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Predator density and dissolved oxygen affect body condition of Stenonema tripunctatum (Ephemeroptera, Heptageniidae) from intermittent streams

Informally Refereed

Abstract

The effects of population density, fish density, and dissolved oxygen on body condition of late-instar nymphs of Stenonema tripunctatum (Ephemeroptera, Heptageniidae) were investigated using nymphs sampled from isolated, upland stream pools over summer in central Arkansas, USA. All three factors exhibited high variation among pools. Body condition was negatively related to fish density, and positively related to dissolved oxygen (when included in the model). High fish densities maybe related to low body condition because they cause reduced foraging or force earlier emergence at small body sizes. These results emphasize the combine deffects of biotic and abiotic factors on body condition in mayflies, and support earlier findings that population density is a less-important factor.

Keywords

Hypoxia, mayfly, predation, threat, Quachita Mountains, Arkansas

Citation

Love, Joseph W.; Taylor, Christopher M.; Warren, Melvin L., Jr. 2005. Predator density and dissolved oxygen affect body condition of Stenonema tripunctatum (Ephemeroptera, Heptageniidae) from intermittent streams. Hydrobiologia 543: 113-118
https://www.fs.usda.gov/research/treesearch/20531