Artificial dam lakes as suitable habitats for exotic invertebrates: Ostracoda ecology and distribution in reservoirs of the Eastern Iberian Peninsula

Abstract

Reservoirs are the most common deep lakes in Spain, as a consequence of water needs and dry climate. Although these aquatic systems can play an important ecological role in such an area with few large natural lakes, they can also provide new habitats for exotic species, which can colonize ecosystems that native species have not explored yet. Here we present our results for a biannual survey of the ostracod fauna from 24 reservoirs in Xuquer River basin. We check which variables affect ostracod presence, test for differences between winter and summer assemblages, and compare our data with previous available ostracod records from the same river drainage network. Our results reveal that ostracod presence is positively related to high diversity of the invertebrate community and reservoir volume, and negatively with phosphorus concentration. Among the 22 species found, it is noteworthy the first Iberian record of Ilyocypris getica and the second European record of Candonocypris novaezelandiae . Ostracod assemblages significantly vary between summer and winter, and strong differences are found between ostracod communities of reservoirs and those from their connected rivers. Remarkably higher frequency of exotic species in the reservoirs confirms previous findings about the facilitation that artificial ecosystems confer to aquatic invasions.