Zhang Y, Zhang J, Wang L, Lu D, Cai D, Wang B

Influences of dispersal and local environmental factors on stream macroinvertebrate communities in Qinjiang River, Guangxi, China

Zhang and co-workers sampled and modelled biodiversity in macroinvertebrate assemblages at 22 stream sites in the forested Qinjiang watershed, China. Upstream sites were dominated by insect larvae, while downstream communities consisted mostly of sludge worms and Herpodellidae. The principal abiotic factors structuring the communities were water current velocity, oxygen levels, conductivity and P concentration. Both overland and waterborne dispersal pathways had similar effects on the communities. The results of Zhang and co-workers confirm the niche-based species sorting hypothesis.

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