Abstract
As part of a larger study on the aquatic life of streams in central Colorado, efforts were made to determine the distribution of interstitial organisms, with emphasis on the subterranean amphipod Stygobromus. In a preliminary screening-level study, sampling for Stygobromus was conducted in 1985 at 47 sites along the Front Range of Colorado at elevations generally matching the type locale for S. coloradensis and S. pennaki at the confluence of the North Fork of the South Platte River and its mainstem. A more intensive follow-up study was conducted in 1988 at 30 sites concentrating on the upper South Platte River basin. In the follow-up study both hyporheic and shore zone (phreatic) habitats were sampled using a variety of techniques (Bou-Rouch pump, Karaman-Chappuis technique, and a coarsemesh wide-mouth net, as appropriate). In the preliminary study Stygobromus spp. were collected at only 12 of 47 study sites, with all collections in the vicinity of the type locale. In the follow-up study Stygobromus were found at 16 of 30 sites sampled, extending the known distribution in Colorado of S. coloradensis and S. pennaki well beyond the type locale. The use of multiple sampling techniques was important in locating these organisms. In addition to the amphipod Stygobromus, sampling sites in the follow-up study contained a rich interstitial community, including copepods, bathynellids, tardigrades, archiannelids, and ostracods.
Recommended Citation
Canton, Steven P. and Chadwick, James W.
(2000)
"Distribution of the subterranean amphipod Stygobromus in central Colorado streams, with notes on the interstitial community,"
Western North American Naturalist: Vol. 60:
No.
2, Article 3.
Available at:
https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/wnan/vol60/iss2/3