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CHIRONOMID EMERGENCE AND RELATIVE EMERGENT BIOMASS FROM TWO ALABAMA STREAMS
Citation:
REYNOLDS, S. AND A. C. BENKE. CHIRONOMID EMERGENCE AND RELATIVE EMERGENT BIOMASS FROM TWO ALABAMA STREAMS. SOUTHEASTERN NATURALIST. Humboldt Field Research Institute, Steuben, ME, 5(1):165-174, (2006).
Impact/Purpose:
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Description:
Chironomid pupal exuviae were sampled monthly using drift nets and hand sieves over an annual cycle from Hendrick Mill Branch (HMB; Blount County, AL) and Payne Creek (PC; Hale County, AL). Taxon richness, community composition, and emergence phonologies were similar despite marked differences in physical/chemical characteristics of the study streams. The highest emergence rates were observed in spring (PC) or both spring and fall (HMB). However, there was no significant relationship between emergence/emergent biomass and date. Estimates of daily emergence and emergent biomass were much higher in HMB than in PC. These patterns may have resulted from a more consistent flow regime, higher substrate stability, lower variation in temperature/chemical characteristics, greater channel surface area, and a more significant hyporheic zone in HMB than in PC.
