Influence of land use on hyporheos in catchment streams of the Velka Fatra Mts

Abstract

The historical influence of landscape on the quantitative variables and a special group of hyporheos in streams with similar origin but different catchment landscapes and forest management was studied. The study was conducted in two streams: (i) a preserved forested natural stream where critical ecosystem processes were unaltered by human activities and (ii) a stream with the strong anthropogenic stressors (e. g., logging, agriculture, pasture), impacting the system for the last 500 years. Some parameters were strongly related to these land use: conductivity, fine benthic organic matter (FBOM), orthophosphate (P_PO4) and periphyton content all increased along the gradient from the natural stream to the urban-dominated catchment. The density of interstitial assemblages corresponded with the conductivity (at P < 0.05) and was higher on the stream in urban-dominated catchments; and the Harpacticoida taxa richness, dominated by the family Canthocamptidae, was also greater here. The Multiple Regression Analysis shows that the rate of deforestation had had the most significant effect on the density of hyporheos. Among of crustacean fauna the representatives of epigean harpacticoids from (of) family Canthocamptidae, dominated. © 2011 Versita Warsaw and Springer-Verlag Wien.