REU: Debris Dams as Mitigating Patches for Stream Fauna During Floods

洪水对河流无脊椎动物的影响一直是 河流生态学家的一系列研究课题。 快速再- 在极端洪水之后建立种群是常见的 但我们并不了解造成这种情况的机制 复苏 该试点项目将开始测试该假设 碎石坝减轻了洪水对 河流小型底栖生物，这些缓解斑块的影响 (dam)对于那些最慢的物种来说， 生殖率。 启动资金将用于开始工作， 确定动物群的繁殖是否足够快， 洪水过后人口的恢复。 额外的开发 将投入时间来确定是否高丰度的 泥石流坝附近的动物群与洪水事件有关。 本研究 将开始提供有关机制的数据， 溪流中的无脊椎动物物种在特定的地点持续存在， 时间，并为更长的项目铺平道路， 实验性地研究了扩散、繁殖 和补丁动态。

The effect of floods on stream invertebrates has been the topic of a number of studies by stream ecologists. Rapid re- establishment of populations following extreme floods is common yet we do not understand the mechanisms responsible for this recovery. This pilot project will begin to test the hypothesis that debris dams lessen the detrimental effect of floods on stream meiofauna and that the effect of these mitigating patches (dam) will be greatest for those species with slowest reproductive rates. Start up funds will be used to begin work to determine if faunal reproduction is rapid enough to account for recovery of populations following floods. Additional development time will be invested in determining if the high abundances of fauna near debris dams are linked to flood events. This study will begin to provide data on the mechanisms determining which species of stream invertebrates persist at a given locale over time, and pave the way for longer project which will experimentally examine the interplay of dispersal, reproduction and patch dynamics.