Taxa vs Traits: analysing stream communities in South Australian dry environments A temporary stream in Polipotamos, Greece, Europe (Photo by Stam Zogaris) Paul Kingsley Botwe (MPhil, BSc) Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy School of Biological Sciences University of Tasmania April 2017 1 Statements by the author Declaration of originality This thesis contains no material which has been accepted for a degree or diploma by the University or any other institution, except by way of background information and duly acknowledged in the thesis, and to the best of my knowledge and belief no material previously published or written by another person except where due acknowledgement is made in the text of the thesis, nor does the thesis contain any material that infringes copyright. Authority of access This thesis may be made available for loan and limited copying and communication in accordance with the Copyright Act 1968. Statement regarding published work contained in this thesis The publishers of the paper comprising Chapters 2 hold the copyright for that content, and access to the material should be sought from the respective journal. The remaining non- published content of the thesis may be made available for loan and limited copying and communication in accordance with the Copyright Act 1968. Signed: Paul Kingsley Botwe Date: 27th April, 2017 2 Statement of publications Manuscripts (published or submitted to peer-reviewed journals) produced as part of the thesis: 1) Botwe, P. K., Barmuta, L. A., Magierowski, R., McEvoy, P., Goonan, P. & Carver, S. 2015. Temporal Patterns and Environmental Correlates of Macroinvertebrate Communities in Temporary Streams. Plos One, 10, e0142370 2) Botwe, P. K., Barmuta, L. A., Magierowski, R., McEvoy, P., Goonan, P. & Carver, S. Response of macroinvertebrate traits to flow and salinity in stream ecosystems: a synthesis. Hydrobiologia. In review 3) Botwe, P. K., Carver, S., Magierowski, R., McEvoy, P., Goonan, P., Madden, C., Barmuta, L. A. Effects of salinity and flow interactions on macroinvertebrate traits in temporary streams. Ecological Indicators. In review 4) Botwe, P. K., Barmuta, L. A., Magierowski, R., McEvoy, P., Goonan, P., Madden, C. & Carver, S. Contrasting taxonomic and traits response of stream macroinvertebrates in temporary streams. In prep. Statement of co-authorship The following people and institutions contributed to the work undertaken as part of this thesis: Paul K. Botwe (University of Tasmania) was the primary investigator and lead author of the publishable manuscripts, and led all aspects of each study including the development of ideas, study design, analysis of data, interpretation of results and the writing of all the manuscripts. Scott Carver (University of Tasmania) was the primary supervisor of the research and guided the development of ideas, study design, analysis of data, interpretation of results, and producing publishable manuscripts (1), (2), (3) and (4), as well as guiding and editing the other chapters of this thesis. Leon A. Barmuta (University of Tasmania) assisted with guidance and supervision of the research relating to the development of ideas, study design, analysis of data, interpretation of results, and producing publishable manuscripts (1), (2), (3) and (4), as well as guiding and editing the other chapters of this thesis. 3 Regina Magierowski (University of Tasmania) assisted with guidance and supervision of the research relating to the development of ideas, study design, analysis of data, interpretation of results, and producing publishable manuscripts (1), (2), (3) and (4), as well as guiding and editing the other chapters of this thesis. Peter Goonan (Environment Protection Authority, South Australia) and Paul McEvoy (Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources, Adelaide, South Australia) supervised and collected the data sets on which this thesis was based as part of State- and Federally-funded programs. They also helped with the development of idea, and producing publishable manuscripts (1), (2), (3) and (4). Chris Madden (Freshwater Macroinvertebrates, 28 Kingswood Crescent, Lockleys, Adelaide, South Australia, 5032) assisted with guidance of the research relating to the development of ideas, data collection, and producing publishable manuscripts (3) and (4). We the undersigned agree to the above stated “proportion of work undertaken” for each of the above published (or submitted) peer-reviewed manuscripts contributing to this thesis: Signed: Signed: Dr. Scott Carver Prof. Anthony Koutoulis Primary Supervisor Head of School School of Biological Sciences School of Biological Sciences University of Tasmania University of Tasmania Date: 23rd October, 2017 Date: 24th October, 2017 Signed: Signed: Ass/Prof. Leon Barmuta Dr. Regina Magierowski Co-supervisor Co-supervisor School of Biological Sciences School of Biological Sciences University of Tasmania, Australia University of Tasmania, Australia Date: 24th October, 2017 Date: 23rd October, 2017 4 Acknowledgements I would first like to say a big thank you to my supervisors who have made this PhD an enjoyable learning experience, constantly teaching me at every opportunity and challenging me in many ways. Your patience and support are thoroughly appreciated. Thank you Dr. Scott Carver for your enthusiasm, support and taking time to teach me new skills at every available opportunity. Throughout my time as your student, you never ceased to amaze me in regards to the amount of time and efforts you put into each and every one of your students, particularly your ability to provide detailed feedback to my manuscripts within the shortest possible time. I am grateful for always having your door opened to me and calming me down when aspects of the project failed. Thank you Associate Professor Leon Barmuta for your support and encouragement, and taking the time to teach me new skills, techniques and ideas at every available opportunity. Your understanding of freshwater ecology, both locally and internationally, has been of great benefit to the project. You have always helped me to see the bigger picture and provided sound advice when I needed it. I have learnt more than I thought possible, and will always be grateful for your patience and sense of humour. Thank you Dr. Regina Magierowski. Although you supervised me from afar, you were always eager to offer assistance despite the distance between us. I appreciate all your support and encouragement. I am grateful to the examiners for their helpful comments that assisted me to greatly improve the overall content of my thesis. My PhD was in collaboration with the South Australian Environment Protection Authority, and the Water Quality Centre. Special thanks to my collaborators, Peter Goonan, Paul McEvoy and Chris Madden for the enthusiasm they brought into the project. Their rich experience over many years in the industry contributed tremendously to the project. My profound gratitude also goes to the many individuals that collected field and laboratory data over the period of this study and acknowledge their considerable and dedicated efforts. For funding support, I would like to thank the Holsworth Wildlife Research Endowment, for without this funding much of this research would not have been possible. Special thanks also go to University of Tasmania and the School of Biological Sciences for their support 5 Throughout my PhD, I was fortunate to have a network of friends to keep me sane. To those at University of Tasmania (UTAS), a huge thanks goes out to my office mates: Georgina Andersen, Halley Durrant, Katherine Hamilton, Alex Fraik, Kaitlyn Higgins, and my flat mate, Son Le. To those outside of my office: Katherine Dent, Reham Mohammed, Andrew Appiah, Bernard A. Amoako, Vivian Appiah, Jonathan Amponsah, Freda Amoako, Blanka Tengia and Florence Ngwira. You have been a breath of fresh air when I needed it. I am so fortunate to have found you along the way. I would also like to thank the various staff members in the School of Biological Sciences for their help during various stages of my project: Felicity Wilkinson, Wayne Kelly, Jodi Noble, Morgan Green, Clancy Carver, Ass/Prof. Erik Wapstra, Prof. Elissa Cameron, Dr. Rodrigo Hamede, Dr. Chris Burridge, Dr. Geoff While and Prof. Anthony Koutoulis. A particular mention to Prof. Peter Davies for his encouragement and support throughout my PhD. My enormous thanks goes to my family: Akua Kyerewaa Botwe, Stephen Kingsley Botwe, Dorcas Woode, Peter Kingsley Botwe, Anthony Botwe, Universe Kerson, Kingsley Ben Kerson, Kandra Kerson and Kenneth Kerson, for their unconditional love and support throughout my career path. Finally, I would like to dedicate this thesis to my mum, Dorcas Woode, who has always encouraged me to follow my dreams and helped me along the way whenever I needed it. I will forever be grateful for having such a strong woman in my life, who showed me never to give up my dreams when life presents challenges. 6 Abstract The availability of water is critical to ecosystem functioning and human health, but it is impacted by anthropogenic activities, such as those associated with intensification of surrounding land use. These can result in a range of aquatic impacts, including: changes to water quality, alteration of aquatic communities and modification of flow regimes. Consequently, stream ecosystems are monitored or assessed using a range of techniques to inform management strategies that attempt to minimise deleterious impacts and maintain