Aquatic insect communities in small stream in the south of Brazil

Pollution of rivers and streams, by anthropic action, is characterized as an environmental, social, and sanitary problem. Factors such as the association between the marginal vegetation, the distribution of the substrates in the riverbed, and the availability of allochthonous organic matter influence the distribution and composition of the aquatic entomofauna. The objective of this study was to analyze the structure of aquatic insect communities in a pasture stream in northern Parana, southern Brazil, with emphasis on the groups of indicators of good water quality, thus inferring the conditions of its preservation. Samples were collected from July to October in three parts of the stream (P1, P2, and P3), where the insect faune was collected with the aid of a sieve in the foliage substrate and washing of rocks and decomposing pieces of wood. A total of 1323 individuals were collected, being Chironomidae (Diptera) the most abundant taxon. The analysis of the biotic indices (EPT/Chironomidae, IBF, BMWP, and BMWP/ASPT) and diversity indicated better preservation conditions at points P1 and P3 where the riparian forest was well preserved, with less exposure to the stream bed. In P2, the entomofauna presented less diversity and the biotic indexes indicated loss of water quality, showing the impacts of changes in the marginal vegetation of this section. In a generally preserved aquatic environment, small changes in its vegetation are sufficient to cause an imbalance in the aquatic insect community, showing the efficiency of these organisms as bio-indicators and the sensitivity of biotic indexes.