Temporal abiotic variability structures invertebrate communities in agricultural drainage ditches

Whatley, Merrin H.; Vonk, J. Arie; Geest, Harm G. van der; Admiraal, Wim

doi:10.1016/j.limno.2015.03.001

Cited by 5 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 39 publications

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“…However, a number of case studies have demonstrated the importance of drainage ditches as reservoirs for aquatic fauna and flora populations (Goulder, 2008;Verdonschot et al, 2011;Whatley et al, 2015). A number of studies have also illustrated that drainage ditches can have significant conservation value, supporting high biodiversity and communities of conservation value, even in intensively cultivated and managed agricultural landscapes (e.g., Foster et al, 1990;Armitage et al, 2003;Williams et al, 2003).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Aquatic macroinvertebrate biodiversity associated with artificial agricultural drainage ditches

Hill

Chadd

Morris³

et al. 2016

Hydrobiologia

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Agricultural drainage ditches are ubiquitous features in lowland agricultural landscapes, built primarily to facilitate land drainage, irrigate agricultural crops and alleviate flood risk. Most drainage ditches are considered artificial waterbodies and are not typically included in routine monitoring programmes, and as a result the faunal and floral communities they support are poorly quantified. This paper characterises the aquatic macroinvertebrate diversity (alpha, beta and gamma) of agricultural drainage ditches managed by an internal drainage board in Lincolnshire, UK. The drainage ditches support very diverse macroinvertebrate communities at both the site (alpha diversity) and landscape scale (gamma diversity) with the main arterial drainage ditches supporting greater numbers of taxa when compared to smaller side ditches. Examination of the between site community heterogeneity (beta diversity) indicated that differences among ditches were high spatially and temporally. The results illustrate that both main arterial and side ditches make a unique contribution to aquatic biodiversity of the agricultural landscape. Given the need to maintain drainage ditches to support agriculture and flood defence measures, we advocate the application of principles from 'reconciliation ecology' to inform the future management and conservation of drainage ditches.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Aquatic macroinvertebrate biodiversity associated with artificial agricultural drainage ditches

Hill

Chadd

Morris³

et al. 2016

Hydrobiologia

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“…On the other hand, a study in the Netherlands did not find a correlation between Micronecta scholtzi , Plea minutissima and Sigara striata density and imidacloprid concentration of the surface waters (Van Dijk et al, 2013 ). Moreover, pesticide effect on density may be masked by immigration of the species with a good flying ability (Whatley et al, 2015 ). However, no such effect was found in a water bug–dominated macroinvertebrate community by Trekels et al ( 2011a ) in a distance-isolated mesocosm experiment.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Pollution impacts on water bugs (Nepomorpha, Gerromorpha): state of the art and their biomonitoring potential

Bakonyi

Vásárhelyi²,

Szabó

2022

Environ Monit Assess

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As water pollution poses an increasing risk worldwide, it is timely to assess the achievements of the aquatic macroinvertebrate ecotoxicology to provide a sound basis for the discipline’s future and support the development of biomonitoring. Aquatic and semi-aquatic bugs (Hemiptera: Nepomorpha, Gerromorpha) are ubiquitous in almost all water types, sometimes in high densities, and play a significant role in organic material turnover and energy flow. Nevertheless, they are ignored in the water pollution biomonitoring schemes. Here, based on 300 papers, we review and evaluate the effects of chemical pesticides, microorganism-derived pesticides, insecticides of plant origin, heavy metals, eutrophication, salinisation and light pollution which are summarised for the first time. Our review encompasses the results of 100 laboratory and 39 semi-field/field experiments with 47 pesticides and 70 active ingredients. Pyrethroids were found to be more toxic than organochlorine, organophosphate and neonicotinoid insecticides to water bugs, like other macroinvertebrate groups. Additionally, in 10 out of 17 cases, the recommended field concentration of the pesticide was higher than the LC50 values, indicating potential hazards to water bugs. The recommended field concentrations of pesticides used in mosquito larvae control were found non-toxic to water bugs. As very few replicated studies are available, other findings on the effects of pesticides cannot be generalised. The microorganism-derived pesticide Bti appears to be safe when used at the recommended field concentration. Data indicates that plant-derived pesticides are safe with a high degree of certainty. We have identified three research areas where water bugs could be better involved in water biomonitoring. First, some Halobates spp. are excellent, and Gerris spp. are promising sentinels for Cd contamination. Second, Micronecta and, to a certain extent, Corixidae species composition is connected to and the indicator of eutrophication. Third, the species composition of the Corixidae is related to salinisation, and a preliminary method to quantify the relationship is already available. Our review highlights the potential of water bugs in water pollution monitoring.

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“…The overall percentages of explained variance appeared to be in the same range or slightly lower compared to results of similar studies (Gioria et al, 2010;Larsen et al, 2012;Ieromina et al, 2016aIeromina et al, , 2016b). In fact, earlier studies pointed out the influence of additional abiotic (e.g., nutrients, pesticides) and biotic (e.g., submerged vegetation) parameters as more or less important predictors of aquatic community composition (Hinojosa-Garro et al, 2010;Verdonschot et al, 2012a;Pakulnicka et al, 2015b;Whatley et al, 2015;Ieromina et al, 2016aIeromina et al, , 2016b. For example, submerged vegetation increases structural complexity that supports biodiversity (Scheffer et al, 1984;Hinojosa-Garro et al, 2010;Hansen et al, 2011;Whatley et al, 2014) although Verdonschot et al (2012a) found no relation between microhabitat complexity and macroinvertebrate assemblages in ditches.…”

Section: Measured Environmental Parameters Weakly Influenced Beetle Compositionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Different habitat parameters, like e.g. water temperature, pH, conductivity, hydroperiod or the presence of predator regimes are known to influence invertebrate assemblages (Batzer and Wissinger, 1996;Fairchild et al, 2000;Heino, 2009;Leslie et al, 2012;Verdonschot et al, 2012a;Whatley et al, 2015;Ieromina et al, 2016aIeromina et al, , 2016b). However, only few studies focused on the relationship between environmental factors and the community structures of aquatic beetles (Menetrey et al, 2011;Vamosi and Wohlfahrt, 2014;Guareschi et al, 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Drainage ditches as important habitat for species diversity and rare species of aquatic beetles in agricultural landscapes (Insecta: Coleoptera)

Rolke¹,

Jaenicke

Pfaender³

et al. 2018

J Limnol

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Agricultural drainage ditches are common structures in cultivated lowland areas across Europe. These artificial linear water bodies are interconnected to form networks that can offer valuable habitats for many water associated organisms. The current study contributes to the knowledge of aquatic Coleoptera biodiversity associated with artificial drainage ditches. Fundamental ecological and faunistical findings were combined with aspects relevant for applied nature conservation. Adult beetles were sampled at 124 sampling locations belonging to seven study sites in the federal state of Brandenburg, Germany. With 108 taxa out of 10 families the studied ditches showed a high species richness. Taxa associated with eutrophic conditions dominated with the dytiscid Hydroporus palustris as the most abundant species. In terms of β-diversity, a moderate turnover between the study sites could be observed. Although the sampling locations showed some degree of variability concerning habitat characteristics, measured environmental parameters only weakly explained observed differences in community composition. Beside taxonomical characterization of beetle diversity, aspects of functional diversity were analyzed. Interestingly, individuals with reduced flight ability were dominant. Because the predaceous family Dytiscidae dominated, beetles were mainly integrated as carnivores in the food web of ditches. Throughout the study, 13.0% threatened as well as 18.4% rare taxa could be recorded, referring to the German fauna of aquatic beetles. This may underpin the need to include agricultural drainage ditches into conservation management.

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Temporal abiotic variability structures invertebrate communities in agricultural drainage ditches

Cited by 5 publications

References 39 publications

Aquatic macroinvertebrate biodiversity associated with artificial agricultural drainage ditches

Aquatic macroinvertebrate biodiversity associated with artificial agricultural drainage ditches

Pollution impacts on water bugs (Nepomorpha, Gerromorpha): state of the art and their biomonitoring potential

Drainage ditches as important habitat for species diversity and rare species of aquatic beetles in agricultural landscapes (Insecta: Coleoptera)

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