Stable isotopes of algae and macroinvertebrates in streams respond to watershed urbanization, inform management goals, and indicate food web relationships.

ABSTRACT: Watershed development and anthropogenic sources of nitrogen are among leading causes of negative impacts to aquatic ecosystems around the world. The δ¹⁵N of aquatic biota can be used as indicators of anthropogenic sources of nitrogen enriched in ¹⁵N, but this mostly has been done at small spatial extents or to document effects of point sources. In this study, we sampled 77 sites along a forest to urban land cover gradient to examine food webs and the use of δ¹⁵N of periphyton and macroinvertebrate functional feeding groups (FFGs) as indicators of watershed development and nitrogen effects on streams. Functional feeding groups had low δ¹⁵N variability among taxa within sites. Mean absolute differences between individual taxa and their respective s

SUBMITTER: Smucker NJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5967652 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature