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Detritus Processing in Tri‐Trophic Food Chains: a Modelling Approach
Author(s) -
Alemanno Sara,
Mancinelli Giorgio,
Basset Alberto
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
international review of hydrobiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.524
H-Index - 52
eISSN - 1522-2632
pISSN - 1434-2944
DOI - 10.1002/iroh.200510952
Subject(s) - detritus , phragmites , trophic level , colonization , invertebrate , food web , ecology , decomposition , environmental science , food chain , detritivore , biology , wetland
We present a model describing the fluxes of matter and energy through a detritus‐based aquatic community. The model is based on the investigation of the decomposition of Phragmites australis in a Southern Italian coastal lagoon (Lake Alimini Grande). It reproduces the behaviour of the detritus‐based system by simulating processes of microbial growth and macroinvertebrate colonization in a specific patch of detritus. Specifically, the macroinvertebrate colonization is seen as a dynamic process in which individuals move towards the patch according to resource availability. The good agreement between simulated and experimental data suggests that the behaviourally‐based mechanism of invertebrate colonization characterising our model provides an effective description of the decomposition patterns observed in nature. (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)