Biodiversity of stream insects: variation at local, basin, and regional scales

We review the major conceptual developments that have occurred over the last 50 years concerning the factors that influence insect biodiversity in streams and examine how well empirical descriptions and theory match. Stream insects appear to respond to both spatial and temporal variation in physical...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Annual review of entomology 1998, Vol.43 (1), p.271-293
Main Authors: Vinson, M.R, Hawkins, C.P
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animal and plant ecology
Animal, plant and microbial ecology
AQUATIC INSECTS
BIODIVERSIDAD
BIODIVERSITE
BIODIVERSITY
Biological and medical sciences
COURS D'EAU
CURSOS DE AGUA
Fresh water ecosystems
Freshwater
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Insecta
INSECTE AQUATIQUE
INSECTOS ACUATICOS
REVIEWS
RIVERS
SPATIAL SCALE
SPATIAL VARIATION
Synecology
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Summary:We review the major conceptual developments that have occurred over the last 50 years concerning the factors that influence insect biodiversity in streams and examine how well empirical descriptions and theory match. Stream insects appear to respond to both spatial and temporal variation in physical heterogeneity. At all spatial scales, the data largely support the idea that physical complexity promotes biological richness, although exceptions to this relationship were found. These exceptions may be related to how we measure habitat complexity at finer spatial scales and to factors that influence regional richness, such as biogeographic history, at broader spatial scales. However, the degree to which local stream insect assemblages are influenced by regional processes is largely unknown.
ISSN:0066-4170
1545-4487
DOI:10.1146/annurev.ento.43.1.271