Interactive effects of aridity and local environmental factors on the functional trait composition and diversity of macroinvertebrate assemblages in dryland rivers.

Drought and local habitat alteration are major environmental stressors shaping the aquatic biota in dryland rivers. However, the combined effects of these factors on aquatic biodiversity remain poorly understood. We collected macroinvertebrate data from Central Asian dryland rivers in Xinjiang, China, from 2012 to 2022, to investigate the individual and interactive effects of drought (as indicated by increasing values of Aridity, AI) and local habitat conditions (fine sediments, velocity and pH) on aquatic macroinvertebrate functional trait composition and diversity.

Responses of macroinvertebrate functional trait structure to river damming: From within-river to basin-scale patterns.

Revealing how aquatic organisms respond to dam impacts is essential for river biomonitoring and management. Traditional examinations of dam impacts on macroinvertebrate assemblages were frequently conducted within single rivers (i.e.