Aquatic macroinvertebrates associated with Eichhornia azurea (Swartz) Kunth and relationships with abiotic factors in marginal lentic ecosystems (São Paulo, Brazil)/Macroinvertebrados aquáticos associados à Eichhornia azurea (Swartz) Kunth e suas relações com as variáveis abióticas em ecossistemas lênticos marginais (São Paulo, Brasil)

• Published in: Brazilian journal of biology 2013-02, Vol.73 (1), p.149-162
• Main Authors: Silva, C V, Henry, R
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Algae; Aquatic ecosystems; aquatic macrophyte; Aquatic plants; Biodiversity; fitofauna; Food supply; lagoas marginais; Lakes; macrófitas aquáticas; marginal lakes; Organisms; phytofauna; River ecology; Water quality; Water shortages
• ISSN: 1519-6984; 1678-4375

Marginal lakes are characterised by their having high biological diversity due to the presence of aquatic macrophytes in their coastal zones, providing habitats for refuge and food for animal community members. Among the fauna components associated with macrophytes, aquatic macroinvertebrates are important because they are an energy source for predators and fish. In six lakes and two different seasons (March and August 2009), the ecological attributes of aquatic macroinvertebrate community associated with Eichhornia azurea were compared and the controlling environmental factors were identified. Since the attributes of macroinvertebrate community are strictly associated with abiotic variables of each distinct habitat, our hypothesis was that each site associated with the same floating aquatic macrophyte (E. azurea) should have a typical composition and density of organisms. The authors identified 50 taxa of macroinvertebrates, with greater taxa richness for aquatic insects (37 taxa) divided into eight orders; the order Diptera being the most abundant in the two study periods.