Spatio-temporal variability in benthic macroinvertebrate communities in headwater streams in South Korea

Abstract

Comprehensive research on the structural and functional variability of benthic macroinvertebrate communities within headwater streams is limited, despite the fact that the majority of streams within a watershed are headwater streams that form the primary link between terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Therefore, we investigated the structure and function of benthic macroinvertebrate communities in four headwater streams at two different spatial scales (i.e., sampling sites (i.e., reaches) > samples (i.e., riffles)) over three seasons (i.e., spring, summer and autumn) of the year. Community indices, functional feeding guilds and habit trait guilds varied significantly depending on the seasons rather than on sites in two-way ANOVA based on spatial (i.e., sampling sites) and seasonal effects in each headwater stream. Non-metric multidimensional scaling analyses showed the differences between communities according to the considered spatial and temporal scales. At the individual stream scale, the differences between samples followed seasonal variation more than spatial differences. Site differences became more important when performing an ordination within a single season (i.e., spring, summer, and autumn). Continued research and monitoring employing both multidisciplinary and multidimensional approaches are required to maintain macroinvertebrate diversity within headwater streams.