Cladocera distribution along an environmental gradient on the Cerrado-Amazon ecotone: a preliminary study

Abstract

Abstract: Aim Our objective in this study is to understand Cladocera species distribution along an environmental gradient in forest and cropland landscapes in the southern Amazon. Methods We collected Cladocera communities and environmental variables from five streams and verified their associations with a Redundancy Analysis. Results Acroperus tupinamba, Alonella dadayi e Kisakiellus aweti were mostly associated to sites with higher canopy cover. Anthalona neotropica, Anthalona verrucose and Flavalona iheringula occurred exclusively in site with more thalweg depth. Conclusions If these results are confirmed Cladocera stream communities are affected by changes in land use. Further studies in this line are extremely necessary to reduce this knowledge gap.