Resumo

PUJARRA, Samaila et al. Distribution of benthic communities in relation to the environmental integrity of subtropical streams. Ecol. austral [online]. 2017, vol.27, n.3, pp.482-491. ISSN 1667-782X.

The benthic macroinvertebrate community structure is directly related to environmental factors such as water characteristics, habitat availability and substrate heterogeneity. This study had the purpose of characterizing the benthic macroinvertebrate community and compare its attributes in streams located inside (preserved area) and outside (altered area) the Iguaçu National Park, in the west of Parana, Brazil, in two season (dry and rainy). Three replicates per site were obtained through the Surber collector in four microhabitats (litter pool, litter riffle, substrate pool and substrate riffle). There was significant discrimination in the benthic fauna composition among the study areas (Wilks=0.091; F272,746= 2.249; P<0.0001). The taxa Corbiculidae, Hyalellidae and Trichodactylidae characterized the Macuco Stream; Talitridae, Libellulidae and Naucoridae characterized Poço Preto and Dourado stream; Oligoneuridae, Leptoceridae and Hydropsychidae characterized Apepu stream, and Tubificidae, Corduliidae and Elmidae were grouped in Tamanduá stream. Significant differences were observed in the mean density and richness (P<0.05) among the streams from both preserved and altered areas, with the highest richness recorded in the preserved area and litter pool microhabitat. The RDA Analysis separated the streams and organisms according to the environmental variables. The attribute differences were related to the preservation conditions of the riparian forest, whose presence in the preserved streams provided greater diversity of habitats and contributed to the presence of organisms on the substrate. On the other hand, several of impacts attributed to the agrochemical contaminants, soil disturbation and degradation of the riparian vegetation may be considered as factors which contributed to the differences among the analyzed streams.

Palavras-chave : Aquatic macroinvertebrates; Iguaçu National Park; Agricultural impact; Riparian vegetation; Habitat heterogeneity.