University of Windsor Scholarship at UWindsor Electronic Theses and Dissertations Theses, Dissertations, and Major Papers 2017 Community Development of Terrestrial and Semi-Terrestrial Invertebrates Along Environmental Gradients in a Reclaimed Watershed Kellie Menard University of Windsor Follow this and additional works at: https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/etd Recommended Citation Menard, Kellie, "Community Development of Terrestrial and Semi-Terrestrial Invertebrates Along Environmental Gradients in a Reclaimed Watershed" (2017). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 5999. https://scholar.uwindsor.ca/etd/5999 This online database contains the full-text of PhD dissertations and Masters’ theses of University of Windsor students from 1954 forward. These documents are made available for personal study and research purposes only, in accordance with the Canadian Copyright Act and the Creative Commons license—CC BY-NC-ND (Attribution, Non-Commercial, No Derivative Works). Under this license, works must always be attributed to the copyright holder (original author), cannot be used for any commercial purposes, and may not be altered. Any other use would require the permission of the copyright holder. Students may inquire about withdrawing their dissertation and/or thesis from this database. For additional inquiries, please contact the repository administrator via email ([email protected]) or by telephone at 519-253-3000ext. 3208. COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT OF TERRESTRIAL AND SEMI-TERRESTRIAL INVERTEBRATES ALONG ENVIRONMENTAL GRADIENTS IN A RECLAIMED WATERSHED by Kellie A. Menard A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies Through the Department of Biological Sciences In Partial Fulfilment of the Requirements for The Degree of Master of Science at the University of Windsor Windsor, Ontario, Canada 2017 © 2017 Kellie A. Menard Community Development of Terrestrial and Semi-Terrestrial Invertebrates Along Environmental Gradients in a Reclaimed Watershed by Kellie A. Menard APPROVED BY: ______________________________________________ C. Wytrykush Syncrude Canada Ltd. ______________________________________________ J. Gagnon Department of Earth and Environmental Science ______________________________________________ O. Love Department of Biological Sciences _____________________________________________ J.J.H. Ciborowski, Advisor Department of Biological Sciences April 21, 2017 Author’s Declaration of Originality I hereby certify that I am the sole author of this thesis and that no part of this thesis has been published or submitted for publication. I certify that, to the best of my knowledge, my thesis does not infringe upon anyone’s copyright nor violate any proprietary rights and that any ideas, techniques, quotations, or any other material from the work of other people included in my thesis, published or otherwise, are fully acknowledged in accordance with the standard referencing practices. Furthermore, to the extent that I have included copyrighted material that surpasses the bounds of fair dealing within the meaning of the Canada Copyright Act, I certify that I have obtained a written permission from the copyright owner(s) to include such material(s) in my thesis and have included copies of such copyright clearances to my appendix. I declare that this is a true copy of my thesis, including any final revisions, as approved by my thesis committee and the Graduate Studies office, and that this thesis has not been submitted for a higher degree to any other University or Institution. iii Abstract The diversity-stability hypothesis suggests that diverse communities are resilient to change. Wetlands are especially diverse and are an area of concern in the Boreal Zone of northern Alberta, Canada, as they are affected by surface mining for oil sands. This thesis describes terrestrial and semi-terrestrial invertebrate community composition within the Sandhill Fen Watershed, the first-ever landform constructed on a foundation of oil sands tailings, in the post-mining landscape. Soil attributes and plant community composition were associated with spatial variation in invertebrate abundance, richness and composition at low-elevation (peat dominated) and upland (forest soil dominated) locations within Sandhill Fen, and in 8 reference fens. Peat-dominated sites in Sandhill Fen were typically wet, saline, and slightly acidic and supported a typical herbaceous wetland plant community. The invertebrates found in this habitat were those commonly associated with wetland plant communities and were similar in composition to invertebrates in Carex- dominated (‘rich’) reference fens. The Litter-Fermentation-Humic (LFH) soil dominated upland sites were drier, less saline, had a meadow plant community, and an invertebrate assemblage that was more variable than the peat community and distinct from the fauna of reference fens. Sandhill fen invertebrate abundance was equivalent to that of reference fens. Family richness in Sandhill Fen exceeded that of reference fen sites, likely reflecting associations with the greater plant diversity of low-elevation plus upland sites combined. Sandhill Fen soils were more saline than reference fen soils, but the plant community and invertebrate community of low-elevation peat sites fell within the range of variation observed in rich reference fens. Within Sandhill Fen, plant community assemblages are consistently associated with soil attributes (moisture, salinity). Invertebrate community assemblages are directly correlated with plant assemblages and indirectly with soil attributes. The present diversity of this community and its components indicates a stable, developing ecosystem mirroring some natural conditions. iv For my family and friends. Thank you for everything you do. v Acknowledgements First of all, I would like to thank Dr. Jan Ciborowski for all of his guidance during this degree, whether it be through his passion for his work, statistical advice, or thoughtful suggestions. I would also like to thank him for first introducing me to the wonderful world of fieldwork. As someone who was not sure about what I was going to do after my Undergraduate degree, the opportunity to explore a new and different avenue of work is one that I will always appreciate. I would like to thank my committee, Dr. Oliver Love, Dr. Joel Gagnon, and Carla Wytrykush. Thank you for all your help and encouragement throughout this adventure. Your insights were extremely beneficial to all my work. To the Ciborowski lab, I cannot express enough thanks for all of your advice and encouragement over the last few years. This lab contains an amazing group of people that are always there to support you, teach you, and laugh with you. To Li Wang, Michelle Dobrin, Jesse Gardner-Costa, and Lyndon Barr, thank you for your guidance. To my past and present labmates, Jasmine St. Pierre, Danielle Gunsch, Alyssa Frazao, and Chantal Dings-Avery, I can’t thank you enough for being supportive and letting me talk and complain when I needed to. I want to give special thanks to Chantal for always letting me vent and helping me through the ups and downs of this degree and of life. I could not imagine doing this without you. Next, to those who have helped me out in the field and made those long, stressful, and unproductive days worthwhile and fun: H. Bagnall, H. Wiseman, C. Dings-Avery, M. Hazell, K. Lukianchuk, C. Kelly, A. Despenic, D. Vanmensal, R. Boutette, and H. Mayorado. Without the adventures and amazing time in the field, I am not sure I would vi have come to love fieldwork as much as I do. You made the Fort Mac summers ones that I will never forget. Third, to those I have met over the years. To those at Syncrude: Carla, Lori, Jess, John, Mike, and Mohammed. Thank you for your constant teachings and enthusiasm for the work you do. To the students and other researchers: there are too many of you to list, but I thank each and every one of you. The knowledge and passion for your work shows in all you do. Finally, to my support system. To my parents and sister, thank you for dealing with my love for something eccentric and supporting my choices. To D.Y, and C.L, thank you for your constant support, your input, and for being there. This research was funded by grants provided to Dr. Jan Ciborowski from Syncrude Canada Ltd and the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC). I gratefully acknowledge the receipt of a bursary from Syncrude Canada Ltd., and additional graduate/research assistantships from the University of Windsor. vii Table of Contents Author’s Declaration of Originality................................................................................iii Abstract…………………………………………………………………………………..iv Dedication………………………………………………………………………………...v Acknowledgements……………………………………………………………………...vi List of Tables………………………………….……………………………………….….x List of Figures……………………………….…………………………………………..xii Chapter One – General Introduction…………………………………………………...1 Project Summary and Objectives……………………………………………………….2 Habitat Choice……………………………………………………………………………3 Wetland Structure and Function………………………………………………………..5 Peatland Formation……………………………………………………………………...5 Fen Characteristics………………………………………………………………………7 Invertebrates…………………………………………………………………………......8 Oil Sands Mining in Northern Alberta…………………………..……………………..9 Project Introduction……………………………………………………………….……11 Chapter Two – Spatial Patterns of Key Hydrological and Soil Chemistry Factors Within Sandhill Fen Watershed………………………...………………………….…..17 Introduction……………………………………………………………………………..17