Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-hc48f Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-22T00:54:36.941Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Relative abundance and temporal variation of macroinvertebrates in a Venezuelan cloud forest habitat

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 March 2009

Elvira Sanchez  and
Jonathan Liria
Elvira Sanchez*
Affiliation:
Departamento de Biología, Facultad Experimental de Ciencias y Tecnología, Universidad de Carabobo, Código postal 2005, Carabobo, Venezuela
Jonathan Liria
Affiliation:
Departamento de Biología, Facultad Experimental de Ciencias y Tecnología, Universidad de Carabobo, Código postal 2005, Carabobo, Venezuela
*
*E-mail: [email protected]
Get access

Abstract

Tree-hole phytotelmata encompass the internodal water pools that form in many species of bamboo (Gramineae). Using bamboo traps, we sampled macroinvertebrate communities in a habitat within the subtropical cloud forest of Henri Pittier National Park, Rancho Grande, north-central Venezuela, and quantified the temporal differences in their abundance and composition. In total, 1024 invertebrates were collected during the 7 months between February and August 2008. The insect orders Diptera and Coleoptera were abundant, particularly Culex (Anoedioporpa) conservator Dyar & Knab, Culex (Culex) mollis (Dyar & Knab), Wyeomyia (Wyeomyia) arthrostigma (Lutz) and Toxorhynchites (Lynchiella) theobaldi (Dyar & Knab). The traps also contained predators, detritivores and collectors (filtering and gathering). Macroinvertebrate abundance in the traps was higher during the rainy season. This observation was attributed to a greater abundance of Ephydridae, Blattaria and Culicidae during wetter months, and an increased availability of potential new breeding sites in the environment, which resulted in increased adult eclosion, and higher rates of oviposition in the bamboo traps. Temporal differences in pH and dissolved oxygen levels of trap water were observed.

Keywords

phytotelmatabamboo trapsmacroinvertebrate abundanceDipteraCulicidaeEphydridaeprecipitationcloud forestVenezuela
Type
Research Paper
Information
International Journal of Tropical Insect Science , Volume 29 , Issue 1 , March 2009 , pp. 3 - 10
Copyright
Copyright © ICIPE 2009

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Armbruster, P., Hutchinson, R. A. and Cotgreave, P. (2002) Factors influencing community structure in South America tank bromeliad fauna. Oikos 96, 225–234.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Arnell, J. H. (1973) Mosquito studies (Diptera, Culicidae) XXXII. A revision of the genus Haemagogus. Contributions of the American Entomological Institute 10, 1–174.Google Scholar
Barrera, R. (1996) Species concurrence and the structure of a community of aquatic insects in tree holes. Journal of Vector Ecology 21, 66–80.Google Scholar
Beebe, W. and Crane, J. (1947) Ecology of Rancho Grande, a subtropical cloud forest in northern Venezuela. Contribution No. 752, Department of Tropical Research. New York Zoological Society 32, 43–60.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Berlin, O. G. W. and Belkin, J. N. (1980) Mosquito studies (Diptera: Culicidae) XXXVI. Subgenera Aedinus, Tinolestes and Anoedioporpa of Culex. Contributions of the American Entomological Institute 17, 1–104.Google Scholar
Bouchard, R. W. (2004) Guide to Aquatic Macroinvertebrates of the Upper Midwest. Water Resources Center, University of Minnesota, St Paul, MN, USA. 208 pp.Google Scholar
Burdett, A. S. and Watts, R. J. (2009) Modifying living space: an experimental study of the influences of vegetation on aquatic invertebrate community structure. Hydrobiologia 618, 161–173.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Clarke, K. R. (1993) Non-parametric multivariate analyses of changes in community structure. Australian Journal of Ecology 18, 117–143.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Epler, J. H. (1996) Identification Manual for the Water Beetles of Florida. Department of Environmental Protection, Division of Water Facilities, Tallahassee, Florida, USA. 259 pp.Google Scholar
Fernández, H. R. and Domínguez, E. (2001) Guía para la determinación de los artrópodos bentónicos Sudamericanos. Serie Investigaciones de UNT, Subserie Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Editorial Universitaria de Tucumán, Argentina. 282 pp.Google Scholar
Fernández-Badillo, A. (2000) El Parque Nacional Henri Pittier Revista Alcance 60. Publicación de la Facultad de Agronomía. Universidad Central de Venezuela. 284 pp.Google Scholar
Fish, D. (1983) Phytotelmata: Flora and fauna, pp. 101–128. In Phytotelmata: Terrestrial Plants as Hosts for Aquatic Insects Communities (edited by Frank, J. H. and Lounibos, L. P.). Plexus Publishing, Medford, New Jersey, USA.Google Scholar
Galindo, P., Carpenter, S. J. and Trapido, H. (1955) Ecological observations on forest mosquitoes of an endemic yellow fever area in Panama. American Journal of Tropical Medicine 3, 98–137.Google Scholar
González, R. and Darsie, R. Jr (1996) Clave ilustrada para la determinación genérica de larvas de Culicidae de Colombia y el nuevo mundo. Boletín del Museo Entomológico de la Universidad del Valle 4, 21–37.Google Scholar
Greeney, H. F. (2001) The insects of plant-held waters: a review and bibliography. Journal of Tropical Ecology 17, 241–260.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hammer, O. and Harper, D. A. (2008) PAST: Palaeontological Statistics, version 1.83. Available at:http://folk.uio.no/ohammer/past.Google Scholar
Heinemann, S. J. and Belkin, J. N. (1978) Collection records of the Project ‘Mosquitoes of Middle America’. 11. Venezuela; Guianas: French Guiana, Guyana, Surinam. Mosquito Systematics 10, 365–459.Google Scholar
Huber, O. (1986) Ubicación geográfica y fisiográfica, pp. 17–29. In La Selva Nublada de Rancho Grande, Parque Nacional ‘Henri Pittier’ (edited by Huber, O.). Fondo Editorial Acta Científica Venezolana.Google Scholar
Kitching, R. L. (1971) An ecological study of water-filled tree-holes and their position in the woodland ecosystem. Journal of Animal Ecology 40, 281–302.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lane, J. (1953) Neotropical Culicidae. Vols I and II illus. University of Sao Paulo, Sao Paulo. 1112 pp.Google Scholar
Lounibos, L. P., Frank, F. H., Machado-Allison, C. E., Ocanto, P. and Navarro, J. C. (1987) Survival, development and predatory effects of mosquito larvae in Venezuelan phytotelmata. Journal of Tropical Ecology 3, 221–242.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Louton, J., Gelhaus, J. and Bouchard, R. (1996) The aquatic macrofauna of water-filled bamboo (Poaceae: Bambusoideae: Guadua) internodes in a Peruvian tropical lowland forest. Biotropica 28, 228–242.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Machado-Allison, C. E., Barrera, R., Frank, J. H., Delgado, L. and Gomez-Cova, C. (1985) Mosquito communities in Venezuelan phytotelmata, pp. 79–93. In Ecology of Mosquitoes (edited by Lounibos, L. P., Rey, J. R. and Frank, J. H.). Florida Medical Entomology Laboratory, Vero Beach, FL.Google Scholar
Machado-Allison, C. E., Barrera, R., Delgado, L., Gómez-Cova, C. and Navarro, J. C. (1986) Mosquitos (Diptera: Culicidae) de los Fitotelmata de Panaquire, Venezuela. Acta Biológica Venezolana 12, 1–12.Google Scholar
Navarro, J. C. (1998) Fauna de mosquitos (Diptera: Culicidae) del Parque Nacional Cerro El Copey y nuevos registros para la Isla de Margarita, Venezuela. Boletín de Entomología Venezolana 13, 187–194.Google Scholar
Navarro, J. C. and Machado-Allison, C. (1995) Aspectos ecológicos de Sabethes chloropterus (Humboldt) (Diptera: Culicidae) en un bosque húmedo del Edo, Miranda, Venezuela. Boletín de Entomología Venezolana 10, 91–104.Google Scholar
Navarro, J. C., Liria, J., Piñango, H. and Barrera, R. (2007) Biogeographic area relationships in Venezuela: A Parsimony analysis of Culicidae-Phytotelmata distribution in national parks. Zootaxa 1547, 1–19.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Paradise, C. J. (1998) Colonization and development of insects in simulated treehole habitats with distinct resource and pH regimes. Ecoscience 5, 39–45.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Paradise, C. J. (2000) Effects of pH and resources on a processing chain interaction in simulated treeholes. Journal of Animal Ecology 69, 651–658.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Paradise, C. J. and Dunson, C. J. (1997) Insect species interactions and resource effects in treeholes: are helodid beetles bottom-up facilitators of midge populations? Oecologia 109, 303–312.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
ParksWatch (2006) Park Profile: Henri Pittier National Park. Center for Tropical Conservation, Duke University, USA. Available at:http://www.parkswatch.org.Google Scholar
Ramett, A. (2007) Multivariate analyses in microbial ecology. FEMS Microbiology Ecology II, 1–19.Google Scholar
SPSS (2004) SPSS Inc. 1989–2004. Available at:http://www.spss.com.Google Scholar
Seres, A. and Ramirez, N. (1990) Fenologia vegetativa de monocotiledoneas del bosque nublado de Rancho Grande (Parque Nacional Henri Pittier). Ecotropicos 3, 1–11.Google Scholar
Sokal, R. R. and Rohlf, F. J. (1981) Biometry. W. H. Freeman and Co., New York, USA. 959 pp.Google Scholar
Varga, L. (1928) Ein interessanter Biotop der Bioconöse von Wasserorganismen. Biologisches Zentralblatt 48, 143–162.Google Scholar
Yanoviak, S. P. (1999 a) Community structure in water-filled tree holes of Panama: effects of hole height and size. Selbyana 20, 106–115.Google Scholar
Yanoviak, S. P. (1999 b) Effects of leaf litter species on macroinvertebrate community properties and mosquito yield in Neotropical tree hole microcosms. Oecologia 120, 147–155.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Yanoviak, S. P. (2001) The macrofauna of water-filled tree holes on Barro Colorado Island, Panama. Biotropica 33, 110–120.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Yanoviak, S. P. and Fincke, O. M. (2005) Sampling methods for water-filled tree holes and their artificial analogues, pp. 168–185. In Insect Sampling (edited by Leather, S.). Blackwell Science, London, UK.Google Scholar
Yanoviak, S. P., Lounibos, L. P. and Weaver, S. C. (2006) Land use affects macroinvertebrate community composition in Phytotelmata in the Peruvian Amazon. Annals of the Entomological Society of America 99, 1172–1181.CrossRefGoogle Scholar