New Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research abstracts

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Macroinvertebrate drift and community colonisation on perspex artificial substrates in the Ohinemuri River, New Zealand

I.K.G.BOOTHROYD

B. N. DICKIE

Waikato Regional Council 3 Cook Street
P.O. Box 4010 Hamilton East, New Zealand

Abstract Macroinvertebrate colonisation of perspex multiplate artificial substrates suspended in the Ohinemuri River, New Zealand, was investigated over a 70-day period. Community development was examined in terms of the colonisation and extinction rates of the MacArthur-Wilson equilibrium model for island faunas. Although colonisation and extinction rates were equal at 35 days, permanent stability was not attained: the extinction rate and colonisation rate continued to fluctuate as new taxa continued to colonise. This lack of permanency was attributed to changes to the surface of the plates through increases in the accumulation of fine paniculate matter, and to changes in the drifting fauna that affect the pool of potential colonisers. Stream drift was an important source of colonisers, especially in the initial stages of colonisation. Although many members of the New Zealand aquatic fauna have non-seasonal life cycles, and are present as larvae at all times of year, they may occur seasonally in the drift. Therefore colonisation patterns may differ seasonally. Drift was not the only source of artificial substrate colonisers.

Keywords artificial substrates; biomonitoring; colonisation; drift; macroinvertebrates; streams

New Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research, 1991, Vol. 25: 167 - 176 0028-8330/2502-0167 $2.50/0 © Crown copyright 1991
Received 27 October 1989; accepted 6 March 1991

PDF file of entire paper: medium quality (682K); (scanned from paper original: notes about this process)

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