Leaf Breakdown in a Tropical Stream

2006 ◽  
Vol 91 (2) ◽  
pp. 164-177 ◽  
Author(s):  
José Francisco Gonçalves ◽  
Juliana S. França ◽  
Adriana O. Medeiros ◽  
Carlos A. Rosa ◽  
Marcos Callisto
2006 ◽  
Vol 57 (2) ◽  
pp. 201 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luz Boyero ◽  
Richard G. Pearson

The structure of stream communities is typically thought to be driven by stochastic events such as floods, in contrast with communities in many other systems in which biotic interactions have a major role. However, it is possible that biotic interactions are important in some situations in streams, especially where resources are limited and physical influences are stable for substantial periods. Leaf litter – the main energy source and a distinct habitat in forest streams – constitutes a patchy resource where biotic interactions among and within consumer species are likely to occur. The intraspecific interference in four leaf-eating species (shredders), common in Australian tropical streams, was experimentally examined – Anisocentropus kirramus (Trichoptera : Calamoceratidae), Lectrides varians and Triplectides gonetalus (Trichoptera : Leptoceridae) and Atalophlebia sp. (Ephemeroptera : Leptophlebiidae). All four species showed some degree of intraspecific interference, indicated by lowered leaf breakdown rates when density increased. Breakdown rates per capita decreased exponentially for all species with increased density, with slight differences among species. These differences were more evident when body size was taken into account, with breakdown rates depressed at lower densities for the two species with larger body sizes, T. gonetalus and Atalophlebia sp. Overall breakdown rates did not always increase with higher densities, because they were compensated for by depressed individual breakdown rates. Our results indicate that intraspecific interference can be an important mechanism regulating leaf breakdown in streams.


2014 ◽  
Vol 73 (AoP) ◽  
Author(s):  
Elisa A.C.C. Alvim ◽  
Adriana O. Medeiros ◽  
Renan S. Rezende ◽  
José F. Gonçalves Júnior

2019 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
pp. 131-141 ◽  
Author(s):  
Timothy P. Moulton ◽  
Claudia M. Andrade ◽  
Vinicius Neres-Lima

2019 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
pp. 107-116
Author(s):  
Tchaou C. Madina ◽  
Gouissi F. Modeste ◽  
Abahi K. Simon ◽  
Adje D. Darius ◽  
Orou P. Zoulkanerou ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amanda Bates Vanlandingham ◽  
Richard H. Walker ◽  
Adam Alford ◽  
Sally A. Entrekin

1987 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 45-51 ◽  
Author(s):  
FRANK TAYLOR ◽  
ALBERT C. HENDRICKS
Keyword(s):  

2021 ◽  
pp. 117318
Author(s):  
Lisa Chandler ◽  
Andrew J. Harford ◽  
Grant C. Hose ◽  
Chris L. Humphrey ◽  
Anthony Chariton ◽  
...  

2019 ◽  
Vol 31 ◽  
Author(s):  
Renan de Souza Rezende ◽  
Cristiano Queiroz de Albuquerque ◽  
Andrezza Sayuri Victoriano Hirota ◽  
Paulo Fernandes Roges Souza Silva ◽  
Ricardo Keichi Umetsu ◽  
...  

Abstract Aim Wildfire is a natural pulsed disturbance in landscapes of the Savannah Biome. This study evaluates short-term post-fire effects on leaf litter breakdown, the invertebrate community and fungal biomass of litter from three different vegetal species in a tropical stream. Methods Senescent leaves of Inga laurina, Protium spruceanum and Rircheria grandis (2 ± 0.1 g dry mass) were individually placed in litter bags (30 × 30 cm: 10 mm coarse mesh and 0.5 mm fine mesh) and submerged in the study stream before and after fire. Replicate bags (n = 4; individually for each species, sampling time, fire event and mesh size) were then retrieved after 20 and 40 days and washed to separate the invertebrates before fire event and again immediately after fire. Disks were cut from leaves to determine ash-free dry mass, while the remaining material was oven-dried to determine dry mass. Results The pre-fire mean decomposition coefficient (k = -0.012 day-1) was intermediate compared to that reported for other savannah streams, but post-fire it was lower (k = -0.007 day-1), due to decreased allochthonous litter input and increased autochthones production. Intermediate k values for all qualities of litter post-fire may indicate that fire is equalizing litter quality in the stream ecosystem. The abundance of scrapers was found to be more important than fungal biomass or shredder abundance, probably due to their functioning in leaf fragmentation while consuming periphyton growing on leaf litter. Conclusions Theses results indicate that fire can modify the relationships within decomposer communities in tropical stream ecosystems.


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