A benthic quality index for European alpine lakes

The development of benthic quality indices for European lakes is hindered by the lack of information concerning many national lake types and pressures. Most information is from north European lakes stressed by acidification and from deep lakes subjected to eutrophication; for other lake types (the ones included in the Mediterranean areas for example) and for other pressures (hydro-morphological alteration, toxic stress) there is practically no information about the response of benthic macro-invertebrates; this hinders the possibility of an intercalibration of the indices among the member states (MS) in the EU. In the present communication three benthic quality indices are proposed considering the littoral, sublittoral and profundal zone in 5 reference and 7 non reference lakes from the Alpine region in response to eutrophication. The sensitivity values of the 177 species found in these lakes were calculated taking a weighted average of the values of environmental variables from lakes in which the species were present. The indicator taxa which prevailed in these lakes were Chironomids and Oligochaetes. A coinertia analysis emphasized the importance of trophic variables (transparency, nitrates, total phosphorous) in explaining the species distribution, but geographic (altitude) and morphometric (depth, volume) variables were also important. The indices enabeled a separation of reference from non-reference lakes and to assign the non-reference lakes to different quality classes in agreement with the Water Framework Directive. doi: 10.5324/fn.v31i0.1364. Published online: 17 October 2012.

Macroinvertebrate diversity and rarity in non‐glacial Alpine streams

Alpine landscapes are being transformed through the rapid recession of glaciers, resulting in the development of numerous non-glacial headwater streams inhabited by a diverse assemblage of macroinvertebrates. We examined spatial patterns in biodiversity and rarity of macroinvertebrates in 41 non-glacial streams from five glacierized catchments in the Swiss Alps undergoing rapid glacial recession over the last decades. Water physico-chemistry and food resources (periphyton, benthic organic matter) varied widely among streams within each catchment, while no significant differences occurred among catchments. Variability in community composition was similar among streams within each catchment but differed among catchments, reflecting differences in catchment-scale species pools due to biogeographical context and season. Overall, 101 taxa from ca 33,000 individuals collected were identified in the streams with 7–33 taxa found in individual streams. Some 64% of the taxa comprised less than 5% of the total abundances at the streams (rare in abundance) with 78% of the taxa being represented by less than 5% of the most common taxon (Baetis sp.), whereas 47% of the taxa were found in less than 10% of the streams (rare in distribution). No taxon was found at all sites (maximum presence at 85% of the sites), while 15% of the taxa were found at 50% of the sites or more. However, analyzing the rank-abundance distribution showed that rarity was less prevalent than previously shown in other ecosystems. The results indicated that community assembly of alpine headwater streams is a complex interaction between environmental properties (habitat filtering), habitat stability coupled with dispersal (source sink dynamics), and time since deglaciation (island biogeography). Integrating these processes is essential towards understanding ongoing colonization events in headwater streams of alpine catchments as glaciers continue to recede

Contrasting chironomid assemblages in two high Arctic streams on Svalbard

Chironomid communities were investigated twice in summer 1997 in a glacier-fed (Bayelva) and a non-glacial stream (Londonelva), fed by snowmelt and rainfall near Ny-Ålesund (Svalbard Archipelago, 78°N). Environmental conditions (discharge, water temperature, suspended sediment) were harsher for the fauna in the glacial system than in the non-glacial one. In all, 29 chironomid species were identified from larval, pupal and male adult material, including six species new to Svalbard. Diamesa was the best represented genus, showing contrasting distributional trends at the species level in the two streams: Diamesa aberrata and D. bohemani were more characteristic of the glacial stream, while D. arctica and D. bertrami colonised primarily the snowmelt-fed one. Total abundance of chironomid larvae was ten times greater in Londonelva than in Bayelva. The prevailing harsh conditions in glacial streams, such as high and fluctuating discharge, high sediment transport and substrate instability, strongly influenced the abundance of the chironomid fauna, demonstrating the key importance of water source in Arctic streams

Ephemeropteran and plecopteran communities in glacial rivers

From a study of glacier-fed catchments along a European latitudinal and climatic gradient, the relationships between the distribution of mayfly (Ephemeroptera) and stonefly (Plecoptera) nymphs and environmental variables were explored. Canonical Correspondence Analysis (CCA) and Generalised Additive Models (GAMs) demonstrated clear responses of mayfly and stonefly generic composition and taxa richness to environmental gradients, notably maximum water temperature and channel stability as these change downstream of glacial sources. GAMs developed for aquatic insects are well suited to detect environmental impacts, including climate change

Chironomid (Diptera: Chironomidae) communities in six European glacier-fed streams

1. A study on glacial stream ecosystems was carried out in six regions across Europe, from Svalbard to the French Pyrenees. The main aim was to test the validity of the conceptual model of Milner & Petts (1994) with regard to the zonation of chironomids of glacier-fed rivers along altitudinal and latitudinal gradient. 2. Channel stability varied considerably, both on the latitudinal and altitudinal scale, being lowest in the northern regions (Svalbard, Iceland and Norway) and the Swiss Alps. Water temperature at the upstream sites was always <2 °C. 3. There was a prominent difference in taxonomic richness between the Alpine and the northern European regions, with a higher number of taxa in the south. In all regions, the chironomid community was characterized by the genus Diamesa and the subfamily Orthocladiinae. Of a total of 63 taxa recorded, two (Diamesa bertrami and Orthocladius frigidus) were common in all the regions except Svalbard. 4. On the basis of cluster analysis, seven distinct groups of sites were evident amongst glacial-fed systems of the ®ve regions (Pyrenees excluded). This classi®cation separated the glacier-fed streams on geographical, latitudinal and downstream gradients. 5. Canonical Correspondence Analysis (CCA) of environmental variables was carried out using 41 taxa at 105 sites. Slope, water depth, distance from source, water temperature and the Pfankuch channel stability index were found to be the major explanatory environmental variables. The analysis separated Diamesinae and typical upstream orthoclads from the other chironomids by low temperature and high channel instability. 6. In all six regions, Diamesa was present closest to the glacier. Within 200 m of the glacier snout, other genera of Diamesinae were found together with Orthocladiinae. Pioneer taxa like Diamesa species coexisted with later colonizers like Eukiefferiella minor/®ttkaui in relatively unstable channels. 7. The longitudinal succession of chironomid assemblages across altitudinal and latitudinal gradients in glacial streams followed the same pattern, with similar genera and groups of species. The general aspects of the conceptual model of Milner & Petts (1994) were supported. However, Diamesa species have wider temperature limits than predicted and other Diamesinae as well as Orthocladiinae colonize metakryal habitats. Correspondence: Brigitt

Biodiversity under threat in glacier-fed river systems

Freshwater biodiversity is under threat across the globe, with climate change being a significant contributor. One impact of climate change is the rapid shrinking of glaciers, resulting in a reduction in glacial meltwater contribution to river flow in many glacierized catchments. These changes potentially affect the biodiversity of specialized glacier-fed river communities. Perhaps surprisingly then, although freshwater biodiversity is a major conservation priority, the effects of shrinkage and disappearance of glaciers on river biodiversity have hitherto been poorly quantified. Here we focus on macroinvertebrates (mainly insect larvae) and demonstrate that local (α) and regional (γ) diversity, as well as turnover among reaches (β-diversity), will be consistently reduced by the shrinkage of glaciers. We show that 11-38% of the regional species pools, including endemics, can be expected to be lost following complete disappearance of glaciers in a catchment, and steady shrinkage is likely to reduce taxon turnover in proglacial river systems and local richness at downstream reaches where glacial cover in the catchment is less than 5-30%. Our analysis demonstrates not only the vulnerability of local biodiversity hotspots but also that extinction will probably greatly exceed the few known endemic species in glacier-fed rivers