Oxygen is a better predictor of macroinvertebrate richness than temperature—a systematic review

Abstract

Despite ongoing loss of diversity in freshwater ecosystems, and despite mitigation measures to halt this loss, it is still not clear what ecological drivers underlies lotic biodiversity. A complicating factor is that two of the main drivers, oxygen and temperature, are correlated, and hence studies towards drivers of lotic diversity are confounded. Here, we undertook a systematic review, consisting of both qualitative and quantitative analyses, to disentangle these two drivers. We accessed two literature repositories and assessed papers for eligibility using a set of predetermined criteria. For the qualitative part of this systematic review, we used results on patterns of taxonomic richness and multivariate ordination analyses to expose effects of temperature and dissolved oxygen concentration on biodiversity. For the meta-analysis, we could only use raw data of a few papers in generalized linear models. The qualitative analysis did not show strong consistent effects of either dissolved oxygen concentration or temperature on diversity. However, the meta-analysis showed that taxonomic richness is positively related with dissolved oxygen concentration. Inversely a negative correlation with temperature was found, but adding temperature to a model which already included dissolved oxygen content did not significantly improve the model. These results show the strength of a systematic review and meta-analysis over a conventional review without a meta-analysis; we found no pattern with the qualitative analysis, but a strong pattern with the quantitative analysis.

Characterization of the Multidimensional Functional Space of the Aquatic Macroinvertebrate Assemblages in a Biosphere Reserve (Central México)

“…Finally, the ordination analysis (PCA) (Figure 5) showed two environmental gradients along which the aquatic macroinvertebrate assemblages responds regarding its characterization of the multidimensional functional space and functional diversity indices. On the one hand, the gradient marked by good oxygenation levels associated with the highest FRic, FSpe, and FOri in the main streams is similar to the one reported by [71]. The second gradient, represented by the best vegetation conditions in terms of NDVI, habitat quality, and water quality, was found to be related to high functional diversity indices.…”

Recent trends in stream macroinvertebrates: warm-adapted and pesticide-tolerant taxa increase in richness

“…The percentage of forest in the catchment—an indicator of extensive land-use—exerted positive effects throughout, mirroring the positive influence of riparian forest vegetation on macroinvertebrate richness [ 48 ]. Temperature, flow velocity and LUD all influence oxygen saturation, which may be an important driver of aquatic insect richness [ 49 ]. Contrasting patterns of LUD for warm- and cold-adapted species could indicate that warm-adapted species are less sensitive towards allochthonous nutrient input than cold-adapted species [ 50 ].…”

Characterisation of Benthic Macroinvertebrate Communities in Small Watercourses of the European Central Plains Ecoregion and the Effect of Different Environmental Factors

“…The most important biotic factors are vegetation [ 56 ] and competition between species [ 57 ]. Among the abiotic factors that affect macrozoobenthos, the most often mentioned are flow speed [ 58 ], bottom substratum [ 59 ], water temperature [ 60 ], oxygen content [ 61 ], and dissolved substances, including biogenes [ 57 , 59 ]. It should be emphasised that the effect of individual environmental parameters on benthic organisms depends on the tolerance, sensitivity, and adaptability of each particular species [ 20 ].…”