Limnetica 43

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Impacts of diffuse urban stressors on stream benthic communities and ecosystem functioning: A review

Miriam Colls, Aida Viza, Aitziber Zufiarre, Alba Camacho-Santamans, Alex Laini, Alexia Maria González-Ferreras, Ana Filipa Filipe, Ana Victoria Pérez-Calpe, Anna Freixa, Anna Lupon, Anna C. Santamans, Arunava Pradhan, Carmen Espinosa, Carmen Vera-Trujillo, Cayetano Gutiérrez-Cánovas, Clara Mendoza-Lera, Daniel Bruno, Daniel Mercado-Bettin, Daniel Morant, Daniela Batista, David Cunillera-Montcusi, Diana Graça, Eduard Vico-Oton, Edurne Estévez, Elizabeth Leon-Palmero, Ena Lucia Suarez, Encarnación Fenoy, Eva Lima, Félix Picazo, Francisco J. Oficialdegui, François Keck, Giulia Gionchetta, Ibor Sabas, Ignacio Pérez-Silos, Ilisa Antunes, Inmaculada Alvarez-Manzaneda, Ioar de Guzmán, Isabel Fernandes, Janine Pereira da Silva, Jing Wei, Jorge Juan Montes-Pérez, José Trabulo, José L. J. Ledesma, José Maria Fernandez-Calero, José Pedro Ramião, Juan Rubio-Rios, Juan David Gonzalez-Trujillo, Laura Barral-Fraga, Laura Jiménez, Lidia Vendrell-Puigmitja, Lluís Bertrans, Lluís Gomez-Gener, Lorenzo Rovelli, Lukas Thuile Bistarelli, Marc Sanchez-Morales, Marco J. Cabrerizo, Maria Aranguren-Gassis, Maria Argudo, Maria J. Navarro-Ramos, Miren Atristain, Naiara Lopez-Rojo, Nicolás Valiente, Nuria Perujo, Olatz Pereda, Oriana Llanos-Paez, Oscar Belmar, Osvaldo Tascon-Peña, Pablo Rodriguez-Lozano, Raquel Sánchez de Pedro, Rebeca Arias-Real, Rossano Bolpagni, Rubén del Campo, Silvia Poblador, Simone Guareschi, Stephan Hilgert, Sofia Duarte, Tamara Rodriguez-Castillo, Teofana Chonova, Teresa Conejo-Orosa, Vanessa Céspedes, Verónica Granados, Víctor Osorio, Víctor Vazquez, Víctor Martin-Vélez, Ferran Romero
2024
43
1
89-108
DOI: 
10.23818/limn.43.07

Catchment urbanisation results in urban streams being exposed to a multitude of stressors. Notably, stressors originating from diffuse sources have received less attention than stressors originating from point sources. Here, advances related to diffuse urban stressors and their consequences for stream benthic communities are summarised by reviewing 92 articles. Based on the search criteria, the number of articles dealing with diffuse urban stressors in streams has been increasing, and most of them focused on North America, Europe, and China. Land use was the most common measure used to characterize diffuse stressor sources in urban streams (70.7 % of the articles characterised land use), and chemical stressors (inorganic nutrients, xenobiotics, metals, and water properties, including pH and conductivity) were more frequently reported than physical or biological stressors. A total of 53.3 % of the articles addressed the impact of urban stressors on macroinvertebrates, while 35.9 % focused on bacteria, 9.8 % on fungi, and 8.7 % on algae. Regarding ecosystem functions, almost half of the articles (43.5 %) addressed changes in community dynamics, 40.3 % addressed organic matter decomposition, and 33.9 % addressed nutrient cycling. When comparing urban and non-urban streams, the reviewed studies suggest that urbanisation negatively impacts the diversity of benthic organisms, leading to shifts in community composition. These changes imply functional degradation of streams. The results of the present review summarise the knowledge gained to date and identify its main gaps to help improve our understanding of urban streams.

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