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The effects of shoot age on colonization of an emergent macrophyte ( Typha latifolia ) by macroinvertebrates
Author(s) -
OERTLI BEAT,
LACHAVANNE JEANBERNARD
Publication year - 1995
Publication title -
freshwater biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.297
H-Index - 156
eISSN - 1365-2427
pISSN - 0046-5070
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2427.1995.tb00900.x
Subject(s) - macrophyte , biology , invertebrate , shoot , chironomidae , ecology , elodea canadensis , colonization , species richness , epiphyte , typha , aquatic plant , biomass (ecology) , botany , wetland , larva
SUMMARY 1. The colonization and dynamics of epiphytic aquatic macroinvertebrates are described on first‐year and second‐year shoots of an emergent macrophyte ( Typha latifolia ) in a Swiss pond. Effects of shoot senescence on composition, richness, density and biomass of the macroinvertebrates are quantified. 2. There were two phases of colonization: a short‐term colonization process which corresponded with that usually observed on inert substrates and a longer term colonization process related to the attractiveness of the shoots for the colonizers. In this second process, the older shoots showed a higher attractiveness for most invertebrate taxa. 3. Taxa colonized the shoots at different rates. Rapid colonizers included the limpet Ferrissia wautieri and the mayfly Cloeon dipterum . Conversely, Oligochaeta, Chironomidae and Ceratopogonidae were particularly slow colonizers. 4. The older shoots supported a higher mean annual richness, abundance and biomass of invertebrates. Compared with younger shoots, the older shoots demonstrated a higher carrying capacity for most invertebrate taxa, as is the case for many other freshwater macrophytes.