Macroinvertebrates of the western Aures massif: Taxonomy; Ecology and Conservation

Abstract

This work aims to highlight the biodiversity of macroinvertebrates in the Aures; 17 sites comprehend a wide variety of running water were sampled for almost two years. The study area included Belezma National Park (Biosphere Reserve) and the Western Aures Massif. These stations are at altitudes ranging from 300 m to 1800 m. Four classes, seven Orders, and thirty-nine families were counted on this study. The region comprises practically two types of climate and consequently a wide variety of aquatic habitats. The abundance of taxa varies from station to station; it oscillates between a minimum of 63 individuals collected at El Kantra station and a maximum of 2311 individuals collected at Rhaouat station. The distribution of Fauna Orders in Aures Includes Mayflies' dominance more than other orders by a percentage of 42%; at the second row,, the Diptera are positioned 29%; The Trichoptera presented by 12% in the third position, followed by Amphipods by 7% abundance. The rest of the others' orders are occupied by the percentage of 2 to 3% of the total abundance. The dendrogram of hierarchical ascending classification visualizes the relationships between the sites, Where the variation of physicochemical parameters of desert regions is clear, unlike other mountainous sites. The taxonomic study on certain taxonomic groups shows presentative results. Trichoptera is particularly poorly studied in the country; our study indicates that the Aures is a diversified region in this order, 18 species of 10 families of Trichoptera; we have identified Three species reported for the first time in Algeria. The order of Diptera is present 29% of the total abundance of the harvested fauna, and It also occupies the first place concerning the family biodiversity of the aquatic fauna in the Aures region with 11 identified families. The Simuliidae represents the most abundant family of all Diptera with a percentage of 68; this family's systematic study shows that the Aures comprising eight nominal, among them four species collected for the first time region of the Aures. The redundancy analysis (ADR) was to explain the distribution of the different species of Simuliidae at the level of all the sites. Chironomidae is ranked second on the total abundance of fauna harvested in this study with 25%, a checklist of 48 species of Chironomidae set up as part of this work, practically this was the first study on Chironomidaein the Aures region, and all these species are reported for the first time in the Aures.