Turnitin: Evaluating the potential of treated effluent as novel habitats for aquatic invertebrates in arid regions
Abstract
Increasing anthropogenic demands for
freshwater have altered many aquatic systems, including
the drying of formerly perennial streams. The
discharge of treated effluent has returned perennial
flow in some of these streams, especially in arid and
semi-arid regions, but the ability of treated effluent to
support diverse aquatic communities is poorly understood.
We examined the potential of treated effluent to
create aquatic invertebrate habitat using the effluentdependent
Santa Cruz River in southern Arizona, USA
as a case study. We identified 92 invertebrate taxa
across our ten sampling sites and two sampling dates.
Community composition was primarily shaped by
water quality but also by stream drying (on daily time
scales) and benthic substrate. Specifically, Linear
Mixed-Effects models revealed a strong positive
relationship between dissolved oxygen and taxonomic
richness and a strong negative relationship between
stream drying and invertebrate density. Although there
are unique challenges to biota in effluent-dependent
systems, our results suggest that treated wastewater
could be managed to augment or recreate aquatic
habitats that have been otherwise diminished or lost.
Collections
- Turnitin Report [1573]