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Sublittoral Chironomids as Indicators of Acidity (Diptera: Chironomidae)

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Abstract

The sublittoral chironomid fauna of 22 lakes in Killarney Park, Ontario, Canada were examined for their response to different levels of acidification. Included in the analysis were naturally acidic lakes, lakes acidified by atmospheric deposition but now recovering, and unacidified circumneutral lakes. pH in the study lakes ranged from 4.6 to 7.7. No correlation was found between species richness and pH, nor between abundance and pH. Acid neutralizing capacity (ANC), the temperature at the sampling depth, pH, and dissolved organic carbon were the variables contributing significantly in a canonical correspondence analysis of the abundance data. ANC was the most important variable in describing the chironomid community, accounting for about 9% of the variance in the species data. This study is the first step in an effort to model the changes in the chironomid community of recovering acidified lakes and the results suggest that ANC may be an important predictor variable.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory for Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (LFI), Department of Zoology, University of Bergen, Allégt. 41, N-5007, Bergen, Norway

    Godtfred A. Halvorsen

  2. Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, Cooperative Freshwater Ecology Unit, Laurentian University, Sudbury, Ontario, Canada, P3E 2C6

    Jocelyne H. Heneberry & Ed Snucins

Authors
  1. Godtfred A. Halvorsen
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  2. Jocelyne H. Heneberry
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  3. Ed Snucins
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Halvorsen, G.A., Heneberry, J.H. & Snucins, E. Sublittoral Chironomids as Indicators of Acidity (Diptera: Chironomidae). Water, Air, & Soil Pollution 130, 1385–1390 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1013975905893

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1013975905893

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