Stream food webs in tropical mountains rely on allochthonous carbon regardless of land use.

ABSTRACT: The relative importance of allochthonous and autochthonous carbon (C) as sources of energy for tropical stream food webs remains an open question. Allochthonous C might be the main energy source for small and shaded forest streams, while autochthonous C is more likely to fuel food webs draining land uses with less dense vegetation. We studied food webs in cloud forest streams draining watersheds with forests, coffee plantations, and pastures. Our goal was to assess the effects of those land uses on the C source and structure of stream food webs. The study took place in tropical montane streams in La Antigua Watershed, in eastern Mexico. We selected three streams per land use and sampled biofilm and leaf litter as the main food resources, and macroinvertebrates and aquatic vertebrates from

SUBMITTER: Ramirez A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10723698 | biostudies-literature | 2023

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature