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Stonefly Assemblages as Indicators of Relict North African Mountain Streams (Plecoptera)

  • Wetland Biodiversity
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Abstract

The stoneflies of the Maghreb (Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco) are characterized by high endemicity but their ecology remains poorly known. We have surveyed the stonefly assemblages of northeastern Algeria mountain streams, a relatively unstudied region, and attempted to identify through co-inertia analysis the environmental correlates of their distribution. Species richness varied from nine taxa in the most species-rich localities to a single taxon in some anthropogenically impacted localities. Results indicated a significant co-structure between ecological descriptors and stonefly distribution and frequency of occurence. Mountain stream stonefly assemblages differed according to water conductivity, altitude, anthropogenic impacts, and spring proximity. The frequent occurrence of Afroperlodes lecerfi, Brachyptera auberti and Tyrrenoleuctra tangerina was indicative of high altitude, intermittent streams whereas Amphinemura berthelemy, Eoperla ochracea and Leuctra sartori favoured permanent, low-altitude headwaters. Conversely, Leuctra cf. vaillanti seemed to tolerate low altitude sites characterized by high water conductivity, large bed width and fast flow. This study also highlights the diversity of the Maghrebian endemic or microendemic stoneflies harbored by relict lotic streams and their sensitivity towards anthropogenic stressors.

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Data Availability

The used and/or analysed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

Code Availability

The used code during the current study is available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

We would like to thank the support of King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, through the Researchers Supporting Project Number (RSP-2021/19).

Funding

We acknowledge the support of King Saud University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, through the Researchers Supporting Project Number (RSP-2021/19).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratoire de Conservation des Zones Humides, University of Guelma, Guelma, Algeria

    Boudjema Samraoui & Farrah Samraoui

  2. Department of Biology, University Badji Mokhtar Annaba, Annaba, Algeria

    Boudjema Samraoui

  3. 55 Bd Joseph Vallier, 38100, Grenoble, France

    Gilles Vinçon

  4. Department of Physical, Chemical and Natural Systems, University of Pablo de Olavide, Sevilla, Spain

    Joaquin Marquez-Rodriguez & Manuel Ferreras-Romero

  5. Department of Zoology, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh, 11451, Saudi Arabia

    Hamed A. El-Serehy

  6. Laboratoire Gestion conservatoire de l’eau, sol et forêts, Université Abou Bekr Belkaid, BP 119, Tlemcen, Algeria

    Noureddine Mostefai

  7. Department of Ecology, University of Guelma, Guelma, Algeria

    Farrah Samraoui

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  1. Boudjema Samraoui
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  2. Gilles Vinçon
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  3. Joaquin Marquez-Rodriguez
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  4. Hamed A. El-Serehy
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  7. Farrah Samraoui
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Contributions

Boudjéma Samraoui: conceptualization, investigation, writing, analysis, supervision; Gilles Vinçon: investigation, review & editing; Joaquin Marquez-Rodriguez: ressources, review & editing; Hamed A. El-Serehy: ressources, review & editing; Manuel Ferreras-Romero: ressources, review & editing; Noureddine Mostefai: ressources, review & editing; Farrah Samraoui: Project administration, review & editing.

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Correspondence to Boudjema Samraoui.

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Samraoui, B., Vinçon, G., Marquez-Rodriguez, J. et al. Stonefly Assemblages as Indicators of Relict North African Mountain Streams (Plecoptera). Wetlands 41, 78 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13157-021-01477-8

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