caa a22 4500 445892765 CHVBK 20180317145621.0 cr unu---uuuuu 170323e20110301xx s 000 0 eng 10.1007/s10750-010-0573-4 doi (NATIONALLICENCE)springer-10.1007/s10750-010-0573-4 The influence of flow and season upon leaf-litter breakdown in monsoonal Hong Kong streams [Elektronische Daten] [Sophia Niu, David Dudgeon] We investigated the effects of water extraction and flow regime on leaf litter breakdown in 10 Hong Kong streams experiencing varying degrees of extraction: five with severe extraction (>85% downstream flow removed), four with moderate extraction (20-85% removed), and one without extraction (~0% removed). Breakdown rates, macroinvertebrate assemblages and nutrients were compared in upstream (reference) reaches and downstream reaches with reduced flow in each stream during high-flow (wet season) and low-flow (dry season) conditions to determine whether responses to flow were influenced by Hong Kong's monsoonal climate. Litter breakdown was slower in downstream reaches during the wet season, and discharge was the main determinant of breakdown rate in both reaches across the 10 study streams. In contrast, inter-reach differences in breakdown during the dry season were small and unrelated to flow. Instead, breakdown rates among streams were influenced by the abundance of detritivorous shredders and chironomids (Chironominae), as well as phosphate concentrations, indicating the importance of biological processing of litter under low-flow conditions. Although litter breakdown rates appear to offer a promising functional indicator of flow-reduction impacts during the wet season, the pattern seen reflected the physical effects of flow rather than any underlying biological processes, and the lack of response to flow reduction during the dry season was notable. The Author(s), 2010 Ecosystem function nationallicence Water extraction nationallicence Discharge nationallicence Shredders nationallicence Liquidambar nationallicence Brotia nationallicence Niu Sophia School of Biological Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, Pok Fu Lam Road, Hong Kong S.A.R., China aut Dudgeon David School of Biological Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, Pok Fu Lam Road, Hong Kong S.A.R., China aut Hydrobiologia Springer Netherlands 663/1(2011-03-01), 205-215 0018-8158 663:1<205 2011 663 10750 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-010-0573-4 text/html Onlinezugriff via DOI 1 research-article jats NATIONALLICENCE 856 40 https://doi.org/10.1007/s10750-010-0573-4 text/html Onlinezugriff via DOI NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Niu Sophia School of Biological Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, Pok Fu Lam Road, Hong Kong S.A.R., China aut NATIONALLICENCE 700 1- Dudgeon David School of Biological Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, Pok Fu Lam Road, Hong Kong S.A.R., China aut NATIONALLICENCE 773 0- Hydrobiologia Springer Netherlands 663/1(2011-03-01), 205-215 0018-8158 663:1<205 2011 663 10750 Metadata rights reserved Springer special CC-BY-NC licence nationallicence BK010053 XK010053 XK010000 NATIONALLICENCE NATIONALLICENCE NL-springer