Agricultural Intensity and Landscape Structure: Influence on the Macroinvertebrate Assemblages of Small Streams in Northern Germany

Influence of agricultural intensity and landscape structure on the macroinvertebrate assemblages of small streams in Northern Germany, was assessed. Spray drift potential did not correlate with community composition. The relative index of runoff potential (RP) was negatively correlated with various...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Environmental toxicology and chemistry 2007-02, Vol.26 (2), p.346-346
Main Authors: Schriever, Carola A, Ball, Maria Hansler, Holmes, Chris, Maund, Steve, Liess, Matthias
Format: Article
Language:English
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Summary:Influence of agricultural intensity and landscape structure on the macroinvertebrate assemblages of small streams in Northern Germany, was assessed. Spray drift potential did not correlate with community composition. The relative index of runoff potential (RP) was negatively correlated with various measures of taxonomic richness and abundance. Community composition was correlated with environmental parameters, including stream width, clay content of sediment, and presence of dead wood in sediment. Landscape structure appeared to influence community structure. The results suggested that long-term alterations in community measures probably were associated with factors related to runoff input. The results concluded that the abundance of sensitive species remained significantly enhanced, even at sites of high RP, when forested reaches were present in upstream reaches.
ISSN:0730-7268