Abstract
Abstract Anthropogenic litter (solid manufactured waste) is an understudied but pervasive element of river systems worldwide. Its physical structure generally differs from natural substrates, such as gravel and cobbles (hereafter rocks). Consequently, anthropogenic litter could influence ecological communities in urban rivers by providing novel habitats. This study compares the macroinvertebrates recorded on anthropogenic litter with those on rocks to test whether the different substrates support distinct communities. Macroinvertebrates were collected from individual rocks and anthropogenic litter, predominantly plastic, metal, and glass, in three U.K. rivers. Macroinvertebrate communities on anthropogenic litter were consistently more diverse than those found on rocks, reflecting its greater surface complexity, but the density of macroinvertebrates was similar among substrates. The community composition also varied between substrates, with five taxa only recorded on anthropogenic litter. Community differences largely reflected greater abundances of common taxa on anthropogenic litter, which were relatively insensitive to environmental quality. Plastic and fabric anthropogenic litter communities were the most dissimilar to those on rocks, probably due to their flexibility, which could replicate the physical structure of aquatic macrophytes. Our findings indicate that anthropogenic litter supports a distinct and diverse community of macroinvertebrates in urban rivers, which are otherwise relatively homogenous in habitat structure. Removal of anthropogenic litter from urban rivers may not be beneficial for local biodiversity. Understanding the functional habitats provided by anthropogenic litter could help better manage urban rivers to replace habitat lost through urbanisation.
Highlights
Growing public and political interest around problems of anthropogenic litter has encouraged a recent proliferation of studies into its occurrence and abundance in the environment, and its ecological impacts (e.g. Agamuthu et al, 2019; Beaumont et al, 2019)
This study compares the macroinvertebrates recorded on anthropogenic litter with those on rocks to test whether the different substrates support distinct communities
Anthropogenic litter is inhabited by a wide range of macroinvertebrates in our study rivers, supporting a greater diversity of organisms than rocks
Summary
Growing public and political interest around problems of anthropogenic litter (solid manufactured waste items, including but not limited to plastics) has encouraged a recent proliferation of studies into its occurrence and abundance in the environment, and its ecological impacts (e.g. Agamuthu et al, 2019; Beaumont et al, 2019). Anthropogenic litter with complex physical structure (e.g. items such as bottles which have interiors: Czarnecka et al, 2009; or items with rough surfaces: Boyero, 2003) may be able to support a greater diversity of organisms through increasing available niche space This may be especially true where the natural substrate is relatively inhospitable to macroinvertebrates, such as sandy or silty estuarine rivers and harbours with low bed stability Chapman & Clynick, 2006; Katsanevakis et al, 2007; García-Vazquez et al, 2018) rather than freshwater environments These studies report that experimentally introduced anthropogenic litter on a sandy sea bed may locally increase the abundance and diversity of benthic communities, where it provides habitat for hard-substratum dwelling species that are otherwise absent (Katsanevakis et al, 2007). If anthropogenic litter provides novel habitats, understanding how it affects macroinvertebrates is important in informing future urban stream management
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