Free Standard AU & NZ Shipping For All Book Orders Over $80!
Register      Login
Invertebrate Systematics Invertebrate Systematics Society
Systematics, phylogeny and biogeography
Shopping Cart: ( empty )
You are here: Home > Journals > IS > IS07058
RESEARCH ARTICLE
Contents Vol 22(2)

Diversity and distribution of groundwater fauna in a calcrete aquifer: does sampling method influence the story?

Adam Allford A , Steven J. B. Cooper A B , William F. Humphreys A C and Andrew D. Austin A D
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A Australian Centre for Evolutionary Biology and Biodiversity and School of Earth and Environmental Sciences, The University of Adelaide, South Australia 5005, Australia.

B Evolutionary Biology Unit, South Australian Museum, North Terrace, Adelaide, South Australia 5000, Australia.

C Western Australian Museum, Collections and Research Centre, Locked Bag 49, Welshpool DC, Western Australia 6986, Australia.

D Corresponding author. Email: andy.austin@adelaide.edu.au

Invertebrate Systematics 22(2) 127-138 https://doi.org/10.1071/IS07058
Submitted: 7 December 2007  Accepted: 7 March 2008   Published: 12 May 2008

Abstract

There has been an increase in the number of studies examining the spatial and temporal patterns in species richness, community structure and population dynamics of groundwater organisms. These studies have raised the issue of uncertainty about the comparability of different sampling methods, and questions of whether sampling bias may exist. Recently, a diverse subterranean fauna was discovered in calcrete (carbonate) aquifers of the Yilgarn Region of central Western Australia. Little is known about the community structure and population dynamics in these aquifers. One important issue is whether current sampling methods adequately sample the species richness and abundance of the fauna to allow for comparative studies. Here we investigate the effectiveness of three sampling methods: haul net sampling, pumping with a 12-V impeller pump, and a discrete interval sampler. The methods were trialled over 16 months with >250 samples taken from 55 uncased bore holes. No significant taxonomic bias was detected across the sampling methods. However, sampling using a haul net was found to be the most efficient method for capturing the available taxa per unit time when sampling bores are less than 10 m deep, with pumping being the least efficient. These results are discussed in relation to the problems of studying stygofauna in Western Australian calcrete aquifers, and of groundwater faunas more generally.

Additional keywords: discrete interval sampling, haul net, pump sampling, stygofauna.


Acknowledgements

We thank R. Leijs, M. Guzik, E. Nicholson, C. Swingler, T. Bradford and L. Krogmann for assistance with field collecting, J. Bradbury for assistance in establishing the field site, the Axford family for granting us access to the calcrete and for their warm hospitality, and S. Eberhard for providing a copy of his submitted manuscript. We also thank J. Field (Biometrics SA) for help with experimental design and statistics and two anonymous reviewers for helpful comments and suggestions for improvement of the original version of the manuscript. Funding for the project was provided by the Australian Research Council (LP0348753), ARC Linkage partners, Newmont Australia, PlacerDome Asia Pacific, the South Australian Museum and Western Australian Museum, and the University of Adelaide.


Note added in proof


Nirripirti Watts & Humphreys has been synonymised with Paroster Sharp. See Leys and Watts (2008, this issue).


References


Anaconda (2001). Mt Margaret Nickel Cobalt Project: Public Environment Review and Public Environmental Report for Anaconda Nickel Limited, Perth, Australia.

Barranco P., Harvey M. S. (2008) The first indigenous palpigrade from Australia: a new species of Eukoenenia (Palpigradi: Eukoeneniidae). Invertebrate Systematics 22, 227–233.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Boulton A. J., Dole-Oliver M.-J., Marmonier P. (2003a) Optimizing a sampling strategy for assessing hyporheic invertebrate biodiversity using the Bou-Rouch method: within-site replication and sample volume. Archiv für Hydrobiologie 156, 431–456.
| Crossref |
open url image1

Boulton A. J., Humphreys W. F., Eberhard S. M. (2003b) Imperilled subsurface waters in Australia: biodiversity, threatening processes and conservation. Aquatic Ecosystem Health & Management 6, 41–54.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Boulton A. J., Dole-Oliver M.-J., Marmonier P. (2004) Effects of sample volume and taxonomic resolution on assessment of hyporheic assemblage composition sampled using a Bou-Rouch pump. Archiv für Hydrobiologie 159, 327–355.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Bretschko G., Klemens W. E. (1986) Quantitative methods and aspects in the study of the interstitial fauna of running waters. Stygologia 2, 297–316. open url image1

Cho J.-L. (2005) A primitive representative of the Parabathynellidae (Bathynellacea, Syncarida) from the Yilgarn Craton of Western Australia. Journal of Natural History 39, 3423–3433.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Cho J.-L., Humphreys W. F., Lee S.-D. (2006a) Phylogenetic relationships within the genus Atopobathynella Schminke, 1973 (Bathynellacea: Parabathynellidae). Invertebrate Systematics 20, 9–41.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Cho J.-L., Park J.-G., Ranga Reddy Y. (2006b) Brevisomabathynella gen. nov. with two new species from Western Australia (Bathynellacea, Syncarida): The first definitive evidence of predation in Parabathynellidae. Zootaxa 1247, 25–42. open url image1

Colwell R. K. (2005). ‘EstimateS: Statistical Estimation of Species Richness and Shared Species from Samples, Version 7.’ User’s Guide and Application published at http://purl.oclc.org/estimates [Verified April 2008].

Cooper S. J. B., Hinze S., Leys R., Watts C. H. S., Humphreys W. F. (2002) Islands under the desert: molecular systematics and evolutionary origins of stygobitic water beetles (Coleoptera: Dytiscidae) from central Western Australia. Invertebrate Systematics 16, 589–598.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Cooper S. J. B., Bradbury J. H., Saint K. M., Leys R., Austin A. D., Humphreys W. F. (2007) Subterranean archipelago in the Australian arid zone: Mitochondrial DNA phylogeography of amphipods from central Western Australia. Molecular Ecology 16, 1533–1544.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | PubMed | open url image1

Cooper S. J. B., Saint K. M., Taiti S., Austin A. D., Humphreys W. F. (2008) Subterranean archipelago: mitochondrial DNA phylogeography of stygobitic isopods (Oniscidea: Haloniscus) from the Yilgarn region of Western Australia. Invertebrate Systematics 22, 195–203.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Danielopol D. L., Griebler C., Gunatilaka A., Notenboom J. (2003) Present state and future prospects for groundwater ecosystems. Environmental Conservation 30, 104–130.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Datry T., Malard F., Gibert J. (2005) Response of invertebrate assemblages to increased groundwater recharge rates in a phreatic aquifer. Journal of the North American Benthological Society 24, 461–477. open url image1

Dumas P., Fontanini G. (2001) Sampling fauna in aquifers: a comparison of net-sampling and pumping. Archiv für Hydrobiologie 150, 661–676. open url image1

Eberhard S. M., Halse S. A., Scanlon M., Cocking J., and Barron H. (2004). Assessment and conservation of aquatic life in the subsurface of the Pilbara region, Western Australia. In ‘World Subterranean Biodiversity, Proceedings of an International Symposium, 8–10th December 2004, Villeurbanne, France’. pp. 61–68. (University Claude Bernard of Lyon 1, PASCALIS European Research Programme.)

Eberhard S. M., Halse S. A., Scanlon M. D., Cocking J. S., Barron H. J. (in press) Exploring the relationship between sampling efficiency and recorded species distributions of stygofauna in the Pilbara, Western Australia. Freshwater Biology , open url image1

Edler C., Dodds W. K. (1996) The ecology of a subterranean isopod, Caecidotea: Tridentata. Freshwater Biology 35, 249–259.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

EPA (2006). Guidance for the assessment of environmental factors: consideration of subterranean fauna in groundwater and caves during environmental impact assessment in Western Australia. Guidance Statement 54a. Environmental Protection Authority, Perth, Australia.

Fraser B., Williams D. D. (1997) Accuracy and precision in sampling hyporheic fauna. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 54, 1135–1141.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Gibert J., Vervier P., Malard F., Laurent R., and Reygrobellet J.-L. (1994). Dynamics of communities and ecology of karst ecosystems: Example of three karsts in eastern and southern France. In ‘Groundwater Ecology’. (Eds J. Gibert, D. Danielopol and J. A. Stanford) pp. 425–450. (Academic Press: San Diego, CA, USA.)

Guzik M. T., Abrams K., Cooper S. J. B., Humphreys W. F., Cho J.-L., Austin A. D. (2008) Phylogeography of the ancient Parabathynellidae (Crustacea: Bathynellacea) from the Yilgarn region of Western Australia. Invertebrate Systematics 22, 205–216.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Hahn H. J. (2002). Methods and difficulties of sampling stygofauna. An overview. In ‘Field Screening Europe 2001, Proceedings of the Second International Conference on Strategies and Techniques for the Investigation and Monitoring of Contaminated Sites’. (Eds W. Breh, J. Gottlieb, H. Hotzl, F. Kern, T. Liesch and R. Niessner) pp. 201–205. (Kluwer Academic Publishers: Dordrecht, The Netherlands.)

Hahn H. J. (2005) Unbaited phreatics traps: a new method of sampling stygofauna. Limnologica 35, 248–261.
| Crossref |
open url image1

Hahn H. J. (2006) A first approach to a quantitative ecological assessment of groundwater habitats: the GW-Fauna-Index. Limnologica 36, 119–137.
| Crossref |
open url image1

Hahn H. J., Matzke D. (2005) A comparison of stygofauna communities inside and outside groundwater bores. Limnologica 35, 31–44.
| Crossref |
open url image1

Hancock P., and Steward A. (2004). Pioneer groundwater biota pilot study: Review of sampling methods for groundwater fauna and bacteria. pp. 18. Aquatic Ecosystems Technical Report No. 49. Queensland Department of Natural Resources and Mines, Brisbane, Australia.

Harvey M. S. (2002) Short-range endemism among the Australian fauna: some examples from non-marine environments. Invertebrate Systematics 16, 555–570.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Humphreys W. F. (2001). Groundwater calcrete aquifers in the Australian arid zone; the context to an unfolding plethora of stygal biodiversity In ‘Subterranean Biology in Australia 2000’. (Eds W. Humphreys and M. Harvey). pp. 63–83. Records of the Western Australian Museum, Supplement No. 64.

Humphreys W. F. (2006) Aquifers: The ultimate groundwater-dependent ecosystems. Australian Journal of Botany 54, 115–132.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Juberthie C. (2000). Conservation of subterranean habitats and species. In ‘Ecosystems of the world: Subterranean Ecosystems Vol. 30’. (Eds H. Wilkins, D. Culver and W. Humphreys). (Elsevier: Amsterdam, The Netherlands.)

Karanovic T. (2004) Subterranean copepods (Crustacea: Copepoda) from arid Western Australia. Crustaceana Supplement 3, 1–366. open url image1

Karanovic I., Marmonier P. (2002) On the genus Candonopsis (Crustacea: Ostracoda: Candoninae) in Australia, with a key to the world recent species. Annales de Limnologie 38, 199–240. open url image1

Kruskal J. B. (1964) Non-metric multidimensional scaling: A numerical method. Psychometrika 29, 115–129.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Leys R., Watts C. H. (2008) Systematics and evolution of the Australian subterranean hydroporine diving beetles (Dytiscidae), with notes on Carabhydrus). Invertebrate Systematics 22, 217–225.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Leys R., Watts C., Cooper S., Humphreys W. (2003) Evolution of subterranean diving beetles (Coleoptera: Dytiscidae: Hydroporini, Bidessini) in the arid zone of Australia. Evolution 57, 2819–2834.
| PubMed |
open url image1

Malard F., Mathieu J., Reygrobellet J.-L., Lafont M. (1997) Developments in sampling the fauna of deep water-table aquifers. Archiv für Hydrobiologie 138, 401–431. open url image1

Marmonier P., Vervier P., Gibert J., Dole-Oliver M. J. (1993) Biodiversity in ground waters. Trends in Ecology & Evolution 8, 392–395.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

McCune B., and Mefford M. J. (1999). ‘PC-ORD for Windows. Version 5.’ (MjM Software Design: Gleneden Beach, OR, USA.)

Morgan K. H. (1993) Development, sedimentation and economic potential of palaeoriver systems of the Yilgarn Craton of Western Australia. Sedimentary Geology 85, 637–656.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Neitlich P., McCune B. (1997) Hotspots of epiphytic lichen diversity in two young managed forests. Conservation Biology 11, 172–182.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Palmer M. A. (1993) Experimentation in the hyporheic zone: challenges and prospectus. Journal of the North American Benthological Society 12, 84–93.
| Crossref |
open url image1

Reeves J. M., De Deckker P., Halse S. A. (2007) Groundwater ostracods from the arid Pilbara region of northwestern Australia: distribution and water chemistry. Hydrobiologia 585, 99–118.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Ronen D., Magaritz M., Almon E., Amiel A. J. (1987) Anthropogenic anoxification (‘Eutrophication’) of the water table in a deep phreatic aquifer. Water Resources Research 23, 1554–1560.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Scarsbrook M. R., Halliday J. (2002) Detecting patterns in hyporheic community structure: does sampling method alter the story? New Zealand Journal of Marine and Freshwater Research 36, 443–453. open url image1

Schmidt S. I., Hahn H. J., Watson G. D., Woodbury R. J., Hatton T. J. (2004) Sampling fauna in stream sediments as well as groundwater using one net sampler. Acta Hydrochimica et Hydrobiologica 32, 131–137.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | open url image1

Taiti S., and Humphreys W. F. (2001). New aquatic Oniscidea (Crustacea, Isopoda) from groundwater calcretes of Western Australia. In ‘Subterranean Biology in Australia 2000’. (Eds W. Humphreys and M. Harvey). pp. 133–151. Records of the Western Australian Museum, Supplement No. 64.

Watts C. H. S., Humphreys W. F. (2006) Twenty-six new Dytiscidae (Coleoptera) of the genera Limbodessus Guignot and Nirripirti Watts and Humphreys, from underground waters in Australia. Transactions of the Royal Society of South Australia 130, 123–185. open url image1










Appendix 1.  Number of each taxonomic group captured by the sampling methods
Click to zoom