Energy limitation or sensitive predators? Trophic and non-trophic impacts of wastewater pollution on stream food webs
Authors/Creators
- 1. Catalan Institute for Water Research
- 2. University of Barcelona
- 3. University of Girona
- 4. University of California, Berkeley
Description
Impacts of environmental stressors on food webs are often difficult to predict because trophic levels can respond in divergent ways, and biotic interactions may dampen or amplify responses. Here we studied food-web level impacts of urban wastewater pollution, a widespread source of degradation that can alter stream food webs via top-down and bottom-up processes. We selected ten pairs of sampling locations (i.e., twenty sites total) in ten small-to-medium tributaries of the Ebro River (NE Iberian Peninsula; see "Related article" for locations). These streams were located in low-mountain habitats (365 m – 950 m a.s.l.) under the influence of Mediterranean climate and flow regimes (mean daily discharge 0.05 ± 0.09 m3·s-1). Hydrology in the region is characterized by dry summer periods with reduced flows, and rainfall episodes in spring and late fall. We surveyed the sites in early spring (April 15 - 23, 2016) to avoid spring floods; the last scouring flood preceding our sampling took place 5 months before sampling (November 2nd, 2015). Each sampling location was upstream or downstream of an urban wastewater effluent. Sewage impacts represented the main stressor influencing downstream community composition. The present dataset contains (i) aquatic invertebrate and vertebrate community composition, and (ii) Stable Isotope Analysis data (13C/12C and 15N/14N) for each taxa and reach.
Notes
Mor_et_al_Ecology_community_composition: Vertebrate and invertebrates abundance (ind m-2; "Abd_m2") and mean species body size per site (mg; "CWMBS"). Up (upstream) and Do (downstream) denote pairs of sites located upstream-downstream of wastewater effluents.
Mor_et_al_Ecology_SIA_fauna: Stable isotope analyses (SIA) data by taxon and site. Up (upstream) and Do (downstream) denote pairs of sites located upstream-downstream of wastewater effluents. "Species" category denotes lowest taxonomic level possible (usually species or genus).
Funding provided by: Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad. Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas*
Crossref Funder Registry ID:
Award Number: CGL2017-88640-C2-1-R
Funding provided by: Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad. Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas*
Crossref Funder Registry ID:
Award Number:
Funding provided by: Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad. Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas*
Crossref Funder Registry ID:
Award Number: CGL2017-88640-C2-2-R
Funding provided by: European Commission. Seventh Framework Programme. FP7 Environment*
Crossref Funder Registry ID:
Award Number: FP7-ENV-2013-603629
Funding provided by: Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad. Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas*
Crossref Funder Registry ID:
Award Number: PCIN-2017- 068
Funding provided by: Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad. Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas*
Crossref Funder Registry ID:
Award Number: PCIN-2017- 068
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Mor_et_al_Ecology_community_composition.txt
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Additional details
Related works
- Is cited by
- 10.1016/j.envpol.2019.05.114 (DOI)