The response of insects to wastewater effluent in the Red Deer River: A spatial perspective
Date
2013-05-01
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Abstract
Few studies document the spatial responses of biota to point-source nutrient enrichment in rivers. Even fewer identify the mechanisms acting to create these responses. This study addressed these research shortages by investigating spatial patterns of physicochemical variables, insect abundance, and periphyton abundance, in the Red Deer River, Alberta, Canada, downstream of wastewater input. Additionally, patterns in nitrogen isotope signatures driven by effluent input were used to estimate the scale of insect movements. Analyses of family assemblage spatial structure, and of across-scale explanators of local insect abundance, were used to infer whether movement helps structure the spatial response of insects to effluent addition. Notably, nutrient concentrations peaked downstream of effluent addition, and were significantly correlated with insect abundance. Although insects were estimated to have undergone downstream movements of ~1-5 km per month, broad-scale spatial patterns did not show obvious signs of being affected by downstream movement.
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Ecology
Citation
Kobryn, M. J. (2013). The response of insects to wastewater effluent in the Red Deer River: A spatial perspective (Master's thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca. doi:10.11575/PRISM/28303