A new tool can better assess an important but overlooked indicator of global warming: a variety of bedbugs, worms, and snails living in mountainous terrain. Understanding how these tiny creatures are affected by climate change requires understanding where we are to find them. However, ancient ecological theories did not explain the findings of a team of UC Riverside biologists and their UC participants in a recent marine biological study in California’s Sierra Nevada.
Invertebrates based on water are especially vulnerable when the climate changes from historical drought to severe flooding. Because they feed on other mountain species, such as birds, bats, frogs, and fish, biologists are concerned about the growth of insects. To understand how these tiny creatures are affected by climate change requires an understanding of where we should find them. However, ancient ecological theories did not explain the findings of a team of UC Riverside biologists and their UC participants in a recent marine biological study in California’s Sierra Nevada.
As a precautionary measure, the team used a new concept to predict biodiversity in higher mountain streams. That theory, along with the results of field research, is now fully explained in an article in the journal Ecological Monographs.
Theories and ideas
“We have come up with a new way of thinking about biodiversity in the highlands of the Sierra streams, because the old methods have not been successful for us,” said Kurt Anderson, professor of evolution and ecology, and co-author of the article. ” , so we adjust the set of ideas to better explain what we see there, “Anderson said.
One such ancient theory is the River Continuum Concept, which discusses how the flowing ecosystem works as it flows from springs downstream into large, wide open rivers. In a progressive sense, there should be a smooth gradient for the transition from top to bottom. The team conducted a survey to spread biodiversity on the gradient, to explore concepts similar to these.
“We’ve seen a change, but a little bit not for the reasons the doctrine says it should,” Anderson said. “For example, we have found that lakes tend to disrupt the transformation we should have seen.”
The UCR team found that the variety of invertebrates usually increased in groundwater and was much lower with steam at the bottom of the ponds.”We believe that pools could have a cross-cutting effect and cause lower waterways to re-create diversity,” said Matthew Green, UCR ecologist and first author of a new paper.
The team also discovered many forms of life in cold, isolated streams. Despite the general tendency for river diversity to increase, at times, the differences in species between isolated areas can be as great as those between the river and the river.
“These are the species of marine animals that are on the brink of a catastrophic climate change,” said Dave Herbst, a researcher from the Sierra Nevada Aquatic Research Laboratory, UC Natural Reserve, and co-author of the paper.The bottom of the ponds was teeming with just a few species of invertebrates and insects that can filter food particles. Some sites with mixed food sources have a wide range of available.
The team recommends that integrated water systems be protected from diversion, as well as from damage to the environment caused by unrestricted land development. When water is allowed to flow properly, the amount of resources available to living organisms supports a high diversity.
That is what will allow these small, but very important forms of life to thrive, ”said Anderson. “Where resilient areas have been damaged, recovery efforts may be the key to providing a resilient environment for future climate change.
Source Journal Reference:Matthew D. Green, Kurt E. Anderson, David B. Herbst, Marko Spasojevic. Rethinking biodiversity patterns and processes in stream ecosystems. Ecological Monographs, 2022; DOI: 10.1002/ecm.1520
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