Benthic studies of waterfowl breeding habitat in south-western New South Wales. II. Chironomid populations

Abstract

The dynamics of chironomid populations in waterfowl breeding habitat were investigated. Of 12 species recorded, Chironomus 'alternans a', C. tepperi, Kieflerulus intertinctus, Polypedilum nubifer and Procladius villosimanus were common in the mud habitats. C. 'alternans a' was the most commonly recorded species over the whole study, and C. tepperi dominated the faunas afier flooding. Dicrotendipes conjunctus and Dicrotendipes sp. 2 were the major species occurring on stick substrata, and Dicrotendipes sp. 2 and Polypedilum nubifer were dominant on plant substrata. Production of chironomids was high in the first 2 years following an extensive flood but thereafter fell rapidly. Correlative evidence is presented that suggests a relationship between abundance of C. tepperi larvae and breeding by waterfowl.