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SFS Annual Meeting

Wednesday, May 23, 2018
09:00 - 10:30

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09:00 - 09:15: / 420 A ALONG FOR THE RIDE: STREAM FISH PARASITES ON THE RIVER CONTINUUM

5/23/2018  |   09:00 - 09:15   |  420 A

ALONG FOR THE RIDE: STREAM FISH PARASITES ON THE RIVER CONTINUUM The River Continuum Concept (RCC) predicts that species richness increases from low- to mid-order streams. However, this prediction has never been tested using fish parasites. We collected 421 Redspot Darters (Etheostoma artesiae) from 15 reference streams (2nd to 6th order) in the Sipsey Fork – Black Warrior River system within the Bankhead National Forest, Alabama. We conducted necropsies, and identified and enumerated parasites. Twenty-eight species of parasites were recovered. Component community (stream) richness ranged from 5 to 15 species whereas mean infracommunity (fish) richness of streams ranged from 1.5 to 5.4 species. Using a generalized linear model, we found that component community richness was positively related to drainage area (z = 2.596, p =0.009). Using a linear model, we also found that mean infracommunity richness was positively related to drainage area (R2 = 0.616, p < 0.001). Our results support the RCC prediction that species richness of fish parasites increases with increasing stream size, perhaps because of longitudinal patterns of free-living host diversity and food web complexity, or increases in availability of specific intermediate hosts (e.g. snails). Such parasite infection gradients may have important consequences for host health and evolution.

Eric Bauer (Primary Presenter/Author), Auburn University, efb0005@tigermail.auburn.edu;


Brian Helms (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Troy University, helmsb@troy.edu;


Jack Feminella (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Auburn University, feminjw@auburn.edu;


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09:15 - 09:30: / 420 A DISTRIBUTION OF HYPORHEIC FAUNA IN TEXAS, USA: HOW DOES LARGE-SCALE GEOLOGY AND FINE-SCALE HYDROLOGY INFLUENCE COMMUNITIES

5/23/2018  |   09:15 - 09:30   |  420 A

DISTRIBUTION OF HYPORHEIC FAUNA IN TEXAS, USA: HOW DOES LARGE-SCALE GEOLOGY AND FINE-SCALE HYDROLOGY INFLUENCE COMMUNITIES As an ecotone, the hyporheic zone provides habitat for a unique assemblage of both epigean and groundwater-obligate invertebrates (stygobionts). Despite its importance, investigation of hyporheic communities has lagged behind that of epigean aquatic systems. This is certainly the case in Texas, U.S.A. where the hyporheic zone is almost completely uninvestigated despite the presence of a well-documented, highly diverse phreatic karst groundwater fauna, the presence of a number of economically important aquifers, and an expansive geography that encompasses several major biogeographic provinces. We surveyed a broad, E-W- transect across the state, collecting physicochemical and biological samples data from 133 samples from 31 hyporheic sites between 2015 and 2017. The presence of macroinvertebrate stygobionts was strongly associated with hyporheic connectivity to phreatic karst aquifers. The current study has resulted in over 30 new occurrence records for 14 different species classified in Texas as species of greatest conservation need. For 12 of these species, this is the first record of occurrence outside of phreatic karst habitats (i.e springs, caves, and wells). Additionally, several taxa represent currently undescribed species, several of which also likely warrant classification as species of greatest conservation need.

Aaron Swink (Primary Presenter/Author), Texas State University, aps36@txstate.edu;


Benjamin Hutchins (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Edwards Aquifer Research and Data Center, Texas State University, San Marcos, Tx., bh1333@txastate.edu;


Benjamin Schwartz (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Department of Biology, Texas State University, San Marcos, Tx., bs37@txstate.edu;


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09:30 - 09:45: / 420 A MOTILITY TRADEOFFS IN SYMBIOSES: A COLLECTION OF INTERESTING HYPOTHESES

5/23/2018  |   09:30 - 09:45   |  420 A

MOTILITY TRADEOFFS IN SYMBIOSES: A COLLECTION OF INTERESTING HYPOTHESES Symbiosis is an integral part of life, with most organisms on Earth engaged in symbiotic interactions ranging from mutualistic to parasitic. Classic studies into symbioses looked at simple pairwise interactions, like clownfish and sea anemones or pearlfish and sea cucumbers. However, focusing on these pairwise interactions ignores the ways in which complex communities of hosts and symbionts affect each other. Symbiosis research has not yet taken full advantage of metacommunity theory, which describes interactions between spatially disparate communities of organisms affecting each other through dispersal. Traditionally, this framework has been used to study communities along connected environmental patches. However, if we consider a host to be a patch, we can use this framework to study how host controls, symbiont interactions, and dispersal affect the structure and diversity of symbiont communities. One distinction between a host patch and an environmental patch is that the host patch is potentially mobile. We propose that, due to coevolutionary tradeoffs, host-symbiont systems tend towards an inverse relationship between host mobility and symbiont mobility, depending on environment, transmission mode, host and symbiont taxa, and whether or not the association is obligate for one or both species.

Philip McElmurray (Primary Presenter/Author), Virginia Tech, pmac@vt.edu;


Spencer Bell (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), University of Alabama, obscurus@vt.edu;


Sara Cathey (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Virginia Tech, catheyse@vt.edu;


Savannah Justus (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Virginia Tech, sjustus1@vt.edu;


Robert Creed (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Appalachian State Universtiy, creedrp@appstate.edu;


Bryan Brown (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Virginia Tech, stonefly@vt.edu;


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09:45 - 10:00: / 420 A STREAM MACROINVERTEBRATE COMMUNITIES IN THE JAPANESE ALPS IN A CHANGING CLIMATE AND INFLUENCE OF SNOW MONKEYS

5/23/2018  |   09:45 - 10:00   |  420 A

STREAM MACROINVERTEBRATE COMMUNITIES IN THE JAPANESE ALPS IN A CHANGING CLIMATE AND INFLUENCE OF SNOW MONKEYS Alpine areas are sensitive to climate change and predictions for Japan’s mountainous areas indicate river discharge will alter significantly due to increased rainfall and decreased snowmelt in early spring. Our research was focused in Kamikochi National Park in the Japanese Alps where 6 tributary sites of the main Asuza River were studied, three fed by groundwater and three fed by snowmelt. Water samples were collected monthly and ionic tracers used to quantify the percent contribution from the different water sources and temporal changes. Water temperature and discharge were monitored continuously at each site to characterize physicochemical habitat and macroinvertebrate collected monthly. Water temperature in the groundwater streams was virtually constant at 5 0C whereas the snowmelt streams varied from 2 to 13.5 0C. Macroinvertebrate diversity was similar between streams but abundance was significantly higher in the groundwater streams. However two snowmelt streams dried up during the summer and when rewetted abundance was very low although taxa diversity was not significantly reduced. Snow monkeys (Macaca fuscata) have been observed to feed on aquatic invertebrates in winter, when other food sources are low, and their diet was investigated using eDNA.

Victoria Milner (Primary Presenter/Author), University of Worcester, v.milner@worc.ac.uk;


Catherine Docherty (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), University of Birmingham, catherine.l.docherty@gmail.com;


Koji Tojo (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Biology Department, Faculty of Science, Shinshu University, Japan , ktojo@shinshu-u.ac.jp;


Susie Wood (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Cawthron Institute, Susie.Wood@cawthron.org.nz ;


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10:00 - 10:15: / 420 A PRIORITY EFFECTS IN A FRESHWATER CLEANING SYMBIOSIS

5/23/2018  |   10:00 - 10:15   |  420 A

PRIORITY EFFECTS IN A FRESHWATER CLEANING SYMBIOSIS Colonization order affects community composition when early arrivers preempt resources or space and alter conditions for later arrivers, but the importance of priority effects on the assembly of symbiont communities is poorly understood. We conducted an experiment using a system of crayfish and 2 species of ectosymbiotic annelids, a large intra-guild predator that is dominant, but slow to colonize, and a small fugitive species, quick to colonize but readily consumed. We had 4 treatment levels: each species alone, and two mixed species treatments, one with each species as an early colonizer. Survivorship of the fugitive species decreased 40% relative to the fugitive-alone control with early colonization by the intraguild predator, and in the early fugitive colonization treatment, there was an intermediate level of survivorship. Unexpectedly, predatory symbiont also responded to colonization order with lower survivorship when it was the early colonist. There were also effects on the distribution of the fugitive species on the host crayfish body, with early colonization by the intraguild predator restricting its location. These results clearly demonstrate the potential of priority effects to influence the assembly of symbiont communities in complex ways.

Bryan Brown (Primary Presenter/Author), Virginia Tech, stonefly@vt.edu;


Lauren Krauss (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Virginia Tech, falcon84@vt.edu;


Spencer Bell (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), University of Alabama, obscurus@vt.edu;


Robert Creed (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Appalachian State Universtiy, creedrp@appstate.edu;


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10:15 - 10:30: / 420 A NUTRIENT ENRICHMENT TRIGGERS SWITCH IN THE DOMINANT MODE OF TEMPORAL &BETA;-DIVERSITY IN FRESHWATER ALGAL COMMUNITIES

5/23/2018  |   10:15 - 10:30   |  420 A

NUTRIENT ENRICHMENT TRIGGERS SWITCH IN THE DOMINANT MODE OF TEMPORAL β-DIVERSITY IN FRESHWATER ALGAL COMMUNITIES Nutrient enrichment can alter natural patterns of community succession in freshwater ecosystems. We sampled 35 streams bimonthly for 2 y that spanned a steep gradient of total phosphorus (TP, <10 to 150 μg/L) to determine how TP enrichment influenced variation in algal species biovolumes and composition (i.e. temporal β-diversity). While temporal β-diversity displayed no relationship with TP concentration, a new method of partitioning turnover into components that measure balanced variation in abundances (βBAL) and abundance-gradients (βGRA) revealed striking differences in the mode of community turnover as P enrichment increased. At low TP exposure (< 25 μg/L), seasonal variation in algal communities was dominated by βBAL; as biovolumes of some species declined they were substituted by similar increases in biovolumes from other species. This pattern shifted abruptly at 21-28 μg/L TP enrichment with βGRA increases, which was driven by a subset of the species pool increasing in biovolume during the cooler winter and spring months (primarily the nuisance algae Cladophora glomerata). Though algal communities showed high levels of unpartitioned temporal β-diversity across the TP gradient, our results show the importance of identifying the source of community variation in freshwater algae.

Stephen C. Cook (Primary Presenter/Author), University of Oklahoma, stephencook@ou.edu;


Jeffrey A. Back (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Baylor University, Jeff_Back@baylor.edu;


Ryan S. King (Co-Presenter/Co-Author), Baylor University, Ryan_S_King@baylor.edu;


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