Spring association and microhabitat preferences of the Comal Springs riffle beetle (<i>Heterelmis comalensis</i>)

Cooke, Maria; Longley, Glenn; Gibson, Randy

doi:10.1894/swnat-d-14-00017r1.1

Cited by 5 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 6 publications

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“… Heterelmis ( Coleoptera : Elmidae ), the third most abundant taxon, occurred with at least ten individuals in all the samplings. This genus is predominant amongst other Elmidae ( Arias-Díaz et al 2007 ) and is typically found in leaf litter and rocky substrate microhabitats ( Cooke et al 2015 , Braun et al 2014 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Seasonal records of benthic macroinvertebrates in a stream on the eastern edge of the Iguaçu National Park, Brazil

Santos

Wolff

Baldan³

et al. 2020

BDJ

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Background Iguaçu National Park (INP) is known worldwide due to Iguaçu Waterfalls, being considered a World Natural Heritage by UNESCO. The INP is one of the last large forested extensions of inland Brazil that provides protection to the Atlantic Forest, one of the world’s biodiversity hotspots. However, its Natural Heritage status has been threatened by the construction and operation of the Baixo Iguaçu dam, agricultural and urban impacts on its boundaries and the increasing interest of the Brazilian government in re-opening of the “Colono road”, an old illegal road that crossed the interior of the park. Indeed, since benthic macroinvertebrates have been widely used for the environmental assessment of streams, records and abundance of their taxa under different seasonal periods may provide an additional dataset for biomonitoring of hydrographic systems in the face of current anthropogenic impacts on the INP boundaries and other similar streams on forest edges. New information In this study, we improved the sampling design of benthic macroinvertebrates and provided seasonal records covering distinct precipitation/temperature periods between 2016 and 2017 of a stream on the eastern edge of the Iguaçu National Park, Brazil. The records total 2,840 individuals distributed in 88 different taxa. The most abundant taxa were the Diptera subfamilies, Chironominae (n = 1,487) and Tanypodinae (n = 256), besides the Heterelmis genus (n = 152, Elmidae; Coleoptera). Diptera was the richest order in number of families (n = 8), while Leptophlebiidae (Ephemeroptera) was the richest taxonomic family in number of genera (n = 11). Aegla (Crustacea) and the Insecta genera, Heterelmis, Hexacylloepus, Noelmis, Phylloicus and Thraulodes, were recorded through all samplings. Twenty-five genera of Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, Trichoptera (EPT) and Odonata were recorded during intermediate precipitation/temperature periods. Twenty-one of them were recorded in May 2016, with five genera standing out in abundance (Hydrosmilodon, Anacroneuria, Argia, Coryphaeschna, Americabaetis) and four (Needhamella, Tikuna, Simothraulopsis, Neocordulia) in December 2016. Four general taxa were exclusive of the lower precipitation/temperature period (August 2016), standing out in abundance were the Oxystigma (Odonata) and Corydalus (Megaloptera) genera. In March 2017 (higher precipitation/temperature period), four exclusive taxa were recorded, amongst them, the Chimarra (Trichoptera) genus. Furthermore, seasonal records demonstrated higher occurrences and abundance of macroinvertebrates during the intermediate and lower precipitation/temperature periods, besides a varied taxa composition throughout the year, with the presence of both sensitive and tolerant groups to environmental impacts. Our findings suggest that the number and composition of the local-stream macrobenthic fauna were influenced by the seasonal climatic regime. These changes should be considered in the limnological monitoring developed on the hydrographic systems of INP eastern edges to improve the assessment of environmental quality under different local seasonal conditions.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Seasonal records of benthic macroinvertebrates in a stream on the eastern edge of the Iguaçu National Park, Brazil

Santos

Wolff

Baldan³

et al. 2020

BDJ

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“…Similar to H. cf. glabra , H. comalensis inhabits areas near and within spring sources [19, 8] and are often found associated with woody debris or roots where they feed on biofilm produced as these substrates decay [20, 8, 18, 21]. Heterelmis comalensis are thought to move through interstitial alluvium within spring sources, making collections difficult as much of this habitat is not accessible by traditional sampling techniques.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Abundance and Distribution of Heterelmis cf. glabra (Coleoptera: Elmidae) within Dolan Falls Preserve and the Devils River State Natural Area, Texas, USA

Diaz

Gibson²,

Norris³

et al. 2020

Preprint

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The Devils River watershed in south-central Texas has baseflows entirely attributable to groundwater primarily sourced from the Edwards-Trinity and Edwards Aquifers. The largest known populations of a species of riffle beetle, Heterelmis cf. glabra, are located in springs associated with the upper Devils River. The focus of this study was to 1) determine site-level abundances of H. cf. glabra using open system N-mixture models, 2) test mesohabitat associations of members in the riffle beetle family Elmidae and, 3) measure and examine abiotic and habitat associations for adult and larval beetles within the study area. We sampled 32 spring sources to determine occupancy and abundance of adult and larval riffle beetles (Elmidae) within the study area. Spring sources were mapped and categorized by type (orifice, upwelling, group of springs, or seep). Basic water chemistry and flow rate categorization were also performed at each site. Model results suggest that rainfall, flow and site are important for detection of H. cf. glabra. Based on our results, regular monitoring of these 32 sites using these methods, is recommended to conduct hypotheses tests on covariates influencing abundance. Such baseline information will be important in measuring impacts to this and other spring-associated species as the habitats of this region are impacted by natural or anthropogenic phenomena.

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“…These springs are fed by the Edwards Aquifer and are the first and second largest springs in Texas, respectively (Brune 1981). Heterelmis comalensis has a restricted range and both adults and larvae are found together in the springs (Bowles et al 2003), often in close proximity to spring sources (Gibson et al 2008;Cooke et al 2015). The wings of H. comalensis are truncated, which limits dispersal ability (Bosse et al 1988).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Pupae have been found in Comal Springs in the folds of cotton cloth lures (see Gibson et al 2008) lodged in spring upwellings up to 1.5 m deep (JRG, unpublished data). After being submerged for a period of weeks, the leaves and cloth are colonized by biofilms on which H. comalensis is presumed to feed (Gibson et al 2008;Cooke et al 2015). Adult H. comalensis collected from Comal Springs added to these containers produce large numbers of larvae within several months (approximately 10 larvae per adult per month).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Underwater Pupation by the Comal Springs Riffle Beetle, Heterelmis Comalensis Bosse, Tuff, and Brown, 1988 (Coleoptera: Elmidae), with an Update on Culture Techniques

Huston

Gibson

2015

The Coleopterists Bulletin

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Spring association and microhabitat preferences of the Comal Springs riffle beetle (Heterelmis comalensis)

Cited by 5 publications

References 6 publications

Seasonal records of benthic macroinvertebrates in a stream on the eastern edge of the Iguaçu National Park, Brazil

Seasonal records of benthic macroinvertebrates in a stream on the eastern edge of the Iguaçu National Park, Brazil

Abundance and Distribution of Heterelmis cf. glabra (Coleoptera: Elmidae) within Dolan Falls Preserve and the Devils River State Natural Area, Texas, USA

Underwater Pupation by the Comal Springs Riffle Beetle, Heterelmis Comalensis Bosse, Tuff, and Brown, 1988 (Coleoptera: Elmidae), with an Update on Culture Techniques

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