Abstract
AbstractThe invertebrate fauna from eight selected springs of the landslide area of Schütt (Carinthia, Austria) with contrasting environmental factors was investigated. The role of habitat structure on the community composition was studied with a particular focus on the spring‐dwelling animals colonizing the aquatic and the adjacent aquatic‐terrestrial transition zones. The crenocoenosis was predominantly composed of Chironomidae, Plecoptera, Trichoptera, Mollusca and Ostracoda and the number of spring‐specialists was high. Habitat complexity, variable microhabitat composition and the concomitance of lotic and lentic areas in the eucrenal zone furthered a high species diversity and abundance. Even the aquatic‐terrestrial transition zone was inhabited by high numbers of crenobionts and crenophiles. Moreover, the connectivity of aquatic and terrestrial habitats positively affected the structural and functional organisation of invertebrate assemblages in the spring biotopes. (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
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