Structural and functional responses of the oligochaetes assemblage in lowland streams: one way pollution modeled ecosystem

LOPEZ VAN OOSTEROM MARIA VANESA; OCON CAROLINA; LAURA ARMENDARIZ; ALBERTO RODRIGUES CAPITULO

JOURNAL OF LIMNOLOGY

CNR IST ITALIANO IDROBIOLOGIA

Lugar: Pallanza; Año: 2015 vol. 74 p. 477 - 490

1129-5767

We investigated the responses of the assemblage of Oligochaeta and Aeolosomatidae to organic pollution; comparing taxonomic richness, diversity, abundance, and diet of the individuals inhabiting two lowland streams with different degrees of anthropic impact (the Rodríguez and the Carnaval) belonging to the Río de la Plata basin, Argentina. The physicochemical parameters in the Rodríguez Stream indicated a strong deterioration of the water quality compared to that of the Carnaval. A canonical-correlation analysis indicated that the Tubificinae, Megadrili, Enchytraeidae, and Rhyacodrilinae were more closely associated with the Rodríguez Stream; whereas the Naidinae, Pristininae, and Opystocystidae were more highly represented in the Carnaval. The diversity and taxonomic richness in the Rodríguez Stream exhibited significant differences from those of the Carnaval (p