Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Weak correspondence between macroinvertebrate assemblages and land use in Prairie Pothole Region wetlands, USA

  • Published:
Wetlands Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

To evaluate the potential development of a macroinvertebrate Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI) for Prairie Pothole Region wetlands, we sampled the aquatic macroinvertebrate and fish communities in 24 semipermanent wetlands located throughout central North Dakota. Wetland basins were selected to encompass a range of surrounding land-use, ranging from 100% grassland to 100% cropland. We used redundancy analysis (RDA) to identify the influences of fish, and temporal and spatial variation on the macroinvertebrate community. We also used RDA to look for relationships between wetland macroinvertebrate communities and land-use. Seventeen potential invertebrate metrics were tested by graphical analyses. We identified a strong influence on the macroinvertebrate community due to the presence of fish. A number of invertebrate taxa decreased in abundance as the summer progressed, and there was noticeable variation in the invertebrate community among individual wetlands of the region. However, we detected no strong relationships between the varying degrees of agricultural land-use in the wetland catchments and the invertebrate community. Consequently, we were unable to identify and effective IBI metrics indicative of land-use disturbance. Lack of correspondence between land-use and macroinvertebrates in this habitat is most likely due to a high degree of natural disturbance (e.g., presence of fish, temporal changes) and a low diversity community of resilient taxa in Prairie Pothole Region wetlands.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Literature Cited

  • Adamus, P. R. 1996. Bioindicators for assessing ecological integrity of prairie wetlands. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory, Western Ecology Division, Corvallis, OR, USA. EPA/600/R-96/082.

    Google Scholar 

  • Apfelbeck, R. S. 2001. Development of biocriteria for wetlands in Montana. p. 141–166. In R. B. Rader, D. P. Batzer, and S. A. Wissinger (eds.) Bioassessment and Management of North American Freshwater Wetlands. John Wiley & Sons, Inc, New York, NY, USA.

    Google Scholar 

  • Barbour, M. T., J. Gerritsen, B. D. Snyder, and J. B. Stribling. 1999. Rapid bioassessment protocols for use in streams and wadeable rivers: periphyton, benthic macroinvertebrates and fish, second edition. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Water, Washington, DC, USA. EPA 841-B-99-002.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bluemle, J. P. 1991. The Face of North Dakota: The Geologic Story Educational Series 11, North Dakota Geological Survey, Grand Forks, ND, USA.

    Google Scholar 

  • Borcard, D. and P. Legendre. 1994. Environmental control and spatial structure in ecological communities: an example using oribatid mites (Acari, Oribatei). Environmental and Ecological Statistics 1:37–61.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Borcard, D., P. Legendre, and P. Drapeau. 1992. Partialling out the spatial component of ecological variation. Ecology 73:1045–1055.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bryce, S., J. M. Omernik, D. E. Pater, M. Ulmer, J. Schaar, J. Freeouf, R. Johnson, P. Kuck, and S. H. Azevedo. 1998. Ecoregions of North Dakota and South Dakota. [Two sided color poster with map (scale 1∶1,500,000), descriptive text, summary tables, and photographs.]. U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, VA, USA, ISBN 0-607-89384-2.

    Google Scholar 

  • Butler, M. G. 1984. Life Histories of Aquatic Insects. p. 24–55. In V. H. Resh and D. M. Rosenberg (eds.) The Ecology of Aquatic Insects. Praeger Publishers, New York, NY, USA.

    Google Scholar 

  • Carpenter, S. R., J. F. Kitchell, and J. R. Hodgson. 1985. Cascading trophic interactions and lake productivity. BioScience 35:634–639.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cox, R. R., Jr., M. A. Hanson, C. C. Roy, N. H. Euliss, Jr., D. H. Johnson, and M. G. Butler. 1998. Mallard duckling growth and survival in relation to aquatic invertebrates. Journal of Wildlife Management 62:124–133.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Crosbie, B. and P. Chow-Fraser. 1999. Percentage land-use in the watershed determines the water and sediment quality of 22 marshes in the Great Lakes basin. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Science 56:1781–1791.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Danielson, T. J. 1998. Wetland bioassessment fact sheets. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Wetlands, Oceans, and Watersheds, Wetlands Division, Washington, DC, USA. EPA843-F-98-001.

    Google Scholar 

  • Deutschman, M. R. 1984. Secondary production, habitat use and prey preference of the tiger salamander (Ambystoma tigrinum) in south-central North Dakota. M.S. Thesis. North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND, USA.

    Google Scholar 

  • Diaz, H. F. 1983. Some aspects of major dry and wet periods in the contiguous United States, 1895–1981. Journal of Climate and Applied Meteorology 22:3–16.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ell, M. J. 1993. Standard Operating Procedures for Field Samplers. Surface Water Quality Management Program, Division of Water Quality, North Dakota State Department of Health and Consolidated Laboratories, Bismarck, ND, USA.

    Google Scholar 

  • Euliss, N. H., Jr. and D. M. Mushet. 1996. Water-level fluctuation in wetlands as a function of landscape condition in the prairie pothole region. Wetlands 16:587–593.

    Google Scholar 

  • Euliss, N. H., Jr. and D. M. Mushet. 1997. Impact of agricultural practices on siltation rates, and water-level fluctuations. p. 59–69. In S. A. Peterson, L. Carpenter, G. Guntenspergen, and L. M. Cowardin (eds.) Pilot test of wetland condition indicators in the Prairie Pothole Region of the United States. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Washington, DC, USA. EPA/620/R-97/002.

    Google Scholar 

  • Euliss, N. H., Jr. and D. M. Mushet. 1999. Influence of agriculture on aquatic invertebrate communities of temporary wetlands in the Prairie Pothole Region of North Dakota, USA. Wetlands 19:578–583.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Euliss, N. H., Jr., D. A. Wrubleski, and D. M. Mushet. 1999. Wetlands of the Prairie Pothole Region: invertebrate species composition, ecology, and management. p. 471–514. In D. P. Batzer, R. B. Rader, and S. A. Wissinger (eds.) Invertebrates in Freshwater Wetlands of North America: Ecology and Management. John Wiley & Sons. Inc., New York, NY, USA.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fore, L. S., J. R. Karr, and R. W. Wisseman. 1996. Assessing invertebrate responses to human activities: evaluating alternative approaches. Journal of the North American Benthological Society 15:212–231.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gerritsen, J., R. E. Carlson, D. L. Dycus, C. Faulkner, G. R. Gibson, J. Harcum, and S. A. Markowitz. 1998. Lake and reservoir bioassessment and biocriteria: technical guidance document. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Water, Washington, DC, USA. EPA 841-B-98-007.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gleason, R. A. and N. H. Euliss, Jr. 1998. Sedimentation of prairie wetlands. Great Plains Research 8:97–112.

    Google Scholar 

  • Goldsborough, L. G. and W. G. Crumpton. 1998. Distribution and environmental fate of pesticides in prairie wetlands. Great Plains Research 8:73–95.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hann, B. J. and L. G. Goldsborough. 1997. Responses of a prairie wetland to press and pulse additions of inorganic nitrogen and phosphorus: invertebrate community structure and interactions. Archiv für Hydrobiologie 140:169–194.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hanson, M. A. and M. G. Butler. 1994. Responses to food web manipulation in a shallow waterfowl lake. Hydrobiologia 279/280: 457–466.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hanson, M. A. and M. R. Riggs. 1995. Potential effects of fish predation on wetland invertebrates: a comparison of wetlands with and without fathead minnows. Wetlands 15:167–175.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Held, J. W. and J. J. Peterka. 1974. Age, growth, and food habits of the fathead minnow, Pimephales promelas, in North Dakota saline lakes. Transactions of the American Fisheries Society 4: 743–756.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Helgen, J. C. and M. C. Gernes. 2001. Monitoring the condition of wetlands: indexes of biological integrity using invertebrates and vegetation. p. 167–185. In R. B. Rader, D. P. Batzer, and S. A. Wissinger (eds.) Bioassessment and Management of North American Freshwater Wetlands. John Wiley & Sons, Inc, New York, NY, USA.

    Google Scholar 

  • Helgen, J. C., N. J. Larson, and R. L. Anderson. 1988. Responses of zooplankton and Chaoborus to Temephos in a natural pond and in the laboratory. Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 17:459–471.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hilsenhoff, W. L. 1977. Use of arthropods to evaluate water quality in streams. Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Madison, WI, USA. Technical Bulletin No. 100.

    Google Scholar 

  • Johnson, B. T. 1986. Potential impact of selected agricultural chemical contaminants on a northern prairie wetland: a microcosm evaluation. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry 5:473–485.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Jurik, T. W., S-C. Wang, and A. G. van der Valk. 1994. Effects of sediment load on seedling emergence from wetland seed banks. Wetlands 14:159–165.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kantrud, H. A. 1993. Duck nest success on Conservation Reserve Program land in the prairie pothole region. Journal of Soil and Water Conservation 48:238–242.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kantrud, H. A., G. L. Krapu, and G. A. Swanson. 1989. Prairie basin wetlands of the Dakotas: a community profile. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Washington, DC, USA. Biological Report 85.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kantrud, H. A. and W. E. Newton. 1996. A test of vegetation-related indicators of wetland quality in the prairie pothole region. Journal of Aquatic Ecosystem Health 5:177–191.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Karl, T. R. and A. J. Koscielny. 1982. Drought in the United States: 1895–1981. Journal of Climatology 2:313–329.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Karl, T. R. and W. E. Riebsame. 1984. The identification of 10 to 20 year temperature and precipitation fluctuations in the contiguous United States. Journal of Climate and Applied Meteorology 23:950–966.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Karr, J. R. 1981. Assessment of biotic integrity using fish communities. Fisheries 6:21–27.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Karr, J. R. and E. W. Chu. 1999. Restoring Life in Running Waters: Better Biological Monitoring. Island Press, Washington, DC, USA.

    Google Scholar 

  • Karr, J. R., K. D. Fausch, P. L. Angermeier, P. R. Yant, and I. J. Schlosser. 1986. Assessing biological integrity in running waters: a method and its rationale. Illinois Natural History Survey, Champaign, IL, USA. Special Publication 5.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kerans, B. L. and J. R. Karr. 1994. A benthic index of biotic integrity (B-IBI) for rivers of the Tennessee Valley. Ecological Applications 4:768–785.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kerans, B. L., J. R. Karr, and S. A. Ahlstedt. 1992. Aquatic invertebrate assemblages: spatial and temporal differences among sampling protocols. Journal of the North American Benthological Society 11:377–390.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lenat, D. R. 1993. A biotic index for the southeastern United States: derivation and list of tolerance values, with criteria for assigning water-quality ratings. Journal of the North American Benthological Society 12:279–290.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McCabe, G. D. and W. J. O’Brien. 1983. The effects of suspended silt on feeding and reproduction of Daphnia pulex. American Midland Naturalist 110:324–337.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Murkin, H. R., P. G. Abbott, and J. A. Kadlec. 1983. A comparison of activity traps and sweep nets for sampling nektonic invertebrates in wetlands. Freshwater Invertebrate Biology 2:99–106.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Neely, R. K. and J. L. Baker. 1989. Nitrogen and phosphorus dynamics and the fate of agricultural runoff. p. 92–131. In A. G. van der Valk (ed.) Northern Prairie Wetlands. Iowa State University Press, Ames, IA, USA.

    Google Scholar 

  • Olenick, R. J. and J. H. Gee. 1981. Tiger salamanders (Ambystoma tigrinum) and stocked rainbow trout (Salmo gairdneri): potential competitors for food in Manitoba prairie pothole lakes. Canadian Field Naturalist 95:129–132.

    Google Scholar 

  • Peterka, J. J. 1989. Fishes in northern prairie wetlands. p. 302–315. In A. G. van der Valk (ed.) Northern Prairie Wetlands. Iowa State University Press, Ames, IA, USA.

    Google Scholar 

  • Phillips, K. A. 1999. Assessment of Potential Metrics for Index of Wetland Biological Integrity (IWBI) for Phytoplankton. Unpublished Report. North Dakota Department of Health, Division of Water Quality, North Dakota State Department of Health, Bismarck, ND, USA.

    Google Scholar 

  • Price, C. J., W. M. Tonn, and C. A. Paszkowski. 1991. Intraspecific patterns of resource use by fathead minnows in a small boreal lake. Canadian Journal of Zoology 69:2109–2115.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sandilands, K. A., B. J. Hann, and L. G. Goldsborough. 2000. The impact of nutrients and submersed macrophytes on invertebrates in a prairie wetland, Delta Marsh, Manitoba. Archiv für Hydrobiologie 148:441–459.

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Scheffer, M., S. H. Hosper, M-L. Meijer, B. Moss, and E. Jeppesen. 1993. Alternative Equilibria in Shallow Lakes. TREE 8:275–279.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shuldiner, P. W., D. F. Cope, and R. B. Newton. 1979. Ecological effects of highway fills on wetlands: user’s manual. Transportation Research Board, National Research Council, Washington, DC, USA. Report (National Cooperative Highway Research Program): 218B.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stewart, R. E. and H. A. Kantrud. 1971. Classification of natural ponds and lakes in the glaciated prairie region. U.S. Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service, Washington, DC, USA. Publication 92.

    Google Scholar 

  • Swanson, G. A., M. I. Meyer, and J. R. Serie. 1974. Feeding ecology of breeding blue-winged teal. Journal of Wildlife Management 38: 396–407.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Swanson, G. A., T. C. Winter, V. A. Adomaitis, and J. W. LaBaugh. 1988. Chemical characteristics of prairie lakes in south-central North Dakota-their potential for influencing use by fish and wildlife. United States Fish and Wildlife Service, Washington, DC, USA. Technical Report 18.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tangen, B. A. 2001. Variation in aquatic macroinvertebrate communities in Prairie Pothole Region wetlands. M.S. Thesis. North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND, USA.

    Google Scholar 

  • ter Braak, C. J. F. 1995. Ordination, p. 91–173. In R. H. G. Jongman, C. J. F. ter Braak, and O. F. R. Van Tongeren (eds.) Data Analysis in Community and Landscape Ecology. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK.

    Google Scholar 

  • ter Braak, C. J. F. and W. Jaap. 1994. On the statistical analysis of vegetation change: a wetland affected by water extraction and soil acidification. Journal of Vegetation Science 5:361–372.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • ter Braak, C. J. F. and C. W. N. Looman. 1995. Regression. p. 29–77. In R. H. G. Jongman, C. J. F. ter Braak, and O. F. R. Van Tongeren (eds.) Data Analysis in Community and Landscape Ecology. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK.

    Google Scholar 

  • ter Braak, C. J. F. and P. Smilauer. 1998. CANOCO Reference Manual and User’s Guide to Canoco for Windows: Software for Canonical Community Ordination, Version 4. Microcomputer Power, Ithaca, NY, USA.

    Google Scholar 

  • Van Wijngaarden, R. P. A., P. J. Van Den Brink, J. H. Oude Voshaar, and P. Leeuwangh. 1995. Ordination techniques for analyzing response of biological communities to toxic stress in experimental ecosystems. Ecotoxicology 4:61–77.

    Google Scholar 

  • Verdonschot, P. F. M. and C. J. F. ter Braak. 1994. An experimental manipulation of oligochaete communities in mesocosms treated with chlorpyrifos or nutrient additions: multivariate analyses with Monte Carlo permutation tests. Hydrobiologia 278:251–26.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wang, L., J. Lyons, P. Kanehl, and R. Gatti. 1997. Influences of watershed land-use on habitat quality and biotic integrity in Wisconsin Streams. Fisheries 22:6–12.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wilcox, D. A., J. E. Meeker, P. L. Hudson, B. J. Armitage, M. G. Black, and D. G. Uzarski. 2002. Hydrologic variability and the application of index of biotic integrity metrics to wetlands: a Great Lakes evaluation. Wetlands 22:588–615.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Winter, T. C. 1989. Hydrologic studies of wetlands in the northern prairie. p. 16–54. In A. G. van der Valk (ed.) Northern Prairie Wetlands. Iowa State University Press, Ames, IA, USA.

    Google Scholar 

  • Winter, T. C. and D. O. Rosenberry. 1995. The interaction of ground water with prairie pothole wetlands in the Cottonwood Lake area east-central North Dakota, 1979–1990. Wetlands 15:193–211.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Winter, T. C. and D. O. Rosenberry. 1998. Hydrology of prairie pothole wetlands during drought and deluge: a 17-year study of the Cottonwood Lake Wetland Complex in North Dakota in the perspective of longer term measured and proxy hydrological records. Climatic Change 40:189–209.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zimmer, K. D., M. A. Hanson, and M. G. Butler. 2000. Factors influencing invertebrate communities in prairie wetlands: a multivariate approach. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Science 57:76–85.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Zimmer, K. D., M. A. Hanson, and M. G. Butler. 2001. Effects of fathead minnow colonization and removal on a prairie wetland ecosystem. Ecosystems 4:346–357.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Author notes

  1. Brian A. Tangen

    Present address: United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, 8711 37th Street Southeast, 58401, Jamestown, North Dakota, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biological Sciences, North Dakota State University, 58105, Fargo, North Dakota, USA

    Brian A. Tangen & Malcolm G. Butler

  2. North Dakota Department of Health, Environmental Health Section, Division of Water Quality, 1200 Missouri Ave., P.O. Box 5520, 58506-5520, Bismarck, North Dakota, USA

    Michael J. Ell

Authors
  1. Brian A. Tangen
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Malcolm G. Butler
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Michael J. Ell
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Brian A. Tangen.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Tangen, B.A., Butler, M.G. & Ell, M.J. Weak correspondence between macroinvertebrate assemblages and land use in Prairie Pothole Region wetlands, USA. Wetlands 23, 104–115 (2003). https://doi.org/10.1672/0277-5212(2003)023[0104:WCBMAA]2.0.CO;2

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1672/0277-5212(2003)023[0104:WCBMAA]2.0.CO;2

Key Words

Search

Navigation