive, Fredericton, NB (Canada); Culp, J.M., E-mail: jculp@unb.c [Environment Canada at Canadian Rivers Institute, Department of Biology, University of New Brunswick, 10 Bailey Drive, Fredericton, NB (Canada); Baird, D.J., E-mail: djbaird@unb.c [Environment Canada at Canadian Rivers Institute, Department of Biology, University of New Brunswick, 10 Bailey Drive, Fredericton, NB (Canada); Cessna, A.J., E-mail: asoares@ua.p [Environment Canada, National Hydrology Research Centre, 11 Innovation Boulevard, Saskatoon, SK (Canada); Soares, A.M.V.M., E-mail: asoares@ua.p [CESAM and Departamento de Biologia, Universidade de Aveiro, Campus Universitario de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro (Portugal)

2009-08-15

Structural and functional responses of a benthic macroinvertebrate assemblage to pulses of the insecticide imidacloprid were assessed in outdoor stream mesocosms. Imidacloprid pulses reduced invertebrate abundance and community diversity in imidacloprid-dosed streams compared to control streams. These results correlated well with effects of imidacloprid on leaf litter decomposition and feeding rates of Pteronarcys comstocki, a stonefly, in artificial streams. Reductions in oxygen consumption of stoneflies exposed to imidacloprid were also observed in laboratory experiments. Our findings suggest that leaf litter degradation and single species responses can be sensitive ecotoxicological endpoints that can be used as early warning indicators and biomonitoring tools for pesticide contamination. The data generated illustrates the value of mesocosm experiments in environmental assessment and how the consideration of functional and structural endpoints of natural communities together with in situ single species bioassays can improve the evaluation and prediction of pesticide effects on stream ecosystems. - Combining organism-level responses with community-level processes for the evaluation and prediction of pesticide effects on stream ecosystems.

Effect of mesohabitats on responses of invertebrate community structure in streams under different land uses.

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da Silva, Marcos Vinícius Dias; Rosa, Beatriz F J V; Alves, Roberto G

2015-11-01

Riparian vegetation is one of the most important abiotic components determining the water flow pattern in lotic ecosystems, influencing the composition, richness, and diversity of invertebrates. We have identified whether differences in the structure of the assemblages of invertebrates between riffles and pools may influence the responses of fauna to the effects of land use. In addition, we investigated which fauna metrics are responsible for the differentiation between riffles and pools in streams subject to different land uses. During the dry season of 2012, the main substrates of riffles and pools were sampled (Surber collector) from nine streams within forest, pasture, and urban areas. Principal component analysis (PCA) and Permanova showed differences in the set of environmental variables between streams and mesohabitats. The first PCA axis distinguished the forest and pasture streams from the urban area streams and was related to variables indicative of nutrient enrichment and land use, while the second axis was formed by velocity flow and by the quantities of ultrafine and coarse sand, which distinguished the riffles and pools of the streams. The faunal composition distinguished the streams in pasture and forest areas from the urban streams. Riffles and pools were not concordant in the representation of the invertebrate fauna, indicating the importance of sampling both mesohabitats in the types of streams investigated. The richness, taxonomic composition, and relative abundance of families of Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, and Trichoptera showed robust responses in riffles to the effects of environmental changes, while in pools, only the richness showed a significant response. It was possibly concluded that riffles were more sensitive in detecting the effects of land use. The information from this study help to understand how the community of invertebrates and the types of habitats in streams may be affected by anthropogenic impacts.

Impact of storm events on the structure of a stream microbiome

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The microbial structural and/or functional state in a stream community is assumed to be in relative stasis until a perturbation (e.g., runoff event with entrained pollutants) affects the community structure and its functional state. Quantifying these changes and resolving the spe...

Response of fish communities to intense drought in Brazilian savanna streams

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Dianne Michelle Alves da Silva

2017-08-01

Full Text Available The physical structures of streams are subjected to intense changes throughout the seasons. Intense drought in dry periods has been frequent and potentially harmful to aquatic species. In this study, we tested whether the changes in the habitat structure of the streams during the dry period determine the organization of fish communities. Five streams in the Upper Tocantins River were studied in the dry and rainy seasons. The species were characterized by 13 functional traits based on morphological measurements. The descriptors of functional diversity were: mean pairwise functional distance of species in the community (MPD and mean functionally nearest species distance (MNTD. We also calculated the standardized effect size for MPD and MNTD, an indicator of functional redundancy, and compared the observed patterns with those expected by chance. Streams differed between seasons with respect to environmental variables. Functional diversity in the rainy season did not differ from the pattern expected by chance for both metrics. While functional diversity in the dry season has not differed from the pattern expected by chance for SESMPD, a greater functional redundancy for SESMNTD was found in this season. These results indicate that environmental changes in the streams during the dry season are important constraints for fish occurrence, preventing the occurrence of functionally original species. Therefore, a prospective scenario of dry-period intensification could result in functionally redundant communities, with functional homogenization of the regional species pool.

Urbanization reduces and homogenizes trait diversity in stream macroinvertebrate communities.

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Barnum, Thomas R; Weller, Donald E; Williams, Meghan

2017-12-01

More than one-half of the world's population lives in urban areas, so quantifying the effects of urbanization on ecological communities is important for understanding whether anthropogenic stressors homogenize communities across environmental and climatic gradients. We examined the relationship of impervious surface coverage (a marker of urbanization) and the structure of stream macroinvertebrate communities across the state of Maryland and within each of Maryland's three ecoregions: Coastal Plain, Piedmont, and Appalachian, which differ in stream geomorphology and community composition. We considered three levels of trait organization: individual traits, unique combinations of traits, and community metrics (functional richness, functional evenness, and functional divergence) and three levels of impervious surface coverage (low [10%]). The prevalence of an individual trait differed very little between low impervious surface and high impervious surface sites. The arrangement of trait combinations in community trait space for each ecoregion differed when impervious surface coverage was low, but the arrangement became more similar among ecoregions as impervious surface coverage increased. Furthermore, trait combinations that occurred only at low or medium impervious surface coverage were clustered in a subset of the community trait space, indicating that impervious surface affected the presence of only a subset of trait combinations. Functional richness declined with increasing impervious surface, providing evidence for environmental filtering. Community metrics that include abundance were also sensitive to increasing impervious surface coverage: functional divergence decreased while functional evenness increased. These changes demonstrate that increasing impervious surface coverage homogenizes the trait diversity of macroinvertebrate communities in streams, despite differences in initial community composition and stream geomorphology among ecoregions. Community

Reach-scale stream restoration in agricultural streams of southern Minnesota alters structural and functional responses of macroinvertebrates

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Dolph, Christine L.; Eggert, Susan L.; Magner, Joe; Ferrington, Leonard C.; Vondracek, Bruce C.

2015-01-01

Recent studies suggest that stream restoration at the reach scale may not increase stream biodiversity, raising concerns about the utility of this conservation practice. We examined whether reach-scale restoration in disturbed agricultural streams was associated with changes in macroinvertebrate community structure (total macroinvertebrate taxon richness, total macroinvertebrate density, Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, Trichoptera [EPT] taxon richness, % abundance of EPT taxa) or secondary production (macroinvertebrate biomass over time). We collected macroinvertebrate samples over the course of 1 y from restored and unrestored reaches of 3 streams in southern Minnesota and used generalized least-square (GLS) models to assess whether measures of community structure were related to reach type, stream site, or sampling month. After accounting for effects of stream site and time, we found no significant difference in total taxon richness or % abundance of EPT taxa between restored and unrestored reaches. However, the number of EPT taxa and macroinvertebrate density were significantly higher in restored than in unrestored reaches. We compared secondary production estimates among study reaches based on 95th-percentile confidence intervals generated via bootstrapping. In each study stream, secondary production was significantly (2–3×) higher in the restored than in the unrestored reach. Higher productivity in the restored reaches was largely a result of the disproportionate success of a few dominant, tolerant taxa. Our findings suggest that reach-scale restoration may have ecological effects that are not detected by measures of total taxon richness alone.

Progressive recovery of a tropical deforested stream community after a flash flood

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Lucas Cerqueira Marques

2013-06-01

Full Text Available AIM: In this study, we evaluated and compared community attributes from a tropical deforested stream, located in a pasture area, in a period before (PRED I and three times after (POSD I, II, and III a flash flood, in order to investigate the existence of temporal modifications in community structure that suggests return to conditions previous to the flash flood. METHODS: Biota samples included algae, macrophytes, macroinvertebrates, and fish assemblages. Changes in stream physical structure we also evaluated. Similarity of the aquatic biota between pre and post-disturbance periods was examined by exploratory ordination, known as Non-Metric Multidimensional Scaling associated with Cluster Analysis, using quantitative and presence/absence Bray-Curtis similarity coefficients. Presence and absence data were used for multivariate correlation analysis (Relate Analysis in order to investigate taxonomic composition similarity of biota between pre and post-disturbance periods. RESULTS: Our results evidenced channel simplification and an expressive decrease in richness and abundance of all taxa right after the flood, followed by subsequent increases of these parameters in the next three samples, indicating trends towards stream community recovery. Bray-Curtis similarity coefficients evidenced a greater community structure disparity among the period right after the flood and the subsequent ones. Multivariate correlation analysis evidenced a greater correlation between macroinvertebrates and algae/macrophytes, demonstrating the narrow relation between their recolonization dynamics. CONCLUSIONS: Despite overall community structure tended to return to previous conditions, recolonization after the flood was much slower than that reported in literature. Finally, the remarkably high flood impact along with the slow recolonization could be a result of the historical presence of anthropic impacts in the region, such as siltation, riparian forest complete depletion

Environment and Spatial Influences on Aquatic Insect Communities in Cerrado Streams: the Relative Importance of Conductivity, Altitude, and Conservation Areas.

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Godoy, B S; Queiroz, L L; Lodi, S; Oliveira, L G

2017-04-01

The aquatic insect community is an important element for stream functionality and diversity, but the effects of altitude and conservation areas on the aquatic insect community have been poorly explored in neotropical ecozone. The lack of studies about the relative importance of space and environment on community structure is another obstacle within aquatic insect ecology, which precludes the inclusion of these studies in more current frameworks, like the metacommunity dynamics. We evaluated the relationship between the aquatic insect community structure at 19 streams in the Brazilian Cerrado and spatial and environmental variables, namely geographical distance among sites, stream altitude, chemical variables, and environmental protection areas. We partitioned the variance explained by spatial and environmental components using a partial redundancy analysis. The environment exhibited a strong spatial structure for abundance and number of genera, increasing these community parameters with elevated water conductivity. Only community composition had a large unexplained portion of variance, with a small portion constrained by environmental (altitude and conductivity) and spatial factors. A relevant point in the result was the streams with high conductivity were located outside of the conservation areas. These results suggest that the relationship between number of genera and abundance with environmental conditions is always associated with spatial configuration of streams. Our study shows that altitude is an important determinant of community structure, as it exerts indirect influences, and electrical conductivity directly determines community composition, and that some national parks may be inefficient in maintaining the diversity of aquatic insects in the Cerrado region.

Watershed Urbanization Linked to Differences in Stream Bacterial Community Composition

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Jacob D. Hosen

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Urbanization strongly influences headwater stream chemistry and hydrology, but little is known about how these conditions impact bacterial community composition. We predicted that urbanization would impact bacterial community composition, but that stream water column bacterial communities would be most strongly linked to urbanization at a watershed-scale, as measured by impervious cover, while sediment bacterial communities would correlate with environmental conditions at the scale of stream reaches. To test this hypothesis, we determined bacterial community composition in the water column and sediment of headwater streams located across a gradient of watershed impervious cover using high-throughput 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing. Alpha diversity metrics did not show a strong response to catchment urbanization, but beta diversity was significantly related to watershed impervious cover with significant differences also found between water column and sediment samples. Samples grouped primarily according to habitat—water column vs. sediment—with a significant response to watershed impervious cover nested within each habitat type. Compositional shifts for communities in urbanized streams indicated an increase in taxa associated with human activity including bacteria from the genus Polynucleobacter, which is widespread, but has been associated with eutrophic conditions in larger water bodies. Another indicator of communities in urbanized streams was an OTU from the genus Gallionella, which is linked to corrosion of water distribution systems. To identify changes in bacterial community interactions, bacterial co-occurrence networks were generated from urban and forested samples. The urbanized co-occurrence network was much smaller and had fewer co-occurrence events per taxon than forested equivalents, indicating a loss of keystone taxa with urbanization. Our results suggest that urbanization has significant impacts on the community composition

Soil Microbial Community Contribution to Small Headwater Stream Metabolism.

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Clapcott, J. E.; Gooderham, J. P.; Barmuta, L. A.; Davies, P. E.

2005-05-01

The temporal dynamics of sediment respiration were examined in seven small headwater streams in forested catchments in 2004. A strong seasonal response was observed with higher respiration rates in depositional zones than in gravel runs. The data were also examined in the context of proportional habitat distributions that highlighted the importance of high flow events in shaping whole stream metabolic budgets. This study specifically examines the question of terrestrial soil respiration contribution to whole stream metabolism by the controlled inundation of terrestrial soils. The experiment included six experimentally inundated terrestrial zones, six terrestrial controls, and six in-stream depositional zones. Sediment bacterial respiration was measured using 14C leucine incorporation and cotton strip bioassays were also employed to provide an indicative measure of sediment microbial activity. Despite high variability and exhibiting significantly lower bacterial activity than in-stream sediments, modelling using flow data and habitat mapping illustrated the important contribution of terrestrial soil respiration to the whole stream metabolic budgets of small headwater streams. In addition, microbial community composition examined using phospholipid fatty acid analysis clearly differentiated between terrestrial and aquatic communities. Freshly inundated terrestrial communities remained similar to un-inundated controls after 28 days.

Anthropogenic and natural sources of acidity and metals and their influence on the structure of stream food webs.

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Hogsden, Kristy L; Harding, Jon S

2012-03-01

We compared food web structure in 20 streams with either anthropogenic or natural sources of acidity and metals or circumneutral water chemistry in New Zealand. Community and diet analysis indicated that mining streams receiving anthropogenic inputs of acidic and metal-rich drainage had much simpler food webs (fewer species, shorter food chains, less links) than those in naturally acidic, naturally high metal, and circumneutral streams. Food webs of naturally high metal streams were structurally similar to those in mining streams, lacking fish predators and having few species. Whereas, webs in naturally acidic streams differed very little from those in circumneutral streams due to strong similarities in community composition and diets of secondary and top consumers. The combined negative effects of acidity and metals on stream food webs are clear. However, elevated metal concentrations, regardless of source, appear to play a more important role than acidity in driving food web structure. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Anthropogenic and natural sources of acidity and metals and their influence on the structure of stream food webs

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Hogsden, Kristy L.; Harding, Jon S.

2012-01-01

We compared food web structure in 20 streams with either anthropogenic or natural sources of acidity and metals or circumneutral water chemistry in New Zealand. Community and diet analysis indicated that mining streams receiving anthropogenic inputs of acidic and metal-rich drainage had much simpler food webs (fewer species, shorter food chains, less links) than those in naturally acidic, naturally high metal, and circumneutral streams. Food webs of naturally high metal streams were structurally similar to those in mining streams, lacking fish predators and having few species. Whereas, webs in naturally acidic streams differed very little from those in circumneutral streams due to strong similarities in community composition and diets of secondary and top consumers. The combined negative effects of acidity and metals on stream food webs are clear. However, elevated metal concentrations, regardless of source, appear to play a more important role than acidity in driving food web structure. - Highlights: ► Food webs in acid mine drainage impacted streams are small and extremely simplified. ► Conductivity explained differences in food web properties between streams. ► Number of links and web size accounted for much dissimilarity between food webs. ► Food web structure was comparable in naturally acidic and circumneutral streams. - Food web structure differs in streams with anthropogenic and natural sources of acidity and metals.

Effects of Didymosphenia geminata massive growth on stream communities: Smaller organisms and simplified food web structure.

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Ladrera, Rubén; Gomà, Joan; Prat, Narcís

2018-01-01

This study aims to contribute to the understanding of the impact of Didymosphenia geminata massive growths upon river ecosystem communities' composition and functioning. This is the first study to jointly consider the taxonomic composition and functional structure of diatom and macroinvertebrate assemblages in order to determine changes in community structure, and the food web alterations associated with this invasive alga. This study was carried out in the Lumbreras River (Ebro Basin, La Rioja, Northern Spain), which has been affected by a considerable massive growth of D. geminata since 2011. The study shows a profound alteration in both the river community composition and in the food web structure at the sites affected by the massive growth, which is primarily due to the alteration of the environmental conditions, thus demonstrating that D. geminata has an important role as an ecosystem engineer in the river. Thick filamentous mats impede the movement of large invertebrates-especially those that move and feed up on it-and favor small, opportunistic, herbivorous organisms, mainly chironomids, that are capable of moving between filaments and are aided by the absence of large trophic competitors and predators -prey release effect-. Only small predators, such as hydra, are capable of surviving in the new environment, as they are favored by the increase in chironomids, a source of food, and by the reduction in both their own predators and other midge predators -mesopredator release-. This change in the top-down control affects the diatom community, since chironomids may feed on large diatoms, increasing the proportion of small diatoms in the substrate. The survival of small and fast-growing pioneer diatoms is also favored by the mesh of filaments, which offers them a new habitat for colonization. Simultaneously, D. geminata causes a significant reduction in the number of diatoms with similar ecological requirements (those attached to the substrate). Overall, D

Risk assessment of salinity and turbidity in Victoria (Australia) to stream insects' community structure does not always protect functional traits.

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Kefford, Ben J; Schäfer, Ralf B; Metzeling, Leon

2012-01-15

Ecological risk assessments mostly consider measures of community composition (structure) across large spatial scales. These assessments, using species sensitivity distributions (SSDs) or the relative species retention (RSR), may not be protective of ecosystem functions and services at smaller spatial scales. Here we examine how changes in biological traits, as proxy for ecosystem functions/services, at a fine spatial scale relate to larger scale assessment of structure. We use functional traits of stream insect species in south-east Australia in two habitats (riffle and edge/pool). We find that the protection of community structure in terms of 95% of species over multiple sites against adverse effects of salinity (as electrical conductivity) and turbidity will mostly, but not always, protect traits at smaller scales. Considering different combinations of trait modalities, contaminants and habitat, a mean of 17.5% (range 0%-36.8) of cases would result in under-protection of trait modalities despite protecting species composition (in terms of Jaccard's Index). This under-protection of trait modalities is only because of the different spatial scales that community structure and the traits were considered. We recommend that where the protection of biological traits, ecosystem functions or ecosystem services from stressors is a management goal, protective targets should not be solely set using measures of community structure such as SSDs or RSR. To protect both structural and functional attributes separate risk assessments should be done. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Impacts of drought and crayfish invasion on stream ecosystem structure and function

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Magoulick, Daniel D.

2014-01-01

Drought and seasonal drying can be important disturbance events in many small streams, leading to intermittent or isolated habitats. Many small streams contain crayfish populations that are often keystone or dominant species in these systems. I conducted an experiment in stream mesocosms to examine the effects of drought and potential ecological redundancy of a native and invasive crayfish species. I examined the effects of drought (drought or control) and crayfish presence (none, native crayfish Orconectes eupunctus or invasive crayfish Orconectes neglectus) on stream mesocosm structure and function (leaf breakdown, community metabolism, periphyton, sediment and chironomid densities) in a fully factorial design. Each mesocosm contained a deep and shallow section, and drought treatments had surface water present (5-cm depth) in deep sections where tiles and leaf packs were placed. Drought and crayfish presence did not interact for any response variable. Drought significantly reduced leaf breakdown, and crayfish presence significantly increased leaf breakdown. However, the native and invasive crayfish species did not differ significantly in their effects on leaf breakdown. Drought significantly reduced primary production and community respiration overall, whereas crayfish presence did not significantly affect primary production and community respiration. Neither drought nor crayfish presence significantly affected periphyton overall. However, drought significantly reduced autotrophic index (AI), and crayfish presence increased AI. Inorganic sediment and chironomid density were not affected by drought, but both were significantly reduced by crayfish presence. O. eupunctus reduced AI and sediment more than O. neglectus did. Neither drought nor crayfish species significantly affected crayfish growth or survival. Drought can have strong effects on ecosystem function, but weaker effects on benthic structure. Crayfish can have strong effects on ecosystem

The world's richest tadpole communities show functional redundancy and low functional diversity: ecological data on Madagascar's stream-dwelling amphibian larvae

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Randrianiaina Roger-Daniel

2010-05-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Functional diversity illustrates the range of ecological functions in a community. It allows revealing the appearance of functional redundancy in communities and processes of community assembly. Functional redundancy illustrates the overlap in ecological functions of community members which may be an indicator of community resilience. We evaluated patterns of species richness, functional diversity and functional redundancy on tadpole communities in rainforest streams in Madagascar. This habitat harbours the world's most species-rich stream tadpole communities which are due to their occurrence in primary habitat of particular interest for functional diversity studies. Results Species richness of tadpole communities is largely determined by characteristics of the larval habitat (stream structure, not by adult habitat (forest structure. Species richness is positively correlated with a size-velocity gradient of the streams, i.e. communities follow a classical species-area relationship. While widely observed for other taxa, this is an unusual pattern for anuran larvae which usually is expected to be hump-shaped. Along the species richness gradient, we quantified functional diversity of all communities considering the similarity and dissimilarity of species in 18 traits related to habitat use and foraging. Especially species-rich communities were characterised by an overlap of species function, i.e. by functional redundancy. By comparing the functional diversity of the observed communities with functional diversity of random assemblages, we found no differences at low species richness level, whereas observed species-rich communities have lower functional diversity than respective random assemblages. Conclusions We found functional redundancy being a feature of communities also in primary habitat, what has not been shown before using such a continuous measure. The observed species richness dependent pattern of low functional

Re-Meandering of Lowland Streams

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Pedersen, Morten Lauge; Kristensen, Klaus Kevin; Friberg, Nikolai

2014-01-01

We evaluated the restoration of physical habitats and its influence on macroinvertebrate community structure in 18 Danish lowland streams comprising six restored streams, six streams with little physical alteration and six channelized streams. We hypothesized that physical habitats and macroinver...

Influence of shredder feeding and nutrients on fungal activity and community structure in headwater streams

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Namil Chung; Keller. Suberkropp

2008-01-01

In stream detrital food webs, interactions occur between aquatic hyphomycetes associated with decomposing leaves and shredders consuming those leaves. However, few studies have examined how the feeding activity of shredders affects aquatic hyphomycetes. We examined the effect of shredder feeding on aquatic hyphomycete communities associated with submerged leaves in two...

Re-Meandering of Lowland Streams

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pedersen, Morten Lauge; Kristensen, Klaus Kevin; Friberg, Nikolai

2014-01-01

We evaluated the restoration of physical habitats and its influence on macroinvertebrate community structure in 18 Danish lowland streams comprising six restored streams, six streams with little physical alteration and six channelized streams. We hypothesized that physical habitats...... and macroinvertebrate communities of restored streams would resemble those of natural streams, while those of the channelized streams would differ from both restored and near-natural streams. Physical habitats were surveyed for substrate composition, depth, width and current velocity. Macroinvertebrates were sampled...... along 100 m reaches in each stream, in edge habitats and in riffle/run habitats located in the center of the stream. Restoration significantly altered the physical conditions and affected the interactions between stream habitat heterogeneity and macroinvertebrate diversity. The substrate in the restored...

Summer periphyton community in two streams of the Pampa Plain, Argentina

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Esquius Karina Soledad

2011-11-01

Full Text Available During summer 2001, periphytic algae associated to the giant bulrush Schoenoplectus californicus (Cyperaceae were studied in Los Padres and La Tapera streams (Pampa Plain, Argentina. One hundred and seven taxa were determined, being 76 of them common to both sampling sites. Diversity, total number of taxa and abundance of periphytic algae were greater in stems from the effl uent (La Tapera Stream. Diatoms were the most important group in both streams, according to their richness and abundance. Periphyton from the infl uent (Los Padres Stream was characterized by the dominance of the diatom Navicula cryptocephala and the codominance of another three algae. In contrast in La Tapera Stream, not any species could be recognized as dominant. Periphyton community architecture was more complex in the effl uent, with a high development of fi ve physiognomic groups. In conclusion, algal community attached to S. californicus differs in terms of diversity, abundance and community complexity, possibly due to the diffe rences registered in certain abiotic parameters, mainly in water transparency and velocity.

Effects of low concentrations of glyphosate-based herbicide factor 540® on an agricultural stream freshwater phytoplankton community.

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Smedbol, Élise; Gomes, Marcelo Pedrosa; Paquet, Serge; Labrecque, Michel; Lepage, Laurent; Lucotte, Marc; Juneau, Philippe

2018-02-01

Residual glyphosate from glyphosate based herbicides (GBH) are ubiquitously detected in streams draining agricultural fields, and may affect phytoplankton communities present in these ecosystems. Here, the effects of the exposure (96 h) of a phytoplankton community collected in an agricultural stream to various glyphosate concentrations (1, 5, 10, 50, 100, 500 and 1000 μg l -1 ) of Factor 540 ® GBH were investigated. The lowest GBH concentration of 1 μg l -1 reduced chlorophyll a and carotenoid contents. Low glyphosate concentrations, such as 5 and 10 μg l -1 , promoted changes in the community's structure and reduced the diversity of the main algal species. At glyphosate concentrations ranging from 50 to 1000 μg l -1 , the phytoplankton community's composition was modified and new main species appeared. The highest glyphosate concentrations (500 and 1000 μg l -1 ) affected the shikimate content, the lipid peroxidation and the activity of antioxidant enzymes (superoxide dismutase, catalase and ascorbate peroxidase). These results indicate that GBH can modify structural and functional properties of freshwater phytoplankton communities living in streams located in agricultural areas at glyphosate concentrations much inferior to the 800 μg l -1 threshold set by the Canadian guidelines for the protection of aquatic life. Crown Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Effects of flow intermittency and pharmaceutical exposure on the structure and metabolism of stream biofilms.

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Corcoll, Natàlia; Casellas, Maria; Huerta, Belinda; Guasch, Helena; Acuña, Vicenç; Rodríguez-Mozaz, Sara; Serra-Compte, Albert; Barceló, Damià; Sabater, Sergi

2015-01-15

Increasing concentrations of pharmaceutical compounds occur in many rivers, but their environmental risk remains poorly studied in stream biofilms. Flow intermittency shapes the structure and functions of ecosystems, and may enhance their sensitivity to toxicants. This study evaluates the effects of a long-term exposure of biofilm communities to a mixture of pharmaceutical compounds at environmental concentrations on biofilm bioaccumulation capacity, the structure and metabolic processes of algae and bacteria communities, and how their potential effects were enhanced or not by the occurrence of flow intermittency. To assess the interaction between those two stressors, an experiment with artificial streams was performed. Stream biofilms were exposed to a mixture of pharmaceuticals, as well as to a short period of flow intermittency. Results indicate that biofilms were negatively affected by pharmaceuticals. The algal biomass and taxa richness decreased and unicellular green algae relatively increased. The structure of the bacterial (based on denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis of amplified 16S rRNA genes) changed and showed a reduction of the operational taxonomic units (OTUs) richness. Exposed biofilms showed higher rates of metabolic processes, such as primary production and community respiration, attributed to pharmaceuticals stimulated an increase of green algae and heterotrophs, respectively. Flow intermittency modulated the effects of chemicals on natural communities. The algal community became more sensitive to short-term exposure of pharmaceuticals (lower EC50 value) when exposed to water intermittency, indicating cumulative effects between the two assessed stressors. In contrast to algae, the bacterial community became less sensitive to short-term exposure of pharmaceuticals (higher EC50) when exposed to water intermittency, indicating co-tolerance phenomena. According to the observed effects, the environmental risk of pharmaceuticals in nature is high

Influence of fertilizer draw solution properties on the process performance and microbial community structure in a side-stream anaerobic fertilizer-drawn forward osmosis - ultrafiltration bioreactor.

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Kim, Youngjin; Li, Sheng; Chekli, Laura; Phuntsho, Sherub; Ghaffour, Noreddine; Leiknes, TorOve; Shon, Ho Kyong

2017-09-01

In this study, a side-stream anaerobic fertilizer-drawn forward osmosis (FDFO) and ultrafiltration (UF) membrane bioreactor (MBR) hybrid system was proposed and operated for 55days. The FDFO performance was first investigated in terms of flux decline with various fertilizers draw solution. Flux decline was very severe with all fertilizers due to the absence of aeration and the sticky property of sludge. Flux recovery by physical cleaning varied significantly amongst tested fertilizers which seriously affected biofouling in FDFO via reverse salt flux (RSF). Besides, RSF had a significant impact on nutrient accumulation in the bioreactor. These results indicated that nutrient accumulation negatively influenced the anaerobic activity. To elucidate these phenomena, bacterial and archaeal community structures were analyzed by pyrosequencing. Results showed that bacterial community structure was affected by fertilizer properties with less impact on archaeal community structure, which resulted in a reduction in biogas production and an increase in nitrogen content. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Wastewater treatment plant effluent introduces recoverable shifts in microbial community composition in urban streams

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Ledford, S. H.; Price, J. R.; Ryan, M. O.; Toran, L.; Sales, C. M.

2017-12-01

New technologies are allowing for intense scrutiny of the impact of land use on microbial communities in stream networks. We used a combination of analytical chemistry, real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) and targeted amplicon sequencing for a preliminary study on the impact of wastewater treatment plant effluent discharge on urban streams. Samples were collected on two dates above and below treatment plants on the Wissahickon Creek, and its tributary, Sandy Run, in Montgomery County, PA, USA. As expected, effluent was observed to be a significant source of nutrients and human and non-specific fecal associated taxa. There was an observed increase in the alpha diversity at locations immediately below effluent outflows, which contributed many taxa involved in wastewater treatment processes and nutrient cycling to the stream's microbial community. Unexpectedly, modeling of microbial community shifts along the stream was not controlled by concentrations of measured nutrients. Furthermore, partial recovery, in the form of decreasing abundances of bacteria and nutrients associated with wastewater treatment plant processes, nutrient cycling bacteria, and taxa associated with fecal and sewage sources, was observed between effluent sources. Antecedent moisture conditions impacted overall microbial community diversity, with higher diversity occurring after rainfall. These findings hint at resilience in stream microbial communities to recover from wastewater treatment plant effluent and are vital to understanding the impacts of urbanization on microbial stream communities.

Macroinvertebrate community responses to a dewatering disturbance gradient in a restored stream

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J. D. Muehlbauer

2011-06-01

Full Text Available Dewatering disturbances are common in aquatic systems and represent a relatively untapped field of disturbance ecology, yet studying dewatering events along gradients in non-dichotomous (i.e. wet/dry terms is often difficult. Because many stream restorations can essentially be perceived as planned hydrologic manipulations, such systems can make ideal test-cases for understanding processes of hydrological disturbance. In this study we used an experimental drawdown in a 440 ha stream/wetland restoration site to assess aquatic macroinvertebrate community responses to dewatering and subsequent rewetting. The geomorphic nature of the site and the design of the restoration allowed dewatering to occur predictably along a gradient and decoupled the hydrologic response from any geomorphic (i.e. habitat heterogeneity effects. In the absence of such heterogeneous habitat refugia, reach-scale wetted perimeter and depth conditions exerted a strong control on community structure. The community exhibited an incremental response to dewatering severity over the course of this disturbance, which was made manifest not as a change in community means but as an increase in community variability, or dispersion, at each site. The dewatering also affected inter-species abundance and distributional patterns, as dewatering and rewetting promoted alternate species groups with divergent habitat tolerances. Finally, our results indicate that rapid rewetting – analogous to a hurricane breaking a summer drought – may represent a recovery process rather than an additional disturbance and that such processes, even in newly restored systems, may be rapid.

Stream invertebrate productivity linked to forest subsidies: 37 stream-years of reference and experimental data

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J. Bruce Wallace; Susan L Eggert; Judy L. Meyer; Jackson R. Webster

2015-01-01

Riparian habitats provide detrital subsidies of varying quantities and qualities to recipient ecosystems. We used long-term data from three reference streams (covering 24 stream-years) and 13-year whole-stream organic matter manipulations to investigate the influence of terrestrial detrital quantity and quality on benthic invertebrate community structure, abundance,...

Influence of fertilizer draw solution properties on the process performance and microbial community structure in a side-stream anaerobic fertilizer-drawn forward osmosis – ultrafiltration bioreactor

KAUST Repository

Kim, Youngjin

2017-02-27

In this study, a side-stream anaerobic fertilizer-drawn forward osmosis (FDFO) and ultrafiltration (UF) membrane bioreactor (MBR) hybrid system was proposed and operated for 55 days. The FDFO performance was first investigated in terms of flux decline with various fertilizers draw solution. Flux decline was very severe with all fertilizers due to the absence of aeration and the sticky property of sludge. Flux recovery by physical cleaning varied significantly amongst tested fertilizers which seriously affected biofouling in FDFO via reverse salt flux (RSF). Besides, RSF had a significant impact on nutrient accumulation in the bioreactor. These results indicated that nutrient accumulation negatively influenced the anaerobic activity. To elucidate these phenomena, bacterial and archaeal community structures were analyzed by pyrosequencing. Results showed that bacterial community structure was affected by fertilizer properties with less impact on archaeal community structure, which resulted in a reduction in biogas production and an increase in nitrogen content.

Effect of thiram and of a hydrocarbon mixture on freshwater macroinvertebrate communities in outdoor stream and pond mesocosms: I. Study design, chemicals fate and structural responses.

Science.gov (United States)

Bayona, Yannick; Roucaute, Marc; Cailleaud, Kevin; Lagadic, Laurent; Bassères, Anne; Caquet, Thierry

2015-11-01

Higher-tier ecological risk assessment (ERA) in mesocosms is commonly performed in lotic or lentic experimental systems. These systems differ in their physico-chemical and hydrological properties, leading to differences in chemical fate, community characteristics and potential recovery. This raises the issue of the relevance and sensitivity of community-level endpoints in different types of mesocosms. In this study, macroinvertebrate abundance and biomass estimates were used to assess the effects of a dithiocarbamate fungicide, thiram (35 and 170 µg l(-1)), and a petroleum middle distillate (PMD; 0.01, 0.4, 2 and 20 mg l(-1)) in outdoor stream and pond mesocosms. Streams were continuously treated during 3 weeks followed by a 2-month long post-treatment period. Ponds were treated weekly for 4 weeks, followed by a 10-month long post-treatment period. Taxonomic structure of macroinvertebrate communities was characterized using the α, β and γ components of taxa richness, Shannon and Gini-Simpson indices. Computations were based either on abundance or biomass data. Results clearly highlighted that the effects of chemicals depended on the exposure regime (for thiram) and type of system (for the PMD). Causes of the differences between streams and ponds in the magnitude and nature of effects include differential sensitivity of taxa dwelling in lentic and lotic systems and the influence of hydrology (e.g., drift from upstream) and mesocosm connectivity on recovery dynamics. This study also showed complementarities in the use of both types of mesocosms to improve the characterization of chemical effects on communities in ERA.

Local environment rather than past climate determines community composition of mountain stream macroinvertebrates across Europe.

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Múrria, Cesc; Bonada, Núria; Vellend, Mark; Zamora-Muñoz, Carmen; Alba-Tercedor, Javier; Sainz-Cantero, Carmen Elisa; Garrido, Josefina; Acosta, Raul; El Alami, Majida; Barquín, Jose; Derka, Tomáš; Álvarez-Cabria, Mario; Sáinz-Bariain, Marta; Filipe, Ana F; Vogler, Alfried P

2017-11-01

Community assembly is determined by a combination of historical events and contemporary processes that are difficult to disentangle, but eco-evolutionary mechanisms may be uncovered by the joint analysis of species and genetic diversity across multiple sites. Mountain streams across Europe harbour highly diverse macroinvertebrate communities whose composition and turnover (replacement of taxa) among sites and regions remain poorly known. We studied whole-community biodiversity within and among six mountain regions along a latitudinal transect from Morocco to Scandinavia at three levels of taxonomic hierarchy: genus, species and haplotypes. Using DNA barcoding of four insect families (>3100 individuals, 118 species) across 62 streams, we found that measures of local and regional diversity and intraregional turnover generally declined slightly towards northern latitudes. However, at all hierarchical levels we found complete (haplotype) or high (species, genus) turnover among regions (and even among sites within regions), which counters the expectations of Pleistocene postglacial northward expansion from southern refugia. Species distributions were mostly correlated with environmental conditions, suggesting a strong role of lineage- or species-specific traits in determining local and latitudinal community composition, lineage diversification and phylogenetic community structure (e.g., loss of Coleoptera, but not Ephemeroptera, at northern sites). High intraspecific genetic structure within regions, even in northernmost sites, reflects species-specific dispersal and demographic histories and indicates postglacial migration from geographically scattered refugia, rather than from only southern areas. Overall, patterns were not strongly concordant across hierarchical levels, but consistent with the overriding influence of environmental factors determining community composition at the species and genus levels. © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Assessing Impacts of Unconventional Natural Gas Extraction on Microbial Communities in Headwater Stream Ecosystems in Northwestern Pennsylvania

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Ryan eTrexler

2014-11-01

Full Text Available Hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling have increased dramatically in Pennsylvania Marcellus shale formations, however the potential for major environmental impacts are still incompletely understood. High-throughput sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene was performed to characterize the microbial community structure of water, sediment, bryophyte, and biofilm samples from 26 headwater stream sites in northwestern Pennsylvania with different histories of fracking activity within Marcellus shale play. Further, we describe the relationship between microbial community structure and environmental parameters measured. Approximately 3.2 million 16S rRNA gene sequences were retrieved from a total of 58 samples. Microbial community analyses showed significant reductions in species richness as well as evenness in sites with Marcellus shale activity (MSA+. Beta diversity analyses revealed distinct microbial community structure between sites with and without Marcellus shale activity (MSA-. For example, OTUs within the Acetobacteracea, Methylocystaceae, Acidobacteriaceae, and Phenylobacterium were greater than three log-fold more abundant in MSA+ sites as compared to MSA- sites. Further, several of these OTUs were strongly negatively correlated with pH and positively correlated with the number of wellpads in a watershed. It should be noted that many of the OTUs enriched in MSA+ sites are putative acidophilic and/or methanotrophic populations. This study revealed apparent shifts in the autochthonous microbial communities and highlighted potential members that could be responding to changing stream conditions as a result of nascent industrial activity in these aquatic ecosystems.

Assessing impacts of unconventional natural gas extraction on microbial communities in headwater stream ecosystems in Northwestern Pennsylvania

Science.gov (United States)

Trexler, Ryan; Solomon, Caroline; Brislawn, Colin J.; Wright, Justin R.; Rosenberger, Abigail; McClure, Erin E.; Grube, Alyssa M.; Peterson, Mark P.; Keddache, Mehdi; Mason, Olivia U.; Hazen, Terry C.; Grant, Christopher J.; Lamendella, Regina

2014-01-01

Hydraulic fracturing and horizontal drilling have increased dramatically in Pennsylvania Marcellus shale formations, however the potential for major environmental impacts are still incompletely understood. High-throughput sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene was performed to characterize the microbial community structure of water, sediment, bryophyte, and biofilm samples from 26 headwater stream sites in northwestern Pennsylvania with different histories of fracking activity within Marcellus shale formations. Further, we describe the relationship between microbial community structure and environmental parameters measured. Approximately 3.2 million 16S rRNA gene sequences were retrieved from a total of 58 samples. Microbial community analyses showed significant reductions in species richness as well as evenness in sites with Marcellus shale activity. Beta diversity analyses revealed distinct microbial community structure between sites with and without Marcellus shale activity. For example, operational taxonomic units (OTUs) within the Acetobacteracea, Methylocystaceae, Acidobacteriaceae, and Phenylobacterium were greater than three log-fold more abundant in MSA+ sites as compared to MSA− sites. Further, several of these OTUs were strongly negatively correlated with pH and positively correlated with the number of wellpads in a watershed. It should be noted that many of the OTUs enriched in MSA+ sites are putative acidophilic and/or methanotrophic populations. This study revealed apparent shifts in the autochthonous microbial communities and highlighted potential members that could be responding to changing stream conditions as a result of nascent industrial activity in these aquatic ecosystems. PMID:25408683

Trophic structure of macroinvertebrates in tropical pasture streams

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Bruna Neves da Silveira-Manzotti

Full Text Available Abstract: Aim The aim of this study was to describe the diet of stream macroinvertebrates and to determine their trophic groups. Methods Invertebrates were sampled with D nets in three pasture streams. They were identified to genus level and submitted to gut content analysis, except for fluid feeders such as hemipterans, to which diet data was obtained from the literature. Trophic groups were determined based on a similarity analysis using the Bray-Curtis similarity coefficient. Results Five trophic groups were defined: fine-detritivores (feed mostly on fine particulate organic matter - FPOM, coarse-detritivores/herbivores (feed mostly on coarse particulate organic matter - CPOM - and plant material, omnivores, specialist-predators (prey upon aquatic insects only, and generalist-predators. Ephemeroptera, Diptera (except Tanypodinae, Coleoptera, and Trichoptera (except Smicridea were detritivores. The caddis Macronema (Trichoptera fed exclusively on plant detritus and Tanypodinae and Smicridea were classified as omnivores. The odonate families Calopterygidae and Gomphidae were classified as specialist-predators, while Macrobrachium (Decapoda, Belostoma, and Limnocoris (Hemiptera were generalist-predators. Conclusions The great quantity and frequency of occurrence of FPOM consumed by most taxa highlight the importance of this food resource for macroinvertebrate communities from tropical streams. Furthermore, observed variations on trophic group assignment for some taxa indicate the generalist and opportunistic nature of these aquatic invertebrates. Such findings reinforce the importance of conducting gut content analysis on macroinvertebrates to understand their role in the structure and functioning of tropical streams.

Downstream changes in spring-fed stream invertebrate communities: the effect of increased temperature range?

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Russell G. DEATH

2011-09-01

from the sources. In conclusion, water temperature range was highly correlated with number of taxa, although other factors, such as substratum composition, stability and invertebrate drift, may also play an important role in the determination of longitudinal changes in invertebrate community composition and structure along spring-fed streams.

Impacts of fish farm pollution on ecosystem structure and function of tropical headwater streams

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rosa, Rodrigo dos Santos; Aguiar, Anna Carolina Fornero; Boëchat, Iola Gonçalves; Gücker, Björn

2013-01-01

We investigated the impacts of effluent discharge from small flow-through fish farms on stream water characteristics, the benthic invertebrate community, whole-system nitrate uptake, and ecosystem metabolism of three tropical headwater streams in southeastern Brazil. Effluents were moderately, i.e. up to 20-fold enriched in particulate organic matter (POM) and inorganic nutrients in comparison to stream water at reference sites. Due to high dilution with stream water, effluent discharge resulted in up to 2.0-fold increases in stream water POM and up to 1.8-fold increases in inorganic nutrients only. Moderate impacts on the benthic invertebrate community were detected at one stream only. There was no consistent pattern of effluent impact on whole-stream nitrate uptake. Ecosystem metabolism, however, was clearly affected by effluent discharge. Stream reaches impacted by effluents exhibited significantly increased community respiration and primary productivity, stressing the importance of ecologically sound best management practices for small fish farms in the tropics. -- Highlights: ► Fish farm effluent discharge had moderate effects on stream water quality. ► Impacts on the benthic invertebrate community occurred at one stream. ► Whole-stream nitrate uptake showed no consistent impact pattern. ► Effluents caused considerable increases in stream ecosystem metabolism. ► Compliance with best management practices is important for small fish farms. -- Moderate water pollution by small fish farms caused considerable eutrophication responses in tropical headwater streams

Testing a community water supply well located near a stream for susceptibility to stream contamination and low-flows.

Science.gov (United States)

Stewart-Maddox, N. S.; Tysor, E. H.; Swanson, J.; Degon, A.; Howard, J.; Tsinnajinnie, L.; Frisbee, M. D.; Wilson, J. L.; Newman, B. D.

2014-12-01

A community well is the primary water supply to the town of El Rito. This small rural town in is located in a semi-arid, mountainous portion of northern New Mexico where water is scarce. The well is 72 meters from a nearby intermittent stream. Initial tritium sampling suggests a groundwater connection between the stream and well. The community is concerned with the sustainability and future quality of the well water. If this well is as tightly connected to the stream as the tritium data suggests, then the well is potentially at risk due to upstream contamination and the impacts of extended drought. To examine this, we observed the well over a two-week period performing pump and recovery tests, electrical resistivity surveys, and physical observations of the nearby stream. We also collected general chemistry, stable isotope and radon samples from the well and stream. Despite the large well diameter, our pump test data exhibited behavior similar to a Theis curve, but the rate of drawdown decreased below the Theis curve late in the test. This decrease suggests that the aquifer is being recharged, possibly through delayed yield, upwelling of groundwater, or from the stream. The delayed yield hypothesis is supported by our electrical resistivity surveys, which shows very little change in the saturated zone over the course of the pump test, and by low values of pump-test estimated aquifer storativity. Observations of the nearby stream showed no change in stream-water level throughout the pump test. Together this data suggests that the interaction between the stream and the well is low, but recharge could be occurring through other mechanisms such as delayed yield. Additional pump tests of longer duration are required to determine the exact nature of the aquifer and its communication with the well.

Influence of acid mine drainage on microbial communities in stream and groundwater samples at Guryong Mine, South Korea

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Jaisoo; Koo, So-Yeon; Kim, Ji-Young; Lee, Eun-Hee; Lee, Sang-Don; Ko, Kyung-Seok; Ko, Dong-Chan; Cho, Kyung-Suk

2009-10-01

The effects of acid mine drainage (AMD) in a stream and groundwater near an abandoned copper mine were characterized by physicochemical properties, bacterial community structure using denaturing gel gradient electrophoresis (DGGE), and microbial activity/diversity using Ecoplate technique. Based on DGGE fingerprints, the eubacterial community structures grouped into the stream water (GRS1, GRS2 and GRS3) and groundwater samples (GW1 and GW2), apparently based on differences in water temperature and the concentrations of dissolved oxygen, nitrate and sulfate. The most highly AMD-contaminated sample (GRS1) had additional α-Proteobacteria whereas the groundwater samples included additional β-Proteobacteria, suggesting the development of populations resistant to AMD toxicity under aerobic and anaerobic conditions, respectively. Community level physiological activities on the 31 Ecoplate substrates suggested that the activities decreased with increasing concentrations of sulfate and heavy metals derived from AMD. The Shannon index showed that microbial diversity was greatest in GRS2, and lowest in GRS1, and was probably related to the level of AMD.

Toward Design Guidelines for Stream Restoration Structures: Measuring and Modeling Unsteady Turbulent Flows in Natural Streams with Complex Hydraulic Structures

Science.gov (United States)

Lightbody, A.; Sotiropoulos, F.; Kang, S.; Diplas, P.

2009-12-01

Despite their widespread application to prevent lateral river migration, stabilize banks, and promote aquatic habitat, shallow transverse flow training structures such as rock vanes and stream barbs lack quantitative design guidelines. Due to the lack of fundamental knowledge about the interaction of the flow field with the sediment bed, existing engineering standards are typically based on various subjective criteria or on cross-sectionally-averaged shear stresses rather than local values. Here, we examine the performance and stability of in-stream structures within a field-scale single-threaded sand-bed meandering stream channel in the newly developed Outdoor StreamLab (OSL) at the St. Anthony Falls Laboratory (SAFL). Before and after the installation of a rock vane along the outer bank of the middle meander bend, high-resolution topography data were obtained for the entire 50-m-long reach at 1-cm spatial scale in the horizontal and sub-millimeter spatial scale in the vertical. In addition, detailed measurements of flow and turbulence were obtained using acoustic Doppler velocimetry at twelve cross-sections focused on the vicinity of the structure. Measurements were repeated at a range of extreme events, including in-bank flows with an approximate flow rate of 44 L/s (1.4 cfs) and bankfull floods with an approximate flow rate of 280 L/s (10 cfs). Under both flow rates, the structure reduced near-bank shear stresses and resulted in both a deeper thalweg and near-bank aggradation. The resulting comprehensive dataset has been used to validate a large eddy simulation carried out by SAFL’s computational fluid dynamics model, the Virtual StreamLab (VSL). This versatile computational framework is able to efficiently simulate 3D unsteady turbulent flows in natural streams with complex in-stream structures and as a result holds promise for the development of much-needed quantitative design guidelines.

PiSCES: Pi(scine) stream community estimation software: A tool for nationwide fish assemblage predictions

Science.gov (United States)

Background/Question/Methods What species of fish might someone find in a local stream? How might that community change as a result of changes to characteristics of the stream and its watershed? PiSCES is a browser-based toolkit developed to predict a fish community for any NHD-Pl...

Evaluating the effectiveness of restoring longitudinal connectivity for stream fish communities: towards a more holistic approach.

Science.gov (United States)

Tummers, Jeroen S; Hudson, Steve; Lucas, Martyn C

2016-11-01

A more holistic approach towards testing longitudinal connectivity restoration is needed in order to establish that intended ecological functions of such restoration are achieved. We illustrate the use of a multi-method scheme to evaluate the effectiveness of 'nature-like' connectivity restoration for stream fish communities in the River Deerness, NE England. Electric-fishing, capture-mark-recapture, PIT telemetry and radio-telemetry were used to measure fish community composition, dispersal, fishway efficiency and upstream migration respectively. For measuring passage and dispersal, our rationale was to evaluate a wide size range of strong swimmers (exemplified by brown trout Salmo trutta) and weak swimmers (exemplified by bullhead Cottus perifretum) in situ in the stream ecosystem. Radio-tracking of adult trout during the spawning migration showed that passage efficiency at each of five connectivity-restored sites was 81.3-100%. Unaltered (experimental control) structures on the migration route had a bottle-neck effect on upstream migration, especially during low flows. However, even during low flows, displaced PIT tagged juvenile trout (total n=153) exhibited a passage efficiency of 70.1-93.1% at two nature-like passes. In mark-recapture experiments juvenile brown trout and bullhead tagged (total n=5303) succeeded in dispersing upstream more often at most structures following obstacle modification, but not at the two control sites, based on a Laplace kernel modelling approach of observed dispersal distance and barrier traverses. Medium-term post-restoration data (2-3years) showed that the fish assemblage remained similar at five of six connectivity-restored sites and two control sites, but at one connectivity-restored headwater site previously inhabited by trout only, three native non-salmonid species colonized. We conclude that stream habitat reconnection should support free movement of a wide range of species and life stages, wherever retention of such

Do Riparian Buffers Protect Stream Invertebrate Communities in South American Atlantic Forest Agricultural Areas?

Science.gov (United States)

Hunt, L.; Marrochi, N.; Bonetto, C.; Liess, M.; Buss, D. F.; Vieira da Silva, C.; Chiu, M.-C.; Resh, V. H.

2017-12-01

We investigated the influence and relative importance of insecticides and other agricultural stressors in determining variability in invertebrate communities in small streams in intensive soy-production regions of Brazil and Paraguay. In Paraguay we sampled 17 sites on tributaries of the Pirapó River in the state of Itapúa and in Brazil we sampled 18 sites on tributaries of the San Francisco River in the state of Paraná. The riparian buffer zones generally contained native Atlantic forest remnants and/or introduced tree species at various stages of growth. In Brazil the stream buffer width was negatively correlated with sediment insecticide concentrations and buffer width was found to have moderate importance in mitigating effects on some sensitive taxa such as mayflies. However, in both regions insecticides had low relative importance in explaining variability in invertebrate communities, while various habitat parameters were more important. In Brazil, the percent coverage of soft depositional sediment in streams was the most important agriculture-related explanatory variable, and the overall stream-habitat score was the most important variable in Paraguay streams. Paraguay and Brazil both have laws requiring forested riparian buffers. The ample forested riparian buffer zones typical of streams in these regions are likely to have mitigated the effects of pesticides on stream invertebrate communities. This study provides evidence that riparian buffer regulations in the Atlantic Forest region are protecting stream ecosystems from pesticides and other agricultural stressors. Further studies are needed to determine the minimum buffer widths necessary to achieve optimal protection.

Microbial community diversity and composition varies with habitat characteristics and biofilm function in macrophyte-rich streams

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Levi, Peter S.; Starnawski, Piotr; Poulsen, Britta

2017-01-01

Biofilms in streams play an integral role in ecosystem processes and function yet few studies have investigated the broad diversity of these complex prokaryotic and eukaryotic microbial communities. Physical habitat characteristics can affect the composition and abundance of microorganisms...... in these biofilms by creating microhabitats. Here we describe the prokaryotic and eukaryotic microbial diversity of biofilms in sand and macrophyte habitats (i.e. epipsammon and epiphyton, respectively) in five macrophyte-rich streams in Jutland, Denmark. The macrophyte species varied in growth morphology, C......:N stoichiometry, and preferred stream habitat, providing a range in environmental conditions for the epiphyton. Among all habitats and streams, the prokaryotic communities were dominated by common phyla, including Alphaproteobacteria, Bacteriodetes, and Gammaproteobacteria, while the eukaryotic communities were...

Do biofilm communities respond to the chemical signatures of fracking? A test involving streams in North-central Arkansas.

Science.gov (United States)

Johnson, Wilson H; Douglas, Marlis R; Lewis, Jeffrey A; Stuecker, Tara N; Carbonero, Franck G; Austin, Bradley J; Evans-White, Michelle A; Entrekin, Sally A; Douglas, Michael E

2017-02-03

Unconventional natural gas (UNG) extraction (fracking) is ongoing in 29 North American shale basins (20 states), with ~6000 wells found within the Fayetteville shale (north-central Arkansas). If the chemical signature of fracking is detectable in streams, it can be employed to bookmark potential impacts. We evaluated benthic biofilm community composition as a proxy for stream chemistry so as to segregate anthropogenic signatures in eight Arkansas River catchments. In doing so, we tested the hypothesis that fracking characteristics in study streams are statistically distinguishable from those produced by agriculture or urbanization. Four tributary catchments had UNG-wells significantly more dense and near to our sampling sites and were grouped as 'potentially-impacted catchment zones' (PICZ). Four others were characterized by significantly larger forested area with greater slope and elevation but reduced pasture, and were classified as 'minimally-impacted' (MICZ). Overall, 46 bacterial phyla/141 classes were identified, with 24 phyla (52%) and 54 classes (38%) across all samples. PICZ-sites were ecologically more variable than MICZ-sites, with significantly greater nutrient levels (total nitrogen, total phosphorous), and elevated Cyanobacteria as bioindicators that tracked these conditions. PICZ-sites also exhibited elevated conductance (a correlate of increased ion concentration) and depressed salt-intolerant Spartobacteria, suggesting the presence of brine as a fracking effect. Biofilm communities at PICZ-sites were significantly less variable than those at MICZ-sites. Study streams differed by Group according to morphology, land use, and water chemistry but not in biofilm community structure. Those at PICZ-sites covaried according to anthropogenic impact, and were qualitatively similar to communities found at sites disturbed by fracking. The hypothesis that fracking signatures in study streams are distinguishable from those produced by other anthropogenic effects

Benthic macroinvertebrate community of a fourth order stream in ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

cinthia

Full Length Research Paper. Benthic macroinvertebrate community of a fourth order stream in Kashmir Himalaya, India. Shazia Habib1* and A.R. Yousuf2. 1Department of Environmental Science, University of Kashmir, Srinagar, India. 2National Green Tribunal, Government of India, India. Received 31 December, 2013; ...

Inferring community properties of benthic macroinvertebrates in streams using Shannon index and exergy

Science.gov (United States)

Nguyen, Tuyen Van; Cho, Woon-Seok; Kim, Hungsoo; Jung, Il Hyo; Kim, YongKuk; Chon, Tae-Soo

2014-03-01

Definition of ecological integrity based on community analysis has long been a critical issue in risk assessment for sustainable ecosystem management. In this work, two indices (i.e., Shannon index and exergy) were selected for the analysis of community properties of benthic macroinvertebrate community in streams in Korea. For this purpose, the means and variances of both indices were analyzed. The results found an extra scope of structural and functional properties in communities in response to environmental variabilities and anthropogenic disturbances. The combination of these two parameters (four indices) was feasible in identification of disturbance agents (e.g., industrial pollution or organic pollution) and specifying states of communities. The four-aforementioned parameters (means and variances of Shannon index and exergy) were further used as input data in a self-organizing map for the characterization of water quality. Our results suggested that Shannon index and exergy in combination could be utilized as a suitable reference system and would be an efficient tool for assessment of the health of aquatic ecosystems exposed to environmental disturbances.

Community assembly of adult odonates in tropical streams: an ecophysiological hypothesis.

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Paulo De Marco Júnior

Full Text Available Community assembly theory is founded on the premise that the relative importance of local environmental processes and dispersal shapes the compositional structure of metacommunities. The species sorting model predicts that assemblages are dominated by the environmental filtering of species that are readily able to disperse to suitable sites. We propose an ecophysiological hypothesis (EH for the mechanism underlying the organization of species-sorting odonate metacommunities based on the interplay of thermoregulation, body size and the degree of sunlight availability in small-to-medium tropical streams. Due to thermoregulatory restrictions, the EH predicts (i that larger species are disfavored in small streams and (ii that streams exhibit a nested compositional pattern characterized by species' size distribution. To test the EH, we evaluate the longitudinal distribution of adult Odonata at 19 sites in 1st- to 6th-order streams in the Tropical Cerrado of Brazil. With increasing channel width, the total abundance and species richness of Anisoptera increased, while the abundance of Zygoptera decreased. The first axis of an ordination analysis of the species abundance data was directly related to channel width. Mean and maximum thorax size are positively correlated to channel width, but no relationship was found for the minimum thorax size, suggesting that there is no lower size constraint on the occurrence of these species. Additionally, a nested compositional pattern related to body size was observed. Our results support the EH and its use as an ecological assembly rule based on abiotic factors. Forest cover functions as a filter to determine which species successfully colonize a given site within a metacommunity. As a consequence, the EH also indicates higher treats for small-bodied zygopterans in relation to the loss of riparian forests in tropical streams.

Cytosolic streaming in vegetative mycelium and aerial structures of Aspergillus niger.

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Bleichrodt, R; Vinck, A; Krijgsheld, P; van Leeuwen, M R; Dijksterhuis, J; Wösten, H A B

2013-03-15

Aspergillus niger forms aerial hyphae and conidiophores after a period of vegetative growth. The hyphae within the mycelium of A. niger are divided by septa. The central pore in these septa allows for cytoplasmic streaming. Here, we studied inter- and intra-compartmental streaming of the reporter protein GFP in A. niger. Expression of the gene encoding nuclear targeted GFP from the gpdA or glaA promoter resulted in strong fluorescence of nuclei within the vegetative hyphae and weak fluorescence in nuclei within the aerial structures. These data and nuclear run on experiments showed that gpdA and glaA are higher expressed in the vegetative mycelium when compared to aerial hyphae, conidiophores and conidia. Notably, gpdA or glaA driven expression of the gene encoding cytosolic GFP resulted in strongly fluorescent vegetative hyphae and aerial structures. Apparently, GFP streams from vegetative hyphae into aerial structures. This was confirmed by monitoring fluorescence of photo-activatable GFP (PA-GFP). In contrast, PA-GFP did not stream from aerial structures to vegetative hyphae. Streaming of PA-GFP within vegetative hyphae or within aerial structures of A. niger occurred at a rate of 10-15 μm s(-1). Taken together, these results not only show that GFP streams from the vegetative mycelium to aerial structures but it also indicates that its encoding RNA is not streaming. Absence of RNA streaming would explain why distinct RNA profiles were found in aerial structures and the vegetative mycelium by nuclear run on analysis and micro-array analysis.

Composition and structure of the Chironomidae (Insecta: Diptera) community associated with bryophytes in a first-order stream in the Atlantic forest, Brazil.

Science.gov (United States)

Rosa, B F J V; Dias-Silva, M V D; Alves, R G

2013-02-01

This study describes the structure of the Chironomidae community associated with bryophytes in a first-order stream located in a biological reserve of the Atlantic Forest, during two seasons. Samples of bryophytes adhered to rocks along a 100-m stretch of the stream were removed with a metal blade, and 200-mL pots were filled with the samples. The numerical density (individuals per gram of dry weight), Shannon's diversity index, Pielou's evenness index, the dominance index (DI), and estimated richness were calculated for each collection period (dry and rainy). Linear regression analysis was employed to test the existence of a correlation between rainfall and the individual's density and richness. The high numerical density and richness of Chironomidae taxa observed are probably related to the peculiar conditions of the bryophyte habitat. The retention of larvae during periods of higher rainfall contributed to the high density and richness of Chironomidae larvae. The rarefaction analysis showed higher richness in the rainy season related to the greater retention of food particles. The data from this study show that bryophytes provide stable habitats for the colonization by and refuge of Chironomidae larvae, mainly under conductions of faster water flow and higher precipitation.

Small but powerful: top predator local extinction affects ecosystem structure and function in an intermittent stream.

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Rodríguez-Lozano, Pablo; Verkaik, Iraima; Rieradevall, Maria; Prat, Narcís

2015-01-01

Top predator loss is a major global problem, with a current trend in biodiversity loss towards high trophic levels that modifies most ecosystems worldwide. Most research in this area is focused on large-bodied predators, despite the high extinction risk of small-bodied freshwater fish that often act as apex consumers. Consequently, it remains unknown if intermittent streams are affected by the consequences of top-predators' extirpations. The aim of our research was to determine how this global problem affects intermittent streams and, in particular, if the loss of a small-bodied top predator (1) leads to a 'mesopredator release', affects primary consumers and changes whole community structures, and (2) triggers a cascade effect modifying the ecosystem function. To address these questions, we studied the top-down effects of a small endangered fish species, Barbus meridionalis (the Mediterranean barbel), conducting an enclosure/exclosure mesocosm experiment in an intermittent stream where B. meridionalis became locally extinct following a wildfire. We found that top predator absence led to 'mesopredator release', and also to 'prey release' despite intraguild predation, which contrasts with traditional food web theory. In addition, B. meridionalis extirpation changed whole macroinvertebrate community composition and increased total macroinvertebrate density. Regarding ecosystem function, periphyton primary production decreased in apex consumer absence. In this study, the apex consumer was functionally irreplaceable; its local extinction led to the loss of an important functional role that resulted in major changes to the ecosystem's structure and function. This study evidences that intermittent streams can be affected by the consequences of apex consumers' extinctions, and that the loss of small-bodied top predators can lead to large ecosystem changes. We recommend the reintroduction of small-bodied apex consumers to systems where they have been extirpated, to restore

Small but powerful: top predator local extinction affects ecosystem structure and function in an intermittent stream.

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Pablo Rodríguez-Lozano

Full Text Available Top predator loss is a major global problem, with a current trend in biodiversity loss towards high trophic levels that modifies most ecosystems worldwide. Most research in this area is focused on large-bodied predators, despite the high extinction risk of small-bodied freshwater fish that often act as apex consumers. Consequently, it remains unknown if intermittent streams are affected by the consequences of top-predators' extirpations. The aim of our research was to determine how this global problem affects intermittent streams and, in particular, if the loss of a small-bodied top predator (1 leads to a 'mesopredator release', affects primary consumers and changes whole community structures, and (2 triggers a cascade effect modifying the ecosystem function. To address these questions, we studied the top-down effects of a small endangered fish species, Barbus meridionalis (the Mediterranean barbel, conducting an enclosure/exclosure mesocosm experiment in an intermittent stream where B. meridionalis became locally extinct following a wildfire. We found that top predator absence led to 'mesopredator release', and also to 'prey release' despite intraguild predation, which contrasts with traditional food web theory. In addition, B. meridionalis extirpation changed whole macroinvertebrate community composition and increased total macroinvertebrate density. Regarding ecosystem function, periphyton primary production decreased in apex consumer absence. In this study, the apex consumer was functionally irreplaceable; its local extinction led to the loss of an important functional role that resulted in major changes to the ecosystem's structure and function. This study evidences that intermittent streams can be affected by the consequences of apex consumers' extinctions, and that the loss of small-bodied top predators can lead to large ecosystem changes. We recommend the reintroduction of small-bodied apex consumers to systems where they have been

Neotropical Amphibian Declines Affect Stream Ecosystem Properties

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Connelly, S.; Pringle, C. M.; Bixby, R. J.; Whiles, M. R.; Lips, K. R.; Brenes, R.; Colon-Gaud, J. C.; Kilham, S.; Hunte-Brown, M.

2005-05-01

Global declines of amphibians are well documented, yet effects of these dramatic losses on ecosystem structure and function are poorly understood. As part of a larger collaborative project, we compared two upland Panamanian streams. Both streams are biologically and geologically similar; however, one stream (Fortuna) has recently experienced almost complete extirpation of stream-dwelling frogs, while the other (Cope) still has intact populations. We experimentally excluded tadpoles from localized areas in each stream. We then compared chlorophyll a, algal community composition, ash-free dry mass (AFDM), inorganic matter, and insect assemblages in control and exclusion areas. Additionally, we sampled the natural substrate of both streams monthly for chlorophyll a, algal community composition, AFDM, and inorganic matter. At Cope, chlorophyll a, AFDM, and inorganic matter were greater in areas where tadpoles were excluded than in their presence. Numbers of dominant algal species (e.g., Nupela praecipua and Eunotia siolii) were greater in the exclusion versus control treatments. Monthly sampling of natural substrate indicated higher chlorophyll a and AFDM at Cope compared to Fortuna. Our data suggest that stream-dwelling anuran larvae have significant impacts on algal communities. These results also have implications for predicting the relevance of short-term experimental manipulations to long-term, whole-stream processes.

Stream invertebrate productivity linked to forest subsidies: 37 stream-years of reference and experimental data.

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Wallace, J Bruce; Eggert, Susan L; Meyer, Judy L; Webster, Jackson R

2015-05-01

Riparian habitats provide detrital subsidies of varying quantities and qualities to recipient ecosystems. We used long-term data from three reference streams (covering 24 stream-years) and 13-year whole-stream organic matter manipulations to investigate the influence of terrestrial detrital quantity and quality on benthic invertebrate community structure, abundance, biomass, and secondary production in rockface (RF) and mixed substrates (MS) of forested headwater streams. Using a mesh canopy covering the entire treatment stream, we examined effects of litter ex'clusion, small- and large-wood removal, and addition of artificial wood (PVC) and leaves of varying quality on organic matter standing crops and invertebrate community structure and function. We assessed differences in functional feeding group distribution between substrate types as influenced by organic matter manipulations and long-term patterns of predator and prey production in manipulated vs. reference years. Particulate organic matter standing crops in MS of the treatment stream declined drastically with each successive year of litter exclusion, approaching zero after three years. Monthly invertebrate biomass and annual secondary production was positively related to benthic organic matter in the MS habitats. Rockface habitats exhibited fewer changes than MS habitats across all organic matter manipulations. With leaf addition, the patterns of functional group distribution among MS and RF habitats returned to patterns seen in reference streams. Secondary production per unit organic matter standing crop was greatest for the leaf addition period, followed by the reference streams, and significantly less for the litter exclusion and wood removal periods. These data indicate that the limited organic matter remaining in the stream following litter exclusion and wood removal was more refractory than that in the reference streams, whereas the added leaf material was more labile and readily converted into

Assessing Ecosystem Integrity And Macroinvertebrates Community Structure Towards Conservation Of Small Streams In Tanzania

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Fredrick Ojija

2017-02-01

Full Text Available This study attempts to use biological indices such as Biological Monitoring Working Party BMWP Average Score Per Taxa ASPT and Hilsenhoff Family Biotic Index FBI in order to determine the ecosystem health and water quality of Nzovwe stream in Mbeya Tanzania. Macroinvertebrates were sampled from Nzovwe stream using semi-quantitative techniques from March to June 2016. About 500 meters of Nzovwe stream was divided into 5 sampling sites each site was 100 meters apart. The macroinvertebrates were collected from all the possible microhabitats of each site using a 250m mesh size D- frame kick net. Macroinvertebrate specimens were preserved in the 70 ethyl alcohol in the polyethylene bottles. The samples were identified to the family level using standard identification keys. The BMWP score and ASPT score indicated good and moderate stream water quality respectively. The FBI showed the stream had possibility of some organic pollution. The Shannon-Wiener diversity index shows the sampling sites were moderately polluted or possibly impaired. Macroinvertebrates in pollution class II were abundant suggesting moderate pollution. Moreover the Midge Insects Diptera and Snail indicated the stream water quality or ecosystem health is between unimpaired and possibly impaired. Based on these results the study concludes that the stream ecosystem is moderately polluted and therefore the study recommends a regular stream monitoring.

Determinants of fish assemblage structure in Northwestern Great Plains streams

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Mullen, J.A.; Bramblett, R.G.; Guy, C.S.; Zale, A.V.; Roberts, D.W.

2011-01-01

Prairie streams are known for their harsh and stochastic physical conditions, and the fish assemblages therein have been shown to be temporally variable. We assessed the spatial and temporal variation in fish assemblage structure in five intermittent, adventitious northwestern Great Plains streams representing a gradient of watershed areas. Fish assemblages and abiotic conditions varied more spatially than temporally. The most important variables explaining fish assemblage structure were longitudinal position and the proportion of fine substrates. The proportion of fine substrates increased proceeding upstream, approaching 100% in all five streams, and species richness declined upstream with increasing fine substrates. High levels of fine substrate in the upper reaches appeared to limit the distribution of obligate lithophilic fish species to reaches further downstream. Species richness and substrates were similar among all five streams at the lowermost and uppermost sites. However, in the middle reaches, species richness increased, the amount of fine substrate decreased, and connectivity increased as watershed area increased. Season and some dimensions of habitat (including thalweg depth, absolute distance to the main-stem river, and watershed size) were not essential in explaining the variation in fish assemblages. Fish species richness varied more temporally than overall fish assemblage structure did because common species were consistently abundant across seasons, whereas rare species were sometimes absent or perhaps not detected by sampling. The similarity in our results among five streams varying in watershed size and those from other studies supports the generalization that spatial variation exceeds temporal variation in the fish assemblages of prairie and warmwater streams. Furthermore, given longitudinal position, substrate, and stream size, general predictions regarding fish assemblage structure and function in prairie streams are possible. ?? American

Altitudinal patterns of diversity and functional traits of metabolically active microorganisms in stream biofilms

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Wilhelm, Linda; Besemer, Katharina; Fragner, Lena; Peter, Hannes; Weckwerth, Wolfram; Battin, Tom J

2015-01-01

Resources structure ecological communities and potentially link biodiversity to energy flow. It is commonly believed that functional traits (generalists versus specialists) involved in the exploitation of resources depend on resource availability and environmental fluctuations. The longitudinal nature of stream ecosystems provides changing resources to stream biota with yet unknown effects on microbial functional traits and community structure. We investigated the impact of autochthonous (algal extract) and allochthonous (spruce extract) resources, as they change along alpine streams from above to below the treeline, on microbial diversity, community composition and functions of benthic biofilms. Combining bromodeoxyuridine labelling and 454 pyrosequencing, we showed that diversity was lower upstream than downstream of the treeline and that community composition changed along the altitudinal gradient. We also found that, especially for allochthonous resources, specialisation by biofilm bacteria increased along that same gradient. Our results suggest that in streams below the treeline biofilm diversity, specialisation and functioning are associated with increasing niche differentiation as potentially modulated by divers allochthonous and autochthonous constituents contributing to resources. These findings expand our current understanding on biofilm structure and function in alpine streams. PMID:25978543

Aquatic insect community structure under the influence of small dams in a stream of the Mogi-Guaçu river basin, state of São Paulo.

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Saulino, H H L; Corbi, J J; Trivinho-Strixino, S

2014-02-01

The fragmentation of lotic systems caused by construction of dams has modified many aquatic communities. The objective of this study was to analyse changes in the aquatic insect community structure by discontinuity of habitat created by dams along the Ribeirão das Anhumas, a sub-basin of the Mogi-Guaçu River (state of São Paulo, Brazil). Entomofauna collection was carried out in 10 segments upstream and downstream of five dams along the longitudinal profile of the stream, with a quick sampling method using a D net (mesh 250 mm) with 2 minutes of sampling effort. The insects were sorted and identified to the lowest possible taxonomic level and analysed by the Shannon diversity index, β diversity, richness estimated by rarefaction curves and relative participation of functional feeding groups. The results showed a slight reduction in diversity in the downstream segments, as well as along the longitudinal profile of the stream. However, there were no significant differences in abundance and richness between the upstream and downstream segments, indicating that the dams did not influence these variables. Differences were observed in the functional feeding groups along the longitudinal profile. Predator and gatherer insects were dominant in all segments analysed. The feeding group of shredders was more abundant in the segment DSIII with the participation of Marilia Müller (Odontoceridae - Trichoptera), although we observed a decrease of shredders and scrapers with the decrease of the canopy cover reducing values of β diversity in the continuum of Ribeirão das Anhumas. This result demonstrated the importance of the conservation of the riparian vegetation in order to maintain the integrity of the stream.

Cryptic biodiversity in streams - a comparison of macroinvertebrate communities based on morphological and DNA barcode identifications

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Aquatic ecologists and entomologists have long known that species-level identifications were difficult, if not impossible, for many larval macroinvertebrates collected in streams. This study describes macroinvertebrate (primarily insect) communities from five coastal streams dist...

Combined effects of local habitat, anthropogenic stress, and dispersal on stream ecosystems: a mesocosm experiment.

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Turunen, Jarno; Louhi, Pauliina; Mykrä, Heikki; Aroviita, Jukka; Putkonen, Emmi; Huusko, Ari; Muotka, Timo

2018-06-06

The effects of anthropogenic stressors on community structure and ecosystem functioning can be strongly influenced by local habitat structure and dispersal from source communities. Catchment land uses increase the input of fine sediments into stream channels, clogging the interstitial spaces of benthic habitats. Aquatic macrophytes enhance habitat heterogeneity and mediate important ecosystem functions, being thus a key component of habitat structure in many streams. Therefore, the recovery of macrophytes following in-stream habitat modification may be prerequisite for successful stream restoration. Restoration success is also affected by dispersal of organisms from the source community, with potentially strongest responses in relatively isolated headwater sites that receive limited amount of dispersing individuals. We used a factorial design in a set of stream mesocosms to study the independent and combined effects of an anthropogenic stressor (sand sedimentation), local habitat (macrophytes, i.e. moss transplants) and enhanced dispersal (two levels: high vs. low) on organic matter retention, algal accrual rate, leaf decomposition and macroinvertebrate community structure. Overall, all responses were simple additive effects with no interactions between treatments. Sand reduced algal accumulation, total invertebrate density and density of a few individual taxa. Mosses reduced algal accrual rate and algae-grazing invertebrates, but enhanced organic matter retention and detritus- and filter-feeders. Mosses also reduced macroinvertebrate diversity by increasing the dominance by a few taxa. Mosses also reduced leaf-mass loss, possibly because the organic matter retained by mosses provided an additional food source for leaf-shredding invertebrates and thus reduced shredder aggregation into leaf packs. The effect of mosses on macroinvertebrate communities and ecosystem functioning was distinct irrespective of the level of dispersal, suggesting strong environmental

A trait-based framework for stream algal communities.

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Lange, Katharina; Townsend, Colin Richard; Matthaei, Christoph David

2016-01-01

The use of trait-based approaches to detect effects of land use and climate change on terrestrial plant and aquatic phytoplankton communities is increasing, but such a framework is still needed for benthic stream algae. Here we present a conceptual framework of morphological, physiological, behavioural and life-history traits relating to resource acquisition and resistance to disturbance. We tested this approach by assessing the relationships between multiple anthropogenic stressors and algal traits at 43 stream sites. Our "natural experiment" was conducted along gradients of agricultural land-use intensity (0-95% of the catchment in high-producing pasture) and hydrological alteration (0-92% streamflow reduction resulting from water abstraction for irrigation) as well as related physicochemical variables (total nitrogen concentration and deposited fine sediment). Strategic choice of study sites meant that agricultural intensity and hydrological alteration were uncorrelated. We studied the relationships of seven traits (with 23 trait categories) to our environmental predictor variables using general linear models and an information-theoretic model-selection approach. Life form, nitrogen fixation and spore formation were key traits that showed the strongest relationships with environmental stressors. Overall, FI (farming intensity) exerted stronger effects on algal communities than hydrological alteration. The large-bodied, non-attached, filamentous algae that dominated under high farming intensities have limited dispersal abilities but may cope with unfavourable conditions through the formation of spores. Antagonistic interactions between FI and flow reduction were observed for some trait variables, whereas no interactions occurred for nitrogen concentration and fine sediment. Our conceptual framework was well supported by tests of ten specific hypotheses predicting effects of resource supply and disturbance on algal traits. Our study also shows that investigating a

Ecological Realism of U.S. EPA Experimental Stream Facility Studies

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The USEPA’s Experimental Stream Facility (ESF) conducts meso-scale ecotoxicology studies that account for both structural and functional responses of whole stream communities to contaminants or other stressors. The 16 mesocosms of ESF are indoors and consist of a tiled run sectio...

Effects of watershed and in-stream liming on macroinvertebrate communities in acidified tributaries to an Adirondack lake

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George, Scott D.; Baldigo, Barry P.; Lawrence, Gregory B.; Fuller, Randall L.

2018-01-01

Liming techniques are being explored as a means to accelerate the recovery of aquatic biota from decades of acid deposition in many regions. The preservation or restoration of native sportfish populations has typically been the impetus for liming programs, and as such, less attention has been given to its effects on other biological assemblages such as macroinvertebrates. Furthermore, the differing effects of various lime application strategies such as in-stream and watershed applications are not well understood. In 2012, a program was initiated using in-stream and aerial (whole-watershed) liming to improve water quality and Brook Trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) recruitment in three acidified tributaries of a high-elevation Adirondack lake in New York State. Concurrently, macroinvertebrates were sampled annually between 2013 and 2016 at 3 treated sites and 3 untreated reference sites to assess the effects of each liming technique on this community. Despite improvements in water chemistry in all three limed streams, our results generally suggest that neither liming technique succeeded in improving the condition of macroinvertebrate communities. The watershed application caused an immediate and unsustained decrease in the density of macroinvertebrates and increase in the proportion of sensitive taxa. These changes were driven primarily by a one-year 71 percent reduction of the acid-tolerant Leuctra stoneflies and likely represent an initial chemistry shock from the lime application rather than a recovery response. The in-stream applications appeared to reduce the density of macroinvertebrates, particularly in one stream where undissolved lime covered the natural substrate. The close proximity of our study sites to the in-stream application points (50 and 1230 m) may partly explain these negative effects. Our results are consistent with prior studies of in-stream liming which indicate that this technique often fails to restore macroinvertebrate communities to a pre

Rapid Bioassessment Methods for Assessing Stream Macroinvertebrate Community on the Savannah River Site

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Specht, W.L.

1999-01-01

Macroinvertebrate sampling was performed at 16 locations in the Savannah River Site (SRS) streams using Hester-Dendy multiplate samplers and EPA Rapid Bioassessment Protocols (RBP). Some of the sampling locations were unimpacted, while other locations had been subject to various forms of perturbation by SRS activities. In general, the data from the Hester-Dendy multiplate samplers were more sensitive at detecting impacts than were the RBP data. We developed a Biotic Index for the Hester-Dendy data which incorporated eight community structure, function, and balance parameters. when tested using a data set that was unrelated to the data set that was used in developing the Biotic Index, the index was very successful at detecting impact

Rapid Bioassessment Methods for Assessing Stream Macroinvertebrate Community on the Savannah River Site

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Specht, W.L.

1999-11-22

Macroinvertebrate sampling was performed at 16 locations in the Savannah River Site (SRS) streams using Hester-Dendy multiplate samplers and EPA Rapid Bioassessment Protocols (RBP). Some of the sampling locations were unimpacted, while other locations had been subject to various forms of perturbation by SRS activities. In general, the data from the Hester-Dendy multiplate samplers were more sensitive at detecting impacts than were the RBP data. We developed a Biotic Index for the Hester-Dendy data which incorporated eight community structure, function, and balance parameters. when tested using a data set that was unrelated to the data set that was used in developing the Biotic Index, the index was very successful at detecting impact.

Stream-crossing structure for deer fence

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Robert M. Blair; James A. Hays; Louis Brunett

1963-01-01

Stream crossings are the most vulnerable points in a deer-proof fence. When an inadequately constructed crossing washes out, enclosed deer may escape and unwanted animals enter. Structures of the type described here have withstood 2 years of frequent, severe flooding in the pine-hardwood hills of central Louisiana.

Influence of eastern hemlock (Tsuga canadensis L.) on fish community structure and function in headwater streams of the Delaware River basin

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Ross, R.M.; Bennett, R.M.; Snyder, C.D.; Young, J.A.; Smith, D.R.; Lemarie, D.P.

2003-01-01

Hemlock (Tsuga canadensis) forest of the eastern U.S. are in decline due to invasion by the exotic insect hemlock woolly adelgid (Adelges tsugae). Aquatic biodiversity in hemlock ecosystems has not been documented; thus the true impact of the infestation cannot be assessed. We compared ichthyofaunal assemblages and trophic structure of streams draining hemlock and hardwood forests by sampling first- and second-order streams draining 14 paired hemlock and hardwood stands during base flows in July 1997 at the Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area of Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Over 1400 fish of 15 species and 7 families were collected, but hemlock and hardwood streams individually harbored only one to four species. Brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) and brown trout (Salmo trutta) were two to three times as prevalent in hemlock than hardwood streams. Insectivorous fishes occurred in significantly higher proportion in streams of hardwood (0.90) than hemlock (0.46) stands, while piscivores occurred more often in hemlock (0.85) than hardwood (0.54) stands. Functional (trophic) diversity of fishes in hemlock and second-order streams was numerically greater than that of hardwood and first-order streams. Species composition also differed by stream order and terrain type. Biodiversity is threatened at several levels within hemlock ecosystems at risk to the hemlock woolly adelgid in eastern U.S. forests.

Stream macroinvertebrate communities across a gradient of natural gas development in the Fayetteville Shale.

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Johnson, Erica; Austin, Bradley J; Inlander, Ethan; Gallipeau, Cory; Evans-White, Michelle A; Entrekin, Sally

2015-10-15

Oil and gas extraction in shale plays expanded rapidly in the U.S. and is projected to expand globally in the coming decades. Arkansas has doubled the number of gas wells in the state since 2005 mostly by extracting gas from the Fayetteville Shale with activity concentrated in mixed pasture-deciduous forests. Concentrated well pads in close proximity to streams could have adverse effects on stream water quality and biota if sedimentation associated with developing infrastructure or contamination from fracturing fluid and waste occurs. Cumulative effects of gas activity and local habitat conditions on macroinvertebrate communities were investigated across a gradient of gas well activity (0.2-3.6 wells per km(2)) in ten stream catchments in spring 2010 and 2011. In 2010, macroinvertebrate density was positively related to well pad inverse flowpath distance from streams (r=0.84, pgas activity close to streams. However, stream water turbidity (r=0.69, p=0.02) and chlorophyll a (r=0.89, pgas well activities. In 2011, a year with record spring flooding, a different pattern emerged where mayfly density (p=0.74, p=0.01) and mayfly, stonefly, and caddisfly richness (r=0.78, p=0.008) increased in streams with greater well density and less silt cover. Hydrology and well pad placement in a catchment may interact to result in different relationships between biota and catchment activity between the two sample years. Our data show evidence of different macroinvertebrate communities expressed in catchments with different levels of gas activity that reinforce the need for more quantitative analyses of cumulative freshwater-effects from oil and gas development. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Metacommunity theory as a multispecies, multiscale framework for studying the influence of river network structure on riverine communities and ecosystems

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Brown, B.L.; Swan, C.M.; Auerbach, D.A.; Campbell, Grant E.H.; Hitt, N.P.; Maloney, K.O.; Patrick, C.

2011-01-01

Explaining the mechanisms underlying patterns of species diversity and composition in riverine networks is challenging. Historically, community ecologists have conceived of communities as largely isolated entities and have focused on local environmental factors and interspecific interactions as the major forces determining species composition. However, stream ecologists have long embraced a multiscale approach to studying riverine ecosystems and have studied both local factors and larger-scale regional factors, such as dispersal and disturbance. River networks exhibit a dendritic spatial structure that can constrain aquatic organisms when their dispersal is influenced by or confined to the river network. We contend that the principles of metacommunity theory would help stream ecologists to understand how the complex spatial structure of river networks mediates the relative influences of local and regional control on species composition. From a basic ecological perspective, the concept is attractive because new evidence suggests that the importance of regional processes (dispersal) depends on spatial structure of habitat and on connection to the regional species pool. The role of local factors relative to regional factors will vary with spatial position in a river network. From an applied perspective, the long-standing view in ecology that local community composition is an indicator of habitat quality may not be uniformly applicable across a river network, but the strength of such bioassessment approaches probably will depend on spatial position in the network. The principles of metacommunity theory are broadly applicable across taxa and systems but seem of particular consequence to stream ecology given the unique spatial structure of riverine systems. By explicitly embracing processes at multiple spatial scales, metacommunity theory provides a foundation on which to build a richer understanding of stream communities.

Effects of logging on macroinvertebrates in streams with and without buffer strips

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Newbold, J D; Erman, D C; Roby, K B

1980-01-01

The impact of logging with and without buffer strip protection on stream macroinvertebrates was examined through comparisons of community structure in commercially logged and control watersheds throughout northern California. A nonparametric test of community dissimilarities within matched blocks of two control and one or two treated stations showed significant (P < 0.05) logging effects on unprotected streams when Euclidean distance and mutual information were used as dissimilarity indices, but not when chord distance was used. Shannon diversity in unprotected streams was lower (P < 0.01) than in control (unlogged) streams; densities of total macroinvertebrate fauna and of Chironomidae, Baetis, and Nemoura were higher in unprotected streams than in controls (P <0.05). Streams with narrow buffer strips (<30 m) showed significant effects by the Euclidean distance test, but diversity varied widely and was not significantly different from that in either unprotected or control streams than in controls (P < 0.05). Macroinvertebrate communities in streams with wide buffers (greater than or equal to 30m) could not be distinguished from those of controls by either Euclidean distance or diversity; however, diversity in wide-buffered streams was significantly greater than in streams without buffer strips, indicating effective protection from logging effects.

Relation between environmental variables and the fish community structure in streams of das Mortes and Xingu river basins – MT, Brazil

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Priscylla Rodrigues Matos

2013-09-01

Full Text Available Environmental variables may determine and structure the composition of fish fauna. Studies comparing differences between physical and chemical variables of water between close river basins are few. This paper aimed to check which limnological variables are related to the distribution of fish species in two river basins. For this, 20 streams were sampled, divided between das Mortes and Xingu river basins. At each point one measured a total of 8 environmental variables. Fishes were collected through trawl. Total richness was 57 species, 29 of them from Xingu river basin, 35 from das Mortes river basin, and 7 species common to both river basins. The analyses showed that the streams in these two basins have distinct limnological and faunal features. The streams in Xingu river basin had lower pH values which may have been influenced by the high rates of organic decomposition. The streams of das Mortes river showed higher values of suspended matter and chlorophyll, probably due to higher degradation of streams and lower vegetation cover levels.

Ecological health in the Nation's streams

Science.gov (United States)

Carlisle, Daren M.; Woodside, Michael D.

2013-01-01

Aquatic biological communities, which are collections of organisms, are a direct measure of stream health because they indicate the ability of a stream to support life. This fact sheet highlights selected findings of a national assessment of stream health by the National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) Program of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS). The assessment was unique in that it integrated the condition of three biological communities—algae, macroinvertebrates, and fish—as well as measures of streamflow modification, pesticides, nutrients, and other factors. At least one biological community was altered at 83 percent of assessed streams, and the occurrence of altered communities was highest in urban streams. Streamflows were modified at 86 percent of assessed streams, and increasing severity of streamflow modification was associated with increased occurrence of altered biological communities. Agricultural and urban land use in watersheds may contribute pesticides and nutrients to stream waters, and increasing concentrations of these chemicals were associated with increased occurrence of altered biological communities.

Amphidromy links a newly documented fish community of continental Australian streams, to oceanic islands of the west Pacific.

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Paul A Thuesen

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Indo-Pacific high island streams experience extreme hydrological variation, and are characterised by freshwater fish species with an amphidromous life history. Amphidromy is a likely adaptation for colonisation of island streams following stochastic events that lead to local extirpation. In the Wet Tropics of north-eastern Australia, steep coastal mountain streams share similar physical characteristics to island systems. These streams are poorly surveyed, but may provide suitable habitat for amphidromous species. However, due to their ephemeral nature, common non-diadromous freshwater species of continental Australia are unlikely to persist. Consequently, we hypothesise that coastal Wet Tropics streams are faunally more similar, to distant Pacific island communities, than to nearby faunas of large continental rivers. METHODS/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: Surveys of coastal Wet Tropics streams recorded 26 species, 10 of which are first records for Australia, with three species undescribed. This fish community is unique in an Australian context in that it contains mostly amphidromous species, including sicydiine gobies of the genera Sicyopterus, Sicyopus, Smilosicyopus and Stiphodon. Species presence/absence data of coastal Wet Tropics streams were compared to both Wet Tropics river networks and Pacific island faunas. ANOSIM indicated the fish fauna of north-eastern Australian coastal streams were more similar to distant Pacific islands (R = 0.76, than to nearby continental rivers (R = 0.98. MAIN CONCLUSIONS/SIGNIFICANCE: Coastal Wet Tropics streams are faunally more similar to distant Pacific islands (79% of species shared, than to nearby continental fauna due to two factors. First, coastal Wet Tropics streams lack many non-diadromous freshwater fish which are common in nearby large rivers. Second, many amphidromous species found in coastal Wet Tropics streams and Indo-Pacific islands remain absent from large rivers of the Wet Tropics

Re-meandering of lowland streams: will disobeying the laws of geomorphology have ecological consequences?

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Pedersen, Morten Lauge; Kristensen, Klaus Kevin; Friberg, Nikolai

2014-01-01

We evaluated the restoration of physical habitats and its influence on macroinvertebrate community structure in 18 Danish lowland streams comprising six restored streams, six streams with little physical alteration and six channelized streams. We hypothesized that physical habitats and macroinvertebrate communities of restored streams would resemble those of natural streams, while those of the channelized streams would differ from both restored and near-natural streams. Physical habitats were surveyed for substrate composition, depth, width and current velocity. Macroinvertebrates were sampled along 100 m reaches in each stream, in edge habitats and in riffle/run habitats located in the center of the stream. Restoration significantly altered the physical conditions and affected the interactions between stream habitat heterogeneity and macroinvertebrate diversity. The substrate in the restored streams was dominated by pebble, whereas the substrate in the channelized and natural streams was dominated by sand. In the natural streams a relationship was identified between slope and pebble/gravel coverage, indicating a coupling of energy and substrate characteristics. Such a relationship did not occur in the channelized or in the restored streams where placement of large amounts of pebble/gravel distorted the natural relationship. The analyses revealed, a direct link between substrate heterogeneity and macroinvertebrate diversity in the natural streams. A similar relationship was not found in either the channelized or the restored streams, which we attribute to a de-coupling of the natural relationship between benthic community diversity and physical habitat diversity. Our study results suggest that restoration schemes should aim at restoring the natural physical structural complexity in the streams and at the same time enhance the possibility of re-generating the natural geomorphological processes sustaining the habitats in streams and rivers. Documentation of

Macroinvertebrate Community Response to the Elimination of Concentrated Feedlot Runoff to a Headwater Stream

Science.gov (United States)

Snitgen, J. L.; Moren, M. M.

2005-05-01

During rainfall and snow melt events, a first order, cold-water stream was receiving varying amounts of liquefied manure from a concentrated feed lot. Stream restoration efforts included the implementation of best management practices to prevent further discharge of the water/manure mixture to the stream. Physical, chemical and biological data were collected pre-construction and two years post-construction of the containment system at a fixed location downstream of the feedlot. Hilsenhoff Biotic Index scores improved significantly, from 6.79 or "Fairly Poor" before the installation of the manure containment system, to 5.28 or "Good" after the installation of the manure containment system. Taxa richness improved from 25 to 34 and the EPT score improved from 0 to 4. Key words: macroinvertebrate, community response, manure, feedlot runoff, stream restoration

Nutrient uptake and community metabolism in streams draining harvested and old-growth watersheds: A preliminary assessment

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Brian H. Hill; Frank H. McCormick

2004-01-01

The effect of timber harvesting on streams is assessed using two measures of ecosystem function: nutrient spiraling and community metabolism. This research is being conducted in streams of the southern Appalachian Mountains of North Carolina, the Ouachita Mountains of Arkansas, the Cascade Mountains of Oregon, and the redwood forests of northern California, in order to...

COMMUNITY SCALE STREAM TAXA SENSITIVITIES TO DIFFERENT COMPOSITIONS OF EXCESS TOTAL DISSOLVED SOLIDS

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Model stream chronic dosing studies (42 d) were conducted with three total dissolved solids (TDS) recipes. The recipes differed in composition of major ions. Community scale emergence was compared with single-species responses conducted simultaneously using the whole effluent tox...

A novel approach to analysing the regimes of temporary streams in relation to their controls on the composition and structure of aquatic biota

Science.gov (United States)

Gallart, F.; Prat, N.; García-Roger, E. M.; Latron, J.; Rieradevall, M.; Llorens, P.; Barberá, G. G.; Brito, D.; De Girolamo, A. M.; Lo Porto, A.; Buffagni, A.; Erba, S.; Neves, R.; Nikolaidis, N. P.; Perrin, J. L.; Querner, E. P.; Quiñonero, J. M.; Tournoud, M. G.; Tzoraki, O.; Skoulikidis, N.; Gómez, R.; Sánchez-Montoya, M. M.; Froebrich, J.

2012-09-01

Temporary streams are those water courses that undergo the recurrent cessation of flow or the complete drying of their channel. The structure and composition of biological communities in temporary stream reaches are strongly dependent on the temporal changes of the aquatic habitats determined by the hydrological conditions. Therefore, the structural and functional characteristics of aquatic fauna to assess the ecological quality of a temporary stream reach cannot be used without taking into account the controls imposed by the hydrological regime. This paper develops methods for analysing temporary streams' aquatic regimes, based on the definition of six aquatic states that summarize the transient sets of mesohabitats occurring on a given reach at a particular moment, depending on the hydrological conditions: Hyperrheic, Eurheic, Oligorheic, Arheic, Hyporheic and Edaphic. When the hydrological conditions lead to a change in the aquatic state, the structure and composition of the aquatic community changes according to the new set of available habitats. We used the water discharge records from gauging stations or simulations with rainfall-runoff models to infer the temporal patterns of occurrence of these states in the Aquatic States Frequency Graph we developed. The visual analysis of this graph is complemented by the development of two metrics which describe the permanence of flow and the seasonal predictability of zero flow periods. Finally, a classification of temporary streams in four aquatic regimes in terms of their influence over the development of aquatic life is updated from the existing classifications, with stream aquatic regimes defined as Permanent, Temporary-pools, Temporary-dry and Episodic. While aquatic regimes describe the long-term overall variability of the hydrological conditions of the river section and have been used for many years by hydrologists and ecologists, aquatic states describe the availability of mesohabitats in given periods that

Urban-Related Environmental Variables and Their Relation with Patterns in Biological Community Structure in the Fountain Creek Basin, Colorado, 2003-2005

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Zuellig, Robert E.; Bruce, James F.; Evans, Erin E.; Stogner, Sr., Robert W.

2007-01-01

In 2003, the U.S. Geological Survey, in cooperation with Colorado Springs City Engineering, began a study to evaluate the influence of urbanization on stream ecosystems. To accomplish this task, invertebrate, fish, stream discharge, habitat, water-chemistry, and land-use data were collected from 13 sites in the Fountain Creek basin from 2003 to 2005. The Hydrologic Index Tool was used to calculate hydrologic indices known to be related to urbanization. Response of stream hydrology to urbanization was evident among hydrologic variables that described stormflow. These indices included one measurement of high-flow magnitude, two measurements of high-flow frequency, and one measurement of stream flashiness. Habitat and selected nonstormflow water chemistry were characterized at each site. Land-use data were converted to estimates of impervious surface cover and used as the measure of urbanization annually. Correlation analysis (Spearman?s rho) was used to identify a suite of nonredundant streamflow, habitat, and water-chemistry variables that were strongly associated (rho > 0.6) with impervious surface cover but not strongly related to elevation (rho analysis (BIO-ENV, PRIMER ver 6.1, Plymouth, UK) was used to create subsets of eight urban-related environmental variables that described patterns in biological community structure. The strongest and most parsimonious subset of variables describing patterns in invertebrate community structure included high flood pulse count, lower bank capacity, and nutrients. Several other combinations of environmental variables resulted in competing subsets, but these subsets always included the three variables found in the most parsimonious list. This study found that patterns in invertebrate community structure from 2003 to 2005 in the Fountain Creek basin were associated with a variety of environmental characteristics influenced by urbanization. These patterns were explained by a combination of hydrologic, habitat, and water

Environmental quality of the Fosso della Casaccia. stream (Rome, Italy). Evaluation of the ecological impact of wastewaters from the ENEA Research Centre Casaccia

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Formichetti, P.; Mancini, L.; Morgana, J.G.; Izzo, G.

2008-01-01

The study concerned the evaluation of ENEA Research Centre wastewaters effect on the nearby stream Fosso della Casaccia. These pollutants consist of black waters and low radioactivity substances. The effects on stream's ecosystem were evaluated using macro invertebrate community structure, diatom community structure, chemical and microbiological analysis of sediments and water, stream.s ecological functionality level, toxicological indicators. The results showed a general strong pollution degree of the ecosystem that could also reach a higher level due to the low flow of the stream (and consequent low self-depuration effect of the stream itself). Maintenance interventions, if not adequately planned, can also negatively influence the stream ecosystem [it

Stream habitat structure influences macroinvertebrate response to pesticides

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rasmussen, Jes Jessen; Wiberg-Larsen, Peter; Baattrup-Pedersen, Annette; Friberg, Nikolai; Kronvang, Brian

2012-01-01

Agricultural pesticides continue to impair surface water ecosystems, although there are few assessments of interactions with other modifications such as fine sediment and physical alteration for flood drainage. We, therefore, surveyed pesticide contamination and macroinvertebrates in 14 streams along a gradient of expected pesticide exposure using a paired-reach approach to differentiate effects between physically modified and less modified sites. Apparent pesticides effects on the relative abundance of SPEcies At Risk (SPEAR) were increased at sites with degraded habitats primarily due to the absence of species with specific preferences for hard substrates. Our findings highlight the importance of physical habitat degradation in the assessment and mitigation of pesticide risk in agricultural streams. - Highlights: ► %SPEAR abundance significantly decreased with increasing TU (D. magna). ► %SPEAR abundance was significantly lower when soft sediment was dominant. ► Species specific habitat preferences influenced the total effect of pesticides. ► This study has strong implications for future stream management and risk assessment. - Ecological impacts of pesticides on stream macroinvertebrates are influenced by the heterogeneity and physical structure of micro-habitats.

Investigating Research Streams of Conjoint Analysis: A Bibliometric Study

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Thorsten Teichert

2010-05-01

Full Text Available Conjoint analysis (CA is one of the most important methods for preference elicitation. In this paper we investigate the intellectual structure within the conjoint analytical research community. Analyses based on single papers provide a method-based overview of streams of conjoint research. By using novel bibliometric techniques in this field we complement findings of existing reviews. We use co-citation and factor analysis of the most cited articles in SSCI to identify the most important articles and research streams. Seven research streams are revealed which are visualized by means of multidimensional scaling. Tables and graphics reveal the disciplinary affiliations of contributors to CA, the special structure within the classes as well as links between them.

Responses of primary production, leaf litter decomposition and associated communities to stream eutrophication

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dunck, Bárbara; Lima-Fernandes, Eva; Cássio, Fernanda; Cunha, Ana; Rodrigues, Liliana; Pascoal, Cláudia

2015-01-01

We assessed the eutrophication effects on leaf litter decomposition and primary production, and on periphytic algae, fungi and invertebrates. According to the subsidy-stress model, we expected that when algae and decomposers were nutrient limited, their activity and diversity would increase at moderate levels of nutrient enrichment, but decrease at high levels of nutrients, because eutrophication would lead to the presence of other stressors and overwhelm the subsidy effect. Chestnut leaves (Castanea sativa Mill) were enclosed in mesh bags and immersed in five streams of the Ave River basin (northwest Portugal) to assess leaf decomposition and colonization by invertebrates and fungi. In parallel, polyethylene slides were attached to the mesh bags to allow colonization by algae and to assess primary production. Communities of periphytic algae and decomposers discriminated the streams according to the trophic state. Primary production decomposition and biodiversity were lower in streams at both ends of the trophic gradient. - Highlights: • Algae and decomposers discriminated the streams according to the eutrophication level. • Primary production and litter decomposition are stimulated by moderate eutrophication. • Biodiversity and process rates were reduced in highly eutrophic streams. • Subsidy-stress model explained biodiversity and process rates under eutrophication. - Rates of leaf litter decomposition, primary production and richness of periphytic algae, fungi and invertebrates were lower in streams at both ends of the trophic gradient

Persistence and stability of fish community structure in a southwest New York stream

Science.gov (United States)

Hansen, Michael J.; Ramm, Carl W.

1994-01-01

We used multivariate and nonparametric statistics to examine persistence and stability of fish species in the upper 43 km of French Creek, New York. Species occurred in upstream and downstream groups in 1937 that persisted in 1979. However, the downstream group expanded its range in the drainage from 1937 to 1979 at the expense of the upstream group. A dam prevented further upstream expansion of the downstream group. Ranks of species abundances were stable, as tests of group similarity were significant. The abundances and distributions of benthic species were stable across seven sampling dates in 1980 despite several floods and repeated removals by sampling that could have altered community structure. We conclude that the fish community in French Creek persisted and was stable over the 42-yr interval, 1937-1979, and that abundances of benthic species were stable in summer 1980.

Stressor-Response Models Relating Nutrient Enrichment to Algal Communities in Pacific Northwest Streams and Rivers

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Sobota, D. J.; Hubler, S.; Paul, M. J.; Labiosa, R.

2015-12-01

Excessive algal growth in streams and rivers from nutrient enrichment can cause costly human health and environmental problems. As part of the US Environmental Protection Agency's Nutrient Scientific Technical Exchange Partnership and Support (N-STEPS) program, we have been developing stressor-response (S-R) models relating nutrients to attached algal (periphyton) communities to help prioritize monitoring for water quality impairments in Oregon (Pacific Northwest, USA) streams and rivers. Existing data from the state and neighboring states were compiled and standardized from the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, US Environmental Protection Agency, and the US Geological Survey. To develop S-R models, algal community and biomass metrics were compared with nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) concentration data, including total, dissolved, and inorganic forms of these nutrients. In total, 928 paired algal-nutrient samples were compiled from the 8 Level-III Ecoregions occurring in Oregon. Relationships between algal biomass metrics and nutrient concentrations were weak, with only ash-free dry mass and standing stock of chlorophyll a showing slight positive relationships across gradients of total N and soluble reactive P concentrations, respectively. In contrast, metrics describing algal community composition, including percent diatoms and abundance of nutrient-sensitive species, showed very strong nonlinear relationships with total N or P concentrations. This suggests that data describing algal community composition can help identify specific nutrient stressors across environmentally-diverse streams and rivers in the Pacific Northwest. Future analyses will examine if nutrient-algal S-R models vary across different hydrological, physiographical, and ecological settings in the region.

Effects of agricultural and urban impacts on macroinvertebrates assemblages in streams (Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

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Luiz Ubiratan Hepp

2010-02-01

Full Text Available This study evaluates the effects of agricultural and urban activities on the structure and composition of benthic communities of streams in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Benthic macroinvertebrates were collected in streams influenced by urbanization and agriculture and in streams with no anthropogenic disturbances (reference streams. Organism density was superior in urban streams when compared with streams in the other two areas. The taxonomic richness and Shannon diversity index were higher in reference streams. The benthic fauna composition was significantly different among land uses. The classification and ordination analyses corroborated the results of variance analyses demonstrating the formation of clusters corresponding to streams with similar land use. Seasonality was also found to influence the benthic community, though in a lesser degree than land use.

Relationships among exceedences of metals criteria, the results of ambient bioassays, and community metrics in mining-impacted streams.

Science.gov (United States)

Griffith, Michael B; Lazorchak, James M; Herlihy, Alan T

2004-07-01

If bioassessments are to help diagnose the specific environmental stressors affecting streams, a better understanding is needed of the relationships between community metrics and ambient criteria or ambient bioassays. However, this relationship is not simple, because metrics assess responses at the community level of biological organization, while ambient criteria and ambient bioassays assess or are based on responses at the individual level. For metals, the relationship is further complicated by the influence of other chemical variables, such as hardness, on their bioavailability and toxicity. In 1993 and 1994, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) conducted a Regional Environmental Monitoring and Assessment Program (REMAP) survey on wadeable streams in Colorado's (USA) Southern Rockies Ecoregion. In this ecoregion, mining over the past century has resulted in metals contamination of streams. The surveys collected data on fish and macroinvertebrate assemblages, physical habitat, and sediment and water chemistry and toxicity. These data provide a framework for assessing diagnostic community metrics for specific environmental stressors. We characterized streams as metals-affected based on exceedence of hardness-adjusted criteria for cadmium, copper, lead, and zinc in water; on water toxicity tests (48-h Pimephales promelas and Ceriodaphnia dubia survival); on exceedence of sediment threshold effect levels (TELs); or on sediment toxicity tests (7-d Hyalella azteca survival and growth). Macroinvertebrate and fish metrics were compared among affected and unaffected sites to identify metrics sensitive to metals. Several macroinvertebrate metrics, particularly richness metrics, were less in affected streams, while other metrics were not. This is a function of the sensitivity of the individual metrics to metals effects. Fish metrics were less sensitive to metals because of the low diversity of fish in these streams.

CLUMPY STREAMS FROM CLUMPY HALOS: DETECTING MISSING SATELLITES WITH COLD STELLAR STRUCTURES

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yoon, Joo Heon; Johnston, Kathryn V.; Hogg, David W.

2011-01-01

Dynamically cold stellar streams are ideal probes of the gravitational field of the Milky Way. This paper re-examines the question of how such streams might be used to test for the presence of m issing satellites - the many thousands of dark-matter subhalos with masses 10 5 -10 7 M sun which are seen to orbit within Galactic-scale dark-matter halos in simulations of structure formation in ΛCDM cosmologies. Analytical estimates of the frequency and energy scales of stream encounters indicate that these missing satellites should have a negligible effect on hot debris structures, such as the tails from the Sagittarius dwarf galaxy. However, long cold streams, such as the structure known as GD1 or those from the globular cluster Palomar 5 (Pal 5), are expected to suffer many tens of direct impacts from missing satellites during their lifetimes. Numerical experiments confirm that these impacts create gaps in the debris' orbital energy distribution, which will evolve into degree- and sub-degree-scale fluctuations in surface density over the age of the debris. Maps of Pal 5's own stream contain surface density fluctuations on these scales. The presence and frequency of these inhomogeneities suggests the existence of a population of missing satellites in numbers predicted in the standard ΛCDM cosmologies.

Relations between water physico-chemistry and benthic algal communities in a northern Canadian watershed: defining reference conditions using multiple descriptors of community structure.

Science.gov (United States)

Thomas, Kathryn E; Hall, Roland I; Scrimgeour, Garry J

2015-09-01

Defining reference conditions is central to identifying environmental effects of anthropogenic activities. Using a watershed approach, we quantified reference conditions for benthic algal communities and their relations to physico-chemical conditions in rivers in the South Nahanni River watershed, NWT, Canada, in 2008 and 2009. We also compared the ability of three descriptors that vary in terms of analytical costs to define algal community structure based on relative abundances of (i) all algal taxa, (ii) only diatom taxa, and (iii) photosynthetic pigments. Ordination analyses showed that variance in algal community structure was strongly related to gradients in environmental variables describing water physico-chemistry, stream habitats, and sub-watershed structure. Water physico-chemistry and local watershed-scale descriptors differed significantly between algal communities from sites in the Selwyn Mountain ecoregion compared to sites in the Nahanni-Hyland ecoregions. Distinct differences in algal community types between ecoregions were apparent irrespective of whether algal community structure was defined using all algal taxa, diatom taxa, or photosynthetic pigments. Two algal community types were highly predictable using environmental variables, a core consideration in the development of Reference Condition Approach (RCA) models. These results suggest that assessments of environmental impacts could be completed using RCA models for each ecoregion. We suggest that use of algal pigments, a high through-put analysis, is a promising alternative compared to more labor-intensive and costly taxonomic approaches for defining algal community structure.

Network Structure as a Modulator of Disturbance Impacts in Streams

Science.gov (United States)

Warner, S.; Tullos, D. D.

2017-12-01

This study examines how river network structure affects the propagation of geomorphic and anthropogenic disturbances through streams. Geomorphic processes such as debris flows can alter channel morphology and modify habitat for aquatic biota. Anthropogenic disturbances such as road construction can interact with the geomorphology and hydrology of forested watersheds to change sediment and water inputs to streams. It was hypothesized that the network structure of streams within forested watersheds would influence the location and magnitude of the impacts of debris flows and road construction on sediment size and channel width. Longitudinal surveys were conducted every 50 meters for 11 kilometers of third-to-fifth order streams in the H.J. Andrews Experimental Forest in the Western Cascade Range of Oregon. Particle counts and channel geometry measurements were collected to characterize the geomorphic impacts of road crossings and debris flows as disturbances. Sediment size distributions and width measurements were plotted against the distance of survey locations through the network to identify variations in longitudinal trends of channel characteristics. Thresholds for the background variation in sediment size and channel width, based on the standard deviations of sample points, were developed for sampled stream segments characterized by location as well as geomorphic and land use history. Survey locations were classified as "disturbed" when they deviated beyond the reference thresholds in expected sediment sizes and channel widths, as well as flow-connected proximity to debris flows and road crossings. River network structure was quantified by drainage density and centrality of nodes upstream of survey locations. Drainage density and node centrality were compared between survey locations with similar channel characteristic classifications. Cluster analysis was used to assess the significance of survey location, proximity of survey location to debris flows and road

Shifting stream planform state decreases stream productivity yet increases riparian animal production

Science.gov (United States)

Venarsky, Michael P.; Walters, David M.; Hall, Robert O.; Livers, Bridget; Wohl, Ellen

2018-01-01

In the Colorado Front Range (USA), disturbance history dictates stream planform. Undisturbed, old-growth streams have multiple channels and large amounts of wood and depositional habitat. Disturbed streams (wildfires and logging production, emerging aquatic insect flux, and riparian spider biomass. Organic matter and macroinvertebrate production did not differ among sites per unit area (m−2), but values were 2 ×–21 × higher in undisturbed reaches per unit of stream valley (m−1 valley) because total stream area was higher in undisturbed reaches. Insect emergence was similar among streams at the per unit area and per unit of stream valley. However, rescaling insect emergence to per meter of stream bank showed that the emerging insect biomass reaching the stream bank was lower in undisturbed sites because multi-channel reaches had 3 × more stream bank than single-channel reaches. Riparian spider biomass followed the same pattern as emerging aquatic insects, and we attribute this to bottom-up limitation caused by the multi-channeled undisturbed sites diluting prey quantity (emerging insects) reaching the stream bank (riparian spider habitat). These results show that historic landscape disturbances continue to influence stream and riparian communities in the Colorado Front Range. However, these legacy effects are only weakly influencing habitat-specific function and instead are primarily influencing stream–riparian community productivity by dictating both stream planform (total stream area, total stream bank length) and the proportional distribution of specific habitat types (pools vs riffles).

Effects of grade control structures on fish passage, biological assemblages, and hydraulic environments in western Iowa streams: a multidisciplinary review

Science.gov (United States)

Thomas, J.T.; Culler, M.E.; Dermisis, D.C.; Pierce, Clay; Papanicolaou, A.N.; Stewart, T.W.; Larson, C.J.

2011-01-01

Land use changes and channelization of streams in the deep loess region of western Iowa have led to stream channel incision, altered flow regimes, increased sediment inputs, decreased habitat diversity and reduced lateral connectivity of streams and floodplains. Grade control structures (GCSs) are built in streams to prevent further erosion, protect infrastructure and reduce sediment loads. However, GCS can have a detrimental impact on fisheries and biological communities. We review three complementary biological and hydraulic studies on the effects of GCS in these streams. GCS with steep (≥1:4 rise : run) downstream slopes severely limited fish passage, but GCS with gentle slopes (≤1:15) allowed greater passage. Fish assemblages were dominated by species tolerant of degradation, and Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI) scores were indicative of fair or poor biotic integrity. More than 50% of fish species had truncated distributions. After modification of GCS to reduce slopes and permit increased passage, IBI scores increased and several species were detected further upstream than before modification. Total macroinvertebrate density, biomass and taxonomic diversity and abundance of ecologically sensitive taxa were greater at GCS than in reaches immediately upstream, downstream or ≥1 km from GCS. A hydraulic study confirmed results from fish passage studies; minimum depths and maximum current velocities at GCS with gentle slopes (≤1:15) were more likely to meet minimum criteria for catfish passage than GCS with steeper slopes. Multidisciplinary approaches such as ours will increase understanding of GCS-associated factors influencing fish passage, biological assemblage structure and other ecological relationships in streams.

Leveraging disjoint communities for detecting overlapping community structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chakraborty, Tanmoy

2015-01-01

Network communities represent mesoscopic structure for understanding the organization of real-world networks, where nodes often belong to multiple communities and form overlapping community structure in the network. Due to non-triviality in finding the exact boundary of such overlapping communities, this problem has become challenging, and therefore huge effort has been devoted to detect overlapping communities from the network.In this paper, we present PVOC (Permanence based Vertex-replication algorithm for Overlapping Community detection), a two-stage framework to detect overlapping community structure. We build on a novel observation that non-overlapping community structure detected by a standard disjoint community detection algorithm from a network has high resemblance with its actual overlapping community structure, except the overlapping part. Based on this observation, we posit that there is perhaps no need of building yet another overlapping community finding algorithm; but one can efficiently manipulate the output of any existing disjoint community finding algorithm to obtain the required overlapping structure. We propose a new post-processing technique that by combining with any existing disjoint community detection algorithm, can suitably process each vertex using a new vertex-based metric, called permanence, and thereby finds out overlapping candidates with their community memberships. Experimental results on both synthetic and large real-world networks show that PVOC significantly outperforms six state-of-the-art overlapping community detection algorithms in terms of high similarity of the output with the ground-truth structure. Thus our framework not only finds meaningful overlapping communities from the network, but also allows us to put an end to the constant effort of building yet another overlapping community detection algorithm. (paper)

Successional colonization of temporary streams: An experimental approach using aquatic insects

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Godoy, Bruno Spacek; Queiroz, Luciano Lopes; Lodi, Sara; Nascimento de Jesus, Jhonathan Diego; Oliveira, Leandro Gonçalves

2016-11-01

The metacommunity concept studies the processes that structure communities on local and regional scales. This concept is useful to assess spatial variability. However, temporal patterns (e.g., ecological succession and colonization) are neglected in metacommunity studies, since such patterns require temporally extensive, and hard to execute studies. We used experimental habitats in temporary streams located within the Brazilian Cerrado to evaluate the importance of succession for the aquatic insect metacommunity. Five artificial habitats consisting of wrapped crushed rock were set transversally to the water flow in five streams. The habitats were sampled weekly to assess community composition, and replaced after sampling to identify new potential colonizers. We analyzed the accumulation of new colonizers after each week using a logistic model. We selected pairs of experimental habitats and estimated the Bray-Curtis dissimilarity index to assess the community composition trajectory during the experiment. We used the dissimilarity values in ANOVA tests, identifying the importance of time and space for the community. The number of new taxa stabilized in the third week, and we estimated a weekly increase of 1.61 new taxa in the community after stabilization. The overall pattern was a small change on community composition, but one stream had a higher weekly turnover. Our results showed a relevant influence of time in the initial communities of aquatic insects of temporary streams. However, we must observe the temporal pattern in a spatial context, once different streams have different successional history regarding number of taxa and community turnover. We highlight the importance of aerial dispersal and movement to seek oviposition sites as an important factor in determining colonization patterns.

Structured multi-stream command language

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Glad, A.S.

1982-12-01

A multi-stream command language was implemented to provide the sequential and decision-making operations necessary to run the neutral-beam ion sources connected to the Doublet III tokamak fusion device. A multi-stream command language was implemented in Pascal on a Classic 7870 running under MAX IV. The purpose of this paper is threefold. First, to provide a brief description of the programs comprising the command language including the operating system interaction. Second, to give a description of the language syntax and commands necessary to develop a procedure stream. Third, to provide a description of the normal operating procedures for executing either the sequential or interactive streams

Shifting stream planform state decreases stream productivity yet increases riparian animal production

Science.gov (United States)

Venarsky, Michael P.; Walters, David M.; Hall, Robert O.; Livers, Bridget; Wohl, Ellen

2018-01-01

In the Colorado Front Range (USA), disturbance history dictates stream planform. Undisturbed, old-growth streams have multiple channels and large amounts of wood and depositional habitat. Disturbed streams (wildfires and logging tested how these opposing stream states influenced organic matter, benthic macroinvertebrate secondary production, emerging aquatic insect flux, and riparian spider biomass. Organic matter and macroinvertebrate production did not differ among sites per unit area (m−2), but values were 2 ×–21 × higher in undisturbed reaches per unit of stream valley (m−1 valley) because total stream area was higher in undisturbed reaches. Insect emergence was similar among streams at the per unit area and per unit of stream valley. However, rescaling insect emergence to per meter of stream bank showed that the emerging insect biomass reaching the stream bank was lower in undisturbed sites because multi-channel reaches had 3 × more stream bank than single-channel reaches. Riparian spider biomass followed the same pattern as emerging aquatic insects, and we attribute this to bottom-up limitation caused by the multi-channeled undisturbed sites diluting prey quantity (emerging insects) reaching the stream bank (riparian spider habitat). These results show that historic landscape disturbances continue to influence stream and riparian communities in the Colorado Front Range. However, these legacy effects are only weakly influencing habitat-specific function and instead are primarily influencing stream–riparian community productivity by dictating both stream planform (total stream area, total stream bank length) and the proportional distribution of specific habitat types (pools vs riffles).

Structure and Spatial Distribution of the Chironomidae Community in Mesohabitats in a First Order Stream at the Poço D'Anta Municipal Biological Reserve in Brazil

Science.gov (United States)

Vescovi Rosa, Beatriz Figueiraujo Jabour; de Oliveira, Vívian Campos; Alves, Roberto da Gama

2011-01-01

The Chironomidae occupy different habitats along the lotic system with their distribution determined by different factors such as the substrate characteristics and water speed. The input of vegetable material from the riparian forest allows a higher habitat diversity and food to the benthic fauna. The main aim of this paper is to verify the structure and spatial distribution of the Chironomidae fauna in different mesohabitats in a first order stream located at a Biological Reserve in the southeast of Brazil. In the months of July, August, and September 2007, and in January, February, and March 2008, samples were collected with a hand net (250 µm) in the following mesohabitats: litter from riffles, litter from pools, and sediment from pools. The community structure of each mesohabitat was analyzed through the abundance of organisms, taxa richness, Pielou's evenness, Shannon's diversity, and taxa dominance. Similarity among the mesohabitats was obtained by Cluster analysis, and Chironomidae larvae distribution through the Correspondence analysis. Indicator species analysis was used to identify possible taxa preference for a determined mesohabitat. The analyzed mesohabitats showed high species richness and diversity favored by the large environmental heterogeneity. Some taxa were indicators of the type of mesohabitat. The substrate was the main factor that determined taxa distribution in relation to water flow differences (riffle and pool). Stream characteristics such as low water speed and the presence of natural mechanisms of retention may have provided a higher faunistic similarity between the areas with different flows. The results showed that the physical characteristics of each environment presented a close relationship with the structure and spatial distribution of the Chironomidae fauna in lotic systems. PMID:21529258

Macrophyte Communities of Andean Rivers: Composition and Relation with Environmental Factors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alida Marcela Gómez Rodríguez

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Small streams of tropical Andes have been poorly studied. Therefore, there is little information about the structure, dynamics and function of their macrophyte communities. In this research, aquatic plant communities of 18 Andean streams of La Vieja (Quindío and Otún (Risaralda river basins were studied; those are some of the basins most affected by anthropic activities in the country. Streams were selected according to their association with the main land’s uses of the region in both basins. The aim of the study was to evaluate the effect of land use on the structure of macrophyte communities. Streams running exclusively through each land use were selected. Sampling was done in two different climatic seasons of year 2006. Vegetation found (54 species belonging to 25 families was dominated by species with high capability of adaptation to changing and disturbed environments. Richness and abundance of macrophytes were lower than those reported in other tropical aquatic systems. Variables associated with land use, such as temperature, conductivity and type of substrate of the streams mainly explained the structure of the macrophyte communities: streams running on meat-cattle areas -with higher temperatures, conductivity and dominance of sandy-slimy substrates- had higher macrophyte species richness and abundance than streams of protected-forest areas, with higher coverage by riparian vegetation, lower temperatures and conductivity and rocky substrates.

Common hydraulic fracturing fluid additives alter the structure and function of anaerobic microbial communities

Science.gov (United States)

Mumford, Adam C.; Akob, Denise M.; Klinges, J. Grace; Cozzarelli, Isabelle M.

2018-01-01

The development of unconventional oil and gas (UOG) resources results in the production of large volumes of wastewater containing a complex mixture of hydraulic fracturing chemical additives and components from the formation. The release of these wastewaters into the environment poses potential risks that are poorly understood. Microbial communities in stream sediments form the base of the food chain and may serve as sentinels for changes in stream health. Iron-reducing organisms have been shown to play a role in the biodegradation of a wide range of organic compounds, and so to evaluate their response to UOG wastewater, we enriched anaerobic microbial communities from sediments collected upstream (background) and downstream (impacted) of an UOG wastewater injection disposal facility in the presence of hydraulic fracturing fluid (HFF) additives: guar gum, ethylene glycol, and two biocides, 2,2-dibromo-3-nitrilopropionamide (DBNPA) and bronopol (C3H6BrNO4). Iron reduction was significantly inhibited early in the incubations with the addition of biocides, whereas amendment with guar gum and ethylene glycol stimulated iron reduction relative to levels in the unamended controls. Changes in the microbial community structure were observed across all treatments, indicating the potential for even small amounts of UOG wastewater components to influence natural microbial processes. The microbial community structure differed between enrichments with background and impacted sediments, suggesting that impacted sediments may have been preconditioned by exposure to wastewater. These experiments demonstrated the potential for biocides to significantly decrease iron reduction rates immediately following a spill and demonstrated how microbial communities previously exposed to UOG wastewater may be more resilient to additional spills.

Occurrence of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons below coal-tar-sealed parking lots and effects on stream benthic macroinvertebrate communities

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Scoggins, M.; McClintock, N.L.; Gosselink, L.; Bryer, P. [City Austin, Austin, TX (United States)

2007-12-15

Parking-lot pavement sealants recently have been recognized as a major source of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in urban stream sediments in Austin, Texas. Laboratory and field studies have shown that PAHs in sediments can be toxic to aquatic organisms and can degrade aquatic communities. After identifying increases in concentrations of PAHs in sediments below seal-coated parking lots, we investigated whether the increases had significant effects on stream biota in 5 Austin streams. We sampled sediment chemistry and biological communities above and below the point at which stormwater runoff from the parking lots discharged into the streams, thus providing 5 upstream reference sites and 5 downstream treatment sites. Differences between upstream and downstream concentrations of total PAH ranged from 3.9 to 32 mg/kg. Analysis of the species occurrence data from pool and riffle habitats indicated a significant decrease in community health at the downstream sites, including decreases in richness, intolerant taxa, Diptera taxa, and density. In pool sediments, Chironomidae density was negatively correlated with PAH concentrations, whereas Oligochaeta density responded positively to PAH concentrations. In general, pool taxa responded more strongly than riffle taxa to PAHs, but riffle taxa responded more broadly than pool taxa. Increases in PAH sediment-toxicity units between upstream and downstream sites explained decreases in taxon richness and density in pools between upstream and downstream sites.

Rock stream stability structures in the vicinity of bridges.

Science.gov (United States)

2014-10-01

This report was sponsored by the Utah Department of Transportation (UDOT) to determine if rock stream stability structures could be used as : scour countermeasures and to protect streambanks. Traditional scour countermeasures, such as rock riprap, ar...

Differential geometric structures of stream functions: incompressible two-dimensional flow and curvatures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yamasaki, K; Iwayama, T; Yajima, T

2011-01-01

The Okubo-Weiss field, frequently used for partitioning incompressible two-dimensional (2D) fluids into coherent and incoherent regions, corresponds to the Gaussian curvature of the stream function. Therefore, we consider the differential geometric structures of stream functions and calculate the Gaussian curvatures of some basic flows. We find the following. (I) The vorticity corresponds to the mean curvature of the stream function. Thus, the stream-function surface for an irrotational flow and that for a parallel shear flow correspond to the minimal surface and a developable surface, respectively. (II) The relationship between the coherency and the magnitude of the vorticity is interpreted by the curvatures. (III) Using the Gaussian curvature, stability of single and double point vortex streets is analyzed. The results of this analysis are compared with the well-known linear stability analysis. (IV) Conformal mapping in fluid mechanics is the physical expression of the geometric fact that the sign of the Gaussian curvature does not change in conformal mapping. These findings suggest that the curvatures of stream functions are useful for understanding the geometric structure of an incompressible 2D flow.

Scale-dependent genetic structure of the Idaho giant salamander (Dicamptodon aterrimus) in stream networks

Science.gov (United States)

Lindy B. Mullen; H. Arthur Woods; Michael K. Schwartz; Adam J. Sepulveda; Winsor H. Lowe

2010-01-01

The network architecture of streams and rivers constrains evolutionary, demographic and ecological processes of freshwater organisms. This consistent architecture also makes stream networks useful for testing general models of population genetic structure and the scaling of gene flow. We examined genetic structure and gene flow in the facultatively paedomorphic Idaho...

A mesocosm approach for detecting stream invertebrate community responses to treated wastewater effluent

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Grantham, Theodore E.; Cañedo-Argüelles, Miguel; Perrée, Isabelle; Rieradevall, Maria; Prat, Narcís

2012-01-01

The discharge of wastewater from sewage treatment plants is one of the most common forms of pollution to river ecosystems, yet the effects on aquatic invertebrate assemblages have not been investigated in a controlled experimental setting. Here, we use a mesocosm approach to evaluate community responses to exposure to different concentrations of treated wastewater effluents over a two week period. Multivariate analysis using Principal Response Curves indicated a clear, dose-effect response to the treatments, with significant changes in macroinvertebrate assemblages after one week when exposed to 30% effluent, and after two weeks in the 15% and 30% effluent treatments. Treatments were associated with an increase in nutrient concentrations (ammonium, sulfate, and phosphate) and reduction of dissolved oxygen. These findings indicate that exposure to wastewater effluent cause significant changes in abundance and composition of macroinvertebrate taxa and that effluent concentration as low as 5% can have detectable ecological effects. - Highlights: ► Stream invertebrate communities are altered by exposure to wastewater effluent. ► Principal Response Curves indicate a dose-effect response to effluent treatment. ► Biotic quality indices decline with increasing effluent concentration and exposure time. ► Effluent concentrations as low as 5% have detectable ecological effects. - Exposure to treated effluent in a stream mesocosm caused a dose-dependent response in the aquatic invertebrate community and led to declines in biological quality indices.

Diel changes in stream periphyton extracellular enzyme activity throughout community development on inert and organic substrates

Science.gov (United States)

Rier, S. T.; Francoeur, S. N.; Kuehn, K. A.

2005-05-01

We tested the hypothesis that algal photosynthesis in stream periphyton communities would influence the activities of extracellular enzymes produced by associated heterotrophic bacteria and fungi to acquire organic compounds and inorganic nutrients. We approached this question by looking for diurnal variation in activities of four extracellular enzymes in periphyton communities that were grown on either inert (glass fiber filters) or organic (leaves) substrata that there were incubated in stream-side channels that were either open to full sun or shaded. Substrata were subsampled for β-glucosidase, alkaline phosphotase, leucine-aminopeptidase, and phenol oxidase activities at 3-5 hr. intervals over two consecutive diurnal cycles that were repeated at an early and later stage of periphyton community development. Activities of all enzymes displayed diurnal periodicity but the strength of the diurnal effects depended largely on the substrate type and stage of community development. The most consistent diurnal change was observed with phenol oxidase activity with significantly greater (p<0.05) activities being observed in during the day for both stages of community development and for both substrate types. It is likely that oxygen produced by algal photosynthesis is driving the activity of this oxidative enzyme and that algae might indirectly influence the decomposition of phenolic compounds.

Indication of pesticide effects and recolonization in streams.

Science.gov (United States)

Knillmann, Saskia; Orlinskiy, Polina; Kaske, Oliver; Foit, Kaarina; Liess, Matthias

2018-07-15

The agricultural use of pesticides leads to environmentally relevant pesticide concentrations that cause adverse effects on stream ecosystems. These effects on invertebrate community composition can be identified by the bio-indicator SPEAR pesticides . However, refuge areas have been found to partly confound the indicator. On the basis of three monitoring campaigns of 41 sites in Central Germany, we identified 11 refuge taxa. The refuge taxa, mainly characterized by dispersal-based resilience, were observed only nearby uncontaminated stream sections and independent of the level of pesticide pressure. Through incorporation of this information into the revised SPEAR pesticides indicator, the community structure specifically identified the toxic pressure and no longer depended on the presence of refuge areas. With regard to ecosystem functions, leaf litter degradation was predicted by the revised SPEAR pesticides and the median water temperature at a site (R 2  = 0.38, P = 0.003). Furthermore, we designed the bio-indicator SPEAR refuge to quantify the magnitude of general recolonization at a given stream site. We conclude that the taxonomic composition of aquatic invertebrate communities enables a specific indication of anthropogenic stressors and resilience of ecosystems. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

STREAM2016: Streaming Requirements, Experience, Applications and Middleware Workshop

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Fox, Geoffrey [Indiana Univ., Bloomington, IN (United States); Jha, Shantenu [Rutgers Univ., New Brunswick, NJ (United States); Ramakrishnan, Lavanya [Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)

2016-10-01

The Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science (SC) facilities including accelerators, light sources and neutron sources and sensors that study, the environment, and the atmosphere, are producing streaming data that needs to be analyzed for next-generation scientific discoveries. There has been an explosion of new research and technologies for stream analytics arising from the academic and private sectors. However, there has been no corresponding effort in either documenting the critical research opportunities or building a community that can create and foster productive collaborations. The two-part workshop series, STREAM: Streaming Requirements, Experience, Applications and Middleware Workshop (STREAM2015 and STREAM2016), were conducted to bring the community together and identify gaps and future efforts needed by both NSF and DOE. This report describes the discussions, outcomes and conclusions from STREAM2016: Streaming Requirements, Experience, Applications and Middleware Workshop, the second of these workshops held on March 22-23, 2016 in Tysons, VA. STREAM2016 focused on the Department of Energy (DOE) applications, computational and experimental facilities, as well software systems. Thus, the role of “streaming and steering” as a critical mode of connecting the experimental and computing facilities was pervasive through the workshop. Given the overlap in interests and challenges with industry, the workshop had significant presence from several innovative companies and major contributors. The requirements that drive the proposed research directions, identified in this report, show an important opportunity for building competitive research and development program around streaming data. These findings and recommendations are consistent with vision outlined in NRC Frontiers of Data and National Strategic Computing Initiative (NCSI) [1, 2]. The discussions from the workshop are captured as topic areas covered in this report's sections. The report

SPATIO-TEMPORAL VARIATIONS IN MACROINVERTEBRATE ASSEMBLAGES OF NEW CALEDONIAN STREAMS.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

MARY N. J.

2002-01-01

Full Text Available Forty-one sites located on 14 New Caledonian streams were surveyed four times between October 1996 and October 1997 in order to examine the spatial and temporal changes in the structure of the benthic macroinvertebrate communities. About 250 000 invertebrates representing 167 taxa were collected in the streams. Seventy-five percent of identified taxa and 67% of individuals were insects. Major spatial and temporal changes in the composition of the fauna were detected by multivariate analyses (ordination and classification. Overall, the number of individuals was significantly higher in the dry season (October than in the wetter seasons (January and June. However, a low temporal variability was detected in the structure of benthic communities during the sampling period. A cluster analysis based on taxonomic composition separated five groups of sites in relation with rock type, land use, and geographic characteristics. Several metrics (total invertebrate density, taxon richness, relative abundance of major invertebrate groups, diversity indices were used to characterize each group of sites. Forested streams, where the highest specific diversity occurred, represented the most speciose habitat for benthic fauna. A less rich and abundant fauna occurred in streams draining ultramafic rocks probably because of their low content in food resources and organic matter.

Stream pH as an abiotic gradient influencing distributions of trout in Pennsylvania streams

Science.gov (United States)

Kocovsky, P.M.; Carline, R.F.

2005-01-01

Elevation and stream slope are abiotic gradients that limit upstream distributions of brook trout Salvelinus fontinalis and brown trout Salmo trutta in streams. We sought to determine whether another abiotic gradient, base-flow pH, may also affect distributions of these two species in eastern North America streams. We used historical data from the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission's fisheries management database to explore the effects of reach elevation, slope, and base-flow pH on distributional limits to brook trout and brown trout in Pennsylvania streams in the Appalachian Plateaus and Ridge and Valley physiographic provinces. Discriminant function analysis (DFA) was used to calculate a canonical axis that separated allopatric brook trout populations from allopatric brown trout populations and allowed us to assess which of the three independent variables were important gradients along which communities graded from allopatric brook trout to allopatric brown trout. Canonical structure coefficients from DFA indicated that in both physiographic provinces, stream base-flow pH and slope were important factors in distributional limits; elevation was also an important factor in the Ridge and Valley Province but not the Appalachian Plateaus Province. Graphs of each variable against the proportion of brook trout in a community also identified apparent zones of allopatry for both species on the basis of pH and stream slope. We hypothesize that pH-mediated interspecific competition that favors brook trout in competition with brown trout at lower pH is the most plausible mechanism for segregation of these two species along pH gradients. Our discovery that trout distributions in Pennsylvania are related to stream base-flow pH has important implications for brook trout conservation in acidified regions. Carefully designed laboratory and field studies will be required to test our hypothesis and elucidate the mechanisms responsible for the partitioning of brook trout and

Cryptic biodiversity in streams: a comparison of macroinvertebrate communities based on morphological and DNA barcode identifications

Science.gov (United States)

Species-level identifications are difficult or impossible for many larval aquatic macroinvertebrates. We described the taxonomic composition of macroinvertebrate communities from 5 coastal streams in 3 neighboring catchments in southern California. We compared taxonomic identific...

Estrutura da comunidade de macroinvertebrados bentônicos de um riacho de serra em Itatinga, São Paulo, Brasil Structure of a benthic macroinvertebrates community in a mountain stream in Itatinga, São Paulo, Brazil

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ludmilla O. Ribeiro

2005-09-01

Full Text Available A comunidade de macroinvertebrados bentônicos de um riacho de terceira ordem foi analisada em duas estações do ano, chuvosa e seca. Substratos artificiais foram amostrados semanalmente, ao longo de 56 dias para a coleta de macroinvertebrados, nas duas estações do ano. A composição da comunidade foi caracterizada por uma baixa diversidade, ou seja, presença de muitas espécies raras e poucas espécies abundantes nas duas estações do ano. Uma alta dominância de Chironomidae (Diptera nas duas estações, seguida de Baetidae (Ephemeroptera e Ancylidae (Mollusca, respectivamente nas estações chuvosa e seca, foi característico. Os resultados obtidos reforçam a grande importância de Chironomidae na comunidade bentônica de riachos e salientam a influência da sazonalidade sobre a estruturação destes organismos.The benthic macroinvertebrates community of a third order stream was studied during the wet and dry seasons. The community was analyzed using artificial substrates sampled weekly during 56 days in each season. The community composition was characterized by low species diversity, with high number of rare species and few abundant species for both seasons. A high dominance of Chinonomidae (Diptera for both seasons, followed by Baetidae (Ephemeroptera and Ancylidae (Mollusca, respectively for the wet and dry seasons, was found. The results reinforced the high importance of Chironomidae and the seasonal effect determining the stream benthic community structure.

Evaluation of stream ecological integrity using litter decomposition and benthic invertebrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Castela, Jose [Departamento de Zoologia and IMAR-CIC, Universidade de Coimbra, Largo Marques de Pombal, 3004-517 Coimbra (Portugal)], E-mail: jcccastela@gmail.com; Ferreira, Veronica [Departamento de Zoologia and IMAR-CIC, Universidade de Coimbra, Largo Marques de Pombal, 3004-517 Coimbra (Portugal)], E-mail: veronica@ci.uc.pt; Graca, Manuel A.S. [Departamento de Zoologia and IMAR-CIC, Universidade de Coimbra, Largo Marques de Pombal, 3004-517 Coimbra (Portugal)], E-mail: mgraca@ci.uc.pt

2008-05-15

Biomonitoring programs to access the ecological integrity of freshwaters tend to rely exclusively on structural parameters. Here we evaluated stream ecological integrity using (a) benthic macroinvertebrate derived metrics and a biotic index as measures of structural integrity and (b) oak litter decomposition and associated fungal sporulation rates as measures of functional integrity. The study was done at four sites (S1, S2, S3 and S4) along a downstream increasing phosphorus and habitat degradation gradient in a small stream. The biotic index, invertebrate metrics, invertebrate and fungal communities' structure and sporulation rates discriminated upstream and downstream sites. Decomposition rates classified sites S4 and S2 as having a compromised ecosystem functioning. Although both functional and structural approaches gave the same results for the most impacted site (S4), they were complementary for moderately impacted sites (S2 and S3), and we therefore support the need for incorporating functional measures in evaluations of stream ecological integrity. - This study supports the need for incorporating functional measures in evaluations of stream ecological integrity.

Evaluation of stream ecological integrity using litter decomposition and benthic invertebrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Castela, Jose; Ferreira, Veronica; Graca, Manuel A.S.

2008-01-01

Biomonitoring programs to access the ecological integrity of freshwaters tend to rely exclusively on structural parameters. Here we evaluated stream ecological integrity using (a) benthic macroinvertebrate derived metrics and a biotic index as measures of structural integrity and (b) oak litter decomposition and associated fungal sporulation rates as measures of functional integrity. The study was done at four sites (S1, S2, S3 and S4) along a downstream increasing phosphorus and habitat degradation gradient in a small stream. The biotic index, invertebrate metrics, invertebrate and fungal communities' structure and sporulation rates discriminated upstream and downstream sites. Decomposition rates classified sites S4 and S2 as having a compromised ecosystem functioning. Although both functional and structural approaches gave the same results for the most impacted site (S4), they were complementary for moderately impacted sites (S2 and S3), and we therefore support the need for incorporating functional measures in evaluations of stream ecological integrity. - This study supports the need for incorporating functional measures in evaluations of stream ecological integrity

Methane production potential and microbial community structure for different forest soils

Science.gov (United States)

Matsumoto, Y.; Ueyama, M.; Kominami, Y.; Endo, R.; Tokumoto, H.; Hirano, T.; Takagi, K.; Takahashi, Y.; Iwata, H.; Harazono, Y.

2017-12-01

Forest soils are often considered as a methane (CH4) sink, but anaerobic microsites potentially decrease the sink at the ecosystem scale. In this study, we measured biological CH4 production potential of soils at various ecosystems, including upland forests, a lowland forest, and a bog, and analyzed microbial community structure using 16S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) genes. Three different types of soil samples (upland, bank of the stream, and center of the stream) were collected from Yamashiro forest meteorology research site (YMS) at Kyoto, Japan, on 11 May 2017. The soils were incubated at dark and anaerobic conditions under three different temperatures (37°C, 25°C, and 10°C) from 9 June 2017. The upland soils emitted CH4 with largest yields among the three soils at 37°C and 25°C, although no CH4 emission was observed at 10°C. For all temperature ranges, the emission started to increase with a 14- to 20-days lag after the start of the incubation. The lag indicates a slow transition to anaerobic conditions; as dissolved oxygen in water decreased, the number and/or activity of anaerobic bacteria like methanogens increased. The soils at the bank and center of the stream emitted CH4 with smaller yields than the upland soils in the three temperature ranges. The microbial community analyses indicate that methanogenic archaea presented at the three soils including the aerobic upland soil, but compositions of methanogenic archaea were different among the soils. In upland soils, hydrogenotrophic methanogens, such as Methanobacterium and Methanothermobacter, consisted almost all of the total methanogen detected. In the bank and center of the stream, soils contained approximately 10-25% of acetoclastic methanogens, such as Methanosarcina and Methanosaeta, among the total methanogen detected. Methanotrophs, a genus of Methanobacteriaceae, was appeared in the all types of soils. We will present results from same incubation and 16S rRNA analyses for other ecosystems, including

Spray drift of pesticides and stream macroinvertebrates: Experimental evidence of impacts and effectiveness of mitigation measures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Maltby, Lorraine [Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Western Bank, Sheffield S10 2TN (United Kingdom)], E-mail: l.maltby@sheffield.ac.uk; Hills, Louise [Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Western Bank, Sheffield S10 2TN (United Kingdom)

2008-12-15

Impoverished stream communities in agricultural landscapes have been associated with pesticide contamination, but conclusive evidence of causality is rare. We address this deficiency by adopting an experimental approach to investigate the effects of the insecticides cypermethrin and chlorpyrifos on benthic macroinvertebrates. Three treatments were established and a combination of biomarker, bioassay and biomonitoring approaches was employed to investigate, individual, population and community-level effects. Animals deployed during pesticide application had altered enzyme activity, depressed feeding rate and reduced survival, but these effects were only observed where pesticide was sprayed to the stream edge. There were no clear pesticide-related effects on macroinvertebrate community structure or on the population densities of individual species. Hence, short-term pesticide exposure did cause individual-level effects in stream macroinvertebrates, but these were not translated to effects at the population or community-level and were effectively mitigated by the adoption of a no-spray buffer zone. - Pulsed pesticide exposures via spray drift adversely affected stream invertebrates but did not cause population or community-level effects and were mitigated by no-spray buffer zones.

A multi-scaled approach to evaluating the fish assemblage structure within southern Appalachian streams USA.

Science.gov (United States)

Kirsch, Joseph; Peterson, James T.

2014-01-01

There is considerable uncertainty about the relative roles of stream habitat and landscape characteristics in structuring stream-fish assemblages. We evaluated the relative importance of environmental characteristics on fish occupancy at the local and landscape scales within the upper Little Tennessee River basin of Georgia and North Carolina. Fishes were sampled using a quadrat sample design at 525 channel units within 48 study reaches during two consecutive years. We evaluated species–habitat relationships (local and landscape factors) by developing hierarchical, multispecies occupancy models. Modeling results suggested that fish occupancy within the Little Tennessee River basin was primarily influenced by stream topology and topography, urban land coverage, and channel unit types. Landscape scale factors (e.g., urban land coverage and elevation) largely controlled the fish assemblage structure at a stream-reach level, and local-scale factors (i.e., channel unit types) influenced fish distribution within stream reaches. Our study demonstrates the utility of a multi-scaled approach and the need to account for hierarchy and the interscale interactions of factors influencing assemblage structure prior to monitoring fish assemblages, developing biological management plans, or allocating management resources throughout a stream system.

Habitat associations of fish and aquatic turtles in an East Texas Stream

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Riedle J.D.

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The community structure of stream communities are treated as bioassays of stream ecosystems and changes to species patterns within those communities reflect response to multiple stressors including natural fluctuations in environmental variables. Research has focused on the structure of fish assemblages and there is increasing interest in environmental factors structuring turtle communities. Both fishes and turtles can be sampled using common methods, but are rarely studied together. Our objective was to compare distribution of fish and turtle species based on measured environmental variables in East Texas, USA. Species distributions were influenced by flow, substrate, and emergent vegetation. Results from Monte Carlo permutation tests suggest that downed woody debris and water temperature also had a strong influence on species distributions. Co-correspondence analysis showed considerable overlap of species scores in the absence of environmental variables. The five macrohabitats sampled exhibited varying degrees of connectivity and thus species mixing, which is driven by annual fluctuations in precipitation. Results from this study suggest that turtles and fishes can be considered simultaneously and exhibit similar patterns of species distribution across the landscape, at least at local scales.

Macroinvertebrates associated with bryophyta in a first-order Atlantic Forest stream

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Beatriz F. J. V. Rosa

2011-06-01

Full Text Available This study describes the composition and structure of the benthic community associated with bryophytes in a first-order stream, located in a biological reserve of the Atlantic Forest, during two seasons. During three months of the dry season of 2007 and three months of the rainy season of 2008, samples of bryophytes attached to stones were collected randomly, along a 100 m stream reach. The structure of the community was analyzed through the mean density of individuals, Shannon's diversity index, Pielou's evenness, family richness, dominance index, and the percentage of Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera and Trichoptera (% EPT. Chironomidae larvae were dominant in the two periods of study, followed by Ceratopogonidae in the rainy season, and Naididae in the dry season. The orders EPT contributed 14 families. The results showed that bryophytes constitute suitable habitat which is able to shelter an abundant and diversified benthic fauna in a small extension of the stream. This habitat provides refuge during spates, and thus minimizes downstream transport of the macroinvertebrate fauna.

Relationship between bifenthrin sediment toxic units and benthic community metrics in urban California streams.

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Hall, Lenwood W; Anderson, Ronald D

2013-08-01

The objective of this study was to use ecologically relevant field measurements for determining the relationship between bifenthrin sediment toxic units (TUs) (environmental concentrations/Hyalella acute LC50 value) and 15 benthic metrics in four urban California streams sampled from 2006 to 2011. Data from the following four California streams were used in the analysis: Kirker Creek (2006, 2007), Pleasant Grove Creek (2006, 2007, and 2008), Arcade Creek (2009, 2010, and 2011), and Salinas streams (2009, 2010, and 2011). The results from univariate analysis of benthic metrics versus bifenthrin TU calculations for the four California streams with multiple-year datasets combined by stream showed that there were either nonsignificant relationships or lack of metric data for 93 % of cases. For 7 % of the data (4 cases) where significant relationships were reported between benthic metrics and bifenthrin TUs, these relationships were ecologically meaningful. Three of these significant direct relationships were an expression of tolerant benthic taxa (either % tolerant taxa or tolerance values, which are similar metrics), which would be expected to increase in a stressed environment. These direct significant tolerance relationships were reported for Kirker Creek, Pleasant Grove Creek, and Arcade Creek. The fourth significant relationship was an inverse relationship between taxa richness and bifenthrin TUs for the 3-year Pleasant Grove Creek dataset. In summary, only a small percent of the benthic metric × bifenthrin TU relationships were significant for the four California streams. Therefore, the general summary conclusion from this analysis is that there is no strong case for showing consistent meaningful relationships between various benthic metrics used to characterize the status of benthic communities and bifenthrin TUs for these four California streams.

Variation partitioning of diatom species data matrices: Understanding the influence of multiple factors on benthic diatom communities in tropical streams

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bere, Taurai, E-mail: tbere2015@gmail.com; Mangadze, Tinotenda; Mwedzi, Tongai

2016-10-01

Elucidating the confounding influence of multiple environmental factors on benthic diatom communities is important in developing water quality predictive models for better guidance of stream management efforts. The objective of this study was to explore the relative impact of metal pollution and hydromorphological alterations in, addition to nutrient enrichment and organic pollution, on diatom taxonomic composition with the view to improve stream diatom-based water quality inference models. Samples were collected twice at 20 sampling stations in the tropical Manyame Catchment, Zimbabwe. Diatom, macroinvertebrate communities and environmental factors were sampled and analysed. The variations in diatom community composition explained by different categories of environmental factors were analysed using canonical correspondence analysis using variance partitioning (partial CCA). The following variations were explained by the different predictor matrices: nutrient levels and organic pollution - 10.4%, metal pollution - 8.3% and hydromorphological factors - 7.9%. Thus, factors other than nutrient levels and organic pollution explain additional significant variation in these diatom communities. Development of diatom-based stream water quality inference models that incorporate metal pollution and hydromorphological alterations, where these are key issues, is thus deemed necessary. - Highlights: • Confounding influences of multiple environmental factors on diatom communities are elucidated. • Variation explained: nutrients + organic pollution - 10.4%, metals - 8.3% and hydromorphological factors - 7.9%. • Calibration of existing or development of new indices may be necessary.

Variation partitioning of diatom species data matrices: Understanding the influence of multiple factors on benthic diatom communities in tropical streams

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bere, Taurai; Mangadze, Tinotenda; Mwedzi, Tongai

2016-01-01

Elucidating the confounding influence of multiple environmental factors on benthic diatom communities is important in developing water quality predictive models for better guidance of stream management efforts. The objective of this study was to explore the relative impact of metal pollution and hydromorphological alterations in, addition to nutrient enrichment and organic pollution, on diatom taxonomic composition with the view to improve stream diatom-based water quality inference models. Samples were collected twice at 20 sampling stations in the tropical Manyame Catchment, Zimbabwe. Diatom, macroinvertebrate communities and environmental factors were sampled and analysed. The variations in diatom community composition explained by different categories of environmental factors were analysed using canonical correspondence analysis using variance partitioning (partial CCA). The following variations were explained by the different predictor matrices: nutrient levels and organic pollution - 10.4%, metal pollution - 8.3% and hydromorphological factors - 7.9%. Thus, factors other than nutrient levels and organic pollution explain additional significant variation in these diatom communities. Development of diatom-based stream water quality inference models that incorporate metal pollution and hydromorphological alterations, where these are key issues, is thus deemed necessary. - Highlights: • Confounding influences of multiple environmental factors on diatom communities are elucidated. • Variation explained: nutrients + organic pollution - 10.4%, metals - 8.3% and hydromorphological factors - 7.9%. • Calibration of existing or development of new indices may be necessary.

Assessment of water chemistry, habitat, and benthic macroinvertebrates at selected stream-quality monitoring sites in Chester County, Pennsylvania, 1998-2000

Science.gov (United States)

Reif, Andrew G.

2004-01-01

Biological, chemical, and habitat data have been collected from a network of sites in Chester County, Pa., from 1970 to 2003 to assess stream quality. Forty sites in 6 major stream basins were sampled between 1998 and 2000. Biological data were used to determine levels of impairment in the benthic-macroinvertebrate community in Chester County streams and relate the impairment, in conjunction with chemical and habitat data, to overall stream quality. Biological data consisted of benthic-macroinvertebrate samples that were collected annually in the fall. Water-chemistry samples were collected and instream habitat was assessed in support of the biological sampling.Most sites in the network were designated as nonimpacted or slightly impacted by human activities or extreme climatic conditions on the basis of biological-metric analysis of benthic-macroinvertebrate data. Impacted sites were affected by factors, such as nutrient enrichment, erosion and sedimentation, point discharges, and droughts and floods. Streams in the Schuylkill River, Delaware River, and East Branch Brandywine Creek Basins in Chester County generally had low nutrient concentrations, except in areas affected by wastewater-treatment discharges, and stream habitat that was affected by erosion. Streams in the West Branch Brandywine, Christina, Big Elk, and Octoraro Creek Basins in Chester County generally had elevated nutrient concentrations and streambottom habitat that was affected by sediment deposition.Macroinvertebrate communities identified in samples from French Creek, Pigeon Creek (Schuylkill River Basin), and East Branch Brandywine Creek at Glenmoore consistently indicate good stream conditions and were the best conditions measured in the network. Macroinvertebrate communities identified in samples from Trout Creek (site 61), West Branch Red Clay Creek (site 55) (Christina River Basin), and Valley Creek near Atglen (site 34) (Octoraro Creek Basin) indicated fair to poor stream conditions and

Human impacts to mountain streams

Science.gov (United States)

Wohl, Ellen

2006-09-01

Mountain streams are here defined as channel networks within mountainous regions of the world. This definition encompasses tremendous diversity of physical and biological conditions, as well as history of land use. Human effects on mountain streams may result from activities undertaken within the stream channel that directly alter channel geometry, the dynamics of water and sediment movement, contaminants in the stream, or aquatic and riparian communities. Examples include channelization, construction of grade-control structures or check dams, removal of beavers, and placer mining. Human effects can also result from activities within the watershed that indirectly affect streams by altering the movement of water, sediment, and contaminants into the channel. Deforestation, cropping, grazing, land drainage, and urbanization are among the land uses that indirectly alter stream processes. An overview of the relative intensity of human impacts to mountain streams is provided by a table summarizing human effects on each of the major mountainous regions with respect to five categories: flow regulation, biotic integrity, water pollution, channel alteration, and land use. This table indicates that very few mountains have streams not at least moderately affected by land use. The least affected mountainous regions are those at very high or very low latitudes, although our scientific ignorance of conditions in low-latitude mountains in particular means that streams in these mountains might be more altered than is widely recognized. Four case studies from northern Sweden (arctic region), Colorado Front Range (semiarid temperate region), Swiss Alps (humid temperate region), and Papua New Guinea (humid tropics) are also used to explore in detail the history and effects on rivers of human activities in mountainous regions. The overview and case studies indicate that mountain streams must be managed with particular attention to upstream/downstream connections, hillslope

Common Hydraulic Fracturing Fluid Additives Alter the Structure and Function of Anaerobic Microbial Communities.

Science.gov (United States)

Mumford, Adam C; Akob, Denise M; Klinges, J Grace; Cozzarelli, Isabelle M

2018-04-15

The development of unconventional oil and gas (UOG) resources results in the production of large volumes of wastewater containing a complex mixture of hydraulic fracturing chemical additives and components from the formation. The release of these wastewaters into the environment poses potential risks that are poorly understood. Microbial communities in stream sediments form the base of the food chain and may serve as sentinels for changes in stream health. Iron-reducing organisms have been shown to play a role in the biodegradation of a wide range of organic compounds, and so to evaluate their response to UOG wastewater, we enriched anaerobic microbial communities from sediments collected upstream (background) and downstream (impacted) of an UOG wastewater injection disposal facility in the presence of hydraulic fracturing fluid (HFF) additives: guar gum, ethylene glycol, and two biocides, 2,2-dibromo-3-nitrilopropionamide (DBNPA) and bronopol (C 3 H 6 BrNO 4 ). Iron reduction was significantly inhibited early in the incubations with the addition of biocides, whereas amendment with guar gum and ethylene glycol stimulated iron reduction relative to levels in the unamended controls. Changes in the microbial community structure were observed across all treatments, indicating the potential for even small amounts of UOG wastewater components to influence natural microbial processes. The microbial community structure differed between enrichments with background and impacted sediments, suggesting that impacted sediments may have been preconditioned by exposure to wastewater. These experiments demonstrated the potential for biocides to significantly decrease iron reduction rates immediately following a spill and demonstrated how microbial communities previously exposed to UOG wastewater may be more resilient to additional spills. IMPORTANCE Organic components of UOG wastewater can alter microbial communities and biogeochemical processes, which could alter the rates of

Changes in vegetative communities and water table dynamics following timber harvesting in small headwater streams

Science.gov (United States)

B. Choi; J.C. Dewey; J. A. Hatten; A.W. Ezell; Z. Fan

2012-01-01

In order to better understand the relationship between vegetation communities and water table in the uppermost portions (ephemeral–intermittent streams) of headwater systems, seasonal plot-based field characterizations of vegetation were used in conjunction with monthly water table measurements. Vegetation, soils, and water table data were examined to determine...

Repurposing Waste Streams: Lessons on Integrating Hospital Food Waste into a Community Garden.

Science.gov (United States)

Galvan, Adri M; Hanson, Ryan; George, Daniel R

2018-04-06

There have been increasing efforts in recent decades to divert institutional food waste into composting programs. As major producers of food waste who must increasingly demonstrate community benefit, hospitals have an incentive to develop such programs. In this article, we explain the emerging opportunity to link hospitals' food services to local community gardens in order to implement robust composting programs. We describe a partnership model at our hospital in central Pennsylvania, share preliminary outcomes establishing feasibility, and offer guidance for future efforts. We also demonstrate that the integration of medical students in such efforts can foster systems thinking in the development of programs to manage hospital waste streams in more ecologically-friendly ways.

Effect of a dam on epilithic algal communities of a mountain stream: before-after dam construction comparison

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Luciana Cibils Martina

2013-02-01

Full Text Available In this study we evaluated the effect of a dam on epilithic algal communities by analyzing community response after dam construction and by comparing community composition, structure and biomass upstream and downstream of the dam. Samples of epilithic algae and environmental data were collected at each site during high and low water periods before and after dam construction in Achiras Stream (Córdoba, Argentina. Ordinations showed modifications in algal assemblages after dam construction and downstream of the dam. Ordinations also suggested a loss of seasonality at the downstream site since the assemblages were similar between hydrological periods after dam construction. Indicator species, obtained by the Indicator Value method, showed that, after dam construction, there could have been an increase in nutrient concentration and a release of plankton from the impoundment. Abundance, richness and diversity were altered after dam construction as assessed by ANOVAs derived from a modified BACI Design. Proportion of early-successional species was higher at the upstream site while late-successional species were dominant at the downstream site, as predicted. Lower fluctuations in discharge downstream of the dam may have helped succession advance, whereas at the upstream site, mainly during the high water period, floods could have caused sloughing of life forms from the outer layers of the biofilm, resetting the algal community to early successional stages. It may be concluded that the dam affected algal community and favored succession advance mainly by reducing current velocity and flow fluctuations.

Use of functional traits to assess changes in stream fish assemblages across a habitat gradient

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Mariela Domiciano Ribeiro

Full Text Available Abstract Functional traits are important for understanding the links between species occurrence and environmental conditions. Identifying these links makes it possible to predict changes in species composition within communities under specific environmental conditions. We used functional traits related to habitat use and trophic ecology in order to assess the changes in fish community composition between streams with varying habitat structure. The relationship between the species traits and habitat characteristics was analyzed using an RLQ ordination analysis. Although species were widely distributed in habitats with different structures, physical conditions did favor some species based on their functional characteristics. Eight functional traits were found to be associated with stream habitat structure, allowing us to identify traits that may predict the susceptibility of fish species to physical habitat degradation.

Examining microbial community response to a strong chemical gradient: the effects of surface coal mining on stream bacteria

Science.gov (United States)

Bier, R.; Lindberg, T. T.; Wang, S.; Ellis, J. C.; Di Giulio, R. T.; Bernhardt, E. S.

2012-12-01

Surface coal mining is the dominant form of land cover change in northern and central Appalachia. In this process, shallow coal seams are exposed by removing overlying rock with explosives. The resulting fragmented carbonate rock and coal residues are disposed of in stream valleys. These valley fills generate alkaline mine drainage (AlkMD), dramatically increasing alkalinity, ionic strength, substrate supply (esp. SO42-), and trace element (Mn, Li, Se, U) concentrations in downstream rivers as well as significant losses of sensitive fish and macroinvertebrate species. In prior work within the Mud River, which drains the largest surface mine complex in Appalachia, we found that concentrations of AlkMD increase proportionally with the extent of upstream mining. Here we ask "How do stream microbial communities change along this strong chemical gradient?" We collected surface water and benthic biofilms from 25 stream reaches throughout the Mud River spanning the full range of surface mining impacts, with 0-96% of the contributing watershed area converted to surface coal mines. Microbial communities were collected from biofilms grown on a common substrate (red maple veneers) that were incubated in each stream reach for four months prior to collection in April, 2011. 16S rRNA genes from microbial communities at each study site were examined using 454 sequencing and compared with a generalized UniFrac distance matrix (674 sequence eveness) that was used in statistical analyses. Water chemistry at the sites was sampled monthly from July 2010 to December 2010 and again in April 2011. In April, surface water concentrations of SO42-, Ca2+, Mg2+, and Se2- increased linearly with the extent of upstream mining (all regressions R2 >0.43; pPERMANOVA; p=0.029). Bacterial diversity (OTU richness defined at 3% sequence difference) peaked at intermediate conductivities (600 μS cm-1). Environmental data that correlated significantly with the ordination axes were a variety of surface

The zoobenthos communities of streams in the Katon-Karagai State National Natural Park (the Bukhtarma river basin, Kazakhstan

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Anna A. Evseeva

2016-08-01

Full Text Available The article presents the results of a study of zoobenthos in streams in the Katon-Karagay national Park, carried out in 2009–2011. Presented are the taxonomic composition, a description of the spatial distribution of the given habitat classification of the studied small streams, and an area analysis of the fauna of amphibiotic insects of the studied area. An assessment of significance and metrics of zoobenthic communities for biological indication of the ecological status of the streams in the Bukhtarma river basin was carried out. Conducted research on anthropogenic load in unaffected rivers or sections of rivers will solve the problems associated with the lack of baseline data on the basin of the Bukhtarma river. Recommendations are given for the biodiversity conservation of stream bottom invertebrates in Protected Areas in the Altai-Sayan Ecoregion within Kazakhstan.

Combined effects of hydrologic alteration and cyprinid fish in mediating biogeochemical processes in a Mediterranean stream.

Science.gov (United States)

Rubio-Gracia, Francesc; Almeida, David; Bonet, Berta; Casals, Frederic; Espinosa, Carmen; Flecker, Alexander S; García-Berthou, Emili; Martí, Eugènia; Tuulaikhuu, Baigal-Amar; Vila-Gispert, Anna; Zamora, Lluis; Guasch, Helena

2017-12-01

Flow regimes are important drivers of both stream community and biogeochemical processes. However, the interplay between community and biogeochemical responses under different flow regimes in streams is less understood. In this study, we investigated the structural and functional responses of periphyton and macroinvertebrates to different densities of the Mediterranean barbel (Barbus meridionalis, Cyprinidae) in two stream reaches differing in flow regime. The study was conducted in Llémena Stream, a small calcareous Mediterranean stream with high nutrient levels. We selected a reach with permanent flow (permanent reach) and another subjected to flow regulation (regulated reach) with periods of flow intermittency. At each reach, we used in situ cages to generate 3 levels of fish density. Cages with 10 barbels were used to simulate high fish density (>7indm -2 ); cages with open sides were used as controls (i.e. exposed to actual fish densities of each stream reach) thus having low fish density; and those with no fish were used to simulate the disappearance of fish that occurs with stream drying. Differences in fish density did not cause significant changes in periphyton biomass and macroinvertebrate density. However, phosphate uptake by periphyton was enhanced in treatments lacking fish in the regulated reach with intermittent flow but not in the permanent reach, suggesting that hydrologic alteration hampers the ability of biotic communities to compensate for the absence of fish. This study indicates that fish density can mediate the effects of anthropogenic alterations such as flow intermittence derived from hydrologic regulation on stream benthic communities and associated biogeochemical processes, at least in eutrophic streams. Copyright © 2017. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Macrophyte Communities of Andean Rivers: Composition and Relation with Environmental Factors

OpenAIRE

Alida Marcela Gómez Rodríguez; Luz Teresa Valderrama Valderrama; Carlos A. Rivera-Rondón

2017-01-01

Small streams of tropical Andes have been poorly studied. Therefore, there is little information about the structure, dynamics and function of their macrophyte communities. In this research, aquatic plant communities of 18 Andean streams of La Vieja (Quindío) and Otún (Risaralda) river basins were studied; those are some of the basins most affected by anthropic activities in the country. Streams were selected according to their association with the main land’s uses of the region in both basin...

Stream Crossings

Data.gov (United States)

Vermont Center for Geographic Information — Physical measurements and attributes of stream crossing structures and adjacent stream reaches which are used to provide a relative rating of aquatic organism...

Two-dimensional physical habitat modeling of effects of habitat structures on urban stream restoration

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Dongkyun Im

2011-12-01

Full Text Available River corridors, even if highly modified or degraded, still provide important habitats for numerous biological species, and carry high aesthetic and economic values. One of the keys to urban stream restoration is recovery and maintenance of ecological flows sufficient to sustain aquatic ecosystems. In this study, the Hongje Stream in the Seoul metropolitan area of Korea was selected for evaluating a physically-based habitat with and without habitat structures. The potential value of the aquatic habitat was evaluated by a weighted usable area (WUA using River2D, a two-dimensional hydraulic model. The habitat suitability for Zacco platypus in the Hongje Stream was simulated with and without habitat structures. The computed WUA values for the boulder, spur dike, and riffle increased by about 2%, 7%, and 131%, respectively, after their construction. Also, the three habitat structures, especially the riffle, can contribute to increasing hydraulic heterogeneity and enhancing habitat diversity.

Diversity and ecological aspects of aquatic insect communities from montane streams in southern Brazil

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bruna Marmitt Braun

2014-06-01

Full Text Available AIMS: In this study, the diversity of Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, Trichoptera and Coleoptera communities was surveyed in the Toropi River basin, a watershed localized in a slope region, in southernmost Brazil. The influence of some local abiotic factors on the most common genera was also analyzed. METHODS: Samplings were conducted at 40 sites in 1st-4th order streams, along a short elevation gradient (70-500 m, with a Surber sampler. Water physico-chemical factors, as well as substrate type, were obtained at each site. RESULTS: At all, 5,320 specimens were collected, belonging to 18 families and 52 genera. The caddisflies Austrotinodes and Celaenotrichia, and an undescribed Elmidae, Genus M, are new records for the region. The caddisfly Smicridea was the most frequent genus in the study area. The mayflies Camelobaetidius, Paracloeodes and Americabaetis were influenced by stream order. Smicridea was related to air temperature, while the mayfly Thraulodes was influenced by high levels of electrical conductivity. CONCLUSIONS: The high diversity found in the study area, compared to other Brazilian regions, reflects the environmental heterogeneity in the region. These data show that hydrographic basins in slope areas from extreme Southern Brazil sustain high levels of diversity of aquatic insect communities.

The role of remediation, natural alkalinity sources and physical stream parameters in stream recovery.

Science.gov (United States)

Kruse, Natalie A; DeRose, Lisa; Korenowsky, Rebekah; Bowman, Jennifer R; Lopez, Dina; Johnson, Kelly; Rankin, Edward

2013-10-15

Acid mine drainage (AMD) negatively impacts not only stream chemistry, but also aquatic biology. The ultimate goal of AMD treatment is restoration of the biological community, but that goal is rarely explicit in treatment system design. Hewett Fork in Raccoon Creek Watershed, Ohio, has been impacted by historic coal mining and has been treated with a calcium oxide doser in the headwaters of the watershed since 2004. All of the acidic inputs are isolated to a 1.5 km stretch of stream in the headwaters of the Hewett Fork watershed. The macroinvertebrate and fish communities have begun to recover and it is possible to distinguish three zones downstream of the doser: an impaired zone, a transition zone and a recovered zone. Alkalinity from both the doser and natural sources and physical stream parameters play a role in stream restoration. In Hewett Fork, natural alkaline additions downstream are higher than those from the doser. Both, alkaline additions and stream velocity drive sediment and metal deposition. Metal deposition occurs in several patterns; aluminum tends to deposit in regions of low stream velocity, while iron tends to deposit once sufficient alkalinity is added to the system downstream of mining inputs. The majority of metal deposition occurs upstream of the recovered zone. Both the physical stream parameters and natural alkalinity sources influence biological recovery in treated AMD streams and should be considered in remediation plans. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Notes on the Vegetation of the Fast-flowing Streams in Peninsular Thailand, the Tropical Mainland of South East Asia

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Milica Stankovic

2013-12-01

Full Text Available The species composition and structure of the plant communities along and in the fast-flowing streams on different bedrock types of the tropical mainland South-East Asia were investigated. The study was carried out in Peninsular Thailand, on the Nakhon Si Thammarat mountain range. A total number of 14 plots were placed within the five selected streams where vascular plants species had been collected, starting from November 2010 until July 2012. The estimation of the species was calculated by computer program EstimateS, and in order to distinguish plant communities, a cluster analysis was performed. A total number of 109 species of vascular plants has been recorded, with 59 species in the granite and 60 in the calcareous bedrock streams. There were four types of plant communities that had were categorized; of which three types occurred in the granitic bedrock streams and the other could be seen exclusively in the calcareous bedrock. It is convinced that the types of the bedrock as well as the topographic features of the streams might have major impact on the characterization of the plant communities.

Geological differentiation explains diversity and composition of fish communities in upland streams in the southern Amazon of Colombia

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Arbeláez, F.; Duivenvoorden, J.F.; Maldonado-Ocampo, J.A.

2008-01-01

Fish biomass, species richness and composition were compared between upland streams draining two contrasting geological units (Pebas and Tsa) in Colombian Amazonia. Because Pebas sediments reportedly show higher levels of base concentrations than Tsa sediments, we expected that the fish communities

Diet and trophic groups of an aquatic insect community in a tropical stream

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

R. L. Motta

Full Text Available The diet and trophic groups of an assemblage of aquatic insects were studied in a tropical stream. Genera of the orders Ephemeroptera, Odonata, Plecoptera, Lepidoptera, and Hemiptera showed feeding specialization. Others, such as Trichoptera, Coleoptera, and Diptera, showed great diet variation with genera of different trophic groups. Seasonal variation of insect diet, evident only for some genera of the orders Trichoptera, Lepidoptera, Coleoptera, and Diptera, was due to the differences observed in community composition and to generalist habits of these genera. However, the seasonal comparison of trophic groups showed no significant statistical differences. The great importance of organic matter, a non-limited resource, in the diet of Ribeirão do Atalho aquatic insects may be the explanation for the trophic stability in this community organization.

Decomposition of terrestrial resource subsidies in headwater streams: Does consumer diversity matter?

Science.gov (United States)

David Stoker; Amber J. Falkner; Kelly M. Murray; Ashley K. Lang; Thomas R. Barnum; Jeffrey Hepinstall-Cymerman; Michael J. Conroy; Robert J. Cooper; Catherine M. Pringle

2017-01-01

Resource subsidies and biodiversity are essential for maintaining community structure and ecosystem functioning, but the relative importance of consumer diversity and resource characteristics to decomposition remains unclear. Forested headwater streams are detritus-based systems, dependent on leaf litter inputs from adjacent riparian ecosystems, and...

Economic evaluation of neutral streams and of river construction methods

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Donat, M.

1998-12-01

There are no current markets for the management and restoration of natural streams. However, economic elements tend to play an increasingly important role when it comes to decisions about river management activities. Although preference structures of market consumers can be analyzed using prices, there are several short-comings in using this technique for goods with no or an insufficient market. This is especially true for 'natural streams'. The non-existence of market prices for goods or their parts does not mean that they do not have a value or that there is no preference structure for them. After an introductory discussion of ethical and value issues, specific methods for evaluating and analyzing the willingness-to-pay for natural streams and theirs restoration are developed further. Using direct interview techniques, locals in three different watersheds in Upper Austria are ask for their preferences and social pricing of natural streams and river management options. The areas the interviews were conducted in, represent a watershed dominated by intensive agricultural and residential uses, another watershed typical for a rural community and a third representing a watershed of a relatively pristine river of the Northern Alpine limestone range mainly used by forestry and tourism. Demographic data, eco-morphological stream characteristics and preferences of the interviewed about elements of a natural stream, user and non-user values were linked and analyzed. The results of a personal interviewing technique conducted in these watersheds showed to be capable to capture the preference structure in small watersheds and may offer some help for decision-making concerning river management issues. (author)

Bioassessment in nonperennial streams: Hydrologic stability influences assessment validity

Science.gov (United States)

Mazor, R. D.; Stein, E. D.; Schiff, K.; Ode, P.; Rehn, A.

2011-12-01

Nonperennial streams pose a challenge for bioassessment, as assessment tools developed in perennial streams may not work in these systems. For example, indices of biotic integrity (IBIs) developed in perennial streams may give improper indications of impairment in nonperennial streams, or may be unstable. We sampled benthic macroinvertebrates from 12 nonperennial streams in southern California. In addition, we deployed loggers to obtain continuous measures of flow. 3 sites were revisited over 2 years. For each site, we calculated several metrics, IBIs, and O/E scores to determine if assessments were consistent and valid throughout the summer. Hydrology varied widely among the streams, with several streams drying between sampling events. IBIs suggested good ecological health at the beginning of the study, but declined sharply at some sites. Multivariate ordination suggested that, despite differences among sites, changes in community structure were similar, with shifts from Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, and Trichoptera to Coleoptera and more tolerant organisms. Site revisits revealed a surprising level of variability, as 2 of the 3 revisited sites had perennial or near-perennial flow in the second year of sampling. IBI scores were more consistent in streams with stable hydrographs than in those with strongly intermittent hydrographs. These results suggest that nonperennial streams can be monitored successfully, but they may require short index periods and distinct metrics from those used in perennial streams. In addition, better approaches to mapping nonperennial streams are required.

Linking stream flow and groundwater to avian habitat in a desert riparian system.

Science.gov (United States)

Merritt, David M; Bateman, Heather L

2012-10-01

Increasing human populations have resulted in aggressive water development in arid regions. This development typically results in altered stream flow regimes, reduced annual flow volumes, changes in fluvial disturbance regimes, changes in groundwater levels, and subsequent shifts in ecological patterns and processes. Balancing human demands for water with environmental requirements to maintain functioning ecosystems requires quantitative linkages between water in streams and ecosystem attributes. Streams in the Sonoran Desert provide important habitat for vertebrate species, including resident and migratory birds. Habitat structure, food, and nest-building materials, which are concentrated in riparian areas, are provided directly or indirectly by vegetation. We measured riparian vegetation, groundwater and surface water, habitat structure, and bird occurrence along Cherry Creek, a perennial tributary of the Salt River in central Arizona, USA. The purpose of this work was to develop an integrated model of groundwater-vegetation-habitat structure and bird occurrence by: (1) characterizing structural and provisioning attributes of riparian vegetation through developing a bird habitat index (BHI), (2) validating the utility of our BHI through relating it to measured bird community composition, (3) determining the riparian plant species that best explain the variability in BHI, (4) developing predictive models that link important riparian species to fluvial disturbance and groundwater availability along an arid-land stream, and (5) simulating the effects of changes in flow regime and groundwater levels and determining their consequences for riparian bird communities. Riparian forest and shrubland vegetation cover types were correctly classified in 83% of observations as a function of fluvial disturbance and depth to water table. Groundwater decline and decreased magnitude of fluvial disturbance caused significant shifts in riparian cover types from riparian forest to

STREAMFINDER II: A possible fanning structure parallel to the GD-1 stream in Pan-STARRS1

Science.gov (United States)

Malhan, Khyati; Ibata, Rodrigo A.; Goldman, Bertrand; Martin, Nicolas F.; Magnier, Eugene; Chambers, Kenneth

2018-05-01

STREAMFINDER is a new algorithm that we have built to detect stellar streams in an automated and systematic way in astrophysical datasets that possess any combination of positional and kinematic information. In Paper I, we introduced the methodology and the workings of our algorithm and showed that it is capable of detecting ultra-faint and distant halo stream structures containing as few as ˜15 members (ΣG ˜ 33.6 mag arcsec-2) in the Gaia dataset. Here, we test the method with real proper motion data from the Pan-STARRS1 survey, and by selecting targets down to r0 = 18.5 mag we show that it is able to detect the GD-1 stellar stream, whereas the structure remains below a useful detection limit when using a Matched Filter technique. The radial velocity solutions provided by STREAMFINDER for GD-1 candidate members are found to be in good agreement with observations. Furthermore, our algorithm detects a ˜ {40}° long structure approximately parallel to GD-1, and which fans out from it, possibly a sign of stream-fanning due to the triaxiality of the Galactic potential. This analysis shows the promise of this method for detecting and analysing stellar streams in the upcoming Gaia DR2 catalogue.

Nitrification-driven forms of nitrogen metabolism in microbial mat communities thriving along an ammonium-enriched subsurface geothermal stream

Science.gov (United States)

Nishizawa, Manabu; Koba, Keisuke; Makabe, Akiko; Yoshida, Naohiro; Kaneko, Masanori; Hirao, Shingo; Ishibashi, Jun-ichiro; Yamanaka, Toshiro; Shibuya, Takazo; Kikuchi, Tohru; Hirai, Miho; Miyazaki, Junichi; Nunoura, Takuro; Takai, Ken

2013-07-01

We report here the concurrence and interaction among forms of nitrogen metabolism in thermophilic microbial mat communities that developed in an ammonium-abundant subsurface geothermal stream. First, the physical and chemical conditions of the stream water at several representative microbial mat habitats (including upper, middle and downstream sites) were characterized. A thermodynamic calculation using these physical and chemical conditions predicted that nitrification consisting of ammonia and nitrite oxidations would provide one of the largest energy yields of chemolithotrophic metabolisms. Second, near-complete prokaryotic 16S rRNA gene clone analysis was conducted for representative microbial mat communities at the upper, middle and downstream sites. The results indicated a dynamic shift in the 16S rRNA gene phylotype composition through physical and chemical variations of the stream water. The predominant prokaryotic components varied from phylotypes related to hydrogeno (H2)- and thio (S)-trophic Aquificales, thermophilic methanotrophs and putative ammonia-oxidizing Archaea (AOA) located upstream (72 °C) to the phylotypes affiliated with putative AOA and nitrite-oxidizing bacteria (NOB) located at the middle and downstream sites (65 and 57 °C, respectively). In addition, the potential in situ metabolic activities of different forms of nitrogen metabolism were estimated through laboratory experiments using bulk microbial mat communities. Finally, the compositional and isotopic variation in nitrogen compounds was investigated in the stream water flowing over the microbial mats and in the interstitial water inside the mats. Although the stream water was characterized by a gradual decrease in the total ammonia concentration (ΣNH3: the sum of ammonia and ammonium concentrations) and a gradual increase in the total concentration of nitrite and nitrate (NO2- + NO3-), the total inorganic nitrogen concentration (TIN: the sum of ΣNH3, NO2- and NO3- concentrations

Ion Streaming Instabilities in Pair Ion Plasma and Localized Structure with Non-Thermal Electrons

Science.gov (United States)

Nasir Khattak, M.; Mushtaq, A.; Qamar, A.

2015-12-01

Pair ion plasma with a fraction of non-thermal electrons is considered. We investigate the effects of the streaming motion of ions on linear and nonlinear properties of unmagnetized, collisionless plasma by using the fluid model. A dispersion relation is derived, and the growth rate of streaming instabilities with effect of streaming motion of ions and non-thermal electrons is calculated. A qausi-potential approach is adopted to study the characteristics of ion acoustic solitons. An energy integral equation involving Sagdeev potential is derived during this process. The presence of the streaming term in the energy integral equation affects the structure of the solitary waves significantly along with non-thermal electrons. Possible application of the work to the space and laboratory plasmas are highlighted.

Ion streaming instabilities in pair ion plasma and localized structure with non-thermal electrons

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Khattak, M. Nasir; Qamar, A., E-mail: mnnasirphysics@gmail.com [Department of Physics, University of Peshawar (Pakistan); Mushtaq, A. [Department of Physics, Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan, National Center for Physics, Mardan (Pakistan)

2015-12-15

Pair ion plasma with a fraction of non-thermal electrons is considered. We investigate the effects of the streaming motion of ions on linear and nonlinear properties of unmagnetized, collisionless plasma by using the fluid model. A dispersion relation is derived, and the growth rate of streaming instabilities with effect of streaming motion of ions and non-thermal electrons is calculated. A quasi-potential approach is adopted to study the characteristics of ion acoustic solitons. An energy integral equation involving Sagdeev potential is derived during this process. The presence of the streaming term in the energy integral equation affects the structure of the solitary waves significantly along with non-thermal electrons. Possible application of the work to the space and laboratory plasmas are highlighted. (author)

Watershed Profiles and Stream-net Structure of Vesuvio Volcano, Italy

Science.gov (United States)

Lin, Z.; Oguchi, T.; Komatsu, G.

2006-12-01

Watershed topography including stream-net structure in 32 watersheds of Vesuvio Volcano was analyzed using a DEM with a 20-m resolution, with special attention to geomorphological differences between the northern ?0-8 area and the other areas. The longitudinal and transverse profiles and stream-nets of the watersheds were extracted from the DEM. Drainage density and statistical morphometric parameters representing the shape of the profiles were investigated, and their relations with other basic morphometric parameters such as slope angle were examined. The relationships between drainage density and slope angle for each watershed can be divided into two types: Type 1 - negative correlation and Type 2 - convex-form correlation. The Type 2 watersheds have smaller bifurcation ratios and larger low-order stream lengths than the Type 1 watersheds, indicating that low-order streams in the Type 2 watersheds are more integrated. The results of longitudinal and transverse profile analyses also show that the topography of the Type 2 watersheds is simpler and more organized than that of the Type 1 watersheds, suggesting that the Type 2 watersheds are closer to equilibrium conditions. The Type 2 watersheds are located in the steepest and highest part of the somma area, where only limited eruption products have been deposited during the Holocene, due to the existence of the high and steep outer rim of the caldera at the top of the volcano. The results including the existence of the two types are similar to those from non-volcanic watersheds in Japan, indicating that stream-net studies combined with profile analysis using DEMs are effective in discussing the erosional stages of watersheds.

The influence of multiple chemical and non-chemical stressors on benthic communities in a mid-west agricultural stream.

Science.gov (United States)

Hall, Lenwood W; Killen, Willian D; Anderson, Ronald D; Alden, Raymond W

2017-08-24

The objective of this 3-year study was to characterize benthic communities and physical habitat in an agricultural stream in the mid-west area of the United States (Big Bureau Creek, Illinois). Concurrent basic water quality parameters and seven nutrients were measured in the water column. Sediment measurements from depositional areas were conducted for bifenthrin, Total Organic Carbon, grain size, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and eight metals. All parameters were measured at 12 sites annually during the late summer for a 3-year period (2014, 2015 and 2016). Univariate regressions, stepwise multiple regressions and canonical correlation statistical analyses were used to determine the relationship between various benthic metrics (i.e., taxa richness and abundance) and all the measured parameters for the 3-year database. Benthic communities comprising 108-110 taxa were collected annually, and were generally dominated by sensitive caddisflies and mayflies. These communities were rated as good to exceptional using the Ohio Invertebrate Community Index. Physical habitat for the various sites was rated as good using the Ohio Qualitative Habitat Evaluation Index, thus suggesting that habitat is not a significant stressor that would likely impact resident benthic communities. Based on a comparison of measured in-stream total nitrogen and total phosphorus concentrations and criterion value exceedances, it appears that the in-stream nutrient concentrations could be potentially stressful to resident benthic biota. Metal concentrations were below established NOAA Threshold Effects Levels at all sites. Measured PCB concentrations were below levels of detection at all sites. Toxic units' (TUs) calculations based on using sensitive laboratory strains of Hyalella were less than 0.1 for bifenthrin, thus suggesting that bifenthrin sediment toxicity was unlikely. Thirty significant relationships reported between benthic metrics and the various environmental variables based on the

The effect of inundation frequency on ground beetle communities in a channelized mountain stream

Science.gov (United States)

Skalski, T.; Kedzior, R.; Radecki-Pawlik, A.

2012-04-01

size distribution of ground beetles is significantly right skewed on more frequently flooded areas whereas on more stable localities it becomes left skewed. Our results also demonstrated that the presence of ERS does not changes the structure of ground beetle communities if the frequency of inundation of river banks is reduced. This study indicated that not only habitat parameters but also biotic interactions between competing species from a regional pool are important for the conservation of riverine communities. Vulnerable beetles characteristic of riverine habitats are small and usually weak competitors. A reduced frequency of bank inundation creates possibilities for the colonization of ERS by species from surrounding habitats and elimination of the species well adapted to the dynamic flow conditions typifying unmodified stream sections.

Organism-substrate relationships in lowland streams

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Tolkamp, H.H.

1980-01-01

A field and laboratory study on the microdistribution of bottom dwelling macroinvertebrates to investigate the role of the stream substrate In the development and preservation of the macroinvertebrate communities in natural, undisturbed lowland streams is described. Field data on bottom substrates

The Midwest Stream Quality Assessment—Influences of human activities on streams

Science.gov (United States)

Van Metre, Peter C.; Mahler, Barbara J.; Carlisle, Daren M.; Coles, James F.

2018-04-16

Healthy streams and the fish and other organisms that live in them contribute to our quality of life. Extensive modification of the landscape in the Midwestern United States, however, has profoundly affected the condition of streams. Row crops and pavement have replaced grasslands and woodlands, streams have been straightened, and wetlands and fields have been drained. Runoff from agricultural and urban land brings sediment and chemicals to streams. What is the chemical, physical, and biological condition of Midwestern streams? Which physical and chemical stressors are adversely affecting biological communities, what are their origins, and how might we lessen or avoid their adverse effects?In 2013, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) conducted the Midwest Stream Quality Assessment to evaluate how human activities affect the biological condition of Midwestern streams. In collaboration with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency National Rivers and Streams Assessment, the USGS sampled 100 streams, chosen to be representative of the different types of watersheds in the region. Biological condition was evaluated based on the number and diversity of fish, algae, and invertebrates in the streams. Changes to the physical habitat and chemical characteristics of the streams—“stressors”—were assessed, and their relation to landscape factors and biological condition was explored by using mathematical models. The data and models help us to better understand how the human activities on the landscape are affecting streams in the region.

Interpretation of electrokinetic measurements with porous films: role of electric conductance and streaming current within porous structure.

Science.gov (United States)

Yaroshchuk, Andriy; Luxbacher, Thomas

2010-07-06

It is shown that in tangential electrokinetic measurements with porous films the porous structure makes contribution not only to the cell electric conductance (as demonstrated previously) but also to the observed streaming current. Both of these contributions give rise to dependences of streaming-potential and streaming-current coefficients on the channel height. However, due to the combined contribution of two phenomena, the dependence of streaming-potential coefficient on the channel height may be rather complicated and not allow for simple extrapolation. At the same time, the dependences of streaming-current coefficient and cell electric conductance on the channel height turn out linear and can be easily extrapolated to zero channel heights. This enables one to determine separately the contributions of external surface of porous film and of its porous structure to the streaming current and of the channel and porous structure to the cell electric conductance. This procedure is illustrated by the measurements of tangential electrokinetic phenomena and electric conductance with Millipore mixed-cellulose membrane filters of various average pore sizes (from 0.025 to 5 mum) in the so-called adjustable-gap cell of SurPASS electrokinetic instrument (Anton Paar GmbH). The design of this cell allows for easy and quasi-continuous variation of channel height as well as accurate determination of cell electric conductance, streaming-current coefficient, and channel height (from the cell hydraulic permeability). The quality of linear fits of experimental data has been found to be very good, and thus, the extrapolation procedures were quite reliable and accurate. Zeta-potentials could be determined of both external film and internal pore surfaces. It is demonstrated that the porous structures make considerable contributions to both streaming-current coefficient and cell electric conductance especially in the case of filters with larger pores. It is also found that, rather

The evolution of magnetic structures due to open-quote open-quote magnetosonic streaming close-quote close-quote

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ryutova, M.P.; Kaisig, M.; Tajima, T.

1996-01-01

The Faraday effect in gasdynamics called acoustic streaming and its accompanying nonlinear phenomena have analogies in plasma magnetohydrodynamics. A natural place where these effects may occur is the solar atmosphere with its strongly inhomogeneous magnetic fields concentrated in random magnetic flux tubes. Unlike acoustic streaming in the usual gasdynamics, nonlinear phenomena consisting in the generation of plasma flows by an oscillating magnetic flux tube, open-quote open-quote magnetosonic streaming close-quote close-quote (Ryutova 1986), is accompanied by a current drive and results in a specific evolution of magnetic structures: depending on the physical parameters of the medium a single magnetic flux tube may be either split into thinner flux tubes or dissolved diffusively into the ambient plasma. The effect of the open-quote open-quote magnetosonic streaming,close-quote close-quote on one hand, is an obvious candidate for the generation of mass flows at magnetic flux tubes sites, and on the other hand, it plays an essential role in the evolution of magnetic structures and ultimately may determine their lifetime. The theory of magnetosonic streaming is general and can be applied to other astrophysical objects that maintain oscillatory motions and contain structured magnetic fields or magnetic domains. We review analytical results and describe the origin of the magnetosonic streaming in magnetic flux tubes due to their interaction with acoustic waves. We study numerically the regime of the open-quote open-quote magnetosonic streaming close-quote close-quote corresponding to splitting of a magnetic flux tube. Our computer simulation supports and extends the analytical result. copyright 1996 The American Astronomical Society

Thinking beyond the Bioreactor Box: Incorporating Stream Ecology into Edge-of-Field Nitrate Management.

Science.gov (United States)

Goeller, Brandon C; Febria, Catherine M; Harding, Jon S; McIntosh, Angus R

2016-05-01

Around the world, artificially drained agricultural lands are significant sources of reactive nitrogen to stream ecosystems, creating substantial stream health problems. One management strategy is the deployment of denitrification enhancement tools. Here, we evaluate the factors affecting the potential of denitrifying bioreactors to improve stream health and ecosystem services. The performance of bioreactors and the structure and functioning of stream biotic communities are linked by environmental parameters like dissolved oxygen and nitrate-nitrogen concentrations, dissolved organic carbon availability, flow and temperature regimes, and fine sediment accumulations. However, evidence of bioreactors' ability to improve waterway health and ecosystem services is lacking. To improve the potential of bioreactors to enhance desirable stream ecosystem functioning, future assessments of field-scale bioreactors should evaluate the influences of bioreactor performance on ecological indicators such as primary production, organic matter processing, stream metabolism, and invertebrate and fish assemblage structure and function. These stream health impact assessments should be conducted at ecologically relevant spatial and temporal scales. Bioreactors have great potential to make significant contributions to improving water quality, stream health, and ecosystem services if they are tailored to site-specific conditions and implemented strategically with land-based and stream-based mitigation tools within watersheds. This will involve combining economic, logistical, and ecological information in their implementation. Copyright © by the American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America, and Soil Science Society of America, Inc.

Microbial Biofilm Community Variation in Flowing Habitats: Potential Utility as Bioindicators of Postmortem Submersion Intervals

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jennifer M. Lang

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Biofilms are a ubiquitous formation of microbial communities found on surfaces in aqueous environments. These structures have been investigated as biomonitoring indicators for stream heath, and here were used for the potential use in forensic sciences. Biofilm successional development has been proposed as a method to determine the postmortem submersion interval (PMSI of remains because there are no standard methods for estimating the PMSI and biofilms are ubiquitous in aquatic habitats. We sought to compare the development of epinecrotic (biofilms on Sus scrofa domesticus carcasses and epilithic (biofilms on unglazed ceramic tiles communities in two small streams using bacterial automated ribosomal intergenic spacer analysis. Epinecrotic communities were significantly different from epilithic communities even though environmental factors associated with each stream location also had a significant influence on biofilm structure. All communities at both locations exhibited significant succession suggesting that changing communities throughout time is a general characteristic of stream biofilm communities. The implications resulting from this work are that epinecrotic communities have distinctive shifts at the first and second weeks, and therefore the potential to be used in forensic applications by associating successional changes with submersion time to estimate a PMSI. The influence of environmental factors, however, indicates the lack of a successional pattern with the same organisms and a focus on functional diversity may be more applicable in a forensic context.

Stream biofilm responses to flow intermittency: from cells to ecosystems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Sergi eSabater

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Temporary streams are characterized by the alternation of dry and wet hydrological phases, creating both a harsh environment for the biota as well as a high diversity of opportunities for adaptation. These systems are eminently microbial-based during several of these hydrological phases, and those growing on all solid substrata (biofilms accordingly change their physical structure and community composition. Biofilms experience large decreases on cell densities and biomass, both of bacteria and algae, during dryness. Algal and bacterial communities show remarkable decreases in their diversity, at least locally (at the habitat scale. Biofilms also respond with significant physiological plasticity to each of the hydrological changes. The decreasing humidity of the substrata through the drying process, and the changing quantity and quality of organic matter and nutrients available in the stream during that process, causes unequal responses on the biofilm bacteria and algae. Biofilm algae are affected faster than bacteria by the hydric stress, and as a result the ecosystem respiration resists longer than gross primary production to the increasing duration of flow intermittency. This response implies enhancing ecosystem heterotrophy, a pattern that can be exacerbated in temporary streams suffering of longer dry periods under global change.

Ecological attributes of the benthic community and indices of water quality in urban, rural and preserved environments

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Claudia Eiko Yoshida

Full Text Available INTRODUCTION: Reference streams are pristine streams, untouched or unaltered by man, it being possible to use their environmental characteristics as quality threshold values. Besides the organic impacts measured via water quality biological monitoring programs, it has become necessary to evaluate the relationship between alterations in the landscape of streams and surrounding areas and changes in the structure of the macroinvertebrate community; AIM: The objective of the present study was to correlate the changes in the landscape with the ecological attributes of the community and indices of water quality, and to recommend reference condition values for the integrity of streams in the region of Jundiai (SP; METHODS: The benthic fauna were sampled in three urban streams, three rural streams and three preserved streams during July 2010, using a Surber-type sampler. The characteristics of the landscape were evaluated by means of Diversity of Habitat; the community, analyzed for several biodiversity indices, and; the water quality assessed using the indices River-BCI, BMWP-CETEC (CETEC - Science and Technology Center, ASPT and SOMI (SOMI - Serra dos Órgãos Multimetric Index (Serra dos Órgãos is a mountain range national park in the state of Rio de Janeiro; RESULTS: The structure and the composition of the communities varied according to the stream and this was reflected in the values of the biological and environmental quality indices. The best conditions were found in preserved streams, intermediate streams and rural streams while the worst conditions were found in the urban streams. The significant Pearson correlations (r > 0.73 and P < 0.05 between the diversity of habitat index and the ecological and water quality index attributes in the streams of Jundiai demonstrated that diversity of habitat may be a good predictor of the environmental characteristics evaluated.

Using fish communities to assess streams in Romania: Initial development of an index of biotic integrity

Science.gov (United States)

Angermeier, P.L.; Davideanu, G.

2004-01-01

Multimetric biotic indices increasingly are used to complement physicochemical data in assessments of stream quality. We initiated development of multimetric indices, based on fish communities, to assess biotic integrity of streams in two physiographic regions of central Romania. Unlike previous efforts to develop such indices for European streams, our metrics and scoring criteria were selected largely on the basis of empirical relations in the regions of interest. We categorised 54 fish species with respect to ten natural-history attributes, then used this information to compute 32 candidate metrics of five types (taxonomic, tolerance, abundance, reproductive, and feeding) for each of 35 sites. We assessed the utility of candidate metrics for detecting anthropogenic impact based on three criteria: (a) range of values taken, (b) relation to a site-quality index (SQI), which incorporated information on hydrologic alteration, channel alteration, land-use intensity, and water chemistry, and (c) metric redundancy. We chose seven metrics from each region to include in preliminary multimetric indices (PMIs). Both PMIs included taxonomic, tolerance, and feeding metrics, but only two metrics were common to both PMIs. Although we could not validate our PMIs, their strong association with the SQI in each region suggests that such indices would be valuable tools for assessing stream quality and could provide more comprehensive assessments than the traditional approaches based solely on water chemistry.

A catchment scale evaluation of multiple stressor effects in headwater streams.

Science.gov (United States)

Rasmussen, Jes J; McKnight, Ursula S; Loinaz, Maria C; Thomsen, Nanna I; Olsson, Mikael E; Bjerg, Poul L; Binning, Philip J; Kronvang, Brian

2013-01-01

Mitigation activities to improve water quality and quantity in streams as well as stream management and restoration efforts are conducted in the European Union aiming to improve the chemical, physical and ecological status of streams. Headwater streams are often characterised by impairment of hydromorphological, chemical, and ecological conditions due to multiple anthropogenic impacts. However, they are generally disregarded as water bodies for mitigation activities in the European Water Framework Directive despite their importance for supporting a higher ecological quality in higher order streams. We studied 11 headwater streams in the Hove catchment in the Copenhagen region. All sites had substantial physical habitat and water quality impairments due to anthropogenic influence (intensive agriculture, urban settlements, contaminated sites and low base-flow due to water abstraction activities in the catchment). We aimed to identify the dominating anthropogenic stressors at the catchment scale causing ecological impairment of benthic macroinvertebrate communities and provide a rank-order of importance that could help in prioritising mitigation activities. We identified numerous chemical and hydromorphological impacts of which several were probably causing major ecological impairments, but we were unable to provide a robust rank-ordering of importance suggesting that targeted mitigation efforts on single anthropogenic stressors in the catchment are unlikely to have substantial effects on the ecological quality in these streams. The SPEcies At Risk (SPEAR) index explained most of the variability in the macroinvertebrate community structure, and notably, SPEAR index scores were often very low (<10% SPEAR abundance). An extensive re-sampling of a subset of the streams provided evidence that especially insecticides were probably essential contributors to the overall ecological impairment of these streams. Our results suggest that headwater streams should be considered in

Introduction to stream: An Extensible Framework for Data Stream Clustering Research with R

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Michael Hahsler

2017-02-01

Full Text Available In recent years, data streams have become an increasingly important area of research for the computer science, database and statistics communities. Data streams are ordered and potentially unbounded sequences of data points created by a typically non-stationary data generating process. Common data mining tasks associated with data streams include clustering, classification and frequent pattern mining. New algorithms for these types of data are proposed regularly and it is important to evaluate them thoroughly under standardized conditions. In this paper we introduce stream, a research tool that includes modeling and simulating data streams as well as an extensible framework for implementing, interfacing and experimenting with algorithms for various data stream mining tasks. The main advantage of stream is that it seamlessly integrates with the large existing infrastructure provided by R. In addition to data handling, plotting and easy scripting capabilities, R also provides many existing algorithms and enables users to interface code written in many programming languages popular among data mining researchers (e.g., C/C++, Java and Python. In this paper we describe the architecture of stream and focus on its use for data stream clustering research. stream was implemented with extensibility in mind and will be extended in the future to cover additional data stream mining tasks like classification and frequent pattern mining.

An evolving network model with community structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li Chunguang; Maini, Philip K

2005-01-01

Many social and biological networks consist of communities-groups of nodes within which connections are dense, but between which connections are sparser. Recently, there has been considerable interest in designing algorithms for detecting community structures in real-world complex networks. In this paper, we propose an evolving network model which exhibits community structure. The network model is based on the inner-community preferential attachment and inter-community preferential attachment mechanisms. The degree distributions of this network model are analysed based on a mean-field method. Theoretical results and numerical simulations indicate that this network model has community structure and scale-free properties

Global pressures, specific responses: effects of nutrient enrichment in streams from different biomes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Artigas, Joan; García-Berthou, Emili; Gómez, Nora; Romaní, Anna M; Sabater, Sergi; Bauer, Delia E; Cochero, Joaquín; Cortelezzi, Agustina; Rodrigues-Capítulo, Alberto; Castro, Maria I; Donato, John C; Colautti, Darío C; Elosegi, Arturo; Feijoó, Claudia; Giorgi, Adonis; Leggieri, Leonardo; Muñoz, Isabel

2013-01-01

We assessed the effects of nutrient enrichment on three stream ecosystems running through distinct biomes (Mediterranean, Pampean and Andean). We increased the concentrations of N and P in the stream water 1.6–4-fold following a before–after control–impact paired series (BACIPS) design in each stream, and evaluated changes in the biomass of bacteria, primary producers, invertebrates and fish in the enriched (E) versus control (C) reaches after nutrient addition through a predictive-BACIPS approach. The treatment produced variable biomass responses (2–77% of explained variance) among biological communities and streams. The greatest biomass response was observed for algae in the Andean stream (77% of the variance), although fish also showed important biomass responses (about 9–48%). The strongest biomass response to enrichment (77% in all biological compartments) was found in the Andean stream. The magnitude and seasonality of biomass responses to enrichment were highly site specific, often depending on the basal nutrient concentration and on windows of ecological opportunity (periods when environmental constraints other than nutrients do not limit biomass growth). The Pampean stream, with high basal nutrient concentrations, showed a weak response to enrichment (except for invertebrates), whereas the greater responses of Andean stream communities were presumably favored by wider windows of ecological opportunity in comparison to those from the Mediterranean stream. Despite variation among sites, enrichment globally stimulated the algal-based food webs (algae and invertebrate grazers) but not the detritus-based food webs (bacteria and invertebrate shredders). This study shows that nutrient enrichment tends to globally enhance the biomass of stream biological assemblages, but that its magnitude and extent within the food web are complex and are strongly determined by environmental factors and ecosystem structure. (letter)

Effects of Channelisation, Riparian Structure and Catchment Area on Physical Habitats in Small Lowland Streams

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Pedersen, Morten Lauge

2009-01-01

Rivers and streams form a longitudinal network in which physical conditions and biological processes change through the river system. Geomorphology, topography, geology and hydraulic conditions change from site to site within the river system, thereby creating a complex network of reaches that ar.......e. a confined and steep valley (V-shaped) is less likely to be used for agricultural production compared to a broad valley. The results are useful to water managers, who seek to identify natural and impacted physical conditions in large river systems....... that are dominated by a hierarchy of physical processes. The complexity is further enhanced by local human alteration of the physical structure, natural processes and alteration of the riparian areas. The aim of the study was to analyse variations in land use and riparian characteristics along small Danish streams...... and to determine the effect of channelisation on physical habitats. Physical stream characteristics were measured in 149 stream small and medium sized Danish streams (catchment area: 0.1 to 67.2 km2). The measured physical parameters included discharge, stream slope, width, depth, current velocity, substrata...

Evidence for the persistence of food web structure after amphibian extirpation in a Neotropical stream.

Science.gov (United States)

Barnum, Thomas R; Drake, John M; Colón-Gaud, Checo; Rugenski, Amanda T; Frauendorf, Therese C; Connelly, Scott; Kilham, Susan S; Whiles, Matt R; Lips, Karen R; Pringle, Catherine M

2015-08-01

Species losses are predicted to simplify food web structure, and disease-driven amphibian declines in Central America offer an opportunity to test this prediction. Assessment of insect community composition, combined with gut content analyses, was used to generate periphyton-insect food webs for a Panamanian stream, both pre- and post-amphibian decline. We then used network analysis to assess the effects of amphibian declines on food web structure. Although 48% of consumer taxa, including many insect taxa, were lost between pre- and post-amphibian decline sampling dates, connectance declined by less than 3%. We then quantified the resilience of food web structure by calculating the number of expected cascading extirpations from the loss of tadpoles. This analysis showed the expected effects of species loss on connectance and linkage density to be more than 60% and 40%, respectively, than were actually observed. Instead, new trophic linkages in the post-decline food web reorganized the food web topology, changing the identity of "hub" taxa, and consequently reducing the effects of amphibian declines on many food web attributes. Resilience of food web attributes was driven by a combination of changes in consumer diets, particularly those of insect predators, as well as the appearance of generalist insect consumers, suggesting that food web structure is maintained by factors independent of the original trophic linkages.

The overlapping community structure of structural brain network in young healthy individuals.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kai Wu

2011-05-01

Full Text Available Community structure is a universal and significant feature of many complex networks in biology, society, and economics. Community structure has also been revealed in human brain structural and functional networks in previous studies. However, communities overlap and share many edges and nodes. Uncovering the overlapping community structure of complex networks remains largely unknown in human brain networks. Here, using regional gray matter volume, we investigated the structural brain network among 90 brain regions (according to a predefined anatomical atlas in 462 young, healthy individuals. Overlapped nodes between communities were defined by assuming that nodes (brain regions can belong to more than one community. We demonstrated that 90 brain regions were organized into 5 overlapping communities associated with several well-known brain systems, such as the auditory/language, visuospatial, emotion, decision-making, social, control of action, memory/learning, and visual systems. The overlapped nodes were mostly involved in an inferior-posterior pattern and were primarily related to auditory and visual perception. The overlapped nodes were mainly attributed to brain regions with higher node degrees and nodal efficiency and played a pivotal role in the flow of information through the structural brain network. Our results revealed fuzzy boundaries between communities by identifying overlapped nodes and provided new insights into the understanding of the relationship between the structure and function of the human brain. This study provides the first report of the overlapping community structure of the structural network of the human brain.

Urban development results in stressors that degrade stream ecosystems

Science.gov (United States)

Bell, Amanda H.; Coles, James F.; McMahon, Gerard; Woodside, Michael D.

2012-01-01

In 2003, eighty-three percent of Americans lived in metropolitan areas, and considerable population increases are predicted within the next 50 years. Nowhere are the environmental changes associated with urban development more evident than in urban streams. Contaminants, habitat destruction, and increasing streamflow flashiness resulting from urban development have been associated with the disruption of biological communities, particularly the loss of sensitive aquatic biota. Every stream is connected downstream to other water bodies, and inputs of contaminants and (or) sediments to streams can cause degradation downstream with adverse effects on biological communities and on economically valuable resources, such as fisheries and tourism. Understanding how algal, invertebrate, and fish communities respond to physical and chemical stressors associated with urban development can provide important clues on how multiple stressors may be managed to protect stream health as a watershed becomes increasingly urbanized. This fact sheet highlights selected findings of a comprehensive assessment by the National Water-Quality Assessment Program of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) of the effects of urban development on stream ecosystems in nine metropolitan study areas.

Experiments to study the erosive effect of oxide casting streams on structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stuka, B.; Knauss, H.; Kammerer, B.; Perinic, D.

1992-04-01

The experiments performed under an activity of the Nuclear Safety Project (PSF) make a contribution to the study of the erosive effect of oxide casting streams on structures. As aluminothermically generated oxide casting stream, 20 mm in diameter, was applied from 1.0 m dropping height to 40 mm thick horizontal stainless steel plates in free air atmosphere. The test parameters were different temperatures of preheating of the plates (900 and 1200deg C). By means of thermocouples offset in depth in the plates it was possible to record and represent the temperature distribution in the plate correlated with time. Regarding the direct erosive effect of an oxide casting stream as a function of the temperature of plate preheating it appeared that a high initial temperature of the stainless steel plate (1200deg C) causes an increased erosion area at the surface only, but does not exert a macroscopically visible influence on erosion depth. (orig.) [de

Afforestation alters community structure of soil fungi.

Science.gov (United States)

Carson, Jennifer K; Gleeson, Deirdre B; Clipson, Nicholas; Murphy, Daniel V

2010-07-01

Relatively little is known about the effect of afforestation on soil fungal communities. This study demonstrated that afforestation altered fungal community structure and that changes were correlated to pools of soil C. Pasture at three locations on the same soil type was afforested with Eucalyptus globulus or Pinus pinaster. The structure of fungal communities under the three land uses was measured after 13y using automated ribosomal intergenic spacer analysis (ARISA). Afforestation significantly altered the structure of fungal communities. The effect of location on the structure of fungal communities was limited to pasture soils; although these contained the same plant species, the relative composition of each species varied between locations. Differences in the structure of fungal communities between pasture, E. globulus and P. pinaster were significantly correlated with changes in the amount of total organic C and microbial biomass-C in soil. Afforestation of patches of agricultural land may contribute to conserving soil fungi in agricultural landscapes by supporting fungal communities with different composition to agricultural soils. Copyright © 2010 The British Mycological Society. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Volunteer stream monitoring: Do the data quality and monitoring experience support increased community involvement in freshwater decision making?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Richard G. Storey

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Recent freshwater policy reforms in New Zealand promote increased community involvement in freshwater decision making and management. Involving community members in scientific monitoring increases both their knowledge and their ability to discuss this knowledge with professionals, potentially increasing their influence in decision-making processes. However, these interactions rarely occur because, in particular, of perceptions that volunteer-collected data are unreliable. We assessed the agreement between volunteer (community group and local government (regional council data at nine stream sites across New Zealand. Over 18 months, community groups and regional council staff monitored, in parallel, a common set of water quality variables, physical habitat, periphyton and benthic macroinvertebrates that are routinely used by regional councils for statutory state of environment reporting. Community groups achieved close agreement (correlations ≥ 0.89, bias < 1% with regional councils for temperature, electrical conductivity, visual water clarity, and Escherichia coli. For dissolved oxygen, nitrate, and pH, correlations were weaker (0.2, 0.53, and 0.4, respectively. Volunteer assessments of physical habitat were as consistent over time as those of councils. For visual assessments of thick periphyton growths (% streambed cover, volunteers achieved a correlation of 0.93 and bias of 0.1% relative to councils. And for a macroinvertebrate biotic index that indicates water and habitat quality, correlation was 0.88, bias was < 5%, and the average difference was 12% of the index score. Volunteers showed increased awareness of local freshwaters, understanding of stream ecosystems, and attentiveness to local and national freshwater issues. Most volunteers had shared their knowledge and interest with others in their community. Most groups had developed relationships with their regional council, and some volunteers became more interested in engaging in

Isolating the impact of sediment toxicity in urban streams

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Marshall, Stephen; Pettigrove, Vincent; Carew, Melissa; Hoffmann, Ary

2010-01-01

Several factors can contribute to the ecological degradation of stream catchments following urbanization, but it is often difficult to separate their relative importance. We isolated the impact of polluted sediment on the condition of an urban stream in Melbourne, Australia, using two complementary approaches. Using a rapid bioassessment approach, indices of stream condition were calculated based on macroinvertebrate field surveys. Urban stream reaches supported impoverished macroinvertebrate communities, and contained potentially toxic concentrations of heavy metals and hydrocarbons. Using a field microcosm approach, a bioassay was carried out to assess sediment pollution effects on native macroinvertebrates. Sediment from urban sites substantially altered the microcosm macroinvertebrate community, most likely due to elevated heavy metal and hydrocarbon concentrations. Macroinvertebrate surveys combined with a bioassay approach based on field microcosms can help isolate the effect of stream pollutants in degraded ecosystems. - Field microcosms isolate the ecological impact of polluted sediment in an urban stream.

Epidemic spreading on complex networks with community structures

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Stegehuis, C.; van der Hofstad, R.W.; van Leeuwaarden, J.S.H.

2016-01-01

Many real-world networks display a community structure. We study two random graph models that create a network with similar community structure as a given network. One model preserves the exact community structure of the original network, while the other model only preserves the set of communities

Comparative metagenome of a stream impacted by the urbanization phenomenon

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Julliane Dutra Medeiros

Full Text Available Abstract Rivers and streams are important reservoirs of freshwater for human consumption. These ecosystems are threatened by increasing urbanization, because raw sewage discharged into them alters their nutrient content and may affect the composition of their microbial community. In the present study, we investigate the taxonomic and functional profile of the microbial community in an urban lotic environment. Samples of running water were collected at two points in the São Pedro stream: an upstream preserved and non-urbanized area, and a polluted urbanized area with discharged sewage. The metagenomic DNA was sequenced by pyrosequencing. Differences were observed in the community composition at the two sites. The non-urbanized area was overrepresented by genera of ubiquitous microbes that act in the maintenance of environments. In contrast, the urbanized metagenome was rich in genera pathogenic to humans. The functional profile indicated that the microbes act on the metabolism of methane, nitrogen and sulfur, especially in the urbanized area. It was also found that virulence/defense (antibiotic resistance and metal resistance and stress response-related genes were disseminated in the urbanized environment. The structure of the microbial community was altered by uncontrolled anthropic interference, highlighting the selective pressure imposed by high loads of urban sewage discharged into freshwater environments.

ANOTHER LOOK AT THE EASTERN BANDED STRUCTURE: A STELLAR DEBRIS STREAM AND A POSSIBLE PROGENITOR

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Grillmair, C. J.

2011-01-01

Using the Sloan Digital Sky Survey Data Release 7, we re-examine the Eastern Banded Structure (EBS), a stellar debris stream first discovered in Data Release 5 and more recently detected in velocity space by Schlaufman et al. The visible portion of the stream is 18 0 long, lying roughly in the Galactic Anticenter direction and extending from Hydra to Cancer. At an estimated distance of 9.7 kpc, the stream is ∼170 pc across on the sky. The curvature of the stream implies a fairly eccentric box orbit that passes close to both the Galactic center and to the Sun, making it dynamically distinct from the nearby Monoceros, Anticenter, and GD-1 streams. Within the stream is a relatively strong, 2 0 -wide concentration of stars with a very similar color-magnitude distribution that we designate Hydra I. Given its prominence within the stream and its unusual morphology, we suggest that Hydra I is the last vestige of EBS's progenitor, possibly already unbound or in the final throes of tidal dissolution. Though both Hydra I and the EBS have a relatively high-velocity dispersion, given the comparatively narrow width of the stream and the high frequency of encounters with the bulge and massive constituents of the disk that such an eccentric orbit would entail, we suggest that the progenitor was likely a globular cluster and that both it and the stream have undergone significant heating over time.

Detecting the impact of bank and channel modification on invertebrate communities in Mediterranean temporary streams (Sardinia, SW Italy).

Science.gov (United States)

Buffagni, Andrea; Tenchini, Roberta; Cazzola, Marcello; Erba, Stefania; Balestrini, Raffaella; Belfiore, Carlo; Pagnotta, Romano

2016-09-15

We hypothesized that reach-scale, bank and channel modification would impact benthic communities in temporary rivers of Sardinia, when pollution and water abstraction are not relevant. A range of variables were considered, which include both artificial structures/alterations and natural features observed in a stream reach. Multivariate regression trees (MRT) were used to assess the effects of the explanatory variables on invertebrate assemblages and five groups, characterized by different habitat modification and/or features, were recognized. Four node variables determined the splits in the MRT analysis: channel reinforcement, tree-related bank and channel habitats, channel modification and bank modification. Continuity of trees in the river corridor diverged among MRT groups and significant differences among groups include presence of alders, extent of channel shading and substrate diversity. Also, the percentage of in-stream organic substrates, in particular CPOM/Xylal, showed highly significant differences among groups. For practical applications, thresholds for the extent of channel reinforcement (40%) and modification (10%) and for bank alteration (≈30%) were provided, that can be used to guide the implementation of restoration measures. In moderately altered river reaches, a significant extent of tree-related habitats (≈5%) can noticeably mitigate the effects of morphological alteration on aquatic invertebrates. The outcomes highlight the importance of riparian zone management as an opportune, achievable prospect in the restoration of Mediterranean temporary streams. The impact of bank and channel modification on ecological status (sensu WFD) was investigated and the tested benthic metrics, especially those based on abundance data, showed legible differences among MRT groups. Finally, bank and channel modification appears to be a potential threat for the conservation of a few Sardo-Corsican endemic species. The introduction of management criteria that

National Institutes of Health: Mixed waste stream analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kirner, N.P.; Faison, G.P.; Johnson, D.R.

1994-08-01

The Low-Level Radioactive Waste Policy Amendments Act of 1985 requires that the US Department of Energy (DOE) provide technical assistance to host States, compact regions, and unaffiliated States to fulfill their responsibilities under the Act. The National Low-Level Waste Management Program (NLLWMP) operated for DOE by EG ampersand G Idaho, Inc. provides technical assistance in the development of new commercial low-level radioactive waste disposal capacity. The NLLWMP has been requested by the Appalachian Compact to help the biomedical community become better acquainted with its mixed waste streams, to help minimize the mixed waste streams generated by the biomedical community, and to provide applicable treatment technologies to those particular mixed waste streams. Mixed waste is waste that satisfies the definition of low-level radioactive waste (LLW) in the Low-Level Radioactive Waste Policy Act of 1980 (LLRWPA) and contains hazardous waste that either (a) is listed as a hazardous waste in Subpart D of 40 CFR 261, or (b) causes the LLW to exhibit any of the hazardous waste characteristics identified in 40 CFR 261. The purpose of this report is to clearly define and characterize the mixed waste streams generated by the biomedical community so that an identification can be made of the waste streams that can and cannot be minimized and treated by current options. An understanding of the processes and complexities of generation of mixed waste in the biomedical community may encourage more treatment and storage options to become available

Isonychia spp. and macroinvertebrate community responses to stressors in streams utilizing the benthic in situ toxicity identification evaluation (BiTIE) method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Custer, Kevin W.; Burton, G. Allen

2008-01-01

Exposures of caged organisms in situ have proven to be a useful way to improve exposure realism and link to stressor effects in aquatic assessments of hazard or risk. A novel cage system, the benthic in situ toxicity identification evaluation (BiTIE), was developed for benthic macroinvertebrates (surrogate species, resident populations and communities) to separate low and high flow effects, and major chemical classes of stressors in streams. Three resin types were used to separate the chemical stressors in the streams Honey Creek and Little Beavercreek, Ohio, USA: Dowex TM Optipore TM (non-polar organics), zeolite (ammonia), and polywool (control). Isonychia spp. sensitivity was compared to Chironomus tentans, and no significant differences were found (p > 0.05). Isonychia spp. growth (length) showed a stressor response in the zeolite treatments, and community testing revealed improved metric responses in the Dowex TM treatments. The BiTIE chamber system demonstrated stressor-response relationships using sublethal and multimetric endpoints. - Use of an indigenous aquatic insect and benthic macroinvertebrate communities allows for discerning the stressors in low and high flows with an in situ TIE approach

Ecological distribution of stream macroalgal communities from a drainage basin in the Serra da Canastra National Park, Minas Gerais, Southeastern Brazil

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Necchi-Júnior O.

2003-01-01

Full Text Available Twelve stream segments were sampled four times in 1998-1999 (one sampling per season in the drainage basin of the upper São Francisco River (19º45'-21º25'S, 49º05'-51º30'W, situated in Serra da Canastra National Park, at altitudes ranging from 1,175 to 1,400 m. The macroalgae survey resulted in 30 species, with a predominance of Cyanophyta (12 species = 40% and Chlorophyta (11 species = 36.5% and a lower proportion of Rhodophyta (seven species = 23.5%. Two species, Klebsormidium rivulare (Chlorophyta and Kyliniella latvica (Rhodophyta, were new records for Brazil. Capsosira sp. and Stigonema sp. (Cyanophyta and the "Chantransia" stage of Batrachospermum (Rhodophyta were the most widespread macroalgae, occurring in six sampling sites, whereas 11 species were found at only one site. The proportion of macroalgal morphological types were as follows: mats (33%, free filaments (27%, gelatinous filaments (27%, crusts (7%, tufts (3%, and gelatinous colonies (3%. The flora revealed few species in common (4%-8% with stream macroalgae from other Brazilian regions. The macroalgal communities proved to have species richness values close to the highest values reported in previous studies. The patterns typical for stream macroalgal communities (patchy distribution and dominance of few species were also found in this basin. However, the stream variables most influential in macroalgal distribution in this study (rocky substratum, low pH, high COD, water color, and current velocity were essentially the same that best describe the limnological characteristics of this lotic ecosystem. In addition, this combination of variables differed sharply from results of previous studies in other Brazilian stream ecosystems.

The Pacific northwest stream quality assessment

Science.gov (United States)

Van Metre, Peter C.; Morace, Jennifer L.; Sheibley, Rich W.

2015-01-01

In 2015, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) program is assessing stream quality in the Pacific Northwest. The goals of the Pacific Northwest Stream Quality Assessment (Pacific Northwest study) are to assess the quality of streams in the region by characterizing multiple water-quality factors that are stressors to aquatic life and to evaluate the relation between these stressors and biological communities. The effects of urbanization and agriculture on stream quality for the Puget Lowlands and Willamette Valley are the focus of this regional study. Findings will provide the public and policymakers with information regarding which human and environmental factors are the most critical in affecting stream quality and, thus, provide insights about possible approaches to protect or improve the health of streams in the region.

Fish complementarity is associated to forests in Amazonian streams

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Carolina Rodrigues Bordignon

Full Text Available The functional structure of communities is commonly measured by the variability in functional traits, which may demonstrate complementarity or redundancy patterns. In this study, we tested the influence of environmental variables on the functional structure of fish assemblages in Amazonian streams within a deforestation gradient. We calculated six ecomorphological traits related to habitat use from each fish species, and used them to calculate the net relatedness index (NRI and the nearest taxon index (NTI. The set of species that used the habitat differently (complementary or overdispersed assemblages occurred in sites with a greater proportion of forests. The set of species that used the habitat in a similar way (redundant or clustered assemblages occurred in sites with a greater proportion of grasses in the stream banks. Therefore, the deforestation of entire watersheds, which has occurred in many Amazonian regions, may be a central factor for the functional homogenization of fish fauna.

Detrital microbial community development and phosphorus dynamics in a stream ecosystem

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Perkins, R.E.; Elwood, J.W.; Sayler, G.S.

1986-06-01

Detrital microbial community development and phosphorus dynamics in a lotic system were investigated in non-recirculating laboratory streams contains leaf detritus. Temporal patterns of microbial colonization, as determined by scanning electron microscopy, indicate leaf species dependency and that bacteria were the first colonizers followed by fungi. An extensive glycocalyx layer developed. Phosphorus incorporation rates of both the whole community and intracellular components were determined by time-course measurements of 33 PO 4 or 32 PO 4 . Phosphorus turnover rates were determined by a sequential double-labeling procedure using 33 PO 4 and 32 PO 4 , in which the microbiota were labeled with 33 P until in isotopic equilibrium, then 32 P was added. The turnover rate was determined by time-course measurements of the ratio 32 P to 33 P. Snail grazing resulted in an increase in phosphorus metabolism per unit microbial biomass; however, per unit area of leaf surface no increase was observed. Grazing also caused a two-fold reduction in microbial biomass. The results indicate that microbiota associated with decomposing leaves slowly recycle phosphorus, are slowly growing, and have a low metabolic activity. The spiraling length is shortened by microbiota on a short-term basis; however, it may increase on a long-term basis due to hydrological transport of detritus downstream

Functional differentiation between fish assemblages from forested and deforested streams

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Fabrício Barreto Teresa

Full Text Available We tested the hypothesis that streams in deforested areas shelter different fish communities to nearby forested areas, and that these disparities are due to environmental parameters that limit or benefit different species according to their functional traits. We compared the community composition of three south east Brazilian streams flanked by riparian forest with three nearby streams in deforested areas. The following functional traits were considered: diet, habitat use, water flow preference, size, and hypoxia tolerance. Differentiation between forested and deforested streams corresponded with the different contributions of three functional groups. Species reported in the literature to be hypoxia tolerant, and exhibiting a variable combination of the other traits prevailed in deforested streams, although we did not find substantial differences in oxygen levels between forested and deforested streams. In forested streams, benthic species associated with a high water flow and an insectivorous diet were dominant. Changes in streams induced by deforestation which are associated with habitat availability, food resources, and physicochemical conditions appear to restrict the occurrence of specialized species and instead benefit tolerant generalists.

ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS INFLUENCING THE VEGETATION IN MIDDLE-SIZED STREAMS IN LATVIA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

L. GRINBERGA

2011-04-01

Full Text Available In this study the species diversity and distribution of macrophytes in 131 surveyed sites of middle-sized streams of Latvia were investigated. The aim of the study was to determine the composition of macrophyte vegetation in Latvian streams in relation to the environmental factors (stream width, water depth, substrate type, shading and flow velocity. On the basis of these factors, five major groups of streams were distinguished representing mutually different typical macrophyte communities – (1 fast flowing streams on gravelly and stony substrate, (2 slow flowing streams on gravelly and stony substrate, (3 fast flowing streams on sandy substrate, (4 slow flowing streams on sandy substrate, and (5 streams with soft, silty substrate. Totally, 47 macrophyte taxa were found in the streams. The most common macrophyte species were Nuphar lutea found in 65% of all sites, followed by Sparganium emersum (64%, S. erectum s.l. (48%, Phalaris arundinacea (50%, Alisma plantago-aquatica (54% and Lemna minor (41%. The highest species richness (22 was found in slow flowing streams with gravelly substrate. Species-poor macrophyte communities were characteristic for fast flowing streams on sandy substrate.

ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS INFLUENCING THE VEGETATION IN MIDDLE-SIZED STREAMS IN LATVIA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

L. GRINBERGA

2011-01-01

Full Text Available In this study the species diversity and distribution of macrophytes in 131 surveyed sites of middle-sized streams of Latvia were investigated. The aim of the study was to determine the composition of macrophyte vegetation in Latvian streams in relation to the environmental factors (stream width, water depth, substrate type, shading and flow velocity. On the basis of these factors, five major groups of streams were distinguished representing mutually different typical macrophyte communities – (1 fast flowing streams on gravelly and stony substrate, (2 slow flowing streams on gravelly and stony substrate, (3 fast flowing streams on sandy substrate, (4 slow flowing streams on sandy substrate, and (5 streams with soft, silty substrate. Totally, 47 macrophyte taxa were found in the streams. The most common macrophyte species were Nuphar lutea found in 65% of all sites, followed by Sparganium emersum (64%, S. erectum s.l. (48%, Phalaris arundinacea (50%, Alisma plantago-aquatica (54% and Lemna minor (41%. The highest species richness (22 was found in slow flowing streams with gravelly substrate. Species-poor macrophyte communities were characteristic for fast flowing streams on sandy substrate.

Does Value Stream Mapping affect the structure, process, and outcome quality in care facilities? A systematic review.

Science.gov (United States)

Nowak, Marina; Pfaff, Holger; Karbach, Ute

2017-08-24

Quality improvement within health and social care facilities is needed and has to be evidence-based and patient-centered. Value Stream Mapping, a method of Lean management, aims to increase the patients' value and quality of care by a visualization and quantification of the care process. The aim of this research is to examine the effectiveness of Value Stream Mapping on structure, process, and outcome quality in care facilities. A systematic review is conducted. PubMed, EBSCOhost, including Business Source Complete, Academic Search Complete, PSYCInfo, PSYNDX, SocINDEX with Full Text, Web of Knowledge, and EMBASE ScienceDirect are searched in February 2016. All peer-reviewed papers evaluating Value Stream Mapping and published in English or German from January 2000 are included. For data synthesis, all study results are categorized into Donabedian's model of structure, process, and outcome quality. To assess and interpret the effectiveness of Value Stream Mapping, the frequencies of the results statistically examined are considered. Of the 903 articles retrieved, 22 studies fulfill the inclusion criteria. Of these, 11 studies are used to answer the research question. Value Stream Mapping has positive effects on the time dimension of process and outcome quality. It seems to reduce non-value-added time (e.g., waiting time) and length of stay. All study designs are before and after studies without control, and methodologically sophisticated studies are missing. For a final conclusion about Value Stream Mapping's effectiveness, more research with improved methodology is needed. Despite this lack of evidence, Value Stream Mapping has the potential to improve quality of care on the time dimension. The contextual influence has to be investigated to make conclusions about the relationship between different quality domains when applying Value Stream Mapping. However, for using this review's conclusion, the limitation of including heterogeneous and potentially biased results

Detrital processing in streams exposed to acidic precipitation in the Central Appalachian Mountains

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Meegan, S.K.; Perry, S.A.; Perry, W.B.

1996-01-01

Continuing high rates of acidic deposition in the eastern United States may lead to long-term effects on stream communities, because sensitive catchments are continuing to lose anions and cations. A two-year study of the effects of pH and associated water chemistry variables on detrital processing in three streams with different bedrock geology in the Monongahela National Forest, West Virginia were investigated. Leaf pack processing rates and macroinvertebrate colonization and microbial biomass (ATP concentration) on the packs in the three stream were compared. It was found that macroinvertebrate and microbial communities differed both among streams that differed in their capacity to buffer the effects of acidic precipitation and among years in the same stream; these differences in biotic communities were not large enough to affect rates of leaf processing between the two years of the study, but they did significantly affect processing rates between acidic and circumneutral streams

Stream biofilm responses to flow intermittency: from cells to ecosystems

OpenAIRE

Sergi eSabater; Sergi eSabater; Xisca eTimoner; Carles eBorrego; Carles eBorrego; Vicenç eAcuña

2016-01-01

Temporary streams are characterized by the alternation of dry and wet hydrological phases, creating both a harsh environment for the biota as well as a high diversity of opportunities for adaptation. These systems are eminently microbial-based during several of these hydrological phases, and those growing on all solid substrata (biofilms) accordingly change their physical structure and community composition. Biofilms experience large decreases on cell densities and biomass, both of bacteria a...

Stream Biofilm Responses to Flow Intermittency: From Cells to Ecosystems

OpenAIRE

Sabater, Sergi; Timoner, Xisca; Borrego, Carles; Acuña, Vicenç

2016-01-01

Temporary streams are characterized by the alternation of dry and wet hydrological phases, creating both a harsh environment for the biota as well as a high diversity of opportunities for adaptation. These systems are mainly microbial-based during several of these hydrological phases, and those growing on all solid substrata (biofilms) accordingly change their physical structure and community composition. Biofilms experience large decreases in cell densities and biomass, both of bacteria and ...

Effect of land use on the composition, diversity and abundance of insects drifting in neotropical streams

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

B. C. G. Gimenez

Full Text Available Abstract Streams may exhibit differences in community structure of invertebrate drift, which may be a reflex of variation in environmental factors, able to change in conditions of anthropogenic interventions. The aim of this study was to analyze the composition, diversity and abundance of insects drifting in two neotropical streams under different land use and to identify the environmental factors involved in determining such patterns. 54 taxa of aquatic insects were identified in urban and rural streams. The results indicated significant differences in species composition due to the replacement of specialist species by generalist species in the urban stream. Higher diversity of taxa was recorded in the rural stream, with high levels of dissolved oxygen and high water flow, which favored the occurrence of sensitive groups to environmental disturbances, such as Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, Trichoptera and Coleoptera taxa, that living mainly in clean and well oxygenated waters. On the other hand, a higher density of insects drifting, especially Chironomidae, was observed in the urban stream, where high values of pH, electrical conductivity and nitrogen were observed. These larvae are able to explore a wide range of environmental conditions, owing to their great capacity for physiological adaptation. Despite observing the expected patterns, there were no significant differences between streams for the diversity and abundance of species. Thus, the species composition can be considered as the best predictor of impacts on the drifting insect community.

Insect community structure and function in Upper Three Runs, Savannah River Site, South Carolina

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Morse, J.C.; English, W.R. [Clemson Univ., SC (United States). Dept. of Entomology; Looney, B.B. [Westinghouse Savannah River Co., Aiken, SC (United States)

1993-07-08

A project to document the insect species in the upper reaches of Upper Three Runs at the Savannah River site was recently completed. This research was supported by the US Department of Energy under the National Environmental Research Park Program. The work was performed by the Department of Entomology at Clemson University in clemson, SC, by John C. Morse (principal investigator), William R. English and their colleagues. The major output from this study was the dissertation of Dr. William R. English entitled ``Ecosystem Dynamics of a South Carolina Sandhills Stream.`` He investigated selected environmental resources and determined their dynamics and the dynamics of the aquatic invertebrate community structure in response to them.

Research on Community Structure in Bus Transport Networks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yang Xuhua; Wang Bo; Sun Youxian

2009-01-01

We abstract the bus transport networks (BTNs) to two kinds of complex networks with space L and space P methods respectively. Using improved community detecting algorithm (PKM agglomerative algorithm), we analyze the community property of two kinds of BTNs graphs. The results show that the BTNs graph described with space L method have obvious community property, but the other kind of BTNs graph described with space P method have not. The reason is that the BTNs graph described with space P method have the intense overlapping community property and general community division algorithms can not identify this kind of community structure. To overcome this problem, we propose a novel community structure called N-depth community and present a corresponding community detecting algorithm, which can detect overlapping community. Applying the novel community structure and detecting algorithm to a BTN evolution model described with space P, whose network property agrees well with real BTNs', we get obvious community property. (general)

Isonychia spp. and macroinvertebrate community responses to stressors in streams utilizing the benthic in situ toxicity identification evaluation (BiTIE) method

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Custer, Kevin W. [Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Wright State University, 127 Allyn Hall, 3640 Colonel Glenn Highway, Dayton, OH 45435 (United States)], E-mail: custer.4@wright.edu; Burton, G. Allen [Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Wright State University, 127 Allyn Hall, 3640 Colonel Glenn Highway, Dayton, OH 45435 (United States)

2008-01-15

Exposures of caged organisms in situ have proven to be a useful way to improve exposure realism and link to stressor effects in aquatic assessments of hazard or risk. A novel cage system, the benthic in situ toxicity identification evaluation (BiTIE), was developed for benthic macroinvertebrates (surrogate species, resident populations and communities) to separate low and high flow effects, and major chemical classes of stressors in streams. Three resin types were used to separate the chemical stressors in the streams Honey Creek and Little Beavercreek, Ohio, USA: Dowex{sup TM} Optipore{sup TM} (non-polar organics), zeolite (ammonia), and polywool (control). Isonychia spp. sensitivity was compared to Chironomus tentans, and no significant differences were found (p > 0.05). Isonychia spp. growth (length) showed a stressor response in the zeolite treatments, and community testing revealed improved metric responses in the Dowex{sup TM} treatments. The BiTIE chamber system demonstrated stressor-response relationships using sublethal and multimetric endpoints. - Use of an indigenous aquatic insect and benthic macroinvertebrate communities allows for discerning the stressors in low and high flows with an in situ TIE approach.

Epidemics in adaptive networks with community structure

Science.gov (United States)

Shaw, Leah; Tunc, Ilker

2010-03-01

Models for epidemic spread on static social networks do not account for changes in individuals' social interactions. Recent studies of adaptive networks have modeled avoidance behavior, as non-infected individuals try to avoid contact with infectives. Such models have not generally included realistic social structure. Here we study epidemic spread on an adaptive network with community structure. We model the effect of heterogeneous communities on infection levels and epidemic extinction. We also show how an epidemic can alter the community structure.

Deforestation and benthic indicators: how much vegetation cover is needed to sustain healthy Andean streams?

Science.gov (United States)

Iñiguez-Armijos, Carlos; Leiva, Adrián; Frede, Hans-Georg; Hampel, Henrietta; Breuer, Lutz

2014-01-01

Deforestation in the tropical Andes is affecting ecological conditions of streams, and determination of how much forest should be retained is a pressing task for conservation, restoration and management strategies. We calculated and analyzed eight benthic metrics (structural, compositional and water quality indices) and a physical-chemical composite index with gradients of vegetation cover to assess the effects of deforestation on macroinvertebrate communities and water quality of 23 streams in southern Ecuadorian Andes. Using a geographical information system (GIS), we quantified vegetation cover at three spatial scales: the entire catchment, the riparian buffer of 30 m width extending the entire stream length, and the local scale defined for a stream reach of 100 m in length and similar buffer width. Macroinvertebrate and water quality metrics had the strongest relationships with vegetation cover at catchment and riparian scales, while vegetation cover did not show any association with the macroinvertebrate metrics at local scale. At catchment scale, the water quality metrics indicate that ecological condition of Andean streams is good when vegetation cover is over 70%. Further, macroinvertebrate community assemblages were more diverse and related in catchments largely covered by native vegetation (>70%). Our results suggest that retaining an important quantity of native vegetation cover within the catchments and a linkage between headwater and riparian forests help to maintain and improve stream biodiversity and water quality in Andean streams affected by deforestation. This research proposes that a strong regulation focused to the management of riparian buffers can be successful when decision making is addressed to conservation/restoration of Andean catchments.

Detrital microbial community development and phosphorus dynamics in a stream ecosystem

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Perkins, R.E.; Elwood, J.W.; Sayler, G.S.

1986-06-01

Detrital microbial community development and phosphorus dynamics in a lotic system were investigated in non-recirculating laboratory streams contains leaf detritus. Temporal patterns of microbial colonization, as determined by scanning electron microscopy, indicate leaf species dependency and that bacteria were the first colonizers followed by fungi. An extensive glycocalyx layer developed. Phosphorus incorporation rates of both the whole community and intracellular components were determined by time-course measurements of /sup 33/PO/sub 4/ or /sup 32/PO/sub 4/. Phosphorus turnover rates were determined by a sequential double-labeling procedure using /sup 33/PO/sub 4/ and /sup 32/PO/sub 4/, in which the microbiota were labeled with /sup 33/P until in isotopic equilibrium, then /sup 32/P was added. The turnover rate was determined by time-course measurements of the ratio /sup 32/P to /sup 33/P. Snail grazing resulted in an increase in phosphorus metabolism per unit microbial biomass; however, per unit area of leaf surface no increase was observed. Grazing also caused a two-fold reduction in microbial biomass. The results indicate that microbiota associated with decomposing leaves slowly recycle phosphorus, are slowly growing, and have a low metabolic activity. The spiraling length is shortened by microbiota on a short-term basis; however, it may increase on a long-term basis due to hydrological transport of detritus downstream.

The Northeast Stream Quality Assessment

Science.gov (United States)

Van Metre, Peter C.; Riva-Murray, Karen; Coles, James F.

2016-04-22

In 2016, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA) is assessing stream quality in the northeastern United States. The goal of the Northeast Stream Quality Assessment (NESQA) is to assess the quality of streams in the region by characterizing multiple water-quality factors that are stressors to aquatic life and evaluating the relation between these stressors and biological communities. The focus of NESQA in 2016 will be on the effects of urbanization and agriculture on stream quality in all or parts of eight states: Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, and Vermont.Findings will provide the public and policymakers with information about the most critical factors affecting stream quality, thus providing insights about possible approaches to protect the health of streams in the region. The NESQA study will be the fourth regional study conducted as part of NAWQA and will be of similar design and scope to the first three, in the Midwest in 2013, the Southeast in 2014, and the Pacific Northwest in 2015 (http://txpub.usgs.gov/RSQA/).

Different cesium-137 transfers to forest and stream ecosystems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sakai, Masaru; Gomi, Takashi; Negishi, Junjiro N.; Iwamoto, Aimu; Okada, Kengo

2016-01-01

Understanding the mechanisms of "1"3"7Cs movement across different ecosystems is crucial for projecting the environmental impact and management of nuclear contamination events. Here, we report differential movement of "1"3"7Cs in adjacent forest and stream ecosystems. The food webs of the forest and stream ecosystems in our study were similar, in that they were both dominated by detrital-based food webs and the basal energy source was terrestrial litter. However, the concentration of "1"3"7Cs in stream litter was significantly lower than in forest litter, the result of "1"3"7Cs leaching from litter in stream water. The difference in "1"3"7Cs concentrations between the two types of litter was reflected in the "1"3"7Cs concentrations in the animal community. While the importance of "1"3"7Cs fallout and the associated transfer to food webs has been well studied, research has been primarily limited to cases in a single ecosystem. Our results indicate that there are differences in the flow of "1"3"7Cs through terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, and that "1"3"7Cs concentrations are reduced in both basal food resources and higher trophic animals in aquatic systems, where primary production is subsidized by a neighboring terrestrial ecosystem. - Highlights: • Detrital-based food web structure was observed in both forest and stream ecosystems. • The "1"3"7Cs concentration in litter was 4 times lower in stream than in forest. • The difference of "1"3"7Cs concentration in litter reflected in animal contamination. • "1"3"7Cs leaching from litter decreases contamination level of stream food web. - Leaching from litter in stream decreases "1"3"7Cs concentration in litter, and the contamination level of food web in stream ecosystem is lower than that in adjacent forest ecosystem.

Water quality in Pearl Harbor and feeder streams during 1971 - 2001 collected primarily by oceanography students from Leeward Community College (NODC Accession 0000590)

Data.gov (United States)

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Department of Commerce — Water quality data were collected in Pearl Harbor and surrounding feeder streams from 30 December 1971 to 24 August 2001. Data were collected by Leeward Community...

A COMPACT HIGH VELOCITY CLOUD NEAR THE MAGELLANIC STREAM: METALLICITY AND SMALL-SCALE STRUCTURE

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kumari, Nimisha [Ecole Polytechnique, Route de Saclay, F-91128 Palaiseau (France); Fox, Andrew J.; Tumlinson, Jason; Thom, Christopher; Ely, Justin [Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD 21218 (United States); Westmeier, Tobias [ICRAR, The University of Western Australia, 35 Stirling Highway, Crawley WA 6009 (Australia)

2015-02-10

The Magellanic Stream (MS) is a well-resolved gaseous tail originating from the Magellanic Clouds. Studies of its physical properties and chemical composition are needed to understand its role in Galactic evolution. We investigate the properties of a compact HVC (CHVC 224.0-83.4-197) lying close on the sky to the MS to determine whether it is physically connected to the Stream and to examine its internal structure. Our study is based on analysis of HST/COS spectra of three QSOs (Ton S210, B0120-28, and B0117-2837) all of which pass through this single cloud at small angular separation (≲0.°72), allowing us to compare physical conditions on small spatial scales. No significant variation is detected in the ionization structure from one part of the cloud to the other. Using Cloudy photoionization models, toward Ton S210 we derive elemental abundances of [C/H] = –1.21 ± 0.11, [Si/H] = –1.16 ± 0.11, [Al/H] = –1.19 ± 0.17, and [O/H] = –1.12 ± 0.22, which agree within 0.09 dex. The CHVC abundances match the 0.1 solar abundances measured along the main body of the Stream. This suggests that the CHVC (and by extension the extended network of filaments to which it belongs) has an origin in the MS. It may represent a fragment that has been removed from the Stream as it interacts with the gaseous Galactic halo.

Reconstructing riverine mesohabitat unit composition using fish community data and an autecology matrix.

Science.gov (United States)

Suen, J P; Su, W C

2010-09-01

This research proposes a simplified method for estimating the mesohabitat composition that would favour members of a given set of aquatic species. The simulated composition of four types of mesohabitat units (deep pool, shallow pool, deep riffle and shallow riffle) could guide the design of in-stream structures in creating pool-riffle systems with ecological reference. Fish community data and an autecology matrix are used to support the development of a stream mesohabitat simulation based on regression models for reaches in mid to upper-order streams. The fish community-mesohabitat model results constitute a reference condition that can be used to guide stream restoration and ecological engineering decisions aimed at maintaining the natural ecological integrity and diversity of rivers. © 2010 The Authors. Journal compilation © 2010 The Fisheries Society of the British Isles.

Finding Community Structures In Social Activity Data

KAUST Repository

Peng, Chengbin

2015-01-01

Social activity data sets are increasing in number and volume. Finding community structure in such data is valuable in many applications. For example, understand- ing the community structure of social networks may reduce the spread of epidemics

Microbial communities of the Lemon Creek Glacier show subtle structural variation yet stable phylogenetic composition over space and time

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cody Springer Sheik

2015-05-01

Full Text Available Glaciers are geologically important yet transient ecosystems that support diverse, biogeochemically significant microbial communities. During the melt season glaciers undergo dramatic physical, geochemical and biological changes that exert great influence on downstream biogeochemical cycles. Thus, we sought to understand the temporal melt-season dynamics of microbial communities and associated geochemistry at the terminus of Lemon Creek Glacier (LCG in coastal southern Alaska. Due to late season snowfall, sampling of LCG occurred in three interconnected areas: proglacial Lake Thomas, the lower glacial outflow stream and the glacier’s terminus. LCG associated microbial communities were phylogenetically diverse and varied by sampling location. However, Betaproteobacteria, Alphaproteobacteria and Bacteroidetes dominated communities at all sampling locations. Strict anaerobic groups such as methanogens, SR1, and OP11 were also recovered from glacier outflows, indicating anoxic conditions in at least some portions of the LCG subglacial environment. Microbial community structure was significantly correlated with sampling location and sodium concentrations. Microbial communities sampled from terminus outflow waters exhibited day-to-day fluctuation in taxonomy and phylogenetic similarity. However, these communities were not significantly different from randomly constructed communities from all three sites. These results indicate that glacial outflows share a large proportion of phylogenetic overlap with downstream environments and that the observed significant shifts in community structure are driven by changes in relative abundance of different taxa, and not complete restructuring of communities. We conclude that LCG glacial discharge hosts a diverse and relatively stable microbiome that shifts at fine taxonomic scales in response to geochemistry and likely water residence time.

New methods for modeling stream temperature using high resolution LiDAR, solar radiation analysis and flow accumulated values to predict stream temperature

Science.gov (United States)

In-stream temperature directly effects a variety of biotic organisms, communities and processes. Changes in stream temperature can render formally suitable habitat unsuitable for aquatic organisms, particularly native cold water species that are not able to adjust. In order to...

Measurement of the Ecological Integrity of Cerrado Streams Using Biological Metrics and the Index of Habitat Integrity

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Deusiano Florêncio dos Reis

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Generally, aquatic communities reflect the effects of anthropogenic changes such as deforestation or organic pollution. The Cerrado stands among the most threatened ecosystems by human activities in Brazil. In order to evaluate the ecological integrity of the streams in a preserved watershed in the Northern Cerrado biome corresponding to a mosaic of ecosystems in transition to the Amazonia biome in Brazil, biological metrics related to diversity, structure, and sensitivity of aquatic macroinvertebrates were calculated. Sampling included collections along stretches of 200 m of nine streams and measurements of abiotic variables (temperature, electrical conductivity, pH, total dissolved solids, dissolved oxygen, and discharge and the Index of Habitat Integrity (HII. The values of the abiotic variables and the HII indicated that most of the streams have good ecological integrity, due to high oxygen levels and low concentrations of dissolved solids and electric conductivity. Two streams showed altered HII scores mainly related to small dams for recreational and domestic use, use of Cerrado natural pasture for cattle raising, and spot deforestation in bathing areas. However, this finding is not reflected in the biological metrics that were used. Considering all nine streams, only two showed satisfactory ecological quality (measured by Biological Monitoring Working Party (BMWP, total richness, and EPT (Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, and Trichoptera richness, only one of which had a low HII score. These results indicate that punctual measures of abiotic parameters do not reveal the long-term impacts of anthropic activities in these streams, including related fire management of pasture that annually alters the vegetation matrix and may act as a disturbance for the macroinvertebrate communities. Due to this, biomonitoring of low order streams in Cerrado ecosystems of the Northern Central Brazil by different biotic metrics and also physical attributes of the

Variable flushing mechanisms and landscape structure control stream DOC export during snowmelt in a set of nested catchments

Science.gov (United States)

Vincent J. Pacific; Kelsey G. Jencso; Brian L. McGlynn

2010-01-01

Stream DOC dynamics during snowmelt have been the focus of much research, and numerous DOC mobilization and delivery mechanisms from riparian and upland areas have been proposed. However, landscape structure controls on DOC export from riparian and upland landscape elements remains poorly understood. We investigated stream and groundwater DOC dynamics across three...

Effects of an Experimental Enrichment of Instream Habitat Heterogeneity on the Stream Bed Morphology and Chironomid Community of a Straightened Section in a Sandy Lowland Stream

Science.gov (United States)

Spänhoff, Bernd; Riss, Wolfgang; Jäkel, Paul; Dakkak, Nadja; Meyer, Elisabeth I.

2006-02-01

A straightened stream stretch with poor habitat heterogeneity was divided into a “control” section with a low amount of submerged woody debris and an experimentally “wood-enriched” downstream section to study the effect of enhanced habitat diversity on the benthic invertebrate community. The downstream section was enriched by fixing 25 wood packages constructed from 9-10 branches on the stream bottom. Succession processes occurring in the two stream sections were compared by chironomid exuviae drift from July to November 2000 and from April to August 2001. During the first sampling period, more drifting chironomid exuviae (medians of control vs. wood-enriched: 446 vs. 331, no significant difference) and total number of taxa (44 vs. 36, Wilcoxon signed-rank test P = 0.019) were recorded for the control section. Although species compositions of both stream sections were highly similar (Sørensen index: 0.83) the diversity in the wood-enriched section was distinctly lower compared to the control section (Shannon-Weaver index: 1.19 vs. 1.50). During the second sampling period, exuviae numbers remained higher in the control section (median: 326 vs. 166), but total numbers of taxa were nearly equal (51 vs. 49), as well as species diversity (Shannon-Weaver index: 1.67 vs. 1.64). The lower chironomid diversity observed during the first sampling period coincided with a gradual but significant change of the streambed morphology in the wood-enriched section. There, the initially more U-shaped profile (V/U = 0.81 ± 0.37) had turned into a pronounced V shape (V/U = 1.14 ± 0.21), whereas the control section retained its unaltered U shape (V/U = 0.62-0.75). This small-scale study on experimental of woody debris in sandy lowland streams showed that the negative impact of increased hydraulic disturbance of the existing streambed more than outweighed any positive impact resulting from the increase in woody debris.

Is the Stream Always Bluer on the Other Side?

Science.gov (United States)

Jenkins, T.; Chase, Z.

2017-12-01

Examining water quality, fish species present, habitat quality, and sources of pollution are important to better understanding the health of a stream. In Florida, the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) works to monitor the health of its streams, and partnerships with . By collecting, analyzing, and comparing fish abundance data from a couple of streams in Escambia County, Florida, we can help FWC determine how to best support and protect stream habitats and fish-species in our Florida community.

Reach-scale land use drives the stress responses of a resident stream fish.

Science.gov (United States)

Blevins, Zachary W; Wahl, David H; Suski, Cory D

2014-01-01

Abstract To date, relatively few studies have tried to determine the practicality of using physiological information to help answer complex ecological questions and assist in conservation actions aimed at improving conditions for fish populations. In this study, the physiological stress responses of fish were evaluated in-stream between agricultural and forested stream reaches to determine whether differences in these responses can be used as tools to evaluate conservation actions. Creek chub Semotilus atromaculatus sampled directly from forested and agricultural stream segments did not show differences in a suite of physiological indicators. When given a thermal challenge in the laboratory, creek chub sampled from cooler forested stream reaches had higher cortisol levels and higher metabolic stress responses to thermal challenge than creek chub collected from warmer and more thermally variable agricultural reaches within the same stream. Despite fish from agricultural and forested stream segments having different primary and secondary stress responses, fish were able to maintain homeostasis of other physiological indicators to thermal challenge. These results demonstrate that local habitat conditions within discrete stream reaches may impact the stress responses of resident fish and provide insight into changes in community structure and the ability of tolerant fish species to persist in agricultural areas.

Biofilm scrubbing for restoration—algae community composition and succession in artificial streams

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Magdalena Mayr

2016-09-01

Full Text Available Photoautotrophic biofilms play a pivotal role in self-purification of rivers. We took advantage of the biofilm’s cleaning capacity by applying artificial stream mesocosms, called algae turf scrubberTM (ATS, to reduce the nutrient load of a highly eutrophicated backwater in Vienna (Austria. Since purification strongly depends on benthic algae on the ATS, we focused on the algae community composition and succession. Estimation of coverage, photographic documentation for micromapping, species identification and pigment analyses were carried out. Already one week after exposition, 20–30 different taxa were recorded, suggesting a rapid colonization of the substrate. In total around 200 taxa were identified, mainly belonging to Chlorophyta, Bacillariophyceae and Cyanoprokaryota. Nonmetric multidimensional scaling implied that season and succession strongly influenced species composition on the ATS and a minimum turnover of 0.28 indicates a development towards a more stable community at the end of experiments. We measured maximum biomass production of ~250 g m−2 in June and August and during a period of 5 months nearly 19 kg ha−1 phosphorus could be removed. ATS systems proved to retain nutrients and produce algae biomass in an environmentally friendly and cost effective way and thus support restoration of highly eutrophicated water bodies.

Shock formation and structure in magnetic reconnection with a streaming flow.

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Liangneng; Ma, Zhiwei; Zhang, Haowei

2017-08-18

The features of magnetic reconnection with a streaming flow have been investigated on the basis of compressible resistive magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) model. The super-Alfvenic streaming flow largely enhances magnetic reconnection. The maximum reconnection rate is almost four times larger with super-Alfvenic streaming flow than sub-Alfvénic streaming flow. In the nonlinear stage, it is found that there is a pair of shocks observed in the inflow region, which are manifested to be slow shocks for sub-Alfvénic streaming flow, and fast shocks for super-Alfvénic streaming flow. The quasi-period oscillation of reconnection rates in the decaying phase for super-Alfvénic streaming flow is resulted from the different drifting velocities of the shock and the X point.

Ecological Study of Periphytic Algal Community of Doodh Ganga and Khansha-Mansha Streams of Yusmarg Forests: A Health Resort of Kashmir Valley, India

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Rafia Rashid

2013-06-01

Full Text Available The present study on Doodh Ganga and Khansha-Mansha streams of Yusmarg forests deals with the general ecological studies on periphytic algal community in terms of species composition and density. During the present investigation the periphytic algal community of Doodh Ganga and Khansha-Mansha streams were represented by 30 taxa which belonged to 4 major classes namely Bacillariophyceae (14, Chlorophyceae (11, Cyanophyceae (4 and Euglenophyceae (1. The most common periphytic species encountered across all the sites included Closterium sp., Zygnema sp., Amphora sp., Cymbella sp., Epithemia sp., Fragilaria sp., Navicula sp., Synedra sp., Tabellaria sp., Lyngbya sp. and Phormidium sp. Among the two streams, Doodh Ganga showed large number of taxa (45 and Khansha-Mansha was having 37 taxa of periphyton. Bacillariophyceae was the dominant group both in diversity and density and included 14 taxa contributing 57% of total periphytic algal population. Cyanophyceae forming the second dominant class was represented by 4 genera comprising 22% of the total periphytic algae .Chlorophyceae ranked third in its dominance pattern with 11 genera forming 20% of all the periphytic algae. Euglenophyceae was represented by only one species of Euglena sp. forming 1% of all the periphytic algae and found only at site 2 (Doodh Ganga downstream.Amongst the study sites the highest (5.69 value of Shannon Weiner Index was found at Doodh Ganga upstream while as lowest (4.38 at Khansha-Mansha downstream. The primary conclusion is that the streams, having crystal clear water, and are free from pollution as Chlorophyceae are better represented in both the streams. Further, as a result of less anthropogenic pressures the quality of water is fairly good.

Compliance of secondary production and eco-exergy as indicators of benthic macroinvertebrates assemblages' response to canopy cover conditions in Neotropical headwater streams.

Science.gov (United States)

Linares, Marden Seabra; Callisto, Marcos; Marques, João Carlos

2018-02-01

Riparian vegetation cover influences benthic assemblages structure and functioning in headwater streams, as it regulates light availability and autochthonous primary production in these ecosystems.Secondary production, diversity, and exergy-based indicators were applied in capturing how riparian cover influences the structure and functioning of benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages in tropical headwater streams. Four hypotheses were tested: (1) open canopy will determine the occurrence of higher diversity in benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages; (2) streams with open canopy will exhibit more complex benthic macroinvertebrate communities (in terms of information embedded in the organisms' biomass); (3) in streams with open canopy benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages will be more efficient in using the available resources to build structure, which will be reflected by higher eco-exergy values; (4) benthic assemblages in streams with open canopy will exhibit more secondary productivity. We selected eight non-impacted headwater streams, four shaded and four with open canopy, all located in the Neotropical savannah (Cerrado) of southeastern Brazil. Open canopy streams consistently exhibited significantly higher eco-exergy and instant secondary production values, exemplifying that these streams may support more complex and productive benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages. Nevertheless, diversity indices and specific eco-exergy were not significantly different in shaded and open canopy streams. Since all the studied streams were selected for being considered as non-impacted, this suggests that the potential represented by more available food resources was not used to build a more complex dissipative structure. These results illustrate the role and importance of the canopy cover characteristics on the structure and functioning of benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages in tropical headwater streams, while autochthonous production appears to play a crucial role as food

Headwater biodiversity among different levels of stream habitat hierarchy

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Göthe, Emma; Friberg, Nikolai; Kahlert, Maria

2014-01-01

of a- and b-diversity to y-diversity between two levels of stream habitat hierarchy (catchment and region level). The relationship between species community structure and local environmental factors was also assessed. Our results show that both a- and b-diversity made a significant contribution to y......-diversity. b-diversity remained relatively constant between the two levels of habitat hierarchy even though local environmental control of the biota decreased from the catchment to the region level. To capture most of headwater y-diversity, management should therefore target sites that are locally diverse......, but at the same time select sites so that b-diversity is maximized. As environmental control of the biota peaked at the catchment level, the conservation of headwater stream diversity is likely to be most effective when management targets environmental conditions across multiple local sites within relatively...

Association rule extraction from XML stream data for wireless sensor networks.

Science.gov (United States)

Paik, Juryon; Nam, Junghyun; Kim, Ung Mo; Won, Dongho

2014-07-18

With the advances of wireless sensor networks, they yield massive volumes of disparate, dynamic and geographically-distributed and heterogeneous data. The data mining community has attempted to extract knowledge from the huge amount of data that they generate. However, previous mining work in WSNs has focused on supporting simple relational data structures, like one table per network, while there is a need for more complex data structures. This deficiency motivates XML, which is the current de facto format for the data exchange and modeling of a wide variety of data sources over the web, to be used in WSNs in order to encourage the interchangeability of heterogeneous types of sensors and systems. However, mining XML data for WSNs has two challenging issues: one is the endless data flow; and the other is the complex tree structure. In this paper, we present several new definitions and techniques related to association rule mining over XML data streams in WSNs. To the best of our knowledge, this work provides the first approach to mining XML stream data that generates frequent tree items without any redundancy.

Flume experiments on scour downstream of wood stream restoration structures

Science.gov (United States)

Pagliara, Stefano; Kurdistani, Sahameddin Mahmoudi

2017-02-01

River restoration aims to improve physical natural form and processes of a river. Techniques to control the riverbed, stabilize channel alignment, protect stream banks, and rebuild the natural habitat are an important part of river restoration projects. Rivers can be stabilized and habitat restored through techniques such as rebuilding meanders and pool-riffle sequences and managing large wood. Structures that limit channel width to accelerate the normal flows through the constricted section are referred to as stream deflectors. Single-wing, double-wing and triangular deflectors are the most commonly used types of this measure. Log-frame deflectors consist of a triangular log frame filled with rock. Deflector constructions singly or in series in low gradient meandering streams, divert base flows toward the center of the channel and, under certain conditions, increase the depth and velocity of flow thereby creating scour pools and enhancing fish habitat. Scour characteristics and morphologies downstream of log-frame deflectors have been analyzed at the hydraulic laboratory of the University of Pisa. All experiments have been carried out in clear water conditions. The results showed that the tailwater depth plays an important role on scour characteristics. In addition, it was experimentally proven that using log-frame deflectors instead of log-deflectors result in a better river bank protection. In this case, for all the tested hydraulic conditions, the scour hole never occurred close to the channel bank. Useful empirical relationships have been proposed in order to evaluate the main features of the scour geometry.

An Investigation of the Fine Spatial Structure of Meteor Streams Using the Relational Database ``Meteor''

Science.gov (United States)

Karpov, A. V.; Yumagulov, E. Z.

2003-05-01

We have restored and ordered the archive of meteor observations carried out with a meteor radar complex ``KGU-M5'' since 1986. A relational database has been formed under the control of the Database Management System (DBMS) Oracle 8. We also improved and tested a statistical method for studying the fine spatial structure of meteor streams with allowance for the specific features of application of the DBMS. Statistical analysis of the results of observations made it possible to obtain information about the substance distribution in the Quadrantid, Geminid, and Perseid meteor streams.

Effects of land use, stream habitat, and water quality on biological communities of wadeable streams in the Illinois River Basin of Arkansas, 2011 and 2012

Science.gov (United States)

Petersen, James C.; Justus, B.G.; Meredith, Bradley J.

2014-01-01

The Illinois River Basin includes an area of diverse land use in northwestern Arkansas. Land-use data collected in 2006 indicate that most of the land in the basin is agricultural. The agricultural land is used primarily for production of poultry and cattle. Eighteen sites were selected from the list of candidate sites based on drainage area, land use, presence or absence of an upstream wastewater-treatment plant, water quality, and other information gathered during the reconnaissance. An important consideration in the process was to select sites along gradients of forest to urban land use and forest to agricultural land use. Water-quality samples were collected for analysis of nutrients, and a multiparameter field meter was used to measure water temperature, specific conductance, pH, and dissolved oxygen. Streamflow was measured immediately following the water-quality sampling. Macroalgae coverage was estimated and periphyton, macroinvertebrate, and fish communities were sampled at each site. Stream habitat also was assessed. Many types of land-use, water-quality, and habitat factors affected one or more aspects of the biological communities. Several macroinvertebrate and fish metrics changed in response to changes in percent forest; sites that would be considered most disturbed, based on these metrics, are sites with the highest percentages of urban land use in their associated basins. The presence of large mats of macroalgae was one of the most noticeable biological characteristics in several streams within the Illinois River Basin. The highest macroalgae percent cover values were recorded at four sites downstream from wastewater-treatment plants. Macroalgae percent cover was strongly correlated only with bed substrate size, canopy closure, and specific conductance. Periphyton metrics were most often and most strongly correlated with riparian shading, specific conductance, substrate turbidity, percent agriculture, poultry house density, and unpaved road density

Similarity between community structures of different online social networks and its impact on underlying community detection

Science.gov (United States)

Fan, W.; Yeung, K. H.

2015-03-01

As social networking services are popular, many people may register in more than one online social network. In this paper we study a set of users who have accounts of three online social networks: namely Foursquare, Facebook and Twitter. Community structure of this set of users may be reflected in these three online social networks. Therefore, high correlation between these reflections and the underlying community structure may be observed. In this work, community structures are detected in all three online social networks. Also, we investigate the similarity level of community structures across different networks. It is found that they show strong correlation with each other. The similarity between different networks may be helpful to find a community structure close to the underlying one. To verify this, we propose a method to increase the weights of some connections in networks. With this method, new networks are generated to assist community detection. By doing this, value of modularity can be improved and the new community structure match network's natural structure better. In this paper we also show that the detected community structures of online social networks are correlated with users' locations which are identified on Foursquare. This information may also be useful for underlying community detection.

Alignment data streams for the ATLAS inner detector

CERN Document Server

Pinto, B; Pereira, P; Elsing, M; Hawkings, R; Schieck, J; García, S; Schaffer, A; Ma, H; Anjos, A

2008-01-01

The ATLAS experiment uses a complex trigger strategy to be able to reduce the Event Filter rate output, down to a level that allows the storage and processing of these data. These concepts are described in the ATLAS Computing Model which embraces Grid paradigm. The output coming from the Event Filter consists of four main streams: physical stream, express stream, calibration stream, and diagnostic stream. The calibration stream will be transferred to the Tier-0 facilities that will provide the prompt reconstruction of this stream with a minimum latency of 8 hours, producing calibration constants of sufficient quality to allow a first-pass processing. The Inner Detector community is developing and testing an independent common calibration stream selected at the Event Filter after track reconstruction. It is composed of raw data, in byte-stream format, contained in Readout Buffers (ROBs) with hit information of the selected tracks, and it will be used to derive and update a set of calibration and alignment cons...

Diel variation in the structure of fish assemblages in south western Amazon streams

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Igor David da Costa

Full Text Available Abstract: Aim We investigate the influence of luminosity, habitat conservation and pluviometric periods in fish assemblages of in pasture and forest small streams in western amazon. Methods Sampling was conducted every two months from July 2013 to April 2014 in nine first- and second-order streams using seine nets and dip nets during the day and night. Fish composition, richness and total abundance were determined for each sampling period. The PERMANOVA was used to evaluate the effects of land use, season, and photoperiod, on fish assemblages. Fish assemblage structure for each stream in the presence and absence of photoperiod was ordered by NMDS analysis. Results In the light period, 3,484 specimens from 69 species were collected, while 4,574 specimens from 71 species where collected in the dark period. No significant differences in abundance and species richness were recorded between the presence and absence of luminosity periods, rainy and dry seasons and streams in forest and deforested areas. We found evidence of the dark phase composition and richness of exclusive species (22% of species collected were found at night, which were greater than in the light period (20% of species. Conclusion Despite our failure to identify any nycterohemeral segregation, the results complement existing knowledge of regional ichthyofauna and help provide a better understanding of the distributional, behavioral and functional ecological patterns of fish assemblages.

Enhancing community detection by using local structural information

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xiang, Ju; Bao, Mei-Hua; Tang, Liang; Li, Jian-Ming; Hu, Ke; Chen, Benyan; Hu, Jing-Bo; Zhang, Yan; Tang, Yan-Ni; Gao, Yuan-Yuan

2016-01-01

Many real-world networks, such as gene networks, protein–protein interaction networks and metabolic networks, exhibit community structures, meaning the existence of groups of densely connected vertices in the networks. Many local similarity measures in the networks are closely related to the concept of the community structures, and may have a positive effect on community detection in the networks. Here, various local similarity measures are used to extract local structural information, which is then applied to community detection in the networks by using the edge-reweighting strategy. The effect of the local similarity measures on community detection is carefully investigated and compared in various networks. The experimental results show that the local similarity measures are crucial for the improvement of community detection methods, while the positive effect of the local similarity measures is closely related to the networks under study and applied community detection methods. (paper: interdisciplinary statistical mechanics)

Interactive effects of temperature and habitat complexity on freshwater communities.

Science.gov (United States)

Scrine, Jennifer; Jochum, Malte; Ólafsson, Jón S; O'Gorman, Eoin J

2017-11-01

Warming can lead to increased growth of plants or algae at the base of the food web, which may increase the overall complexity of habitat available for other organisms. Temperature and habitat complexity have both been shown to alter the structure and functioning of communities, but they may also have interactive effects, for example, if the shade provided by additional habitat negates the positive effect of temperature on understory plant or algal growth. This study explored the interactive effects of these two major environmental factors in a manipulative field experiment, by assessing changes in ecosystem functioning (primary production and decomposition) and community structure in the presence and absence of artificial plants along a natural stream temperature gradient of 5-18°C. There was no effect of temperature or habitat complexity on benthic primary production, but epiphytic production increased with temperature in the more complex habitat. Cellulose decomposition rate increased with temperature, but was unaffected by habitat complexity. Macroinvertebrate communities were less similar to each other as temperature increased, while habitat complexity only altered community composition in the coldest streams. There was also an overall increase in macroinvertebrate abundance, body mass, and biomass in the warmest streams, driven by increasing dominance of snails and blackfly larvae. Presence of habitat complexity, however, dampened the strength of this temperature effect on the abundance of macroinvertebrates in the benthos. The interactive effects that were observed suggest that habitat complexity can modify the effects of temperature on important ecosystem functions and community structure, which may alter energy flow through the food web. Given that warming is likely to increase habitat complexity, particularly at higher latitudes, more studies should investigate these two major environmental factors in combination to improve our ability to predict the

Investigation of water quality and aquatic-community structure in Village and Valley Creeks, City of Birmingham, Jefferson County, Alabama, 2000-01

Science.gov (United States)

McPherson, Ann K.; Abrahamsen, Thomas A.; Journey, Celeste A.

2002-01-01

The U.S. Geological Survey conducted a 16-month investigation of water quality, aquatic-community structure, bed sediment, and fish tissue in Village and Valley Creeks, two urban streams that drain areas of highly intensive residential, commercial, and industrial land use in Birmingham, Alabama. Water-quality data were collected between February 2000 and March 2001 at four sites on Village Creek, three sites on Valley Creek, and at two reference sites near Birmingham?Fivemile Creek and Little Cahaba River, both of which drain less-urbanized areas. Stream samples were analyzed for major ions, nutrients, fecal bacteria, trace and major elements, pesticides, and selected organic constituents. Bed-sediment and fish-tissue samples were analyzed for trace and major elements, pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls, and additional organic compounds. Aquatic-community structure was evaluated by conducting one survey of the fish community and in-stream habitat and two surveys of the benthic-invertebrate community. Bed-sediment and fish-tissue samples, benthic-invertebrates, and habitat data were collected between June 2000 and October 2000 at six of the nine water-quality sites; fish communities were evaluated in April and May 2001 at the six sites where habitat and benthic-invertebrate data were collected. The occurrence and distribution of chemical constituents in the water column and bed sediment provided an initial assessment of water quality in the streams. The structure of the aquatic communities, the physical condition of the fish, and the chemical analyses of fish tissue provided an indication of the cumulative effects of water quality on the aquatic biota. Water chemistry was similar at all sites, characterized by strong calcium-bicarbonate component and magnesium components. Median concentrations of total nitrogen and total phosphorus were highest at the headwaters of Valley Creek and lowest at the reference site on Fivemile Creek. In Village Creek, median

Long-term survey of heavy-metal pollution, biofilm contamination and diatom community structure in the Riou Mort watershed, South-West France

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Morin, S.; Duong, T.T.; Dabrin, A.; Coynel, A.; Herlory, O.; Baudrimont, M.; Delmas, F.; Durrieu, G.; Schaefer, J.; Winterton, P.; Blanc, G.; Coste, M.

2008-01-01

In a metal-polluted stream in the Riou Mort watershed in SW France, periphytic biofilm was analyzed for diatom cell densities and taxonomic composition, dry weight and metal bio-accumulation (cadmium and zinc). Periphytic diatom communities were affected by the metal but displayed induced tolerance, seen through structural impact (dominance of small, adnate species) as well as morphological abnormalities particularly in the genera Ulnaria and Fragilaria. Species assemblages were characterized by taxa known to occur in metal-polluted environments, and shifts in the community structure expressed seasonal patterns: high numbers of Eolimna minima, Nitzschia palea and Pinnularia parvulissima were recorded in Summer and Autumn, whereas the species Surirella brebissonii, Achnanthidium minutissimum, Navicula lanceolata and Surirella angusta were dominant in Winter and Spring. Commonly used indices such as the Shannon diversity index and Specific Pollution Sensitivity Index reflected the level of pollution and suggest seasonal periodicity, the lowest diversities being observed in Summer. - Periphytic biofilm diatom communities are suitable indicators for the bioassay of elevated levels of metals in contaminated river water

On the structure of the two-stream instability–complex G-Hamiltonian structure and Krein collisions between positive- and negative-action modes

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zhang, Ruili; Liu, Jian; Xiao, Jianyuan [Department of Modern Physics and School of Nuclear Science and Technology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230026 (China); Key Laboratory of Geospace Environment, CAS, Hefei, Anhui 230026 (China); Qin, Hong, E-mail: hongqin@princeton.edu [Plasma Physics Laboratory, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08543 (United States); Department of Modern Physics and School of Nuclear Science and Technology, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui 230026 (China); Davidson, Ronald C. [Plasma Physics Laboratory, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08543 (United States)

2016-07-15

The two-stream instability is probably the most important elementary example of collective instabilities in plasma physics and beam-plasma systems. For a warm plasma with two charged particle species, the instability diagram of the two-stream instability based on a 1D warm-fluid model exhibits an interesting band structure that has not been explained. We show that the band structure for this instability is the consequence of the Hamiltonian nature of the warm two-fluid system. Interestingly, the Hamiltonian nature manifests as a complex G-Hamiltonian structure in wave-number space, which directly determines the instability diagram. Specifically, it is shown that the boundaries between the stable and unstable regions are locations for Krein collisions between eigenmodes with different Krein signatures. In terms of physics, this rigorously implies that the system is destabilized when a positive-action mode resonates with a negative-action mode, and that this is the only mechanism by which the system can be destabilized. It is anticipated that this physical mechanism of destabilization is valid for other collective instabilities in conservative systems in plasma physics, accelerator physics, and fluid dynamics systems, which admit infinite-dimensional Hamiltonian structures.

Biochemical characterization of a new nicotinamidase from an unclassified bacterium thriving in a geothermal water stream microbial mat community

OpenAIRE

Zapata-P?rez, Rub?n; Mart?nez-Mo?ino, Ana-Bel?n; Garc?a-Saura, Antonio-Gin?s; Cabanes, Juana; Takami, Hideto; S?nchez-Ferrer, ?lvaro

2017-01-01

Nicotinamidases are amidohydrolases that convert nicotinamide into nicotinic acid, contributing to NAD+ homeostasis in most organisms. In order to increase the number of nicotinamidases described to date, this manuscript characterizes a nicotinamidase obtained from a metagenomic library fosmid clone (JFF054_F02) obtained from a geothermal water stream microbial mat community in a Japanese epithermal mine. The enzyme showed an optimum temperature of 90?C, making it the first hyperthermophilic ...

Field and laboratory investigations on the effects of road salt (NaCl) on stream macroinvertebrate communities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Blasius, B.J.; Merritt, R.W.

2002-01-01

Short-term exposure to road salt did not significantly affect stream macro-invertebrate communities. - Field and laboratory experiments were conducted to examine the effects of road salt (NaCl) on stream macroinvertebrates. Field studies investigated leaf litter processing rates and functional feeding group composition at locations upstream and downstream from point source salt inputs in two Michigan, USA streams. Laboratory studies determined the effects of increasing NaCl concentrations on aquatic invertebrate drift, behavior, and survival. Field studies revealed that leaves were processed faster at upstream reference sites than at locations downstream from road salt point source inputs. However, it was sediment loading that resulted in partial or complete burial of leaf packs, that affected invertebrate activity and confounded normal leaf pack colonization. There were no significant differences that could be attributed to road salt between upstream and downstream locations in the diversity and composition of invertebrate functional feeding groups. Laboratory drift and acute exposure studies demonstrated that drift of Gammarus (Amphipoda) may be affected by NaCl at concentrations greater than 5000 mg/l for a 24-h period. This amphipod and two species of limnephilid caddisflies exhibited a dose response to salt treatments with 96-h LC 50 values of 7700 and 3526 mg NaCl/l, respectively. Most other invertebrate species and individuals were unaffected by NaCl concentrations up to 10,000 mg/l for 24 and 96 h, respectively

Population structure and condition factor of Pseudotothyris obtusa (hypoptopomatinae from three coastal streams in southern Brazil

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Denise de Freitas Takeuti

1999-01-01

Full Text Available Population structure features and condition factor of Pseudotothyris obtusa were compared between three coastal streams in southern Brazil. Fishes were monthly collected through electric fishing and measured in the total length. Fifteen fishes from each stream were dissected to identify their sex. The structure in size, sex ratio and young/adults ratio of populations were analysed and the length-weight relationship was obtained. The condition factor (K1 and the relative condition factor (Kn were calculated for each stream. Fishes were grouped in 11 lenght classes of 3mm. The intermediate and bigger size classes were preponderant in the "Mergulhão" and "Colônia Pereira" streams, and the smaller and intermediate ones in the "Ribeirão" stream. Females prevailed in bigger size classes, reached bigger lengths than males, and were preponderant in all streams. The condition factors (K1 and Kn were different in all streams, indicating better condition and higher weight values in fishes from the "Mergulhão" and "Colônia Pereira" streams.Características da estrutura da população e o fator de condição de Pseudotothyris obtusa foram comparados em três rios costeiros na região sul do Brasil. Os peixes foram coletados mensalmente através de pesca elétrica e medidos quanto ao comprimento total. Quinze peixes de cada rio foram dissecados e identificados quanto ao sexo. A estrutura da população em tamanho, a proporção sexual e a relação jovem/adultos foram analisadas e foi obtida a relação peso/comprimento. O fator de condição (K1 e o fator de condição relativo (Kn foram calculados em cada rio. Os peixes foram agrupados em 11 classes de comprimento de 3mm. As classes de tamanho maiores e intermediárias foram preponderantes nos rios Mergulhão e Colônia Pereira, e as classes menores e intermediárias no rio Ribeirão. Fêmeas prevaleceram nas maiores classes de comprimento, atingiram maiores comprimentos que os machos, e foram

Mining top-k frequent closed itemsets in data streams using sliding window

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Rehman, Z.; Shahbaz, M.

2013-01-01

Frequent itemset mining has become a popular research area in data mining community since the last few years. T here are two main technical hitches while finding frequent itemsets. First, to provide an appropriate minimum support value to start and user need to tune this minimum support value by running the algorithm again and again. Secondly, generated frequent itemsets are mostly numerous and as a result a number of association rules generated are also very large in numbers. Applications dealing with streaming environment need to process the data received at high rate, therefore, finding frequent itemsets in data streams becomes complex. In this paper, we present an algorithm to mine top-k frequent closed itemsets using sliding window approach from streaming data. We developed a single-pass algorithm to find frequent closed itemsets of length between user's defined minimum and maximum- length. To improve the performance of algorithm and to avoid rescanning of data, we have transformed data into bitmap based tree data structure. (author)

Bacterial community composition and extracellular enzyme activity in temperate streambed sediment during drying and rewetting.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Elisabeth Pohlon

Full Text Available Droughts are among the most important disturbance events for stream ecosystems; they not only affect stream hydrology but also the stream biota. Although desiccation of streams is common in Mediterranean regions, phases of dryness in headwaters have been observed more often and for longer periods in extended temperate regions, including Central Europe, reflecting global climate change and enhanced water withdrawal. The effects of desiccation and rewetting on the bacterial community composition and extracellular enzyme activity, a key process in the carbon flow of streams and rivers, were investigated in a typical Central European stream, the Breitenbach (Hesse, Germany. Wet streambed sediment is an important habitat in streams. It was sampled and exposed in the laboratory to different drying scenarios (fast, intermediate, slow for 13 weeks, followed by rewetting of the sediment from the fast drying scenario via a sediment core perfusion technique for 2 weeks. Bacterial community structure was analyzed using CARD-FISH and TGGE, and extracellular enzyme activity was assessed using fluorogenic model substrates. During desiccation the bacterial community composition shifted toward composition in soil, exhibiting increasing proportions of Actinobacteria and Alphaproteobacteria and decreasing proportions of Bacteroidetes and Betaproteobacteria. Simultaneously the activities of extracellular enzymes decreased, most pronounced with aminopeptidases and less pronounced with enzymes involved in the degradation of polymeric carbohydrates. After rewetting, the general ecosystem functioning, with respect to extracellular enzyme activity, recovered after 10 to 14 days. However, the bacterial community composition had not yet achieved its original composition as in unaffected sediments within this time. Thus, whether the bacterial community eventually recovers completely after these events remains unknown. Perhaps this community undergoes permanent changes

Emergence of structured communities through evolutionary dynamics.

Science.gov (United States)

Shtilerman, Elad; Kessler, David A; Shnerb, Nadav M

2015-10-21

Species-rich communities, in which many competing species coexist in a single trophic level, are quite frequent in nature, but pose a formidable theoretical challenge. In particular, it is known that complex competitive systems become unstable and unfeasible when the number of species is large. Recently, many studies have attributed the stability of natural communities to the structure of the interspecific interaction network, yet the nature of such structures and the underlying mechanisms responsible for them remain open questions. Here we introduce an evolutionary model, based on the generic Lotka-Volterra competitive framework, from which a stable, structured, diverse community emerges spontaneously. The modular structure of the competition matrix reflects the phylogeny of the community, in agreement with the hierarchial taxonomic classification. Closely related species tend to have stronger niche overlap and weaker fitness differences, as opposed to pairs of species from different modules. The competitive-relatedness hypothesis and the idea of emergent neutrality are discussed in the context of this evolutionary model. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Stream instability countermeasures applied at Kansas Department of Transportation highway structures.

Science.gov (United States)

2008-11-01

This project considered stream instability countermeasures used by the Kansas Department of Transportation (KDOT) to protect the highway infrastructure at stream crossings from changes due to the dynamic nature of streams. Site visits were made to 13...

Academic streaming in Europe

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Falaschi, Alessandro; Mønster, Dan; Doležal, Ivan

2004-01-01

The TF-NETCAST task force was active from March 2003 to March 2004, and during this time the mem- bers worked on various aspects of streaming media related to the ultimate goal of setting up common services and infrastructures to enable netcasting of high quality content to the academic community...

Phase synchronization on small-world networks with community structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xiao-Hua, Wang; Li-Cheng, Jiao; Jian-She, Wu

2010-01-01

In this paper, we propose a simple model that can generate small-world network with community structure. The network is introduced as a tunable community organization with parameter r, which is directly measured by the ratio of inter- to intra-community connectivity, and a smaller r corresponds to a stronger community structure. The structure properties, including the degree distribution, clustering, the communication efficiency and modularity are also analysed for the network. In addition, by using the Kuramoto model, we investigated the phase synchronization on this network, and found that increasing the fuzziness of community structure will markedly enhance the network synchronizability; however, in an abnormal region (r ≤ 0.001), the network has even worse synchronizability than the case of isolated communities (r = 0). Furthermore, this network exhibits a remarkable synchronization behaviour in topological scales: the oscillators of high densely interconnected communities synchronize more easily, and more rapidly than the whole network. (general)

Application of PM-355 track detectors for investigation of the spatial structure of plasma-proton streams

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Malinowski, K., E-mail: k.malinowski@ipj.gov.p [Andrzej Soltan Institute for Nuclear Studies (IPJ), 05-400 Otwock-Swierk (Poland); Skladnik-Sadowska, E.; Sadowski, M.J.; Czaus, K. [Andrzej Soltan Institute for Nuclear Studies (IPJ), 05-400 Otwock-Swierk (Poland)

2009-10-15

The paper describes the use of PM-355 track detectors for studies of spatial structures and energies of pulsed plasma-proton streams generated by an RPI-IBIS accelerator, powered from a 30-kJ condenser bank. Measurements were performed for different operational modes depending on a delay between the gas injection and discharge initiation. To study a spatial structure of the plasma-proton streams we used an ion pinhole camera with PM-355 detectors, placed at the symmetry axis of the experimental chamber, at a distance of 22 cm from electrode ends. To record low-energy (not below 30 keV) protons we did not apply any filter. To select protons of higher energies we used additional absorption filters made of Al-foils of 0.75, 1.5 and 3.0 mum in thickness, which eliminated protons of energies below 125, 210 and 345 keV, respectively. The spatial structure of the proton beams was analyzed and their dependence on the initial gas conditions was investigated.

Periphytic algal community in artificial and natural substratum in a tributary of the Rosana reservoir (Corvo Stream, Paraná State, Brazil - doi: 10.4025/actascibiolsci.v32i4.4627 Periphytic algal community in artificial and natural substratum in a tributary of the Rosana reservoir (Corvo Stream, Paraná State, Brazil - doi: 10.4025/actascibiolsci.v32i4.4627

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Liliana Rodrigues

2010-11-01

Full Text Available Periphytic algal community in artificial and natural substratum in a tributary of the Rosana reservoir (Corvo Stream, Paraná State, Brazil. This study evaluated the heterogeneity in periphytic algal community, under the influence of time colonization on artificial substratum. We also examined which abiotic variables most influenced the community in natural and artificial substratum. Egeria najas Planchon was used as natural substratum, and a plastic plant, as artificial. This experiment was carried out in a lateral arm from Rosana Reservoir, formed by Corvo Stream (Paranapanema river basin, in the period from November 21st to December 12nd, 2003, characterized as a warm and rainy period. Changes in species composition were assessed using the similarity indices. 495 taxa were registered in the phycoperiphytic community, distributed in 133 genera and 11 classes. Zygnemaphyceae, Bacillariophyceae, Chlorophyceae and Cyanophyceae presented higher species number, in both substrata. Staurodesmus, Closterium, Staurastrum and Cosmarium (Desmidiales; Gomphonema and Eunotia (Pennales; Characium, Scenedesmus and Desmodesmus (Chlorococcales; Anabaena and Aphanocapsa (Nostocales and Chroococcales, respectively were the most species-rich genera. The epiphytic community reached the highest species richness in the 15th successional day. Regardless the substratum type, the number of species was probably related to the high concentrations of nutrients (phosphorus and nitrogen.Periphytic algal community in artificial and natural substratum in a tributary of the Rosana reservoir (Corvo Stream, Paraná State, Brazil. This study evaluated the heterogeneity in periphytic algal community, under the influence of time colonization on artificial substratum. We also examined which abiotic variables most influenced the community in natural and artificial substratum. Egeria najas Planchon was used as natural substratum, and a plastic plant, as artificial. This experiment was

Stream Tracker: Crowd sourcing and remote sensing to monitor stream flow intermittence

Science.gov (United States)

Puntenney, K.; Kampf, S. K.; Newman, G.; Lefsky, M. A.; Weber, R.; Gerlich, J.

2017-12-01

Streams that do not flow continuously in time and space support diverse aquatic life and can be critical contributors to downstream water supply. However, these intermittent streams are rarely monitored and poorly mapped. Stream Tracker is a community powered stream monitoring project that pairs citizen contributed observations of streamflow presence or absence with a network of streamflow sensors and remotely sensed data from satellites to track when and where water is flowing in intermittent stream channels. Citizens can visit sites on roads and trails to track flow and contribute their observations to the project site hosted by CitSci.org. Data can be entered using either a mobile application with offline capabilities or an online data entry portal. The sensor network provides a consistent record of streamflow and flow presence/absence across a range of elevations and drainage areas. Capacitance, resistance, and laser sensors have been deployed to determine the most reliable, low cost sensor that could be mass distributed to track streamflow intermittence over a larger number of sites. Streamflow presence or absence observations from the citizen and sensor networks are then compared to satellite imagery to improve flow detection algorithms using remotely sensed data from Landsat. In the first two months of this project, 1,287 observations have been made at 241 sites by 24 project members across northern and western Colorado.

Ecosystem engineering by invasive exotic beavers reduces in-stream diversity and enhances ecosystem function in Cape Horn, Chile.

Science.gov (United States)

Anderson, Christopher B; Rosemond, Amy D

2007-11-01

Species invasions are of global significance, but predicting their impacts can be difficult. Introduced ecosystem engineers, however, provide an opportunity to test the underlying mechanisms that may be common to all invasive engineers and link relationships between changes in diversity and ecosystem function, thereby providing explanatory power for observed ecological patterns. Here we test specific predictions for an invasive ecosystem engineer by quantifying the impacts of habitat and resource modifications caused by North American beavers (Castor canadensis) on aquatic macroinvertebrate community structure and stream ecosystem function in the Cape Horn Biosphere Reserve, Chile. We compared responses to beavers in three habitat types: (1) forested (unimpacted) stream reaches, (2) beaver ponds, and (3) sites immediately downstream of beaver dams in four streams. We found that beaver engineering in ponds created taxonomically simplified, but more productive, benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages. Specifically, macroinvertebrate richness, diversity and number of functional feeding groups were reduced by half, while abundance, biomass and secondary production increased three- to fivefold in beaver ponds compared to forested sites. Reaches downstream of beaver ponds were very similar to natural forested sections. Beaver invasion effects on both community and ecosystem parameters occurred predominantly via increased retention of fine particulate organic matter, which was associated with reduced macroinvertebrate richness and diversity (via homogenization of benthic microhabitat) and increased macroinvertebrate biomass and production (via greater food availability). Beaver modifications to macroinvertebrate community structure were largely confined to ponds, but increased benthic production in beaver-modified habitats adds to energy retention and flow for the entire stream ecosystem. Furthermore, the effects of beavers on taxa richness (negative) and measures of

Bright lights, big city: influences of ecological light pollution on reciprocal stream-riparian invertebrate fluxes.

Science.gov (United States)

Meyer, Lars A; Sullivan, S Mazeika P

2013-09-01

Cities produce considerable ecological light pollution (ELP), yet the effects of artificial night lighting on biological communities and ecosystem function have not been fully explored. From June 2010 to June 2011, we surveyed aquatic emergent insects, riparian arthropods entering the water, and riparian spiders of the family Tetragnathidae at nine stream reaches representing common ambient ELP levels of Columbus, Ohio, USA, streams (low, 0.1-0.5 lux; moderate, 0.6-2.0 lux; high, 2.1-4.0 lux). In August 2011, we experimentally increased light levels at the low- and moderate-treatment reaches to 10-12 lux to represent urban streams exposed to extremely high levels of ELP. Although season exerted the dominant influence on invertebrate fluxes over the course of the year, when analyzed by season, we found that light strongly influenced multiple invertebrate responses. The experimental light addition resulted in a 44% decrease in tetragnathid spider density (P = 0.035), decreases of 16% in family richness (P = 0.040) and 76% in mean body size (P = 0.022) of aquatic emergent insects, and a 309% increase in mean body size of terrestrial arthropods (P = 0.015). Our results provide evidence that artificial light sources can alter community structure and ecosystem function in streams via changes in reciprocal aquatic-terrestrial fluxes of invertebrates.

Dual influences of ecosystem size and disturbance on food chain length in streams.

Science.gov (United States)

McHugh, Peter A; McIntosh, Angus R; Jellyman, Phillip G

2010-07-01

The number of trophic transfers occurring between basal resources and top predators, food chain length (FCL), varies widely in the world's ecosystems for reasons that are poorly understood, particularly for stream ecosystems. Available evidence indicates that FCL is set by energetic constraints, environmental stochasticity, or ecosystem size effects, although no single explanation has yet accounted for FCL patterns in a broad sense. Further, whether environmental disturbance can influence FCL has been debated on both theoretical and empirical grounds for quite some time. Using data from sixteen South Island, New Zealand streams, we determined whether the so-called ecosystem size, disturbance, or resource availability hypotheses could account for FCL variation in high country fluvial environments. Stable isotope-based estimates of maximum trophic position ranged from 2.6 to 4.2 and averaged 3.5, a value on par with the global FCL average for streams. Model-selection results indicated that stream size and disturbance regime best explained across-site patterns in FCL, although resource availability was negatively correlated with our measure of disturbance; FCL approached its maximum in large, stable springs and was disturbed streams. Community data indicate that size influenced FCL, primarily through its influence on local fish species richness (i.e., via trophic level additions and/or insertions), whereas disturbance did so via an effect on the relative availability of intermediate predators (i.e., predatory invertebrates) as prey for fishes. Overall, our results demonstrate that disturbance can have an important food web-structuring role in stream ecosystems, and further imply that pluralistic explanations are needed to fully understand the range of structural variation observed for real food webs.

Association Rule Extraction from XML Stream Data for Wireless Sensor Networks

Science.gov (United States)

Paik, Juryon; Nam, Junghyun; Kim, Ung Mo; Won, Dongho

2014-01-01

With the advances of wireless sensor networks, they yield massive volumes of disparate, dynamic and geographically-distributed and heterogeneous data. The data mining community has attempted to extract knowledge from the huge amount of data that they generate. However, previous mining work in WSNs has focused on supporting simple relational data structures, like one table per network, while there is a need for more complex data structures. This deficiency motivates XML, which is the current de facto format for the data exchange and modeling of a wide variety of data sources over the web, to be used in WSNs in order to encourage the interchangeability of heterogeneous types of sensors and systems. However, mining XML data for WSNs has two challenging issues: one is the endless data flow; and the other is the complex tree structure. In this paper, we present several new definitions and techniques related to association rule mining over XML data streams in WSNs. To the best of our knowledge, this work provides the first approach to mining XML stream data that generates frequent tree items without any redundancy. PMID:25046017

Round-Robin Streaming with Generations

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Li, Yao; Vingelmann, Peter; Pedersen, Morten Videbæk

2012-01-01

We consider three types of application layer coding for streaming over lossy links: random linear coding, systematic random linear coding, and structured coding. The file being streamed is divided into sub-blocks (generations). Code symbols are formed by combining data belonging to the same...

Community structure informs species geographic distributions

KAUST Repository

Montesinos-Navarro, Alicia

2018-05-23

Understanding what determines species\\' geographic distributions is crucial for assessing global change threats to biodiversity. Measuring limits on distributions is usually, and necessarily, done with data at large geographic extents and coarse spatial resolution. However, survival of individuals is determined by processes that happen at small spatial scales. The relative abundance of coexisting species (i.e. \\'community structure\\') reflects assembly processes occurring at small scales, and are often available for relatively extensive areas, so could be useful for explaining species distributions. We demonstrate that Bayesian Network Inference (BNI) can overcome several challenges to including community structure into studies of species distributions, despite having been little used to date. We hypothesized that the relative abundance of coexisting species can improve predictions of species distributions. In 1570 assemblages of 68 Mediterranean woody plant species we used BNI to incorporate community structure into Species Distribution Models (SDMs), alongside environmental information. Information on species associations improved SDM predictions of community structure and species distributions moderately, though for some habitat specialists the deviance explained increased by up to 15%. We demonstrate that most species associations (95%) were positive and occurred between species with ecologically similar traits. This suggests that SDM improvement could be because species co-occurrences are a proxy for local ecological processes. Our study shows that Bayesian Networks, when interpreted carefully, can be used to include local conditions into measurements of species\\' large-scale distributions, and this information can improve the predictions of species distributions.

Distance, dams and drift: What structures populations of an endangered, benthic stream fish?

Science.gov (United States)

Roberts, James H.; Angermeier, Paul; Hallerman, Eric M.

2013-01-01

Spatial population structure plays an important role in species persistence, evolution and conservation. Benthic stream fishes are diverse and frequently imperilled, yet the determinants and spatial scaling of their population structure are understudied. We investigated the range-wide population genetic structure of Roanoke logperch (Percina rex), an endangered, benthic stream fish of the eastern United States. Fish were sampled from 35 sites and analysed at 11 microsatellite DNA loci. Clustering models were used to sort individuals into genetically cohesive groups and thereby estimate the spatial scaling of population structure. We then used Bayesian generalized linear mixed models (BGLMMs) to test alternative hypotheses about the environmental factors most responsible for generating structure, as measured by the differentiation statistic FST. Clustering models delineated seven discrete populations, whose boundaries coincided with agents of fragmentation, including hydroelectric dams and tailwaters. In the absence of hydrological barriers, gene flow was extensive throughout catchments, whereas there was no evidence for contemporary dispersal between catchments across barriers. In the best-supported BGLMM, FST was positively related to the spatial distance and degree of hydrological alteration between sites and negatively related to genetic diversity within sites. Whereas the effect of tailwaters was equivocal, dams strongly influenced differentiation: the effect of a dam on FST was comparable to that of a between-site distance of over 1200 km of unimpounded river. Overall, the effect of distance-mediated dispersal was negligible compared to the combined effects of fragmentation and genetic drift. The contemporary population structure of P. rex comprises a few geographically extensive ‘islands’ that are fragmented by hydroelectric projects. This information clarifies the importance of a catchment-scale perspective on conserving the species and

Local geology determines responses of stream producers and fungal decomposers to nutrient enrichment: A field experiment.

Science.gov (United States)

Mykrä, Heikki; Sarremejane, Romain; Laamanen, Tiina; Karjalainen, Satu Maaria; Markkola, Annamari; Lehtinen, Sirkku; Lehosmaa, Kaisa; Muotka, Timo

2018-04-16

We examined how short-term (19 days) nutrient enrichment influences stream fungal and diatom communities, and rates of leaf decomposition and algal biomass accrual. We conducted a field experiment using slow-releasing nutrient pellets to increase nitrate (NO 3 -N) and phosphate (PO 4 -P) concentrations in a riffle section of six naturally acidic (naturally low pH due to catchment geology) and six circumneutral streams. Nutrient enrichment increased microbial decomposition rate on average by 14%, but the effect was significant only in naturally acidic streams. Nutrient enrichment also decreased richness and increased compositional variability of fungal communities in naturally acidic streams. Algal biomass increased in both stream types, but algal growth was overall very low. Diatom richness increased in response to nutrient addition by, but only in circumneutral streams. Our results suggest that primary producers and decomposers are differentially affected by nutrient enrichment and that their responses to excess nutrients are context dependent, with a potentially stronger response of detrital processes and fungal communities in naturally acidic streams than in less selective environments.

Developing a novel approach to analyse the regimes of temporary streams and their controls on aquatic biota

Science.gov (United States)

Gallart, F.; Prat, N.; García-Roger, E. M.; Latron, J.; Rieradevall, M.; Llorens, P.; Barberá, G. G.; Brito, D.; de Girolamo, A. M.; Lo Porto, A.; Neves, R.; Nikolaidis, N. P.; Perrin, J. L.; Querner, E. P.; Quiñonero, J. M.; Tournoud, M. G.; Tzoraki, O.; Froebrich, J.

2011-10-01

Temporary streams are those water courses that undergo the recurrent cessation of flow or the complete drying of their channel. The biological communities in temporary stream reaches are strongly dependent on the temporal changes of the aquatic habitats determined by the hydrological conditions. The use of the aquatic fauna structural and functional characteristics to assess the ecological quality of a temporary stream reach can not therefore be made without taking into account the controls imposed by the hydrological regime. This paper develops some methods for analysing temporary streams' aquatic regimes, based on the definition of six aquatic states that summarize the sets of mesohabitats occurring on a given reach at a particular moment, depending on the hydrological conditions: flood, riffles, connected, pools, dry and arid. We used the water discharge records from gauging stations or simulations using rainfall-runoff models to infer the temporal patterns of occurrence of these states using the developed aquatic states frequency graph. The visual analysis of this graph is complemented by the development of two metrics based on the permanence of flow and the seasonal predictability of zero flow periods. Finally, a classification of the aquatic regimes of temporary streams in terms of their influence over the development of aquatic life is put forward, defining Permanent, Temporary-pools, Temporary-dry and Episodic regime types. All these methods were tested with data from eight temporary streams around the Mediterranean from MIRAGE project and its application was a precondition to assess the ecological quality of these streams using the current methods prescribed in the European Water Framework Directive for macroinvertebrate communities.

Ecological and evolutionary effects of stickleback on community structure.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Simone Des Roches

Full Text Available Species' ecology and evolution can have strong effects on communities. Both may change concurrently when species colonize a new ecosystem. We know little, however, about the combined effects of ecological and evolutionary change on community structure. We simultaneously examined the effects of top-predator ecology and evolution on freshwater community parameters using recently evolved generalist and specialist ecotypes of three-spine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus. We used a mesocosm experiment to directly examine the effects of ecological (fish presence and density and evolutionary (phenotypic diversity and specialization factors on community structure at lower trophic levels. We evaluated zooplankton biomass and composition, periphyton and phytoplankton chlorophyll-a concentration, and net primary production among treatments containing different densities and diversities of stickleback. Our results showed that both ecological and evolutionary differences in the top-predator affect different aspects of community structure and composition. Community structure, specifically the abundance of organisms at each trophic level, was affected by stickleback presence and density, whereas composition of zooplankton was influenced by stickleback diversity and specialization. Primary productivity, in terms of chlorophyll-a concentration and net primary production was affected by ecological but not evolutionary factors. Our results stress the importance of concurrently evaluating both changes in density and phenotypic diversity on the structure and composition of communities.

Baseline assessments for coral reef community structure and demographics on West Maui

Science.gov (United States)

Vargas-Angel, Bernardo; White, Darla; Storlazzi, Curt; Callender, Tova; Maurin, Paulo

2017-01-01

The coastal and upslope terrains of West Maui have had a long history of impacts owing to more than a century of human activities. Resource extraction, agriculture, as well as residential and resort development have caused land-based pollution that impairs water quality and adversely impact the adjacent marine ecosystem. Today, West Maui’s coral reefs are chronically impacted by the effects of land-based pollution, mainly sedimentation and nutrients, with documented losses of 30 – 75% in coral cover over the last 20 years. Nonetheless, despite their current status and levels of environmental impact, these coral reef communities represent a key local resource and a counterpoint to the overall low coral reef development levels both island- and state-wide. This is of high relevance because the occurrence of coral-rich assemblages and accreted reef complexes statewide is sparse. Only limited segments along the coastlines of Maui, Hawai‘i, Lana‘i, Moloka‘i, and Kaho‘olawe, harbor mature, fringing coral reefs; and unfortunately, many of them are seriously threatened by terrestrial runoff. This report describes the results of baseline assessment surveys of coral reef benthic structure, coral community demographics, and coral condition. These surveys are intended to provide benchmarks for continued monitoring efforts and provide a gauge for comparing and evaluating the effectiveness of management actions to reduce land-based sources of pollution in priority watersheds on West Maui. Within this context, 12 permanent, long-term monitoring sites were strategically established adjacent to the 7 primary stream drainages (Wahikuli, Honokōwai, Mahinahina, Kahana/Ka‘opala, Honokeana, Honokahua, and Honolua) within the five priority watersheds (Wahikuli, Honokōwai, Kahana, Honokahua, and Honolua). Herein, benthic cover and composition, coral demographics, and coral condition of the monitoring sites are described and contrasted in the “Benthic Characterization�

The relative influence of nutrients and habitat on stream metabolism in agricultural streams

Science.gov (United States)

Frankforter, J.D.; Weyers, H.S.; Bales, J.D.; Moran, P.W.; Calhoun, D.L.

2010-01-01

Stream metabolism was measured in 33 streams across a gradient of nutrient concentrations in four agricultural areas of the USA to determine the relative influence of nutrient concentrations and habitat on primary production (GPP) and respiration (CR-24). In conjunction with the stream metabolism estimates, water quality and algal biomass samples were collected, as was an assessment of habitat in the sampling reach. When data for all study areas were combined, there were no statistically significant relations between gross primary production or community respiration and any of the independent variables. However, significant regression models were developed for three study areas for GPP (r 2 = 0.79-0.91) and CR-24 (r 2 = 0.76-0.77). Various forms of nutrients (total phosphorus and area-weighted total nitrogen loading) were significant for predicting GPP in two study areas, with habitat variables important in seven significant models. Important physical variables included light availability, precipitation, basin area, and in-stream habitat cover. Both benthic and seston chlorophyll were not found to be important explanatory variables in any of the models; however, benthic ash-free dry weight was important in two models for GPP. ?? 2009 The Author(s).

Climate extremes drive changes in functional community structure.

Science.gov (United States)

Boucek, Ross E; Rehage, Jennifer S

2014-06-01

The response of communities to climate extremes can be quite variable. Much of this variation has been attributed to differences in community-specific functional trait diversity, as well as community composition. Yet, few if any studies have explicitly tested the response of the functional trait structure of communities following climate extremes (CEs). Recently in South Florida, two independent, but sequential potential CEs took place, a 2010 cold front, followed by a 2011 drought, both of which had profound impacts on a subtropical estuarine fish community. These CEs provided an opportunity to test whether the structure of South Florida fish communities following each extreme was a result of species-specific differences in functional traits. From historical temperature (1927-2012) and freshwater inflows records into the estuary (1955-2012), we determined that the cold front was a statistically extreme disturbance, while the drought was not, but rather a decadal rare disturbance. The two disturbances predictably affected different parts of functional community structure and thus different component species. The cold front virtually eliminated tropical species, including large-bodied snook, mojarra species, nonnative cichlids, and striped mullet, while having little affect on temperate fishes. Likewise, the drought severely impacted freshwater fishes including Florida gar, bowfin, and two centrarchids, with little effect on euryhaline species. Our findings illustrate the ability of this approach to predict and detect both the filtering effects of different types of disturbances and the implications of the resulting changes in community structure. Further, we highlight the value of this approach to developing predictive frameworks for better understanding community responses to global change. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Do stage-specific functional responses of consumers dampen the effects of subsidies on trophic cascades in streams?

Science.gov (United States)

Sato, Takuya; Watanabe, Katsutoshi

2014-07-01

Resource subsidies often weaken trophic cascades in recipient communities via consumers' functional response to the subsidies. Consumer populations are commonly stage-structured and may respond to the subsidies differently among the stages yet less is known about how this might impact the subsidy effects on the strength of trophic cascades in recipient systems. We show here, using a large-scale field experiment, that the stage structure of a recipient consumer would dampen the effects of terrestrial invertebrate subsidies on the strength of trophic cascade in streams. When a high input rate of the terrestrial invertebrates was available, both large and small fish stages switched their diet to the terrestrial subsidy, which weakened the trophic cascade in streams. However, when the input rate of the terrestrial invertebrates was at a moderate level, the terrestrial subsidy did not weaken the trophic cascade. This discrepancy was likely due to small fish stages being competitively excluded from feeding on the subsidy by larger stages of fish and primarily foraging on benthic invertebrates under the moderate input level. Although previous studies using single fish stages have clearly demonstrated that the terrestrial invertebrate input equivalent to our moderate input rate weakened the trophic cascade in streams, this subsidy effect might be overestimated given small fish stage may not switch their diet to the subsidy under competition with large fish stage. Given the ubiquity of consumer stage structure and interaction among consumer stages, the effects we saw might be widespread in nature, requiring future studies that explicitly involve consumer's stage structure into community ecology. © 2013 The Authors. Journal of Animal Ecology © 2013 British Ecological Society.

Population structure of fishes from an urban stream

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Naiara Zanatta

2017-05-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study was to identify the population structure of the ichthyofauna in an urban stream within an environmental protection area in southern Brazil. Quarterly samplings were conducted between October 2009 and August 2010. Poecilia reticulata was the most abundant species, followed by Hypostomus ancistroides and Rhamdia quelen. It was found a higher proportion of adults instead of juveniles from P. reticulata and R. quelen populations, while the opposite was recorded for H. ancistroides. Sex ratio of 1:1 was found for H. ancistroides, but differed significantly for P. reticulata and R. quelen. Females of P. reticulata and R. quelen reached higher length than males in the smaller and higher length-classes, while H. ancistroides females were only longer in initial length-classes. It was recorded higher occurrence of mature and maturing individuals. Mature individuals of H. ancistroides were sampled in October, and P. reticulata and R. quelen throughout the sampling period. Despite adverse environmental conditions, the occurrence of juveniles indicates reproductive activity for these species. Population structure studies in degraded systems are urgent, since life-history features of species may suffer changes due to anthropic impacts. Providing such information contributes to decision making and management of degraded systems.

The effects of run-of-river hydroelectric power schemes on invertebrate community composition in temperate streams and rivers.

Science.gov (United States)

Bilotta, Gary S; Burnside, Niall G; Turley, Matthew D; Gray, Jeremy C; Orr, Harriet G

2017-01-01

Run-of-river (ROR) hydroelectric power (HEP) schemes are often presumed to be less ecologically damaging than large-scale storage HEP schemes. However, there is currently limited scientific evidence on their ecological impact. The aim of this article is to investigate the effects of ROR HEP schemes on communities of invertebrates in temperate streams and rivers, using a multi-site Before-After, Control-Impact (BACI) study design. The study makes use of routine environmental surveillance data collected as part of long-term national and international monitoring programmes at 22 systematically-selected ROR HEP schemes and 22 systematically-selected paired control sites. Five widely-used family-level invertebrate metrics (richness, evenness, LIFE, E-PSI, WHPT) were analysed using a linear mixed effects model. The analyses showed that there was a statistically significant effect (p<0.05) of ROR HEP construction and operation on the evenness of the invertebrate community. However, no statistically significant effects were detected on the four other metrics of community composition. The implications of these findings are discussed in this article and recommendations are made for best-practice study design for future invertebrate community impact studies.

Shifts in microbial community structure and function in surface waters impacted by unconventional oil and gas wastewater revealed by metagenomics

Science.gov (United States)

Fahrenfeld, N.L.; Reyes, Hannah Delos; Eramo, Alessia; Akob, Denise M.; Mumford, Adam; Cozzarelli, Isabelle M.

2017-01-01

Unconventional oil and gas (UOG) production produces large quantities of wastewater with complex geochemistry and largely uncharacterized impacts on surface waters. In this study, we assessed shifts in microbial community structure and function in sediments and waters upstream and downstream from a UOG wastewater disposal facility. To do this, quantitative PCR for 16S rRNA and antibiotic resistance genes along with metagenomic sequencing were performed. Elevated conductivity and markers of UOG wastewater characterized sites sampled downstream from the disposal facility compared to background sites. Shifts in overall high level functions and microbial community structure were observed between background sites and downstream sediments. Increases in Deltaproteobacteria and Methanomicrobia and decreases in Thaumarchaeota were observed at downstream sites. Genes related to dormancy and sporulation and methanogenic respiration were 18–86 times higher at downstream, impacted sites. The potential for these sediments to serve as reservoirs of antimicrobial resistance was investigated given frequent reports of the use of biocides to control the growth of nuisance bacteria in UOG operations. A shift in resistance profiles downstream of the UOG facility was observed including increases in acrB and mexB genes encoding for multidrug efflux pumps, but not overall abundance of resistance genes. The observed shifts in microbial community structure and potential function indicate changes in respiration, nutrient cycling, and markers of stress in a stream impacted by UOG waste disposal operations.

Community-level response of fishes and aquatic macroinvertebrates to stream restoration in a third-order tributary of the Potomac River, USA

Science.gov (United States)

Selego, Stephen M.; Rose, Charnee L.; Merovich, George T.; Welsh, Stuart A.; Anderson, James T.

2012-01-01

Natural stream channel design principles and riparian restoration practices were applied during spring 2010 to an agriculturally impaired reach of the Cacapon River, a tributary of the Potomac River which flows into the Chesapeake Bay. Aquatic macroinvertebrates and fishes were sampled from the restoration reach, two degraded control, and two natural reference reaches prior to, concurrently with, and following restoration (2009 through 2010). Collector filterers and scrapers replaced collector gatherers as the dominant macroinvertebrate functional feeding groups in the restoration reach. Before restoration, based on indices of biotic integrity (IBI), the restoration reach fish and macroinvertebrate communities closely resembled those sampled from the control reaches, and after restoration more closely resembled those from the reference reaches. Although the macroinvertebrate community responded more favorably than the fish community, both communities recovered quickly from the temporary impairment caused by the disturbance of restoration procedures and suggest rapid improvement in local ecological conditions.

Restructuring of the Aquatic Bacterial Community by Hydric Dynamics Associated with Superstorm Sandy.

Science.gov (United States)

Ulrich, Nikea; Rosenberger, Abigail; Brislawn, Colin; Wright, Justin; Kessler, Collin; Toole, David; Solomon, Caroline; Strutt, Steven; McClure, Erin; Lamendella, Regina

2016-06-15

Bacterial community composition and longitudinal fluctuations were monitored in a riverine system during and after Superstorm Sandy to better characterize inter- and intracommunity responses associated with the disturbance associated with a 100-year storm event. High-throughput sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene was used to assess microbial community structure within water samples from Muddy Creek Run, a second-order stream in Huntingdon, PA, at 12 different time points during the storm event (29 October to 3 November 2012) and under seasonally matched baseline conditions. High-throughput sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene was used to track changes in bacterial community structure and divergence during and after Superstorm Sandy. Bacterial community dynamics were correlated to measured physicochemical parameters and fecal indicator bacteria (FIB) concentrations. Bioinformatics analyses of 2.1 million 16S rRNA gene sequences revealed a significant increase in bacterial diversity in samples taken during peak discharge of the storm. Beta-diversity analyses revealed longitudinal shifts in the bacterial community structure. Successional changes were observed, in which Betaproteobacteria and Gammaproteobacteria decreased in 16S rRNA gene relative abundance, while the relative abundance of members of the Firmicutes increased. Furthermore, 16S rRNA gene sequences matching pathogenic bacteria, including strains of Legionella, Campylobacter, Arcobacter, and Helicobacter, as well as bacteria of fecal origin (e.g., Bacteroides), exhibited an increase in abundance after peak discharge of the storm. This study revealed a significant restructuring of in-stream bacterial community structure associated with hydric dynamics of a storm event. In order to better understand the microbial risks associated with freshwater environments during a storm event, a more comprehensive understanding of the variations in aquatic bacterial diversity is warranted. This study investigated the bacterial

Results of Macroinvertebrate Sampling Conducted at 33 SRS Stream Locations, July--August 1993

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Specht, W.L.

1994-12-01

In order to assess the health of the macroinvertebrate communities of SRS streams, the macroinvertebrate communities at 30 stream locations on SRS were sampled during the summer of 1993, using Hester-Dendy multiplate samplers. In addition, three off-site locations in the Upper Three Runs drainage were sampled in order to assess the potential for impact from off-site activities. In interpreting the data, it is important to recognize that these data were from a single set of collections. Macroinvertebrate communities often undergo considerable temporal variation, and are also greatly influenced by such factors as water depth, water velocity, and available habitat. These stations were selected with the intent of developing an on-going sampling program at a smaller number of stations, with the selection of the stations to be based largely upon the results of this preliminary sampling program. When stations within a given stream showed similar results, fewer stations would be sampled in the future. Similarly, if a stream appeared to be perturbed, additional stations or chemical analyses might be added so that the source of the perturbation could be identified. In general, unperturbed streams will contain more taxa than perturbed streams, and the distribution of taxa among orders or families will differ. Some groups of macroinvertebrates, such as Ephemeroptera (mayflies), Plecoptera (stoneflies) and Trichoptera (caddisflies), which are collectively called EPT taxa, are considered to be relatively sensitive to most kinds of stream perturbation; therefore a reduced number of EPT taxa generally indicates that the stream has been subject to chemical or physical stressors. In coastal plain streams, EPT taxa are generally less dominant than in streams with rocky substrates, while Chironomidae (midges) are more abundant. (Abstract Truncated)

Macroinvertebrate community change associated with the severity of streamflow alteration

Science.gov (United States)

Carlisle, Daren M.; Eng, Kenny; Nelson, S.M.

2014-01-01

Natural streamflows play a critical role in stream ecosystems, yet quantitative relations between streamflow alteration and stream health have been elusive. One reason for this difficulty is that neither streamflow alteration nor ecological responses are measured relative to their natural expectations. We assessed macroinvertebrate community condition in 25 mountain streams representing a large gradient of streamflow alteration, which we quantified as the departure of observed flows from natural expectations. Observed flows were obtained from US Geological Survey streamgaging stations and discharge records from dams and diversion structures. During low-flow conditions in September, samples of macroinvertebrate communities were collected at each site, in addition to measures of physical habitat, water chemistry and organic matter. In general, streamflows were artificially high during summer and artificially low throughout the rest of the year. Biological condition, as measured by richness of sensitive taxa (Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera and Trichoptera) and taxonomic completeness (O/E), was strongly and negatively related to the severity of depleted flows in winter. Analyses of macroinvertebrate traits suggest that taxa losses may have been caused by thermal modification associated with streamflow alteration. Our study yielded quantitative relations between the severity of streamflow alteration and the degree of biological impairment and suggests that water management that reduces streamflows during winter months is likely to have negative effects on downstream benthic communities in Utah mountain streams. 

Stream fishes and desirable fish stocks

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Dieperink, C.; Sand-Jensen, K.

2006-01-01

Freshwater fi sh communities have always been valuable resources for society, particularly the species that migrate between freshwater and the sea. Historically, eel, salmon and trout were so abundant that good fi shing luck could turn a capable fi sherman into a wealthy person. Unfortunately......, illustrates this historical decline and also the diffi culty of re-establishing healthy fi sh communities once the original populations have deteriorated or, in the case of salmon, become extinct. Efforts are currently needed to be made to effectively restore and manage fi sh communities in streams....

Information transfer in community structured multiplex networks

Science.gov (United States)

Solé Ribalta, Albert; Granell, Clara; Gómez, Sergio; Arenas, Alex

2015-08-01

The study of complex networks that account for different types of interactions has become a subject of interest in the last few years, specially because its representational power in the description of users interactions in diverse online social platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.). The mathematical description of these interacting networks has been coined under the name of multilayer networks, where each layer accounts for a type of interaction. It has been shown that diffusive processes on top of these networks present a phenomenology that cannot be explained by the naive superposition of single layer diffusive phenomena but require the whole structure of interconnected layers. Nevertheless, the description of diffusive phenomena on multilayer networks has obviated the fact that social networks have strong mesoscopic structure represented by different communities of individuals driven by common interests, or any other social aspect. In this work, we study the transfer of information in multilayer networks with community structure. The final goal is to understand and quantify, if the existence of well-defined community structure at the level of individual layers, together with the multilayer structure of the whole network, enhances or deteriorates the diffusion of packets of information.

Information transfer in community structured multiplex networks

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Albert eSolé Ribalta

2015-08-01

Full Text Available The study of complex networks that account for different types of interactions has become a subject of interest in the last few years, specially because its representational power in the description of users interactions in diverse online social platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.. The mathematical description of these interacting networks has been coined under the name of multilayer networks, where each layer accounts for a type of interaction. It has been shown that diffusive processes on top of these networks present a phenomenology that cannot be explained by the naive superposition of single layer diffusive phenomena but require the whole structure of interconnected layers. Nevertheless, the description of diffusive phenomena on multilayer networks has obviated the fact that social networks have strong mesoscopic structure represented by different communities of individuals driven by common interests, or any other social aspect. In this work, we study the transfer of information in multilayer networks with community structure. The final goal is to understand and quantify, if the existence of well-defined community structure at the level of individual layers, together with the multilayer structure of the whole network, enhances or deteriorates the diffusion of packets of information.

Preliminary Study of Aquatic Hyphomycetes from Venezuelan streams

OpenAIRE

SMITS, Gunta; FERNÁNDEZ, Rafael; CRESSA, Claudia

2007-01-01

Fifty species of aquatic hyphomycetes from seven streams, six of which are located in Venezuelan National Parks are reported. Community similarity of hyphomycetes was low since only four species were common to all sites: Campylospora chaetocladia Ranzoni, Clavatospora tentacula Sv.Nilsson, Triscelophorus acuminatus Nawawi and Triscelophorus monosporus Ingold. The streams had unique species whose number varies between one and three. In Río Los Castillos the species were: Anguillospora longissi...

Evidence for the functional significance of diazotroph community structure in soil.

Science.gov (United States)

Hsu, Shi-Fang; Buckley, Daniel H

2009-01-01

Microbial ecologists continue to seek a greater understanding of the factors that govern the ecological significance of microbial community structure. Changes in community structure have been shown to have functional significance for processes that are mediated by a narrow spectrum of organisms, such as nitrification and denitrification, but in some cases, functional redundancy in the community seems to buffer microbial ecosystem processes. The functional significance of microbial community structure is frequently obscured by environmental variation and is hard to detect in short-term experiments. We examine the functional significance of free-living diazotrophs in a replicated long-term tillage experiment in which extraneous variation is minimized and N-fixation rates can be related to soil characteristics and diazotroph community structure. Soil characteristics were found to be primarily impacted by tillage management, whereas N-fixation rates and diazotroph community structure were impacted by both biomass management practices and interactions between tillage and biomass management. The data suggest that the variation in diazotroph community structure has a greater impact on N-fixation rates than do soil characteristics at the site. N-fixation rates displayed a saturating response to increases in diazotroph community diversity. These results show that the changes in the community structure of free-living diazotrophs in soils can have ecological significance and suggest that this response is related to a change in community diversity.

How low can you go? Impacts of a low-flow disturbance on aquatic insect communities.

Science.gov (United States)

Walters, Annika W; Post, David M

2011-01-01

The natural hydrology of streams and rivers is being extensively modified by human activities. Water diversion, dam construction, and climate change have the potential to increase the frequency and intensity of low-flow events. Flow is a dominant force structuring stream aquatic insect communities, but the impacts of water diversion are poorly understood. Here we report results of an experimental stream flow diversion designed to test how aquatic insect communities respond to a low-flow disturbance. We diverted 40% to 80% of the water in three replicate streams for three summers, leading to summer flow exceedance probabilities of up to 99.9%. Shifts in habitat availability appeared to be a major driver of aquatic insect community responses. Responses also varied by habitat type: total insect density decreased in riffle habitats, but there was no change in pool habitats. Overall, the total biomass of aquatic insects decreased sharply with lowered flow. Collector-filterers, collector-gatherers, and scrapers were especially susceptible, while predatory insects were more resistant. Despite extremely low flow levels, there was no shift in aquatic insect family richness. The experimental water withdrawal did not increase water temperature or decrease water quality, and some wetted habitat was always maintained, which likely prevented more severe impacts on aquatic insect communities.

Persistent effects of acidification on stream ecosystem structure and function

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Traister, E.; McDowell, W. H.; Krám, Pavel; Fottová, Daniela; Kolaříková, K.

2013-01-01

Roč. 32, č. 2 (2013), s. 586-596 ISSN 2161-9565 R&D Projects: GA MŠk(CZ) ED1.1.00/02.0073 Institutional support: RVO:67179843 Keywords : acidification * macroinvertebrates * whole-stream metabolism * streams * isotopic signature * terrestrial detritus * periphyton * GEOMON Subject RIV: EH - Ecology, Behaviour

Finding Community Structures In Social Activity Data

KAUST Repository

Peng, Chengbin

2015-05-19

Social activity data sets are increasing in number and volume. Finding community structure in such data is valuable in many applications. For example, understand- ing the community structure of social networks may reduce the spread of epidemics or boost advertising revenue; discovering partitions in tra c networks can help to optimize routing and to reduce congestion; finding a group of users with common interests can allow a system to recommend useful items. Among many aspects, qual- ity of inference and e ciency in finding community structures in such data sets are of paramount concern. In this thesis, we propose several approaches to improve com- munity detection in these aspects. The first approach utilizes the concept of K-cores to reduce the size of the problem. The K-core of a graph is the largest subgraph within which each node has at least K connections. We propose a framework that accelerates community detection. It first applies a traditional algorithm that is relatively slow to the K-core, and then uses a fast heuristic to infer community labels for the remaining nodes. The second approach is to scale the algorithm to multi-processor systems. We de- vise a scalable community detection algorithm for large networks based on stochastic block models. It is an alternating iterative algorithm using a maximum likelihood ap- proach. Compared with traditional inference algorithms for stochastic block models, our algorithm can scale to large networks and run on multi-processor systems. The time complexity is linear in the number of edges of the input network. The third approach is to improve the quality. We propose a framework for non- negative matrix factorization that allows the imposition of linear or approximately linear constraints on each factor. An example of the applications is to find community structures in bipartite networks, which is useful in recommender systems. Our algorithms are compared with the results in recent papers and their quality and e

Detecting the overlapping and hierarchical community structure in complex networks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lancichinetti, Andrea; Fortunato, Santo; Kertesz, Janos

2009-01-01

Many networks in nature, society and technology are characterized by a mesoscopic level of organization, with groups of nodes forming tightly connected units, called communities or modules, that are only weakly linked to each other. Uncovering this community structure is one of the most important problems in the field of complex networks. Networks often show a hierarchical organization, with communities embedded within other communities; moreover, nodes can be shared between different communities. Here, we present the first algorithm that finds both overlapping communities and the hierarchical structure. The method is based on the local optimization of a fitness function. Community structure is revealed by peaks in the fitness histogram. The resolution can be tuned by a parameter enabling different hierarchical levels of organization to be investigated. Tests on real and artificial networks give excellent results.

Virality Prediction and Community Structure in Social Networks

Science.gov (United States)

Weng, Lilian; Menczer, Filippo; Ahn, Yong-Yeol

2013-08-01

How does network structure affect diffusion? Recent studies suggest that the answer depends on the type of contagion. Complex contagions, unlike infectious diseases (simple contagions), are affected by social reinforcement and homophily. Hence, the spread within highly clustered communities is enhanced, while diffusion across communities is hampered. A common hypothesis is that memes and behaviors are complex contagions. We show that, while most memes indeed spread like complex contagions, a few viral memes spread across many communities, like diseases. We demonstrate that the future popularity of a meme can be predicted by quantifying its early spreading pattern in terms of community concentration. The more communities a meme permeates, the more viral it is. We present a practical method to translate data about community structure into predictive knowledge about what information will spread widely. This connection contributes to our understanding in computational social science, social media analytics, and marketing applications.

Dynamical community structure of populations evolving on genotype networks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Capitán, José A.; Aguirre, Jacobo; Manrubia, Susanna

2015-01-01

Neutral evolutionary dynamics of replicators occurs on large and heterogeneous networks of genotypes. These networks, formed by all genotypes that yield the same phenotype, have a complex architecture that conditions the molecular composition of populations and their movements on genome spaces. Here we consider as an example the case of populations evolving on RNA secondary structure neutral networks and study the community structure of the network revealed through dynamical properties of the population at equilibrium and during adaptive transients. We unveil a rich hierarchical community structure that, eventually, can be traced back to the non-trivial relationship between RNA secondary structure and sequence composition. We demonstrate that usual measures of modularity that only take into account the static, topological structure of networks, cannot identify the community structure disclosed by population dynamics

Community-Level Response of Fishes and Aquatic Macroinvertebrates to Stream Restoration in a Third-Order Tributary of the Potomac River, USA

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Stephen M. Selego

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Natural stream channel design principles and riparian restoration practices were applied during spring 2010 to an agriculturally impaired reach of the Cacapon River, a tributary of the Potomac River which flows into the Chesapeake Bay. Aquatic macroinvertebrates and fishes were sampled from the restoration reach, two degraded control, and two natural reference reaches prior to, concurrently with, and following restoration (2009 through 2010. Collector filterers and scrapers replaced collector gatherers as the dominant macroinvertebrate functional feeding groups in the restoration reach. Before restoration, based on indices of biotic integrity (IBI, the restoration reach fish and macroinvertebrate communities closely resembled those sampled from the control reaches, and after restoration more closely resembled those from the reference reaches. Although the macroinvertebrate community responded more favorably than the fish community, both communities recovered quickly from the temporary impairment caused by the disturbance of restoration procedures and suggest rapid improvement in local ecological conditions.

A Benthic Macroinvertebrate Multimetric Index for Assessment of the Ecological Integrity of Northeast Streams, Thailand

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Nantiya Rattanachan

2016-07-01

Full Text Available This study aims to develop a benthic macroinvertebrate multimetric index for assessing the ecological quality of streams in Northeastern Thailand. ANOSIM indicated that the benthic macroinvertebrate assemblage in both of each basin and each season were not significantly different (R = 0.09, p = 0.24 and R = 0.07, p = 0.35, respectively. The efficacy metrics of each basin consisting of the Mekong II, the Chi, and the Mun basins were integrated and calibrated. A total of 255 data sets of water physico-chemical and benthic macroinvertebrates during the dry period (cool and hot seasons were obtained. The stream classification could be divided into three groups: the reference group (48 stations, the stressed group (42 stations, and the intermediate group (165 stations. Twelve out of 56 metrics have been considered as a core metric for the development of a biological index for quality streams in the Northeast, including Total taxa, EPT taxa, Ephemeroptera taxa, Coleoptera taxa, % EPT, % Chironomidae, % Tolerant individuals, % Intolerant individuals, Beck's index, HBI, Predator taxa, and Clinger taxa. Moreover, this metric set covered the structure and function of organisms including the diversity of species, community structure, tolerance/intolerance measures, functional feeding group, and habit. From the efficacy validation of the biological index, the results of stream assessment corresponded to the classification sites with the physico-chemical characteristics.

Knowledge discovery from data streams

CERN Document Server

Gama, Joao

2010-01-01

Since the beginning of the Internet age and the increased use of ubiquitous computing devices, the large volume and continuous flow of distributed data have imposed new constraints on the design of learning algorithms. Exploring how to extract knowledge structures from evolving and time-changing data, Knowledge Discovery from Data Streams presents a coherent overview of state-of-the-art research in learning from data streams.The book covers the fundamentals that are imperative to understanding data streams and describes important applications, such as TCP/IP traffic, GPS data, sensor networks,

Phylogenetic structure in tropical hummingbird communities

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Graham, Catherine H; Parra, Juan L; Rahbek, Carsten

2009-01-01

How biotic interactions, current and historical environment, and biogeographic barriers determine community structure is a fundamental question in ecology and evolution, especially in diverse tropical regions. To evaluate patterns of local and regional diversity, we quantified the phylogenetic...... composition of 189 hummingbird communities in Ecuador. We assessed how species and phylogenetic composition changed along environmental gradients and across biogeographic barriers. We show that humid, low-elevation communities are phylogenetically overdispersed (coexistence of distant relatives), a pattern...... that is consistent with the idea that competition influences the local composition of hummingbirds. At higher elevations communities are phylogenetically clustered (coexistence of close relatives), consistent with the expectation of environmental filtering, which may result from the challenge of sustaining...

A new hierarchical method to find community structure in networks

Science.gov (United States)

Saoud, Bilal; Moussaoui, Abdelouahab

2018-04-01

Community structure is very important to understand a network which represents a context. Many community detection methods have been proposed like hierarchical methods. In our study, we propose a new hierarchical method for community detection in networks based on genetic algorithm. In this method we use genetic algorithm to split a network into two networks which maximize the modularity. Each new network represents a cluster (community). Then we repeat the splitting process until we get one node at each cluster. We use the modularity function to measure the strength of the community structure found by our method, which gives us an objective metric for choosing the number of communities into which a network should be divided. We demonstrate that our method are highly effective at discovering community structure in both computer-generated and real-world network data.

Uncovering the community structure associated with the diffusion dynamics on networks

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cheng, Xue-Qi; Shen, Hua-Wei

2010-01-01

As two main focuses of the study of complex networks, the community structure and the dynamics on networks have both attracted much attention in various scientific fields. However, it is still an open question how the community structure is associated with the dynamics on complex networks. In this paper, through investigating the diffusion process taking place on networks, we demonstrate that the intrinsic community structure of networks can be revealed by the stable local equilibrium states of the diffusion process. Furthermore, we show that such community structure can be directly identified through the optimization of the conductance of the network, which measures how easily the diffusion among different communities occurs. Tests on benchmark networks indicate that the conductance optimization method significantly outperforms the modularity optimization methods in identifying the community structure of networks. Applications to real world networks also demonstrate the effectiveness of the conductance optimization method. This work provides insights into the multiple topological scales of complex networks, and the community structure obtained can naturally reflect the diffusion capability of the underlying network

Stream Macroinvertebrate Occurrence along Gradients in Organic Pollution and Eutrophication

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Friberg, Nikolai; Skriver, Jens; Larsen, Søren Erik

2010-01-01

We analysed a large number of concurrent samples of macroinvertebrate communities and chemical indicators of eutrophication and organic pollution [total-P, total-N, NH4-N, biological oxygen demand (BOD5)] from 594 Danish stream sites. Samples were taken over an 11-year time span as part of the Da......We analysed a large number of concurrent samples of macroinvertebrate communities and chemical indicators of eutrophication and organic pollution [total-P, total-N, NH4-N, biological oxygen demand (BOD5)] from 594 Danish stream sites. Samples were taken over an 11-year time span as part...

Three-dimensional model of corotating streams in the solar wind 3. Magnetohydrodynamic streams

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pizzo, V.J.

1982-01-01

The focus of this paper is two-fold: (1) to examine how the presence of the spiral magnetic field affects the evolution of interplanetary corotating solar wind streams, and (2) to ascertain the nature of secondary large-scale phenomena likely to be associated with streams having a pronounced three-dimensional (3-D) structure. The dynamics are presumed to be governed by the nonlinear polytropic, single-fluid, 3-D MHD equations. Solutions are obtained with an explicit, Eulerian, finite differences technique that makes use of a simple form of artificial diffusion for handling shocks. For smooth axisymmetric flows, the picture of magnetically induced meridional motions previously established by linear models requires only minor correction. In the case of broad 3-D streams input near the sun, inclusion of the magnetic field is found to retard the kinematic steepening at the stream front substantially but to produce little deviation from planar flow. For the more realistic case of initially sharply bounded streams, however, it becomes essential to account for magnetic effects in the formulation. Whether a full 3-D treatment is required depends upon the latitudinal geometry of the stream

Optimal community structure for social contagions

Science.gov (United States)

Su, Zhen; Wang, Wei; Li, Lixiang; Stanley, H. Eugene; Braunstein, Lidia A.

2018-05-01

Community structure is an important factor in the behavior of real-world networks because it strongly affects the stability and thus the phase transition order of the spreading dynamics. We here propose a reversible social contagion model of community networks that includes the factor of social reinforcement. In our model an individual adopts a social contagion when the number of received units of information exceeds its adoption threshold. We use mean-field approximation to describe our proposed model, and the results agree with numerical simulations. The numerical simulations and theoretical analyses both indicate that there is a first-order phase transition in the spreading dynamics, and that a hysteresis loop emerges in the system when there is a variety of initially adopted seeds. We find an optimal community structure that maximizes spreading dynamics. We also find a rich phase diagram with a triple point that separates the no-diffusion phase from the two diffusion phases.

Fish as Indicators of Disturbance in Streams Used for Snorkeling Activities in a Tourist Region

Science.gov (United States)

Teresa, Fabricio Barreto; Romero, Renato De Mei; Casatti, Lilian; Sabino, José

2011-05-01

A set of metrics that reflect various aspects of population and fish community structure in streams used for snorkeling was evaluated in the tourist region of Bodoquena Plateau, Brazil, with the purpose of biomonitoring the impacts of such activities. Observations were made while snorkeling in two sites (active = with tourism; inactive = without tourism) and along the gradient of daily tourist activity (before, during and after the passage of tourists) in two streams. Five metrics discriminated active from inactive sites: (i) the abundance of Crenicichla lepidota and (ii) the incidence of reproductive activity in Crenicichla lepidota which were greater in inactive sites, regardless the gradient of daily tourist activity; (iii) the feeding pattern of Prochilodus lineatus, which differed among sites and along the gradient of daily tourist activity; (iv) the abundance of Moenkhausia bonita, which was higher in the active sites and significantly increased along the gradient of daily tourist activity in one stream but decrease along the gradient in other stream; (v) the abundance of Hyphessobrycon eques, which was greater in inactive sites, regardless the gradient of daily tourist activity. With the exception of metric "iv", the metrics were mediated by the reduction in habitat structural complexity due to snorkeling disturbance. The definition of these metrics is relevant because the degradation of ecosystem structural elements is one of the main impacts of recreational activities on aquatic environments. The easy recognition of target species and high water transparency throughout the year ensures the feasibility of these metrics in monitoring programs and may be applied by technicians after quick guides and training.

Change does not happen overnight: a case study on stream macroinvertebrates

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Guareschi S.

2016-01-01

Full Text Available The influence of day/night conditions on individual animal/plant species has been widely studied, but diel cycle studies of the entire stream macroinvertebrate community are extremely rare. This study explored potential dissimilarities between daytime and nighttime macroinvertebrate assemblages by extensive fieldwork conducted in the Lemme stream, a natural water course of NW Italy. Here numerous structural and functional metrics (richness, abundance, biomass, indicator taxa, composition, biomonitoring values and feeding groups were evaluated at the family level. Small-scale environmental variables were investigated to understand possible differences between macroinvertebrate assemblages in the daytime/nighttime. After collecting and identifying 21 459 organisms of 50 taxa, Chironomidae (Diptera was the most abundant under both day and night conditions. Our findings stressed that similar results and biological information on daytime/nighttime data were obtained. No marked differences could be related to various factors: heterotrophic condition of small-order streams, presence of aquatic predators under night and day conditions, absence of taxa with a specific phototaxis. Of all the environmental variables, velocity was always the most important in both situations, with some differences detected in the importance of the second variable (riverbed substrate diameter. This research, and future studies on different conditions and geographic areas, will contribute knowledge on stream macroinvertebrate diel activity, and provide useful information about efficient sampling strategies.

Monitoring of streams: macrozoobenthos and accumulation of heavy metals and radionuclides in bottom sediments

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Arbaciauskas, K.; Mackeviciene, G.; Striupkuviene, N.; Motiejunas, S; Kreslauskaite, R.

1998-01-01

To evaluate the environmental quality of streams in integrated monitoring sites (IMS) and agrostations (AS), the macrozoobenthos communities and accumulation of heavy metals and radionuclides in bottom sediments were studied during 1993-1996. Samples of macrozoobenthos were collected in stream biotopes which were recommended for monitoring. Community biodiversity was assessed by Shannon-Wiener and Simpson indices, and water quality of streams was estimated by Trent and Mean Chandler biotic indices. Heavy metal (Pb, Cd, Cu, Cr, Ni, Mn) concentrations and radionuclide ( 137 Cs, 134 Cs, 40 K, 90 Sr) activity were determined in sediments. Macrozoobenthos communities indicated that the studied streams were clean waters. The heavy metal concentrations in surficial sediments showed annual and seasonal changes and differences between monitoring sites. The Cu concentration in the soft turfy stream sediments at the Aukstaitija IMS was twice as high as that in sediments of other monitoring streams with hard sandy-gravel bottoms. During 1994-1996, the Ni concentration decreased, while levels of Cu, Cd and Cr were relatively stable. The Pb concentrations decreased in all IMS, while those in AS increased. The concentration of 137 Cs was relatively stable in agrostation streams. Compared to levels in 1993, an increase of 137 Cs activity was observed in sediments at the Dzuklija IMS during 1995-1996. 90 Sr activity fluctuated in the monitoring sites from 1.6 to 3.7 Bq/kg dry weight. (author)

Soil shapes community structure through fire.

Science.gov (United States)

Ojeda, Fernando; Pausas, Juli G; Verdú, Miguel

2010-07-01

Recurrent wildfires constitute a major selecting force in shaping the structure of plant communities. At the regional scale, fire favours phenotypic and phylogenetic clustering in Mediterranean woody plant communities. Nevertheless, the incidence of fire within a fire-prone region may present strong variations at the local, landscape scale. This study tests the prediction that woody communities on acid, nutrient-poor soils should exhibit more pronounced phenotypic and phylogenetic clustering patterns than woody communities on fertile soils, as a consequence of their higher flammability and, hence, presumably higher propensity to recurrent fire. Results confirm the predictions and show that habitat filtering driven by fire may be detected even in local communities from an already fire-filtered regional flora. They also provide a new perspective from which to consider a preponderant role of fire as a key evolutionary force in acid, infertile Mediterranean heathlands.

Climate change and alpine stream biology

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Hotaling, Scott; Finn, Debra S.; Joseph Giersch, J.

2017-01-01

micro- to macroscopic organisms and genes to communities. Herein, we describe the current state of alpine stream biology from an organism-focused perspective. We begin by reviewing seven standard and emerging approaches that combine to form the current state of the discipline. We follow with a call...

The Overview and Appliance of some Streaming Video software solutions

OpenAIRE

Qin , Yan

2010-01-01

This paper introduces the basic streaming media technology, the streaming media system structure, principles of streaming media technology; streaming media file formats and so on. After that, it discusses the use streaming media in distance education, broadband video on demand, Internet broadcasting, video conferences and a more detailed exposition in streaming media. As the existing technology has been unable to satisfy the increasing needs of the Internet users, the streaming media technol...

Change in fish community structure in the Barents Sea.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michaela Aschan

Full Text Available Change in oceanographic conditions causes structural alterations in marine fish communities, but this effect may go undetected as most monitoring programs until recently mainly have focused on oceanography and commercial species rather than on whole ecosystems. In this paper, the objective is to describe the spatial and temporal changes in the Barents Sea fish community in the period 1992-2004 while taking into consideration the observed abundance and biodiversity patterns for all 82 observed fish species. We found that the spatial structure of the Barents Sea fish community was determined by abiotic factors such as temperature and depth. The observed species clustered into a deep assemblage, a warm water southern assemblage, both associated with Atlantic water, and a cold water north-eastern assemblage associated with mixed water. The latitude of the cold water NE and warm water S assemblages varied from year to year, but no obvious northward migration was observed over time. In the period 1996-1999 we observed a significant reduction in total fish biomass, abundance, mean fish weight, and a change in community structure including an increase in the pelagic/demersal ratio. This change in community structure is probably due to extremely cold conditions in 1996 impacting on a fish community exposed to historically high fishing rates. After 1999 the fish community variables such as biomass, abundance, mean weight, P/D ratio as well as community composition did not return to levels of the early 90s, although fishing pressure and climatic conditions returned to earlier levels.

Potential impacts of global warming on the diversity and distribution of stream insects in South Korea.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Fengqing; Kwon, Yong-Su; Bae, Mi-Jung; Chung, Namil; Kwon, Tae-Sung; Park, Young-Seuk

2014-04-01

Globally, the East Asian monsoon region is one of the richest environments in terms of biodiversity. The region is undergoing rapid human development, yet its river ecosystems have not been well studied. Global warming represents a major challenge to the survival of species in this region and makes it necessary to assess and reduce the potential consequences of warming on species of conservation concern. We projected the effects of global warming on stream insect (Ephemeroptera, Odonata, Plecoptera, and Trichoptera [EOPT]) diversity and predicted the changes of geographical ranges for 121 species throughout South Korea. Plecoptera was the most sensitive (decrease of 71.4% in number of species from the 2000s through the 2080s) order, whereas Odonata benefited (increase of 66.7% in number of species from the 2000s through the 2080s) from the effects of global warming. The impact of global warming on stream insects was predicted to be minimal prior to the 2060s; however, by the 2080s, species extirpation of up to 20% in the highland areas and 2% in the lowland areas were predicted. The projected responses of stream insects under global warming indicated that species occupying specific habitats could undergo major reductions in habitat. Nevertheless, habitat of 33% of EOPT (including two-thirds of Odonata and one-third of Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, and Trichoptera) was predicted to increase due to global warming. The community compositions predicted by generalized additive models varied over this century, and a large difference in community structure in the highland areas was predicted between the 2000s and the 2080s. However, stream insect communities, especially Odonata, Plecoptera, and Trichoptera, were predicted to become more homogenous under global warming. © 2013 Society for Conservation Biology.

Functional trait composition of aquatic plants can serve to disentangle multiple interacting stressors in lowland streams

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Baattrup-Pedersen, Annette, E-mail: abp@bios.au.dk [Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Vejlsøvej 25, P.O. Box 314, DK-8600 Silkeborg (Denmark); Göthe, Emma [Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Vejlsøvej 25, P.O. Box 314, DK-8600 Silkeborg (Denmark); Riis, Tenna [Department of Bioscience, Aarhus University, Ole Worms Allé 1, Building 1135, Room 217, DK-8000 Aarhus C (Denmark); O' Hare, Matthew T. [Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Bush Estate, Penicuik EH26 0QB (United Kingdom)

2016-02-01

Historically, close attention has been paid to negative impacts associated with nutrient loads to streams and rivers, but today hydromorphological alterations are considered increasingly implicated when lowland streams do not achieve good ecological status. Here, we explore if trait-abundance patterns of aquatic plants change along gradients in hydromorphological degradation and eutrophication in lowland stream sites located in Denmark. Specifically, we hypothesised that: i) changes in trait-abundance patterns occur along gradients in hydromorphological degradation and ii) trait-abundance patterns can serve to disentangle effects of eutrophication and hydromorphological degradation in lowland streams reflecting that the mechanisms behind changes differ. We used monitoring data from a total of 147 stream reaches with combined data on aquatic plant species abundance, catchment land use, hydromorphological alterations (i.e. planform, cross section, weed cutting) and water chemistry parameters. Traits related to life form, dispersal, reproduction and survival together with ecological preference values for nutrients and light (Ellenberg N and L) were allocated to 41 species representing 79% of the total species pool. We found clear evidence that habitat degradation (hydromorphological alterations and eutrophication) mediated selective changes in the trait-abundance patterns of the plant community. Specific traits could distinguish hydromorphological degradation (free-floating, surface; anchored floating leaves; anchored heterophylly) from eutrophication (free-floating, submerged; leaf area). We provide a conceptual framework for interpretation of how eutrophication and hydromorphological degradation interact and how this is reflected in trait-abundance patterns in aquatic plant communities in lowland streams. Our findings support the merit of trait-based approaches in biomonitoring as they shed light on mechanisms controlling structural changes under environmental

Functional trait composition of aquatic plants can serve to disentangle multiple interacting stressors in lowland streams

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Baattrup-Pedersen, Annette; Göthe, Emma; Riis, Tenna; O'Hare, Matthew T.

2016-01-01

Historically, close attention has been paid to negative impacts associated with nutrient loads to streams and rivers, but today hydromorphological alterations are considered increasingly implicated when lowland streams do not achieve good ecological status. Here, we explore if trait-abundance patterns of aquatic plants change along gradients in hydromorphological degradation and eutrophication in lowland stream sites located in Denmark. Specifically, we hypothesised that: i) changes in trait-abundance patterns occur along gradients in hydromorphological degradation and ii) trait-abundance patterns can serve to disentangle effects of eutrophication and hydromorphological degradation in lowland streams reflecting that the mechanisms behind changes differ. We used monitoring data from a total of 147 stream reaches with combined data on aquatic plant species abundance, catchment land use, hydromorphological alterations (i.e. planform, cross section, weed cutting) and water chemistry parameters. Traits related to life form, dispersal, reproduction and survival together with ecological preference values for nutrients and light (Ellenberg N and L) were allocated to 41 species representing 79% of the total species pool. We found clear evidence that habitat degradation (hydromorphological alterations and eutrophication) mediated selective changes in the trait-abundance patterns of the plant community. Specific traits could distinguish hydromorphological degradation (free-floating, surface; anchored floating leaves; anchored heterophylly) from eutrophication (free-floating, submerged; leaf area). We provide a conceptual framework for interpretation of how eutrophication and hydromorphological degradation interact and how this is reflected in trait-abundance patterns in aquatic plant communities in lowland streams. Our findings support the merit of trait-based approaches in biomonitoring as they shed light on mechanisms controlling structural changes under environmental

On the wake structure in streaming complex plasmas

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ludwig, Patrick; Kählert, Hanno; Bonitz, Michael; Miloch, Wojciech J

2012-01-01

The theoretical description of complex (dusty) plasmas requires multiscale concepts that adequately incorporate the correlated interplay of streaming electrons and ions, neutrals and dust grains. Knowing the effective dust-dust interaction, the multiscale problem can be effectively reduced to a one-component plasma model of the dust subsystem. The goal of this paper is a systematic evaluation of the electrostatic potential distribution around a dust grain in the presence of a streaming plasma environment by means of two complementary approaches: (i) a high-precision computation of the dynamically screened Coulomb potential from the dynamic dielectric function and (ii) full 3D particle-in-cell simulations, which self-consistently include dynamical grain charging and nonlinear effects. The range of applicability of these two approaches is addressed. (paper)

Alignment data streams for the ATLAS inner detector

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pinto, B; Amorim, A; Pereira, P; Elsing, M; Hawkings, R; Schieck, J; Garcia, S; Schaffer, A; Ma, H; Anjos, A

2008-01-01

The ATLAS experiment uses a complex trigger strategy to be able to reduce the Event Filter rate output, down to a level that allows the storage and processing of these data. These concepts are described in the ATLAS Computing Model which embraces Grid paradigm. The output coming from the Event Filter consists of four main streams: physical stream, express stream, calibration stream, and diagnostic stream. The calibration stream will be transferred to the Tier-0 facilities that will provide the prompt reconstruction of this stream with a minimum latency of 8 hours, producing calibration constants of sufficient quality to allow a first-pass processing. The Inner Detector community is developing and testing an independent common calibration stream selected at the Event Filter after track reconstruction. It is composed of raw data, in byte-stream format, contained in Readout Buffers (ROBs) with hit information of the selected tracks, and it will be used to derive and update a set of calibration and alignment constants. This option was selected because it makes use of the Byte Stream Converter infrastructure and possibly gives better bandwidth usage and storage optimization. Processing is done using specialized algorithms running in the Athena framework in dedicated Tier-0 resources, and the alignment constants will be stored and distributed using the COOL conditions database infrastructure. This work is addressing in particular the alignment requirements, the needs for track and hit selection, and the performance issues

Configuration of biological wastewater treatment line and influent composition as the main factors driving bacterial community structure of activated sludge.

Science.gov (United States)

Jaranowska, Paulina; Cydzik-Kwiatkowska, Agnieszka; Zielińska, Magdalena

2013-07-01

The structure of microbial consortia in wastewater treatment facilities is a resultant of environmental conditions created by the operational parameters of the purification process. In the research, activated sludge from nine Polish wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) was investigated at a molecular level to determine the impact of the complexity of biological treatment line and the influent composition on the species structure and the diversity of bacterial consortia. The community fingerprints and technological data were subjected to the canonical correspondence and correlation analyses. The number of separated biological processes realized in the treatment line and the presence of industrial wastewater in the influent were the key factors determining the species structure of total and ammonia-oxidizing bacteria in biomass. The N2O-reducers community composition depended significantly on the design of the facility; the highest species richness of denitrifiers was noted in the WWTPs with separated denitrification tanks. The contribution of industrial streams to the inflow affected the diversity of total and denitrifying bacterial consortia and diminished the diversity of ammonia oxidizers. The obtained data are valuable for engineers since they revealed the main factors, including the design of wastewater treatment plant, influencing the microbial groups critical for the stability of purification processes.

Functional and phylogenetic structure of island bird communities.

Science.gov (United States)

Si, Xingfeng; Cadotte, Marc W; Zeng, Di; Baselga, Andrés; Zhao, Yuhao; Li, Jiaqi; Wu, Yiru; Wang, Siyu; Ding, Ping

2017-05-01

Biodiversity change in anthropogenically transformed habitats is often nonrandom, yet the nature and importance of the different mechanisms shaping community structure are unclear. Here, we extend the classic Theory of Island Biogeography (TIB) to account for nonrandom processes by incorporating species traits and phylogenetic relationships into a study of faunal relaxation following habitat loss and fragmentation. Two possible mechanisms can create nonrandom community patterns on fragment islands. First, small and isolated islands might consist of similar or closely related species because they are environmentally homogeneous or select for certain shared traits, such as dispersal ability. Alternatively, communities on small islands might contain more dissimilar or distantly related species than on large islands because limited space and resource availability result in greater competitive exclusion among species with high niche overlap. Breeding birds were surveyed on 36 islands and two mainland sites annually from 2010 to 2014 in the Thousand Island Lake region, China. We assessed community structure of breeding birds on these subtropical land-bridge islands by integrating species' trait and evolutionary distances. We additionally analysed habitat heterogeneity and variance in size ratios to distinguish biotic and abiotic processes of community assembly. Results showed that functional-phylogenetic diversity increased with island area, and decreased with isolation. Bird communities on the mainland were more diverse and generally less clustered than island bird communities and not different than randomly assembled communities. Bird communities on islands tend to be functionally similar and phylogenetically clustered, especially on small and isolated islands. The nonrandom decline in species diversity and change in bird community structure with island area and isolation, along with the relatively homogeneous habitats on small islands, support the environmental

Covariance, correlation matrix, and the multiscale community structure of networks.

Science.gov (United States)

Shen, Hua-Wei; Cheng, Xue-Qi; Fang, Bin-Xing

2010-07-01

Empirical studies show that real world networks often exhibit multiple scales of topological descriptions. However, it is still an open problem how to identify the intrinsic multiple scales of networks. In this paper, we consider detecting the multiscale community structure of network from the perspective of dimension reduction. According to this perspective, a covariance matrix of network is defined to uncover the multiscale community structure through the translation and rotation transformations. It is proved that the covariance matrix is the unbiased version of the well-known modularity matrix. We then point out that the translation and rotation transformations fail to deal with the heterogeneous network, which is very common in nature and society. To address this problem, a correlation matrix is proposed through introducing the rescaling transformation into the covariance matrix. Extensive tests on real world and artificial networks demonstrate that the correlation matrix significantly outperforms the covariance matrix, identically the modularity matrix, as regards identifying the multiscale community structure of network. This work provides a novel perspective to the identification of community structure and thus various dimension reduction methods might be used for the identification of community structure. Through introducing the correlation matrix, we further conclude that the rescaling transformation is crucial to identify the multiscale community structure of network, as well as the translation and rotation transformations.

Community structures and role detection in music networks

Science.gov (United States)

Teitelbaum, T.; Balenzuela, P.; Cano, P.; Buldú, Javier M.

2008-12-01

We analyze the existence of community structures in two different social networks using data obtained from similarity and collaborative features between musical artists. Our analysis reveals some characteristic organizational patterns and provides information about the driving forces behind the growth of the networks. In the similarity network, we find a strong correlation between clusters of artists and musical genres. On the other hand, the collaboration network shows two different kinds of communities: rather small structures related to music bands and geographic zones, and much bigger communities built upon collaborative clusters with a high number of participants related through the period the artists were active. Finally, we detect the leading artists inside their corresponding communities and analyze their roles in the network by looking at a few topological properties of the nodes.

The ecology of acidification and recovery: changes in herbivore-algal food web linkages across a stream pH gradient

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ledger, M.E.; Hildrew, A.G.

2005-01-01

We examined the effects of acidification on herbivore-algal food web linkages in headwater streams. We determined the structure and abundance of consumer and benthic algal assemblages, and gauged herbivory, in 10 streams along a pH gradient (mean annual pH 4.6-6.4). Biofilm taxonomic composition changed with pH but total abundance did not vary systematically across the gradient. Mayflies and chironomids dominated under circumneutral conditions but declined with increasing acidity and their consumption of algae was strongly reduced. Contrary to expectations, several putative shredder species consumed algae, maintaining the herbivore-algal linkage where specialist grazers could not persist. These shifts in functioning could render the communities of acidified streams resistant to reinvasion when acidity ameliorates and water chemistry is restored to a pre-acidification condition. This hypothesis is discussed in the light of recent trends in the chemistry and biology of the UK Acid Waters Monitoring Network sites. - Generalist invertebrates maintain algae-herbivore interactions in acid streams

The ecology of acidification and recovery: changes in herbivore-algal food web linkages across a stream pH gradient

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ledger, M.E. [Queen Mary, University of London, Mile End Road, London E1 4NS (United Kingdom)]. E-mail: m.e.ledger@bham.ac.uk; Hildrew, A.G. [Queen Mary, University of London, Mile End Road, London E1 4NS (United Kingdom)

2005-09-15

We examined the effects of acidification on herbivore-algal food web linkages in headwater streams. We determined the structure and abundance of consumer and benthic algal assemblages, and gauged herbivory, in 10 streams along a pH gradient (mean annual pH 4.6-6.4). Biofilm taxonomic composition changed with pH but total abundance did not vary systematically across the gradient. Mayflies and chironomids dominated under circumneutral conditions but declined with increasing acidity and their consumption of algae was strongly reduced. Contrary to expectations, several putative shredder species consumed algae, maintaining the herbivore-algal linkage where specialist grazers could not persist. These shifts in functioning could render the communities of acidified streams resistant to reinvasion when acidity ameliorates and water chemistry is restored to a pre-acidification condition. This hypothesis is discussed in the light of recent trends in the chemistry and biology of the UK Acid Waters Monitoring Network sites. - Generalist invertebrates maintain algae-herbivore interactions in acid streams.

Checking for Circular Dependencies in Distributed Stream Programs

Science.gov (United States)

2011-08-29

extensions to express new complexities more conve- nient. Teleport messaging ( TMG ) in the StreamIt language [30] is an example. 1.1 StreamIt Language...dynamicities to an FIR computation Thies et al. in [30] give a TMG model for distributed stream pro- grams. TMG is a mechanism that implements control...messages for stream graphs. The TMG mechanism is designed not to interfere with original dataflow graphs’ structures and scheduling, therefore a key

Investigating Effects of Invasive Species on Plant Community Structure

Science.gov (United States)

Franklin, Wilfred

2008-01-01

In this article, the author presents a field study project that explores factors influencing forest community structure and lifts the veil off of "plant blindness." This ecological study consists of three laboratories: (1) preliminary field trip to the study site; (2) plant survey; and (3) analyzing plant community structure with descriptive…

Community Structural Instability, Anomie, Imitation and Adolescent Suicidal Behavior

Science.gov (United States)

Thorlindsson, Thorolfur; Bernburg, Jon Gunnar

2009-01-01

The current study examines the contextual effects of community structural characteristics, as well as the mediating role of key social mechanisms, on youth suicidal behavior in Iceland. We argue that the contextual influence of community structural instability on youth suicidal behavior should be mediated by weak attachment to social norms and…

Streams with Strahler Stream Order

Data.gov (United States)

Minnesota Department of Natural Resources — Stream segments with Strahler stream order values assigned. As of 01/08/08 the linework is from the DNR24K stream coverages and will not match the updated...

Relative performance of three stream bed stability indices as indicators of stream health.

Science.gov (United States)

Kusnierz, Paul C; Holbrook, Christopher M

2017-10-16

Bed stability is an important stream habitat attribute because it affects geomorphology and biotic communities. Natural resource managers desire indices of bed stability that can be used under a wide range of geomorphic conditions, are biologically meaningful, and are easily incorporated into sampling protocols. To eliminate potential bias due to presence of instream wood and increase precision of stability values, we modified a stream bed instability index (ISI) to include measurements of bankfull depth (d bf ) and median particle diameter (D 50 ) only in riffles and increased the pebble count to decrease variability (i.e., increase precision) in D 50 . The new riffle-based instability index (RISI) was compared to two established indices: ISI and the riffle stability index (RSI). RISI and ISI were strongly associated with each other but neither was closely associated with RSI. RISI and ISI were closely associated with both a diatom- and two macrovertebrate-based stream health indices, but RSI was only weakly associated with the macroinvertebrate indices. Unexpectedly, precision of D 50 did not differ between RISI and ISI. Results suggest that RISI is a viable alternative to both ISI and RSI for evaluating bed stability in multiple stream types. With few data requirements and a simple protocol, RISI may also better conform to riffle-based sampling methods used by some water quality practitioners.

Longitudinal habitat disruption in Neotropical streams: fish assemblages under the influence of culverts

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

José Roberto Mariano

Full Text Available This study assessed differences in fish assemblages existing upstream and downstream two types of culverts, one on each of two different Neotropical streams. We analyzed the composition and structure of the ichthyofauna and tested for spatial patterns. Fish sampling was carried out monthly between November 2009 and October 2010 using different fishing gears. We collected 2,220 fish of 33 species; 901 in stretches of the Lopeí stream - circular culvert and 1,310 in stretches of the Pindorama stream - box culvert. Fish abundance was similar in upstream and downstream stretches of the circular culvert, whereas it was slightly higher in the upstream than downstream stretch for the box culvert. Characiformes predominated in the upstream stretch of both culverts. On the other hand, Siluriformes was abundant in the downstream stretch of the circular culvert, with similar abundance in the stretches of the box culvert. Species richness and diversity (Shannon-Weiner Index were higher in the downstream stretch of the circular culvert, but they were similar in both stretches of the box culvert. The most abundant species were Astyanax altiparanae, A. paranae, A. fasciatus, Ancistrus sp., and Hypostomus sp. The last two species were more abundant in the downstream stretch of the circular culvert, and similar in stretches of the box culvert. Our study indicated variations in the species abundance, richness, and diversity between upstream and downstream stretches in particular of the circular culvert in the Lopeí stream, suggesting that fish movements are restrained more intensively in this culvert, especially for Siluriformes. The drop in the circular culvert outlet probably created passage barriers especially for those fish that has no ability to jump, where downstream erosion could lead to culvert perching. Studies on appropriate road crossing design or installation are fundamental whereas improvements in these structures can restore the connectivity of

Epidemic spreading in weighted scale-free networks with community structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chu, Xiangwei; Guan, Jihong; Zhang, Zhongzhi; Zhou, Shuigeng

2009-01-01

Many empirical studies reveal that the weights and community structure are ubiquitous in various natural and artificial networks. In this paper, based on the SI disease model, we investigate the epidemic spreading in weighted scale-free networks with community structure. Two exponents, α and β, are introduced to weight the internal edges and external edges, respectively; and a tunable probability parameter q is also introduced to adjust the strength of community structure. We find the external weighting exponent β plays a much more important role in slackening the epidemic spreading and reducing the danger brought by the epidemic than the internal weighting exponent α. Moreover, a novel result we find is that the strong community structure is no longer helpful for slackening the danger brought by the epidemic in the weighted cases. In addition, we show the hierarchical dynamics of the epidemic spreading in the weighted scale-free networks with communities which is also displayed in the famous BA scale-free networks

Detecting highly overlapping community structure by greedy clique expansion

OpenAIRE

Lee, Conrad; Reid, Fergal; McDaid, Aaron; Hurley, Neil

2010-01-01

In complex networks it is common for each node to belong to several communities, implying a highly overlapping community structure. Recent advances in benchmarking indicate that existing community assignment algorithms that are capable of detecting overlapping communities perform well only when the extent of community overlap is kept to modest levels. To overcome this limitation, we introduce a new community assignment algorithm called Greedy Clique Expansion (GCE). The algorithm identifies d...

Stream Classification Tool User Manual: For Use in Applications in Hydropower-Related Evironmental Mitigation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

McManamay, Ryan A. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Troia, Matthew J. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); DeRolph, Christopher R. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States); Samu, Nicole M. [Oak Ridge National Lab. (ORNL), Oak Ridge, TN (United States)

2016-01-01

Stream classifications are an inventory of different types of streams. Classifications help us explore similarities and differences among different types of streams, make inferences regarding stream ecosystem behavior, and communicate the complexities of ecosystems. We developed a nested, layered, and spatially contiguous stream classification to characterize the biophysical settings of stream reaches within the Eastern United States (~ 900,000 reaches). The classification is composed of five natural characteristics (hydrology, temperature, size, confinement, and substrate) along with several disturbance regime layers, and each was selected because of their relevance to hydropower mitigation. We developed the classification at the stream reach level using the National Hydrography Dataset Plus Version 1 (1:100k scale). The stream classification is useful to environmental mitigation for hydropower dams in multiple ways. First, it creates efficiency in the regulatory process by creating an objective and data-rich means to address meaningful mitigation actions. Secondly, the SCT addresses data gaps as it quickly provides an inventory of hydrology, temperature, morphology, and ecological communities for the immediate project area, but also surrounding streams. This includes identifying potential reference streams as those that are proximate to the hydropower facility and fall within the same class. These streams can potentially be used to identify ideal environmental conditions or identify desired ecological communities. In doing so, the stream provides some context for how streams may function, respond to dam regulation, and an overview of specific mitigation needs. Herein, we describe the methodology in developing each stream classification layer and provide a tutorial to guide applications of the classification (and associated data) in regulatory settings, such as hydropower (re)licensing.

Quality of streams in Johnson County, Kansas, 2002--10

Science.gov (United States)

Rasmussen, Teresa J.; Stone, Mandy S.; Poulton, Barry C.; Graham, Jennifer L.

2012-01-01

Stream quality in Johnson County, northeastern Kansas, was assessed on the basis of land use, hydrology, stream-water and streambed-sediment chemistry, riparian and in-stream habitat, and periphyton and macroinvertebrate community data collected from 22 sites during 2002 through 2010. Stream conditions at the end of the study period are evaluated and compared to previous years, stream biological communities and physical and chemical conditions are characterized, streams are described relative to Kansas Department of Health and Environment impairment categories and water-quality standards, and environmental factors that most strongly correlate with biological stream quality are evaluated. The information is useful for improving water-quality management programs, documenting changing conditions with time, and evaluating compliance with water-quality standards, total maximum daily loads (TMDLs), National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit conditions, and other established guidelines and goals. Constituent concentrations in water during base flow varied across the study area and 2010 conditions were not markedly different from those measured in 2003, 2004, and 2007. Generally the highest specific conductance and concentrations of dissolved solids and major ions in water occurred at urban sites except the upstream Cedar Creek site, which is rural and has a large area of commercial and industrial land less than 1 mile upstream on both sides of the creek. The highest base-flow nutrient concentrations in water occurred downstream from wastewater treatment facilities. Water chemistry data represent base-flow conditions only, and do not show the variability in concentrations that occurs during stormwater runoff. Constituent concentrations in streambed sediment also varied across the study area and some notable changes occurred from previously collected data. High organic carbon and nutrient concentrations at the rural Big Bull Creek site in 2003 decreased

Functional changes in littoral macroinvertebrate communities in response to watershed-level anthropogenic stress.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Katya E Kovalenko

Full Text Available Watershed-scale anthropogenic stressors have profound effects on aquatic communities. Although several functional traits of stream macroinvertebrates change predictably in response to land development and urbanization, little is known about macroinvertebrate functional responses in lakes. We assessed functional community structure, functional diversity (Rao's quadratic entropy and voltinism in macroinvertebrate communities sampled across the full gradient of anthropogenic stress in Laurentian Great Lakes coastal wetlands. Functional diversity and voltinism significantly decreased with increasing development, whereas agriculture had smaller or non-significant effects. Functional community structure was affected by watershed-scale development, as demonstrated by an ordination analysis followed by regression. Because functional community structure affects energy flow and ecosystem function, and functional diversity is known to have important implications for ecosystem resilience to further environmental change, these results highlight the necessity of finding ways to remediate or at least ameliorate these effects.

Distinctive channel geometry and riparian vegetation: A geomorphic classification for arid ephemeral streams

Science.gov (United States)

Sutfin, N.; Shaw, J. R.; Wohl, E. E.; Cooper, D.

2012-12-01

Interactions between hydrology, channel form, and riparian vegetation along arid ephemeral streams are not thoroughly understood and current stream classifications do not adequately represent variability in channel geometry and associated riparian communities. Relatively infrequent hydrologic disturbances in dryland environments are responsible for creation and maintenance of channel form that supports riparian communities. To investigate the influence of channel characteristics on riparian vegetation in the arid southwestern United States, we develop a geomorphic classification for arid ephemeral streams based on the degree of confinement and the composition of confining material that provide constraints on available moisture. Our conceptual model includes five stream types: 1) bedrock channels entirely confined by exposed bedrock and devoid of persistent alluvium; 2) bedrock with alluvium channels at least partially confined by bedrock but containing enough alluvium to create bedforms that persist through time; 3) incised alluvium channels bound only by unconsolidated alluvial material into which they are incised; 4) braided washes that exhibit multi-thread, braided characteristics regardless of the composition of confining material; and 5) piedmont headwater 0-2nd order streams (Strahler) confined only by unconsolidated alluvium and which initiate as secondary channels on piedmont surfaces. Eighty-six study reaches representing the five stream types were surveyed on the U.S. Army Yuma Proving Ground in the Sonoran Desert of southwestern Arizona. Non-parametric multivariate analysis of variance (PERMANOVA) indicates significant differences between the five stream types with regards to channel geometry (i.e., stream gradient, width-to-depth ratio, the ratio between valley width and channel width (Wv/Wc), shear stress, and unit stream power) and riparian vegetation (i.e., presence and canopy coverage by species, canopy stratum, and life form). Discriminant analysis

Corotating pressure waves without streams in the solar wind

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Burlaga, L.F.

1983-01-01

Voyager 1 and 2 magnetic field and plasma data are presented which demonstrate the existence of large scale, corotating, non-linear pressure waves between 2 AU and 4 AU that are not accompanied by fast streams. The pressure waves are presumed to be generated by corotating streams near the Sun. For two of the three pressure waves that are discussed, the absence of a stream is probably a real, physical effect, viz., a consequence of deceleration of the stream by the associated compression wave. For the third pressure wave, the apparent absence of a stream may be a geometrical effect it is likely that the stream was at latitudes just above those of the spacecraft, while the associated shocks and compression wave extended over a broader range of latitudes so that they could be observed by the spacecraft. It is suggested that the development of large-scale non-linear pressure waves at the expense of the kinetic energy of streams produces a qualitative change in the solar wind in the outer heliosphere. Within a few AU the quasi-stationary solar wind structure is determined by corotating streams whose structure is determined by the boundary conditions near the Sun

Warming-induced changes in denitrifier community structure modulate the ability of phototrophic river biofilms to denitrify

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Boulêtreau, Stéphanie, E-mail: stephanie.bouletreau@univ-tlse3.fr [Université de Toulouse, UPS, INP, EcoLab (Laboratoire Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Environnement), 118 route de Narbonne, F-31062 Toulouse (France); CNRS, EcoLab, F-31062 Toulouse (France); Lyautey, Emilie [Université de Toulouse, UPS, INP, EcoLab (Laboratoire Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Environnement), 118 route de Narbonne, F-31062 Toulouse (France); CNRS, EcoLab, F-31062 Toulouse (France); Dubois, Sophie [Université de Bordeaux, EPOC - OASU, UMR 5805, Station Marine d' Arcachon, 2 rue du Professeur Jolyet, 33120 Arcachon (France); Compin, Arthur [Université de Toulouse, UPS, INP, EcoLab (Laboratoire Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Environnement), 118 route de Narbonne, F-31062 Toulouse (France); CNRS, EcoLab, F-31062 Toulouse (France); Delattre, Cécile; Touron-Bodilis, Aurélie [EDF Recherche et Développement, LNHE (Laboratoire National d' Hydraulique et Environnement), 6 quai Watier, F-78401 Chatou (France); Mastrorillo, Sylvain [Université de Toulouse, UPS, INP, EcoLab (Laboratoire Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Environnement), 118 route de Narbonne, F-31062 Toulouse (France); CNRS, EcoLab, F-31062 Toulouse (France); Garabetian, Frédéric [Université de Bordeaux, EPOC - OASU, UMR 5805, Station Marine d' Arcachon, 2 rue du Professeur Jolyet, 33120 Arcachon (France)

2014-01-01

Microbial denitrification is the main nitrogen removing process in freshwater ecosystems. The aim of this study was to show whether and how water warming (+ 2.5 °C) drives bacterial diversity and structuring and how bacterial diversity affects denitrification enzymatic activity in phototrophic river biofilms (PRB). We used water warming associated to the immediate thermal release of a nuclear power plant cooling circuit to produce natural PRB assemblages on glass slides while testing 2 temperatures (mean temperature of 17 °C versus 19.5 °C). PRB were sampled at 2 sampling times during PRB accretion (6 and 21 days) in both temperatures. Bacterial community composition was assessed using ARISA. Denitrifier community abundance and denitrification gene mRNA levels were estimated by q-PCR and qRT-PCR, respectively, of 5 genes encoding catalytic subunits of the denitrification key enzymes. Denitrification enzyme activity (DEA) was measured by the acetylene-block assay at 20 °C. A mean water warming of 2.5 °C was sufficient to produce contrasted total bacterial and denitrifier communities and, therefore, to affect DEA. Indirect temperature effect on DEA may have varied between sampling time, increasing by up to 10 the denitrification rate of 6-day-old PRB and decreasing by up to 5 the denitrification rate of 21-day-old PRB. The present results suggest that indirect effects of warming through changes in bacterial community composition, coupled to the strong direct effect of temperature on DEA already demonstrated in PRB, could modulate dissolved nitrogen removal by denitrification in rivers and streams. - Highlights: •We produced river biofilms in 2 mean temperature conditions: 17 vs 19.5 °C. •We compared their denitrifiers' structuring and functioning in 6d- and 21d-old biofilms. •A difference of 2.5 °C produced contrasted denitrifier communities. •The indirect temperature effect on denitrification activity shifted between biofilm age. �

Epipsammic diatoms in streams influenced by urban pollution, São Carlos, SP, Brazil

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

T. Bere

Full Text Available Epipsammic diatoms have important implications for ecosystem processes in lotic environments. Most of the studies on benthic diatoms concentrate on epilithic diatoms and very little is known about epipsammic diatoms. The objective of this study was to assess epipsammic diatom communities in streams in relation to environmental conditions. Epipsammic diatoms and water quality sampling was done at 7 sites during summer base flow period (2008. Forward stepwise multiple regression and canonical correspondence analysis (CCA were used to determine environmental gradients along which species vary with physical and chemical variables. A total of 112 diatom species distributed among 44 genera were recorded. Altitude and the process of eutrophication played a significant role in structuring diatom communities in the study region.

Community structure informs species geographic distributions

KAUST Repository

Montesinos-Navarro, Alicia; Estrada, Alba; Font, Xavier; Matias, Miguel G.; Meireles, Catarina; Mendoza, Manuel; Honrado, Joao P.; Prasad, Hari D.; Vicente, Joana R.; Early, Regan

2018-01-01

spatial resolution. However, survival of individuals is determined by processes that happen at small spatial scales. The relative abundance of coexisting species (i.e. 'community structure') reflects assembly processes occurring at small scales

Cytosolic streaming in vegetative mycelium and aerial structures of aspergillus niger

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bleichrodt, R.; Vinck, A.; Krijgsheld, P.; van Leeuwen, M.R.; Dijksterhuis, J.; Wösten, H.A.B.

2013-01-01

Aspergillus niger forms aerial hyphae and conidiophores after a period of vegetative growth. The hyphae within the mycelium of A. niger are divided by septa. The central pore in these septa allows for cytoplasmic streaming. Here, we studied inter- and intra-compartmental streaming of the reporter

Differences in ecological structure, function, and native species abundance between native and invaded Hawaiian streams

Science.gov (United States)

Tara Holitzki; Richard A. MacKenzie; Tracy N. Wiegner; Karla J. McDermid

2013-01-01

Poeciliids, one of the most invasive species worldwide, are found on almost every continent and have been identified as an ‘‘invasive species of concern’’ in the United States, New Zealand, and Australia. Despite their global prevalence, few studies have quantified their impacts on tropical stream ecosystem structure, function, and biodiversity. Utilizing Hawaiian...

Effect of inhomogeneous temperature fields on acoustic streaming structures in resonators.

Science.gov (United States)

Červenka, Milan; Bednařík, Michal

2017-06-01

Acoustic streaming in 2D rectangular resonant channels filled with a fluid with a spatial temperature distribution is studied within this work. An inertial force is assumed for driving the acoustic field; the temperature inhomogeneity is introduced by resonator walls with prescribed temperature distribution. The method of successive approximations is employed to derive linear equations for calculation of primary acoustic and time-averaged secondary fields including the streaming velocity. The model equations have a standard form which allows their numerical integration using a universal solver; in this case, COMSOL Multiphysics was employed. The numerical results show that fluid temperature variations in the direction perpendicular to the resonator axis influence strongly the streaming field if the ratio of the channel width and the viscous boundary layer thickness is big enough; the streaming in the Rayleigh vortices can be supported as well as opposed, which can ultimately lead to the appearance of additional vortices.

Evaluation of Macroinvertebrate Communities and Habitat for Selected Stream Reaches at Los Alamos National Laboratory

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

L.J. Henne; K.J. Buckley

2005-08-12

This is the second aquatic biological monitoring report generated by Los Alamos National Laboratory's (LANL's) Water Quality and Hydrology Group. The study has been conducted to generate impact-based assessments of habitat and water quality for LANL waterways. The monitoring program was designed to allow for the detection of spatial and temporal trends in water and habitat quality through ongoing, biannual monitoring of habitat characteristics and benthic aquatic macroinvertebrate communities at six key sites in Los Alamos, Sandia, Water, Pajarito, and Starmer's Gulch Canyons. Data were collected on aquatic habitat characteristics, channel substrate, and macroinvertebrate communities during 2001 and 2002. Aquatic habitat scores were stable between 2001 and 2002 at all locations except Starmer's Gulch and Pajarito Canyon, which had lower scores in 2002 due to low flow conditions. Channel substrate changes were most evident at the upper Los Alamos and Pajarito study reaches. The macroinvertebrate Stream Condition Index (SCI) indicated moderate to severe impairment at upper Los Alamos Canyon, slight to moderate impairment at upper Sandia Canyon, and little or no impairment at lower Sandia Canyon, Starmer's Gulch, and Pajarito Canyon. Habitat, substrate, and macroinvertebrate data from the site in upper Los Alamos Canyon indicated severe impacts from the Cerro Grande Fire of 2000. Impairment in the macroinvertebrate community at upper Sandia Canyon was probably due to effluent-dominated flow at that site. The minimal impairment SCI scores for the lower Sandia site indicated that water quality improved with distance downstream from the outfall at upper Sandia Canyon.

The Role of Regional Factors in Structuring Ouachita Mountain Stream Assemblages

Science.gov (United States)

Lance R. Williams; Christopher M. Taylor; Melvin L. Warren; J. Alan Clingenpeel

2004-01-01

Abstract - We used Basin Area Stream Survey data from the USDA Forest Service, Ouachita National Forest to evaluate the relationship between regional fish and macroinvertebrate assemblages and environmental variability (both natural and anthropogenic). Data were collected for three years (1990-1992) from six hydrologically variable stream systems in...

Constraining Depositional Slope From Sedimentary Structures in Sandy Braided Streams

Science.gov (United States)

Lynds, R. M.; Mohrig, D.; Heller, P. L.

2003-12-01

Determination of paleoslopes in ancient fluvial systems has potentially broad application to quantitatively constraining the history of tectonics and paleoclimate in continental sequences. Our method for calculating paleoslopes for sandy braided streams is based upon a simple physical model that establishes depositional skin-frictional shear stresses from assemblages of sedimentary structures and their associated grain size distributions. The addition of a skin-frictional shear stress, with a geometrically determined form-drag shear stress results in a total boundary shear stress which is directly related to water-surface slope averaged over an appropriate spatial scale. In order to apply this model to ancient fluvial systems, it is necessary to measure the following: coarsest suspended sediment size, finest grain size carried in bed load, flow depth, dune height, and dune length. In the rock record, suspended load and bed load can be accurately assessed by well-preserved suspended load deposits ("low-energy" ripples) and bed load deposits (dune foresets). This model predicts an average slope for the North Loup River near Taylor, Nebraska (modern case study) of 2.7 x 10-3. The measured reach-averaged water surface slope for the same reach of the river is 1.37 x 10-3. We suggest that it is possible to calculate the depositional slope of a sandy fluvial system by a factor of approximately two. Additionally, preliminary application of this model to the Lower Jurassic Kayenta Formation throughout the Colorado Plateau provides a promising and consistent evaluation of paleoslope in an ancient and well-preserved, sandy braided stream deposit.

Simulating the effect of climate change on stream temperature in the Trout Lake Watershed, Wisconsin

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Selbig, William R., E-mail: wrselbig@usgs.gov

2015-07-15

The potential for increases in stream temperature across many spatial and temporal scales as a result of climate change can pose a difficult challenge for environmental managers, especially when addressing thermal requirements for sensitive aquatic species. This study evaluates simulated changes to the thermal regime of three northern Wisconsin streams in response to a projected changing climate using a modeling framework and considers implications of thermal stresses to the fish community. The Stream Network Temperature Model (SNTEMP) was used in combination with a coupled groundwater and surface water flow model to assess forecasts in climate from six global circulation models and three emission scenarios. Model results suggest that annual average stream temperature will steadily increase approximately 1.1 to 3.2 °C (varying by stream) by the year 2100 with differences in magnitude between emission scenarios. Daily mean stream temperature during the months of July and August, a period when cold-water fish communities are most sensitive, showed excursions from optimal temperatures with increased frequency compared to current conditions. Projections of daily mean stream temperature, in some cases, were no longer in the range necessary to sustain a cold water fishery. - Highlights: • A stream temperature model was calibrated for three streams in northern Wisconsin. • The effect of climate change on stream temperature was simulated in each stream. • Annual average stream temperature was projected to rise from 1 to 3 °C by 2100. • Forecasts of stream temperature exceeded optimal ranges for brook trout.

Light structures phototroph, bacterial and fungal communities at the soil surface.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Lawrence O Davies

Full Text Available The upper few millimeters of soil harbour photosynthetic microbial communities that are structurally distinct from those of underlying bulk soil due to the presence of light. Previous studies in arid zones have demonstrated functional importance of these communities in reducing soil erosion, and enhancing carbon and nitrogen fixation. Despite being widely distributed, comparative understanding of the biodiversity of the soil surface and underlying soil is lacking, particularly in temperate zones. We investigated the establishment of soil surface communities on pasture soil in microcosms exposed to light or dark conditions, focusing on changes in phototroph, bacterial and fungal communities at the soil surface (0-3 mm and bulk soil (3-12 mm using ribosomal marker gene analyses. Microbial community structure changed with time and structurally similar phototrophic communities were found at the soil surface and in bulk soil in the light exposed microcosms suggesting that light can influence phototroph community structure even in the underlying bulk soil. 454 pyrosequencing showed a significant selection for diazotrophic cyanobacteria such as Nostoc punctiforme and Anabaena spp., in addition to the green alga Scenedesmus obliquus. The soil surface also harboured distinct heterotrophic bacterial and fungal communities in the presence of light, in particular, the selection for the phylum Firmicutes. However, these light driven changes in bacterial community structure did not extend to the underlying soil suggesting a discrete zone of influence, analogous to the rhizosphere.

A spectral method to detect community structure based on distance modularity matrix

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Jin-Xuan; Zhang, Xiao-Dong

2017-08-01

There are many community organizations in social and biological networks. How to identify these community structure in complex networks has become a hot issue. In this paper, an algorithm to detect community structure of networks is proposed by using spectra of distance modularity matrix. The proposed algorithm focuses on the distance of vertices within communities, rather than the most weakly connected vertex pairs or number of edges between communities. The experimental results show that our method achieves better effectiveness to identify community structure for a variety of real-world networks and computer generated networks with a little more time-consumption.

Response of stream invertebrates to short-term salinization: A mesocosm approach

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cañedo-Argüelles, Miguel; Grantham, Theodore E.; Perrée, Isabelle; Rieradevall, Maria; Céspedes-Sánchez, Raquel; Prat, Narcís

2012-01-01

Salinization is a major and growing threat to freshwater ecosystems, yet its effects on aquatic invertebrates have been poorly described at a community-level. Here we use a controlled experimental setting to evaluate short-term stream community responses to salinization, under conditions designed to replicate the duration (72 h) and intensity (up to 5 mS cm −1 ) of salinity pulses common to Mediterranean rivers subjected to mining pollution during runoff events. There was a significant overall effect, but differences between individual treatments and the control were only significant for the highest salinity treatment. The community response to salinization was characterized by a decline in total invertebrate density, taxon richness and diversity, an increase in invertebrate drift and loss of the most sensitive taxa. The findings indicate that short-term salinity increases have a significant impact on the stream invertebrate community, but concentrations of 5 mS cm −1 are needed to produce a significant ecological response. - Highlights: ► Short-term salinization has a significant impact on the aquatic invertebrates. ► A significant short-term ecological response is registered at 5 mS cm −1 . ► Salinization causes a decline in invertebrate density, richness and diversity. ► Biotic quality indices decline with increasing salinity and exposure time. - Short-term salinization in a stream mesocosm caused a significant response in the aquatic invertebrate community and led to declines in biological quality indices.

How mammalian predation contributes to tropical tree community structure.

Science.gov (United States)

Paine, C E Timothy; Beck, Harald; Terborgh, John

2016-12-01

The recruitment of seedlings from seeds is the key demographic transition for rain forest trees. Though tropical forest mammals are known to consume many seeds, their effects on tree community structure remain little known. To evaluate their effects, we monitored 8,000 seeds of 24 tree species using exclosure cages that were selectively permeable to three size classes of mammals for up to 4.4 years. Small and medium-bodied mammals removed many more seeds than did large mammals, and they alone generated beta diversity and negative density dependence, whereas all mammals reduced diversity and shaped local species composition. Thus, small and medium-bodied mammals more strongly contributed to community structure and promoted species coexistence than did large mammals. Given that seedling recruitment is seed limited for most species, alterations to the composition of the community of mammalian seed predators is expected to have long-term consequences for tree community structure in tropical forests. © 2016 by the Ecological Society of America.

The ecology and biogeochemistry of stream biofilms.

Science.gov (United States)

Battin, Tom J; Besemer, Katharina; Bengtsson, Mia M; Romani, Anna M; Packmann, Aaron I

2016-04-01

Streams and rivers form dense networks, shape the Earth's surface and, in their sediments, provide an immensely large surface area for microbial growth. Biofilms dominate microbial life in streams and rivers, drive crucial ecosystem processes and contribute substantially to global biogeochemical fluxes. In turn, water flow and related deliveries of nutrients and organic matter to biofilms constitute major constraints on microbial life. In this Review, we describe the ecology and biogeochemistry of stream biofilms and highlight the influence of physical and ecological processes on their structure and function. Recent advances in the study of biofilm ecology may pave the way towards a mechanistic understanding of the effects of climate and environmental change on stream biofilms and the biogeochemistry of stream ecosystems.

Eucalypt plantations reduce the diversity of macroinvertebrates in small forested streams

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Cordero–Rivera, A.

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Land use patterns of a river basin have a significant effect on the structure and function of river ecosystems. Changes in the composition of riparian plant communities modify the quantity, quality and seasonality of leaf–litter inputs, determining changes in macroinvertebrate colonization and activity. The main goal of this study was to test the effect of land–use modifications, and particularly the impact of eucalypt plantations, on the macroinvertebrate communities of sixteen headwater streams. Macroinvertebrates were counted and identified to family level. Land uses were classified in five categories using aerial photography: native forest, eucalypt plantations, agricultural land, shrubland, and urban areas. We found that macroinvertebrate diversity increased with basin size and with the proportion of basin covered by native forest. This variable correlated negatively with the land occupied by eucalypt plantations. Macroinvertebrate richness diminished with the increase of land surface covered by eucalypt plantations, and a similar tendency was observed with diversity. Furthermore, streams whose drainage basin was mainly covered by Eucalyptus were more likely to dry up in summer. This observation adds to evidence from previous studies that concluded that fast–growing tree plantations affect hydric resources, an important ecosystem service in the context of global warming. To minimize the impact of industrial sylviculture, we suggest that maintaining and/or restoring riparian forests could mitigate the effects of intensive eucalypt monocultures.

Discharge modulates stream metabolism dependence on fine particulate organic carbon in a Mediterranean WWTP-influenced stream

Science.gov (United States)

Drummond, J. D.; Bernal, S.; Meredith, W.; Schumer, R.; Martí Roca, E.

2017-12-01

Waste water treatment plant (WWTP) effluents constitute point source inputs of fine sediment, nutrients, carbon, and microbes to stream ecosystems. A range of responses to these inputs may be observed in recipient streams, including increases in respiration rates, which augment CO2 emissions to the atmosphere. Yet, little is known about which fractions of organic carbon (OC) contribute the most to stream metabolism in WWTP-influenced streams. Fine particulate OC (POC) represents ca. 40% of the total mass of OC in river networks, and is generally more labile than dissolved OC. Therefore, POC inputs from WWTPs could contribute disproportionately to higher rates of heterotrophic metabolism by stream microbial communities. The aim of this study was to investigate the influence of POC inputs from a WWTP effluent on the metabolism of a Mediterranean stream over a wide range of hydrologic conditions. We hypothesized that POC inputs would have a positive effect on respiration rates, and that the response to POC availability would be larger during low flows when the dilution capacity of the recipient stream is negligible. We focused on the easily resuspended fine sediment near the sediment-water interface (top 3 cm), as this region is a known hot spot for biogeochemical processes. For one year, samples of resuspended sediment were collected bimonthly at 7 sites from 0 to 800 m downstream of the WWTP point source. We measured total POC, organic matter (OM) content (%), and the associated metabolic activity of the resuspended sediment using the resazurin-resorufin smart tracer system as a proxy for aerobic ecosystem respiration. Resuspended sediment showed no difference in total POC over the year, while the OM content increased with decreasing discharge. This result together with the decreasing trend of total POC observed downstream of the point source during autumn after a long dry period, suggests that the WWTP effluent was the main contributor to stream POC. Furthermore

Epidemic spreading on complex networks with overlapping and non-overlapping community structure

Science.gov (United States)

Shang, Jiaxing; Liu, Lianchen; Li, Xin; Xie, Feng; Wu, Cheng

2015-02-01

Many real-world networks exhibit community structure where vertices belong to one or more communities. Recent studies show that community structure plays an import role in epidemic spreading. In this paper, we investigate how the extent of overlap among communities affects epidemics. In order to experiment on the characteristic of overlapping communities, we propose a rewiring algorithm that can change the community structure from overlapping to non-overlapping while maintaining the degree distribution of the network. We simulate the Susceptible-Infected-Susceptible (SIS) epidemic process on synthetic scale-free networks and real-world networks by applying our rewiring algorithm. Experiments show that epidemics spread faster on networks with higher level of overlapping communities. Furthermore, overlapping communities' effect interacts with the average degree's effect. Our work further illustrates the important role of overlapping communities in the process of epidemic spreading.

Bacterial community structure in the Cerasus sachalinensis Kom ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Jane

2011-07-21

Jul 21, 2011 ... The bacterial community structures of the Cerasus sachalinensis Kom. rhizosphere in wild and cultivated soil were studied and the community changes in different growth stages were analyzed by the PCR-denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (PCR-DGGE) method. The results showed that the bacterial ...

An investigation of total bacterial communities, culturable antibiotic-resistant bacterial communities and integrons in the river water environments of Taipei city.

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Chu-Wen; Chang, Yi-Tang; Chao, Wei-Liang; Shiung, Iau-Iun; Lin, Han-Sheng; Chen, Hsuan; Ho, Szu-Han; Lu, Min-Jheng; Lee, Pin-Hsuan; Fan, Shao-Ning

2014-07-30

The intensive use of antibiotics may accelerate the development of antibiotic-resistant bacteria (ARB). The global geographical distribution of environmental ARB has been indicated by many studies. However, the ARB in the water environments of Taiwan has not been extensively investigated. The objective of this study was to investigate the communities of ARB in Huanghsi Stream, which presents a natural acidic (pH 4) water environment. Waishuanghsi Stream provides a neutral (pH 7) water environment and was thus also monitored to allow comparison. The plate counts of culturable bacteria in eight antibiotics indicate that the numbers of culturable carbenicillin- and vancomycin-resistant bacteria in both Huanghsi and Waishuanghsi Streams are greater than the numbers of culturable bacteria resistant to the other antibiotics tested. Using a 16S rDNA sequencing approach, both the antibiotic-resistant bacterial communities (culture-based) and the total bacterial communities (metagenome-based) in Waishuanghsi Stream exhibit a higher diversity than those in Huanghsi Stream were observed. Of the three classes of integron, only class I integrons were identified in Waishuanghsi Stream. Our results suggest that an acidic (pH 4) water environment may not only affect the community composition of antibiotic-resistant bacteria but also the horizontal gene transfer mediated by integrons. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

StreamStats in Oklahoma - Drainage-Basin Characteristics and Peak-Flow Frequency Statistics for Ungaged Streams

Science.gov (United States)

Smith, S. Jerrod; Esralew, Rachel A.

2010-01-01

The USGS Streamflow Statistics (StreamStats) Program was created to make geographic information systems-based estimation of streamflow statistics easier, faster, and more consistent than previously used manual techniques. The StreamStats user interface is a map-based internet application that allows users to easily obtain streamflow statistics, basin characteristics, and other information for user-selected U.S. Geological Survey data-collection stations and ungaged sites of interest. The application relies on the data collected at U.S. Geological Survey streamflow-gaging stations, computer aided computations of drainage-basin characteristics, and published regression equations for several geographic regions comprising the United States. The StreamStats application interface allows the user to (1) obtain information on features in selected map layers, (2) delineate drainage basins for ungaged sites, (3) download drainage-basin polygons to a shapefile, (4) compute selected basin characteristics for delineated drainage basins, (5) estimate selected streamflow statistics for ungaged points on a stream, (6) print map views, (7) retrieve information for U.S. Geological Survey streamflow-gaging stations, and (8) get help on using StreamStats. StreamStats was designed for national application, with each state, territory, or group of states responsible for creating unique geospatial datasets and regression equations to compute selected streamflow statistics. With the cooperation of the Oklahoma Department of Transportation, StreamStats has been implemented for Oklahoma and is available at http://water.usgs.gov/osw/streamstats/. The Oklahoma StreamStats application covers 69 processed hydrologic units and most of the state of Oklahoma. Basin characteristics available for computation include contributing drainage area, contributing drainage area that is unregulated by Natural Resources Conservation Service floodwater retarding structures, mean-annual precipitation at the

Convergent evolution of modularity in metabolic networks through different community structures

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Zhou Wanding

2012-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background It has been reported that the modularity of metabolic networks of bacteria is closely related to the variability of their living habitats. However, given the dependency of the modularity score on the community structure, it remains unknown whether organisms achieve certain modularity via similar or different community structures. Results In this work, we studied the relationship between similarities in modularity scores and similarities in community structures of the metabolic networks of 1021 species. Both similarities are then compared against the genetic distances. We revisited the association between modularity and variability of the microbial living environments and extended the analysis to other aspects of their life style such as temperature and oxygen requirements. We also tested both topological and biological intuition of the community structures identified and investigated the extent of their conservation with respect to the taxomony. Conclusions We find that similar modularities are realized by different community structures. We find that such convergent evolution of modularity is closely associated with the number of (distinct enzymes in the organism’s metabolome, a consequence of different life styles of the species. We find that the order of modularity is the same as the order of the number of the enzymes under the classification based on the temperature preference but not on the oxygen requirement. Besides, inspection of modularity-based communities reveals that these communities are graph-theoretically meaningful yet not reflective of specific biological functions. From an evolutionary perspective, we find that the community structures are conserved only at the level of kingdoms. Our results call for more investigation into the interplay between evolution and modularity: how evolution shapes modularity, and how modularity affects evolution (mainly in terms of fitness and evolvability. Further, our results

Convergent evolution of modularity in metabolic networks through different community structures.

Science.gov (United States)

Zhou, Wanding; Nakhleh, Luay

2012-09-14

It has been reported that the modularity of metabolic networks of bacteria is closely related to the variability of their living habitats. However, given the dependency of the modularity score on the community structure, it remains unknown whether organisms achieve certain modularity via similar or different community structures. In this work, we studied the relationship between similarities in modularity scores and similarities in community structures of the metabolic networks of 1021 species. Both similarities are then compared against the genetic distances. We revisited the association between modularity and variability of the microbial living environments and extended the analysis to other aspects of their life style such as temperature and oxygen requirements. We also tested both topological and biological intuition of the community structures identified and investigated the extent of their conservation with respect to the taxonomy. We find that similar modularities are realized by different community structures. We find that such convergent evolution of modularity is closely associated with the number of (distinct) enzymes in the organism's metabolome, a consequence of different life styles of the species. We find that the order of modularity is the same as the order of the number of the enzymes under the classification based on the temperature preference but not on the oxygen requirement. Besides, inspection of modularity-based communities reveals that these communities are graph-theoretically meaningful yet not reflective of specific biological functions. From an evolutionary perspective, we find that the community structures are conserved only at the level of kingdoms. Our results call for more investigation into the interplay between evolution and modularity: how evolution shapes modularity, and how modularity affects evolution (mainly in terms of fitness and evolvability). Further, our results call for exploring new measures of modularity and network

Strong influence of regional species pools on continent-wide structuring of local communities.

Science.gov (United States)

Lessard, Jean-Philippe; Borregaard, Michael K; Fordyce, James A; Rahbek, Carsten; Weiser, Michael D; Dunn, Robert R; Sanders, Nathan J

2012-01-22

There is a long tradition in ecology of evaluating the relative contribution of the regional species pool and local interactions on the structure of local communities. Similarly, a growing number of studies assess the phylogenetic structure of communities, relative to that in the regional species pool, to examine the interplay between broad-scale evolutionary and fine-scale ecological processes. Finally, a renewed interest in the influence of species source pools on communities has shown that the definition of the source pool influences interpretations of patterns of community structure. We use a continent-wide dataset of local ant communities and implement ecologically explicit source pool definitions to examine the relative importance of regional species pools and local interactions for shaping community structure. Then we assess which factors underlie systematic variation in the structure of communities along climatic gradients. We find that the average phylogenetic relatedness of species in ant communities decreases from tropical to temperate regions, but the strength of this relationship depends on the level of ecological realism in the definition of source pools. We conclude that the evolution of climatic niches influences the phylogenetic structure of regional source pools and that the influence of regional source pools on local community structure is strong.

Design and methods of the Southeast Stream Quality Assessment (SESQA), 2014

Science.gov (United States)

Journey, Celeste A.; Van Metre, Peter C.; Bell, Amanda H.; Button, Daniel T.; Garrett, Jessica D.; Nakagaki, Naomi; Qi, Sharon L.; Bradley, Paul M.

2015-07-15

During 2014, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) National Water-Quality Assessment Program (NAWQA) assessed stream quality across the Piedmont and southern Appalachian Mountain regions of the southeastern United States. This Southeast Stream Quality Assessment (SESQA) simultaneously characterized watershed and stream-reach water-quality stressors along with instream biological conditions, in order to better understand regional stressor-effects relations. The goal of SESQA is to provide communities and policymakers with information about those human and environmental factors that have the greatest impact on stream quality across the region. The SESQA design focused on hydrologic alteration and urbanization because of their importance as ecological stressors of particular concern to Southeast region resource managers.

Complex mixtures of dissolved pesticides show potential aquatic toxicity in a synoptic study of Midwestern U.S. streams

Science.gov (United States)

Nowell, Lisa H.; Moran, Patrick W.; Schmidt, Travis S.; Norman, Julia E.; Nakagaki, Naomi; Shoda, Megan E.; Mahler, Barbara J.; Van Metre, Peter C.; Stone, Wesley W.; Sandstrom, Mark W.; Hladik, Michelle L.

2018-01-01

Aquatic organisms in streams are exposed to pesticide mixtures that vary in composition over time in response to changes in flow conditions, pesticide inputs to the stream, and pesticide fate and degradation within the stream. To characterize mixtures of dissolved-phase pesticides and degradates in Midwestern streams, a synoptic study was conducted at 100 streams during May–August 2013. In weekly water samples, 94 pesticides and 89 degradates were detected, with a median of 25 compounds detected per sample and 54 detected per site. In a screening-level assessment using aquatic-life benchmarks and the Pesticide Toxicity Index (PTI), potential effects on fish were unlikely in most streams. For invertebrates, potential chronic toxicity was predicted in 53% of streams, punctuated in 12% of streams by acutely toxic exposures. For aquatic plants, acute but likely reversible effects on biomass were predicted in 75% of streams, with potential longer-term effects on plant communities in 9% of streams. Relatively few pesticides in water—atrazine, acetochlor, metolachlor, imidacloprid, fipronil, organophosphate insecticides, and carbendazim—were predicted to be major contributors to potential toxicity. Agricultural streams had the highest potential for effects on plants, especially in May–June, corresponding to high spring-flush herbicide concentrations. Urban streams had higher detection frequencies and concentrations of insecticides and most fungicides than in agricultural streams, and higher potential for invertebrate toxicity, which peaked during July–August. Toxicity-screening predictions for invertebrates were supported by quantile regressions showing significant associations for the Benthic Invertebrate-PTI and imidacloprid concentrations with invertebrate community metrics for MSQA streams, and by mesocosm toxicity testing with imidacloprid showing effects on invertebrate communities at environmentally relevant concentrations. This study documents the most

Learning From Short Text Streams With Topic Drifts.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Peipei; He, Lu; Wang, Haiyan; Hu, Xuegang; Zhang, Yuhong; Li, Lei; Wu, Xindong

2017-09-18

Short text streams such as search snippets and micro blogs have been popular on the Web with the emergence of social media. Unlike traditional normal text streams, these data present the characteristics of short length, weak signal, high volume, high velocity, topic drift, etc. Short text stream classification is hence a very challenging and significant task. However, this challenge has received little attention from the research community. Therefore, a new feature extension approach is proposed for short text stream classification with the help of a large-scale semantic network obtained from a Web corpus. It is built on an incremental ensemble classification model for efficiency. First, more semantic contexts based on the senses of terms in short texts are introduced to make up of the data sparsity using the open semantic network, in which all terms are disambiguated by their semantics to reduce the noise impact. Second, a concept cluster-based topic drifting detection method is proposed to effectively track hidden topic drifts. Finally, extensive studies demonstrate that as compared to several well-known concept drifting detection methods in data stream, our approach can detect topic drifts effectively, and it enables handling short text streams effectively while maintaining the efficiency as compared to several state-of-the-art short text classification approaches.

Centralized Drinking Water Treatment Operations Shape Bacterial and Fungal Community Structure.

Science.gov (United States)

Ma, Xiao; Vikram, Amit; Casson, Leonard; Bibby, Kyle

2017-07-05

Drinking water microbial communities impact opportunistic pathogen colonization and corrosion of water distribution systems, and centralized drinking water treatment represents a potential control for microbial community structure in finished drinking water. In this article, we examine bacterial and fungal abundance and diversity, as well as the microbial community taxonomic structure following each unit operation in a conventional surface water treatment plant. Treatment operations drove the microbial composition more strongly than sampling time. Both bacterial and fungal abundance and diversity decreased following sedimentation and filtration; however, only bacterial abundance and diversity was significantly impacted by free chlorine disinfection. Similarly, each treatment step was found to shift bacterial and fungal community beta-diversity, with the exception of disinfection on the fungal community structure. We observed the enrichment of bacterial and fungal taxa commonly found in drinking water distribution systems through the treatment process, for example, Sphingomonas following filtration and Leptospirillium and Penicillium following disinfection. Study results suggest that centralized drinking water treatment processes shape the final drinking water microbial community via selection of community members and that the bacterial community is primarily driven by disinfection while the eukaryotic community is primarily controlled by physical treatment processes.

Modeled hydrologic metrics show links between hydrology and the functional composition of stream assemblages.

Science.gov (United States)

Patrick, Christopher J; Yuan, Lester L

2017-07-01

Flow alteration is widespread in streams, but current understanding of the effects of differences in flow characteristics on stream biological communities is incomplete. We tested hypotheses about the effect of variation in hydrology on stream communities by using generalized additive models to relate watershed information to the values of different flow metrics at gauged sites. Flow models accounted for 54-80% of the spatial variation in flow metric values among gauged sites. We then used these models to predict flow metrics in 842 ungauged stream sites in the mid-Atlantic United States that were sampled for fish, macroinvertebrates, and environmental covariates. Fish and macroinvertebrate assemblages were characterized in terms of a suite of metrics that quantified aspects of community composition, diversity, and functional traits that were expected to be associated with differences in flow characteristics. We related modeled flow metrics to biological metrics in a series of stressor-response models. Our analyses identified both drying and base flow instability as explaining 30-50% of the observed variability in fish and invertebrate community composition. Variations in community composition were related to variations in the prevalence of dispersal traits in invertebrates and trophic guilds in fish. The results demonstrate that we can use statistical models to predict hydrologic conditions at bioassessment sites, which, in turn, we can use to estimate relationships between flow conditions and biological characteristics. This analysis provides an approach to quantify the effects of spatial variation in flow metrics using readily available biomonitoring data. © 2017 by the Ecological Society of America.

Seasonality and structure of the arthropod community in a forested ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The structure of an arthropod community in the forest floor vegetation was studied in a low altitude (about 700 m a.s.l.) forest valley in the Uluguru Mountains near Morogoro, Tanzania, by monthly sweep net sampling during one year (December 1996-November 1997). The community structure of arthropods changed ...

Spatial and temporal variation of algal assemblages in six Midwest agricultural streams having varying levels of atrazine and other physicochemical attributes

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Andrus, J. Malia, E-mail: andrusm@waterborne-env.com [Waterborne Environmental, Inc., 2001 South First Street, Suite 109, Champaign, IL 61820 (United States); Winter, Diane, E-mail: dwinter1@juno.com [Rhithron Associates, Inc., 33 Fort Missoula Rd., Missoula, MT 59804 (United States); Algal Analysis, LLC, Missoula, MT (United States); Scanlan, Michael, E-mail: mscanlan@maptech-inc.com [MapTech, Inc., 3154 State Street, Blacksburg, VA 24060 (United States); Sullivan, Sean, E-mail: ssullivan@rhithron.com [Rhithron Associates, Inc., 33 Fort Missoula Rd., Missoula, MT 59804 (United States); Bollman, Wease, E-mail: wbollman@rhithron.com [Rhithron Associates, Inc., 33 Fort Missoula Rd., Missoula, MT 59804 (United States); Waggoner, J.B., E-mail: jwaggoner@inovatia.com [Inovatia, Inc., 120 East Davis Street, Fayette, MO 65248 (United States); Hosmer, Alan J., E-mail: alan.hosmer@syngenta.com [Syngenta Crop Protection, LLC, 410 Swing Rd., Greensboro, NC 27419 (United States); Brain, Richard A., E-mail: richard.brain@syngenta.com [Syngenta Crop Protection, LLC, 410 Swing Rd., Greensboro, NC 27419 (United States)

2015-02-01

Potential effects of pesticides on stream algae occur alongside complex environmental influences; in situ studies examining these effects together are few, and have not typically controlled for collinearity of variables. We monitored the dynamics of periphyton, phytoplankton, and environmental factors including atrazine, and other water chemistry variables at 6 agricultural streams in the Midwest US from spring to summer of 2011 and 2012, and used variation partitioning of community models to determine the community inertia that is explained uniquely and/or jointly by atrazine and other environmental factors or groups of factors. Periphyton and phytoplankton assemblages were significantly structured by year, day of year, and site, and exhibited dynamic synchrony both between site–years and between periphyton and phytoplankton in the same site–year. The majority of inertia in the models (55.4% for periphyton, 68.4% for phytoplankton) was unexplained. The explained inertia in the models was predominantly shared (confounded) between variables and variable groups (13.3, 30.9%); the magnitude of inertia that was explained uniquely by variable groups (15.1, 18.3%) was of the order hydroclimate > chemistry > geography > atrazine for periphyton, and chemistry > hydroclimate > geography > atrazine for phytoplankton. The variables most influential to the assemblage structure included flow and velocity variables, and time since pulses above certain thresholds of nitrate + nitrite, total phosphorus, total suspended solids, and atrazine. Time since a ≥ 30 μg/L atrazine pulse uniquely explained more inertia than time since pulses ≥ 10 μg/L or daily or historic atrazine concentrations; this result is consistent with studies concluding that the effects of atrazine on algae typically only occur at ≥ 30 μg/L and are recovered from. - Highlights: • We monitored algal communities at 6 Midwest streams receiving atrazine in 2011 and 2012. • Partitioning of CCA models of

Spatial and temporal variation of algal assemblages in six Midwest agricultural streams having varying levels of atrazine and other physicochemical attributes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Andrus, J. Malia; Winter, Diane; Scanlan, Michael; Sullivan, Sean; Bollman, Wease; Waggoner, J.B.; Hosmer, Alan J.; Brain, Richard A.

2015-01-01

Potential effects of pesticides on stream algae occur alongside complex environmental influences; in situ studies examining these effects together are few, and have not typically controlled for collinearity of variables. We monitored the dynamics of periphyton, phytoplankton, and environmental factors including atrazine, and other water chemistry variables at 6 agricultural streams in the Midwest US from spring to summer of 2011 and 2012, and used variation partitioning of community models to determine the community inertia that is explained uniquely and/or jointly by atrazine and other environmental factors or groups of factors. Periphyton and phytoplankton assemblages were significantly structured by year, day of year, and site, and exhibited dynamic synchrony both between site–years and between periphyton and phytoplankton in the same site–year. The majority of inertia in the models (55.4% for periphyton, 68.4% for phytoplankton) was unexplained. The explained inertia in the models was predominantly shared (confounded) between variables and variable groups (13.3, 30.9%); the magnitude of inertia that was explained uniquely by variable groups (15.1, 18.3%) was of the order hydroclimate > chemistry > geography > atrazine for periphyton, and chemistry > hydroclimate > geography > atrazine for phytoplankton. The variables most influential to the assemblage structure included flow and velocity variables, and time since pulses above certain thresholds of nitrate + nitrite, total phosphorus, total suspended solids, and atrazine. Time since a ≥ 30 μg/L atrazine pulse uniquely explained more inertia than time since pulses ≥ 10 μg/L or daily or historic atrazine concentrations; this result is consistent with studies concluding that the effects of atrazine on algae typically only occur at ≥ 30 μg/L and are recovered from. - Highlights: • We monitored algal communities at 6 Midwest streams receiving atrazine in 2011 and 2012. • Partitioning of CCA models of

Short-term effects of visitor trampling on macroinvertebrates in karst streams in an ecotourism region.

Science.gov (United States)

Escarpinati, Suzana Cunha; Siqueira, Tadeu; Medina, Paulino Barroso; de Oliveira Roque, Fabio

2014-03-01

In order to evaluate the potential risks of human visitation on macroinvertebrate communities in streams, we investigated the effect of trampling using two short-term experiments conducted in a Brazilian ecotourism karst region. We asked three questions: (a) Does trampling increase the drift rate of aquatic macroinvertebrates and organic matter? (b) Does trampling change the macroinvertebrate community organization? (c) If trampling alters the community structure, is a short time (5 days, a between weekends interval - peaks of tourism activities) sufficient for community restructuring? Analysis of variance of richness, total abundance, abundance of the most abundant genus (e.g., Simothraulopsis and Callibaetis), and community composition showed that trampling immediately affects macroinvertebrate community and that the intervals between the peaks of visitation (5 days) are not sufficient to complete community restructuring. Considering that bathing areas receive thousands of visitors every year and that intervals of time without visitation are nearly nonexistent, we suspect that the negative effects on the macroinvertebrate community occur in a cumulative way. Finally, we discuss some simple procedures that could potentially be used for reducing trampling impacts in lotic environments.

STREAMFINDER I: A New Algorithm for detecting Stellar Streams

Science.gov (United States)

Malhan, Khyati; Ibata, Rodrigo A.

2018-04-01

We have designed a powerful new algorithm to detect stellar streams in an automated and systematic way. The algorithm, which we call the STREAMFINDER, is well suited for finding dynamically cold and thin stream structures that may lie along any simple or complex orbits in Galactic stellar surveys containing any combination of positional and kinematic information. In the present contribution we introduce the algorithm, lay out the ideas behind it, explain the methodology adopted to detect streams and detail its workings by running it on a suite of simulations of mock Galactic survey data of similar quality to that expected from the ESA/Gaia mission. We show that our algorithm is able to detect even ultra-faint stream features lying well below previous detection limits. Tests show that our algorithm will be able to detect distant halo stream structures >10° long containing as few as ˜15 members (ΣG ˜ 33.6 mag arcsec-2) in the Gaia dataset.

Floral colour versus phylogeny in structuring subalpine flowering communities.

Science.gov (United States)

McEwen, Jamie R; Vamosi, Jana C

2010-10-07

The relative number of seeds produced by competing species can influence the community structure; yet, traits that influence seed production, such as pollinator attraction and floral colour, have received little attention in community ecology. Here, we analyse floral colour using reflectance spectra that include near-UV and examined the phylogenetic signal of floral colour. We found that coflowering species within communities tended to be more divergent in floral colour than expected by chance. However, coflowering species were not phylogenetically dispersed, in part due to our finding that floral colour is a labile trait with a weak phylogenetic signal. Furthermore, while we found that locally rare and common species exhibited equivalent floral colour distances from their coflowering neighbours, frequent species (those found in more communities) exhibited higher colour distances from their coflowering neighbours. Our findings support recent studies, which have found that (i) plant lineages exhibit frequent floral colour transitions; and (ii) traits that influence local population dynamics contribute to community structure.

Lower Red River Meadow Stream Restoration Project

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

1996-05-01

As part of a continuing effort to restore anadromous fish populations in the South Fork Clearwater River basin of Idaho, Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) proposes to fund the Lower Red River Meadow Restoration Project (Project). The Project is a cooperative effort with the Idaho Soil and Water Conservation District, Nez Perce National Forest, Idaho Department of Fish and Game (IDFG), and the Nez Perce Tribe of Idaho. The proposed action would allow the sponsors to perform stream bank stabilization, aquatic and riparian habitat improvement activities on IDFG's Red River Management Area and to secure long-term conservation contracts or agreements for conducting streambank and habitat improvement activities with participating private landowners located in the Idaho County, Idaho, study area. This preliminary Environmental Assessment (EA) examines the potential environmental effects of stabilizing the stream channel, restoring juvenile fish rearing habitat and reestablishing a riparian shrub community along the stream

Structural and functional responses of the oligochaete and aeolosomatid assemblage in lowland streams: a one-way-pollution-modelled ecosystem

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Maria V. López van Oosterom

2015-03-01

Full Text Available We investigated the responses of the assemblage of Oligochaeta and Aeolosomatidae to organic pollution; comparing taxonomic richness, diversity, abundance, and diet of the individuals inhabiting two lowland streams with different degrees of anthropic impact (the Rodríguez and the Carnaval belonging to the Río de la Plata basin, Argentina. The physicochemical parameters in the Rodríguez Stream indicated a strong deterioration of the water quality compared to that of the Carnaval. A canonical-correlation analysis indicated that the Tubificinae, Megadrili, Enchytraeidae, and Rhyacodrilinae were more closely associated with the Rodríguez Stream; whereas the Naidinae, Pristininae, and Opystocystidae were more highly represented in the Carnaval. The diversity and taxonomic richness in the Rodríguez Stream exhibited significant differences from those of the Carnaval (P<0.001, but the abundance was not different between the two sites. Schoener’s index revealed the higher degree of dietary overlap of the two streams because all the species analysed consumed a high proportion of detritus, especially the organisms in the Rodríguez. In the Carnaval Stream a higher number of alimentary items were consumed, and mainly by the Naidinae. This difference, probably reflecting the greater availability of this resource at sites impacted by organic pollution, underscores the fundamental role of oligochaetes in the food webs of aquatic ecosystems. The combined use of structural and functional parameters enables a more comprehensive view of how these lotic systems function and as such provides information that will serve to design tools for the management of such temperate environments.

Seasonality, water quality trends and biological responses in four streams in the Cairngorm Mountains, Scotland

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

C. Soulsby

2001-01-01

Full Text Available The chemical composition and invertebrate communities found in four streams in the Cairngorms, Scotland, were monitored between 1985-1997. Stream waters were mildly acidic (mean pH ca. 6.5, with low alkalinity (mean acid neutralising capacity varying from 35-117 meq l-1 and low ionic strength. Subtle differences in the chemistry of each stream were reflected in their invertebrate faunas. Strong seasonality in water chemistry occurred, with the most acid, low alkalinity waters observed during the winter and early spring. This was particularly marked during snowmelt between January and April. In contrast, summer flows were usually groundwater dominated and characterised by higher alkalinity and higher concentrations of most other weathering-derived solutes. Seasonality was also clear in the invertebrate data, with Canonical Correspondence Analysis (CCA separating seasonal samples along axes related to water temperature and discharge characteristics. Inter-annual hydrological and chemical differences were marked, particularly with respect to the winter period. Invertebrate communities found in each of the streams also varied from year to year, with spring communities significantly more variable (PHydrochemical trends over the study period were analysed using a seasonal Kendall test, LOcally WEighted Scatterplot Smoothing (LOWESS and graphical techniques. These indicated that a reduction in sulphate concentrations in stream water is occurring, consistent with declining levels of atmospheric deposition. This may be matched by increases in pH and declining calcium concentrations, though available evidence is inconclusive. Other parameters, such as chloride, total organic carbon and zinc, reveal somewhat random patterns, probably reflecting irregular variations in climatic factors and/or atmospheric deposition. Previous studies have shown that the stream invertebrate communities have remained stable over this period (i.e. no significant linear trends

Community-oriented support and research structures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Attig, Norbert; Eickermann, Thomas; Gibbon, Paul; Lippert, Thomas, E-mail: th.lippert@fz-juelich.d [Institute for Advanced Simulation, Juelich Supercomputing Centre, Forschungszentrum Juelich, 52425 Juelich (Germany)

2009-07-01

Coordinated by the Partnership for Advanced Computing in Europe (PRACE) Europe is restructuring and strengthening its high-performance computing infrastructure with the aim to create a model HPC ecosystem. At the tip of the pyramid, up to six centres are envisaged that will operate systems of the highest performance class. The HPC Research Infrastructure (HPC-RI) will comprise European, national and regional centres. Science communities are integral partners, strong links will include Grid and Cloud users. The HPC-RI strives at providing scientists all over Europe, on the one hand, with unlimited and independent access to state-of-the-art computer resources in all performance classes and, on the other hand, with a world-class pan-European competence and support network. While the hardware-oriented buildup of the infrastructure is making progress, high-quality user support and software development in the upcoming era of unprecedented parallelism and exascale on the horizon have become the imminent challenges. This has been clearly recognized by the European Commission, who will issue calls for proposals to fund petascale software development in summer 2009. Although traditional support structures are well established in Europe's major supercomputing centres, it is questionable if these structures are able to meet the challenges of the future: in general, support structures are based on cross-disciplinary computer science and mathematics teams; disciplinary computational science support usually is given in an ad-hoc, project-oriented manner. In this paper, we describe our approach to establish a suitable support structure-Simulation Laboratories (SL). SLs are currently being established at the Juelich Supercomputing Centre of the Forschungszentrum Juelich (FZJ) and at the Steinbuch Centre for Computing (SCC) of the Karlsruhe Institute for Technology (KIT) in Germany. While SLs are community-oriented, i.e. each SL focusses on a specific community, they are

Community-oriented support and research structures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Attig, Norbert; Eickermann, Thomas; Gibbon, Paul; Lippert, Thomas

2009-01-01

Coordinated by the Partnership for Advanced Computing in Europe (PRACE) Europe is restructuring and strengthening its high-performance computing infrastructure with the aim to create a model HPC ecosystem. At the tip of the pyramid, up to six centres are envisaged that will operate systems of the highest performance class. The HPC Research Infrastructure (HPC-RI) will comprise European, national and regional centres. Science communities are integral partners, strong links will include Grid and Cloud users. The HPC-RI strives at providing scientists all over Europe, on the one hand, with unlimited and independent access to state-of-the-art computer resources in all performance classes and, on the other hand, with a world-class pan-European competence and support network. While the hardware-oriented buildup of the infrastructure is making progress, high-quality user support and software development in the upcoming era of unprecedented parallelism and exascale on the horizon have become the imminent challenges. This has been clearly recognized by the European Commission, who will issue calls for proposals to fund petascale software development in summer 2009. Although traditional support structures are well established in Europe's major supercomputing centres, it is questionable if these structures are able to meet the challenges of the future: in general, support structures are based on cross-disciplinary computer science and mathematics teams; disciplinary computational science support usually is given in an ad-hoc, project-oriented manner. In this paper, we describe our approach to establish a suitable support structure-Simulation Laboratories (SL). SLs are currently being established at the Juelich Supercomputing Centre of the Forschungszentrum Juelich (FZJ) and at the Steinbuch Centre for Computing (SCC) of the Karlsruhe Institute for Technology (KIT) in Germany. While SLs are community-oriented, i.e. each SL focusses on a specific community, they are structured

Clustering coefficient and community structure of bipartite networks

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Peng; Wang, Jinliang; Li, Xiaojia; Li, Menghui; Di, Zengru; Fan, Ying

2008-12-01

Many real-world networks display natural bipartite structure, where the basic cycle is a square. In this paper, with the similar consideration of standard clustering coefficient in binary networks, a definition of the clustering coefficient for bipartite networks based on the fraction of squares is proposed. In order to detect community structures in bipartite networks, two different edge clustering coefficients LC4 and LC3 of bipartite networks are defined, which are based on squares and triples respectively. With the algorithm of cutting the edge with the least clustering coefficient, communities in artificial and real world networks are identified. The results reveal that investigating bipartite networks based on the original structure can show the detailed properties that is helpful to get deep understanding about the networks.

Towards Cache-Enabled, Order-Aware, Ontology-Based Stream Reasoning Framework

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yan, Rui; Praggastis, Brenda L.; Smith, William P.; McGuinness, Deborah L.

2016-08-16

While streaming data have become increasingly more popular in business and research communities, semantic models and processing software for streaming data have not kept pace. Traditional semantic solutions have not addressed transient data streams. Semantic web languages (e.g., RDF, OWL) have typically addressed static data settings and linked data approaches have predominantly addressed static or growing data repositories. Streaming data settings have some fundamental differences; in particular, data are consumed on the fly and data may expire. Stream reasoning, a combination of stream processing and semantic reasoning, has emerged with the vision of providing "smart" processing of streaming data. C-SPARQL is a prominent stream reasoning system that handles semantic (RDF) data streams. Many stream reasoning systems including C-SPARQL use a sliding window and use data arrival time to evict data. For data streams that include expiration times, a simple arrival time scheme is inadequate if the window size does not match the expiration period. In this paper, we propose a cache-enabled, order-aware, ontology-based stream reasoning framework. This framework consumes RDF streams with expiration timestamps assigned by the streaming source. Our framework utilizes both arrival and expiration timestamps in its cache eviction policies. In addition, we introduce the notion of "semantic importance" which aims to address the relevance of data to the expected reasoning, thus enabling the eviction algorithms to be more context- and reasoning-aware when choosing what data to maintain for question answering. We evaluate this framework by implementing three different prototypes and utilizing five metrics. The trade-offs of deploying the proposed framework are also discussed.

Diatom diversity in chronically versus episodically acidified adirondack streams

Science.gov (United States)

Passy, S.I.; Ciugulea, I.; Lawrence, G.B.

2006-01-01

The relationship between algal species richness and diversity, and pH is controversial. Furthermore, it is still unknown how episodic stream acidification following atmospheric deposition affects species richness and diversity. Here we analyzed water chemistry and diatom epiphyton dynamics and showed their contrasting behavior in chronically vs. episodically acidic streams in the Adirondack region. Species richness and diversity were significantly higher in the chronically acidic brown water stream, where organic acidity was significantly higher and the ratio of inorganic to organic monomeric aluminum significantly lower. Conversely, in the episodically acidic clear water stream, the inorganic acidity and pH were significantly higher and the diatom communities were very species-poor. This suggests that episodic acidification in the Adirondacks may be more stressful for stream biota than chronic acidity. Strong negative linear relationships between species diversity, Eunotia exigua, and dissolved organic carbon against pH were revealed after the influence of non-linear temporal trends was partialled out using a novel way of temporal modeling. ?? 2006 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA.

Permafrost thaw and intense thermokarst activity decreases abundance of stream benthic macroinvertebrates.

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Chin, Krista S; Lento, Jennifer; Culp, Joseph M; Lacelle, Denis; Kokelj, Steven V

2016-08-01

Intensification of permafrost thaw has increased the frequency and magnitude of large permafrost slope disturbances (mega slumps) in glaciated terrain of northwestern Canada. Individual thermokarst disturbances up to 40 ha in area have made large volumes of previously frozen sediments available for leaching and transport to adjacent streams, significantly increasing sediment and solute loads in these systems. To test the effects of this climate-sensitive disturbance regime on the ecology of Arctic streams, we explored the relationship between physical and chemical variables and benthic macroinvertebrate communities in disturbed and undisturbed stream reaches in the Peel Plateau, Northwest Territories, Canada. Highly disturbed and undisturbed stream reaches differed with respect to taxonomic composition and invertebrate abundance. Minimally disturbed reaches were not differentiated by these variables but rather were distributed along a disturbance gradient between highly disturbed and undisturbed sites. In particular, there was evidence of a strong negative relationship between macroinvertebrate abundance and total suspended solids, and a positive relationship between abundance and the distance from the disturbance. Increases in both sediments and nutrients appear to be the proximate cause of community differences in highly disturbed streams. Declines in macroinvertebrate abundance in response to slump activity have implications for the food webs of these systems, potentially leading to negative impacts on higher trophic levels, such as fish. Furthermore, the disturbance impacts on stream health can be expected to intensify as climate change increases the frequency and magnitude of thermokarst. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Recovery of lotic macroinvertebrate communities from disturbance

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Wallace, J. Bruce

1990-09-01

Ecosystem disturbances produce changes in macrobenthic community structure (abundances, biomass, and production) that persist for a few weeks to many decades. Examples of disturbances with extremely long-term effects on benthic communities include contamination by persistent toxic agents, physical changes in habitats, and altered energy inputs. Stream size, retention, and local geomorphology may ameliorate the influence of disturbances on invertebrates. Disturbances can alter food webs and may select for favorable genotypes (e.g., insecticidal resistance). Introductions of pesticides into lotic ecosystems, which do not result in major physical changes within habitats, illustrate several factors that influence invertebrate recovery time from disturbance. These include: (1) magnitude of original contamination, toxicity, and extent of continued use; (2) spatial scale of the disturbance; (3) persistence of the pesticide; (4) timing of the contamination in relation to the life history stages of the organisms; (5) vagility of populations influenced by pesticides; and (6) position within the drainage network. The ability of macroinvertebrates to recolonize denuded stream habitats may vary greatly depending on regional life histories, dispersal abilities, and position within the stream network (e.g., headwaters vs larger rivers). Although downstream drift is the most frequently cited mechanism of invertebrate recolonization following disturbance in middle- and larger-order streams, evidence is presented that shows aerial recolonization to be potentially important in headwater streams. There is an apparent stochastic element operating for aerial recolonization, depending on the timing of disturbance and flight periods of various taxa. Available evidence indicates that recolonization of invertebrate taxa without an aerial adult stage requires longer periods of time than for those that possess winged, terrestrial adult stages (i.e., most insects). Innovative, manipulative

Alteration of stream temperature by natural and artificial beaver dams.

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Weber, Nicholas; Bouwes, Nicolaas; Pollock, Michael M; Volk, Carol; Wheaton, Joseph M; Wathen, Gus; Wirtz, Jacob; Jordan, Chris E

2017-01-01

Beaver are an integral component of hydrologic, geomorphic, and biotic processes within North American stream systems, and their propensity to build dams alters stream and riparian structure and function to the benefit of many aquatic and terrestrial species. Recognizing this, beaver relocation efforts and/or application of structures designed to mimic the function of beaver dams are increasingly being utilized as effective and cost-efficient stream and riparian restoration approaches. Despite these verities, the notion that beaver dams negatively impact stream habitat remains common, specifically the assumption that beaver dams increase stream temperatures during summer to the detriment of sensitive biota such as salmonids. In this study, we tracked beaver dam distributions and monitored water temperature throughout 34 km of stream for an eight-year period between 2007 and 2014. During this time the number of natural beaver dams within the study area increased by an order of magnitude, and an additional 4 km of stream were subject to a restoration manipulation that included installing a high-density of Beaver Dam Analog (BDA) structures designed to mimic the function of natural beaver dams. Our observations reveal several mechanisms by which beaver dam development may influence stream temperature regimes; including longitudinal buffering of diel summer temperature extrema at the reach scale due to increased surface water storage, and creation of cool-water channel scale temperature refugia through enhanced groundwater-surface water connectivity. Our results suggest that creation of natural and/or artificial beaver dams could be used to mitigate the impact of human induced thermal degradation that may threaten sensitive species.

Streaming Compression of Hexahedral Meshes

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Isenburg, M; Courbet, C

2010-02-03

We describe a method for streaming compression of hexahedral meshes. Given an interleaved stream of vertices and hexahedral our coder incrementally compresses the mesh in the presented order. Our coder is extremely memory efficient when the input stream documents when vertices are referenced for the last time (i.e. when it contains topological finalization tags). Our coder then continuously releases and reuses data structures that no longer contribute to compressing the remainder of the stream. This means in practice that our coder has only a small fraction of the whole mesh in memory at any time. We can therefore compress very large meshes - even meshes that do not file in memory. Compared to traditional, non-streaming approaches that load the entire mesh and globally reorder it during compression, our algorithm trades a less compact compressed representation for significant gains in speed, memory, and I/O efficiency. For example, on the 456k hexahedra 'blade' mesh, our coder is twice as fast and uses 88 times less memory (only 3.1 MB) with the compressed file increasing about 3% in size. We also present the first scheme for predictive compression of properties associated with hexahedral cells.

Resilience of imperilled headwater stream fish to an unpredictable high-magnitude flood

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Bruce R. Ellender

2015-05-01

Full Text Available Headwater stream fish communities are increasingly becoming isolated in headwater refugia that are often cut off from other metapopulations within a river network as a result of nonnative fish invasions, pollution, water abstraction and habitat degradation downstream. This range restriction and isolation therefore makes them vulnerable to extinction. Understanding threats to isolated fish populations is consequently important for their conservation. Following a base-flow survey, a high-magnitude flood (peak flow of 1245 m-3s-1 provided an opportunity to investigate the response of endangered Eastern Cape redfin Pseudobarbus afer populations to a natural disturbance in the Waterkloof and Fernkloof streams, two relatively pristine headwater tributaries of the Swartkops River system within the Groendal Wilderness Area, Eastern Cape Province, South Africa. Pseudobarbus afer had limited distributions, occupying 3 km in both the Fernkloof and Waterkloof streams. Fish population assessments before and after the flood event indicated that there were no longitudinal trends in P. afer abundance before or after the flood, but overall abundance post-flooding in the Fernkloof stream was higher. There were no noticeable changes in P. afer size structure pre- and post-flood. Pseudobarbus afer showed resilience to a major flooding event most likely related to evolution in river systems characterised by environmental stochasticity. Conservation implications: This research provides insight into the population level responses of native headwater stream fishes to unpredictable natural disturbance. Of particular relevance is information on their ability to withstand natural disturbances, which provides novel information essential for their conservation and management especially as these fishes are already impacted by multiple anthropogenic stressors.

Importance of neutral processes varies in time and space: Evidence from dryland stream ecosystems.

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Xiaoli Dong

Full Text Available Many ecosystems experience strong temporal variability in environmental conditions; yet, a clear picture of how niche and neutral processes operate to determine community assembly in temporally variable systems remains elusive. In this study, we constructed neutral metacommunity models to assess the relative importance of neutral processes in a spatially and temporally variable ecosystem. We analyzed macroinvertebrate community data spanning multiple seasons and years from 20 sites in a Sonoran Desert river network in Arizona. The model goodness-of-fit was used to infer the importance of neutral processes. Averaging over eight stream flow conditions across three years, we found that neutral processes were more important in perennial streams than in non-perennial streams (intermittent and ephemeral streams. Averaging across perennial and non-perennial streams, we found that neutral processes were more important during very high flow and in low flow periods; whereas, at very low flows, the relative importance of neutral processes varied greatly. These findings were robust to the choice of model parameter values. Our study suggested that the net effect of disturbance on the relative importance of niche and neutral processes in community assembly varies non-monotonically with the severity of disturbance. In contrast to the prevailing view that disturbance promotes niche processes, we found that neutral processes could become more important when the severity of disturbance is beyond a certain threshold such that all organisms are adversely affected regardless of their biological traits and strategies.

Phylogenetic structure of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal communities along an elevation gradient.

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Egan, Cameron P; Callaway, Ragan M; Hart, Miranda M; Pither, Jason; Klironomos, John

2017-04-01

Despite the importance of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi within terrestrial ecosystems, we know little about how natural AM fungal communities are structured. To date, the majority of studies examining AM fungal community diversity have focused on single habitats with similar environmental conditions, with relatively few studies having assessed the diversity of AM fungi over large-scale environmental gradients. In this study, we characterized AM fungal communities in the soil along a high-elevation gradient in the North American Rocky Mountains. We focused on phylogenetic patterns of AM fungal communities to gain insight into how AM fungal communities are naturally assembled. We found that alpine AM fungal communities had lower phylogenetic diversity relative to lower elevation communities, as well as being more heterogeneous in composition than either treeline or subalpine communities. AM fungal communities were phylogenetically clustered at all elevations sampled, suggesting that environmental filtering, either selection by host plants or fungal niches, is the primary ecological process structuring communities along the gradient.

ECOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF METALS IN STREAMS ON A DEFENSE MATERIALS PROCESSING SITE IN SOUTH CAROLINA, USA

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Paller, M.; Dyer, S.

2009-09-01

The Savannah River Site (SRS) is a 780 km{sup 2} U.S. Department of Energy facility near Aiken SC established in 1950 to produce nuclear materials. SRS streams are 'integrators' that potentially receive water transportable contaminants from all sources within their watersheds necessitating a GIS-based watershed approach to organize contaminant distribution data and accurately characterize the effects of multiple contaminant sources on aquatic organisms. Concentrations of metals in sediments, fish, and water were elevated in streams affected by SRS operations, but contaminant exposure models for Lontra Canadensis and Ceryle alcyon indicated that toxicological reference values were exceeded only by Hg and Al. Macroinvertebrate community structure was unrelated to sediment metal concentrations. This study indicated that (1) modeling studies and field bioassessments provide a complementary basis for addressing the individual and cumulative effects of contaminants, (2) habitat effects must be controlled when assessing contaminant impacts, (3) sensitivity analyses of contaminant exposure models are helpful in apportioning sampling effort, and (4) contaminants released during fifty years of industrial operations have not resulted in demonstrable harm to aquatic organisms in SRS streams.

Composition and structure of fish assemblage from Passa Cinco stream, Corumbataí river sub-basin, SP, Brazil

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AL Carmassi

Full Text Available The aim of this work was to determine the composition of the fish assemblage of Passa Cinco stream and verify changes in their structure on the altitudinal gradient. Six samples were performed at five different sites in Passa Cinco stream (from the headwater, at order two, to its mouth, at order six, using an electric fishery equipment and gill nets in May, July, September and November of 2005 and January and March of 2006. The indices of Shannon's diversity, Pielou's evenness and Margalef's richness were quantified separately considering the different fishery equipment (nets versus electric fishery equipment. An ANOVA was used to compare samples collected in relation to values of abundance, diversity, evenness and richness. The representativeness of the species was summarised by their average values of abundance and weight. We captured 5082 individuals distributed into 61 species. We observed a trend of increasing diversity, richness and evenness of species from site 1 to 3, with further decrease in sites 4 and 5. The values found for habitat diversity also followed this pattern. Significant differences were found for all three indices considering the electric fishery samples. For individuals caught with nets, only the richness index showed a significant difference. Characidium aff. zebra was an important species in the headwater and transition sites and Hypostomus strigaticeps in middle-lower course sites. Despite the small extension of the Passa Cinco stream, environments structurally well defined were evidenced by the species distribution and assemblage composition along the gradient.

Methanotrophy in surface sediments of streams

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Bagnoud, Alexandre; Pramateftaki, Paraskevi; Peter, Hannes; Battin, Tom

2017-04-01

Because streams are often found to be supersaturated in methane (CH4), they are considered as atmospheric sources of this greenhouse gas. However, little is known about the processes driving CH4 cycling in these environments, i.e. production, consumption and fluxes. CH4 is thought to be produced in deeper anoxic sediments, before it migrates up to reach the oxic stream water, where it can be oxidized by methanotrophs. In order to gain insights into this process, we investigated 14 different streams across Switzerland. We characterized the chemistry of surface and sediment waters by measuring dissolved chemical profiles. We also sampled surface sediments and determined methanotrophic rates with laboratory incubations and Michaelis-Menten modeling. Interestingly, rates were strongly correlated with the CH4 concentrations in stream waters, rather than in sediment waters. This indicates that methantrophic populations feed on CH4 from the surface streamwater, even though CH4 concentrations are higher in the sediment waters. Methanotrophy rates were also correlated with Crenothrix counts (based on 16S rRNA sequencing), a strict methanotroph, while this latter was correlated with pmoA counts (based on quantitative PCR), a gene involved in methanotrophy. These results show that Crenothrix genera are the most active methanotrophs in surface sediments of streams, and can represent more than 2% of microbial communities. Remarkably, the dominating Crenothrix species was detected in all 14 samples. This work allows the assessment of in situ methanotrophic rates, of the environmental parameters driving this process, and of the microbial populations carrying it out, and thus brings useful insights about carbon cycling in streams.

Food Web Structure and Basal Resource Utilization along a Tropical Island Stream Continuum, Puerto Rico.

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James G. March; Catherine M. Pringle

2003-01-01

Tropical stream food webs are thought to be based primarily on terrestrial resources (leaf litter) in small forested headwater streams and algal resources in larger, wider streams. In tropical island streams, the dominant consumers are often omnivorous freshwater shrimps that consume algae, leaf litter, insects, and other shrimps. We used stable isotope analysis...