| In small streams, aquatic community obtains energy mainly from leaves of the riparian vegetation. Processing these leaves involves physical, chemical and biological factors that may difer among leaf species. We assessed the efects of litter quality on leaf decomposition and colonization by aquatic invertebrates in a subtropical stream. Leaves from two native, highly represented tree species common in subtropical riparian areas, Ficus luschnathiana and Gasearía sylvestris, were incubated in coarse mesh bags in a stream. Bags were sampled weekly during an incubation of 28 days. The decomposition rates were higher in leaves of F. luschnathiana than in those of C. sylvestris. In the frst seven days of the experiment, leaves of F. luschnathiana lost ~60% of the... |
