Contrasting diversity patterns and drivers of aquatic macroinvertebrates in floodplain and non-floodplain wetlands

Abstract

Understanding diversity patterns and underlying drivers is one of the central topics in the fields of biogeography and community ecology. Aquatic macroinvertebrates are widely distributed in various wetlands and play vital ecological roles. Previous studies mainly have focused on macroinvertebrate diversity in a single type of wetland. Our understanding of the differences in diversity patterns and underlying drivers between different wetland types remains limited. Here, we compared diversity patterns and community assembly of floodplain wetlands (FWs) and non-floodplain wetlands (NWs) in the Sanjiang Plain, Northeast China. We found that the taxonomic richness and abundance were higher in NWs than those in FWs. Nineteen taxa were identified as habitat specialists in the NWs, whereas only four taxa were designated as habitat specialists in the FWs. In addition, the FW and NW assemblages exhibited contrasting compositions. Spatial and environmental variables explained the largest variations in the macroinvertebrate assemblages of NWs and FWs, respectively. Normalised stochasticity ratios and Sloan neutral models confirmed that the macroinvertebrate community assembly of both wetland types was driven largely by stochastic processes. Stochastic processes were more prominent in shaping macroinvertebrate communities of FWs, whereas a stronger dispersal limitation was detected in NWs. Our results revealed contrasting diversity patterns and assembly mechanisms of macroinvertebrate communities in FWs and NWs. We underscore the importance of flood disturbance in shaping wetland ecosystems in the Sanjiang Plain and highlight that conservation and restoration actions cover different types of wetland habitats.