Key Laboratory of Watershed Geographic Sciences, Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 73 East Beijing Road, Nanjing, 210008, China.
University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China.
Environ Sci Pollut Res Int. 2017 Feb;24(5):4685-4698. doi: 10.1007/s11356-016-8186-8. Epub 2016 Dec 14.
This preliminary research was conducted to evaluate the alpine stream health by using water quality as an indicator in Khunjerab National park of the Karakoram ranges located in Pak-China boarder Pakistan having altitude of 3660 m. This study investigated the stream health in the context of the presence or absence of sensitive species, their diversity, and their taxa richness. The water and macroinvertebrate samples were collected from 17 different locations from upstream and downstream of the river by using random sampling method. Macroinvertebrate samples were obtained using kick net (500-μm mesh size) and hand-picking method (NYSDEC). A total of 710 counts including 41 families of macroinvertebrates were recorded comprising of 7 orders including: Ephemeroptera (46%) being the most dominant group, Plecoptera (33%), Trichoptera (5%), Chironomidae (Diptera) (14%), Heteroptera (1%), and Coleoptera (1%). Ephemeroptera, Trichoptera, and Plecoptera (EPT) were found in abundance at the main source, Qarchanai, Dhee, and Tourqeen Nullah, as compared to the other locations of the stream. The most dominant macroinvertebrate was Ephemeroptera whose relative abundance is Pi = 0.49 by using the Shannon index. However, different statistical tools, including principal component analysis (PCA), cluster analysis (CA), ANOVA, and linear regression model, show a strong correlation between water quality and macroinvertebrates. The overall results of the biological indicators showed better ecological health at downstream compared to upstream. This study will provide basic information and understanding about the macroinvertebrates for future researchers, and the data will be helpful for upcoming research programs on alpine streams for the discovery and occurrences of macroinvertebrates and associated fauna.
本初步研究旨在通过水质作为指标评估喀喇昆仑山脉昆杰拉布国家公园的高山溪流健康状况，该公园位于中巴边境的巴基斯坦，海拔 3660 米。本研究调查了存在或不存在敏感物种的溪流健康状况，包括它们的多样性和分类丰富度。通过随机抽样法从河流上下游的 17 个不同地点采集水样和大型底栖无脊椎动物样本。使用踢网（500-μm 网眼尺寸）和手工采集法（NYSDEC）获取大型底栖无脊椎动物样本。共记录了 710 个计数，包括 41 个大型底栖无脊椎动物科，分为 7 个目，包括：蜉蝣目（46%）是最主要的群体，襀翅目（33%），毛翅目（5%），摇蚊科（双翅目）（14%），半翅目（1%）和鞘翅目（1%）。与溪流的其他地点相比，在主源、Qarchanai、Dhee 和 Tourqeen Nullah 发现蜉蝣目、毛翅目和襀翅目（EPT）的丰度较高。使用 Shannon 指数，最主要的大型底栖无脊椎动物是蜉蝣目，其相对丰度为 Pi=0.49。然而，不同的统计工具，包括主成分分析（PCA）、聚类分析（CA）、方差分析（ANOVA）和线性回归模型，显示水质和大型底栖无脊椎动物之间存在很强的相关性。生物指标的总体结果表明，下游的生态健康状况优于上游。本研究将为未来的研究人员提供有关大型底栖无脊椎动物的基本信息和认识，并且这些数据将有助于即将开展的高山溪流研究计划，以发现和记录大型底栖无脊椎动物及其相关动物群。
