Biodiversity and biogeography of groundwater invertebrates in Queensland, Australia

Abstract

Groundwater systems, traditionally considered lifeless conduits of water Boulton 2008, Schulz et al. 2013), are now known to provide critical habitat for a diverse range of fauna collectively called stygofauna. Stygofauna communities can have significant conservation value as exemplified by rela tively high levels of endemism and biodiversity. Despite this the biogeography and taxonomic diversity of stygofauna communities largely remains undocumented. This paper describes the development and interrogation of a statewide database of 755 samples from 582 sites, and reviews the current knowledge of stygofauna biodiversity and biogeography across Queensland (northeastern Australia).Queensland is known to host 24 described families of stygofauna with stygofauna composition broadly consistent with other regions around the world. However Queensland assemblages tend to be unusually rich in both oligochaetes (16% cf. 2%) and syncarids (12% cf. 4%). Associations between stygofauna taxonomic richness and key environmental variables were consistent with many general as sumptions of habitat suitability. However there were also notable exceptions, including stygofauna records from: groundwater 60 meters below ground level; groundwater with electrical conductivity above 50,000 μS/cm, and; both highly acidic (pH 3.5) and alkaline (pH 10.3) environments. These exceptions clearly demonstrate that strict adherence to general assumptions about habitat suitability when planning sam pling activities may mask the true diversity of groundwater ecosystems.

Finding answers in the dark: caves as models in ecology fifty years after Poulson and White

“…Lately, novel molecular tools have become available to subterranean macroecologists (Porter 2007), as well as an array of statistical tools, such as species richness estimators (Deharveng et al 2009, multivariate techniques (Herrando-Pérez et al 2008), species distribution models (Mammola and Leroy 2018) and spatial regression models (Zagmajster et al 2008, Eme et al 2015. In parallel, the development of extensive geo-referenced databases of species distributions , Zagmajster et al 2008, Deharveng et al 2009, Glanville et al 2016) is contributing to establish a shared data baseline, representing a crucial tool toward the goal of achieving a global understanding of subterranean biodiversity patterns. Whilst we are still lacking general answers to most of the macroecological questions that have puzzled subterranean biologists since a long time ago, the extensive use of novel analytical tools is likely to quickly produce relevant information not accessible hitherto.…”

Thermal regime, together with lateral connectivity, control aquatic invertebrate composition in river floodplains

“…adapted to nutrient-poor waters) and hyporheobiont (i.e. adapted to living in the transitional zone between river and ground water) organisms (Boulton et al, 2008;Brunke & Gonser, 1997;Glanville et al, 2016;Trudgill et al, 2005). Floodplain channel restoration, not only modifies surface water connections, but importance of vertical connectivity for maintaining biodiversity in floodplain habitats where surface flow connectivity is neither frequent nor constant.…”

Two new species of groundwater amphipods of the genus Niphargus Schiödte, 1849 from northwestern Iran

“…Groundwater accounts for about 40% of inland water in the world (Castany 1982), containing habitats which are narrowly distributed with a high endemism and a high diversity of fauna communities (Humphreys 2006;Asmyhr et al 2014;Glanville et al 2016). Groundwater fauna involve nearly all main taxonomic groups examined in surface waters, but, unfortunately, are poorly surveyed (Deharveng et al 2009).…”