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Presented at the NABS Annual meeting, Anchorage, Alaska, 2006
in Land/Water Interfaces
The IRESA (Initiative of River Ecology in Sri Lanka: from Science to Application) pilot study – structure and function of tropical rivers: preliminary results
M. Leichtfried1, L. Fuereder2, U. Amarasinghe3, and W.S. Weliange3.1Institute of Limnology, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Mondseestr. 9, A-5310 Mondsee, Austria, 2Institute of Ecology, University of Innsbruck, Technikerstr. 25, A-6020 Innsbruck, Austria, 3Department of Zoology, University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka
The cooperative project between Austria and Sri Lanka “IRESA - Initiative of River Ecology in Sri Lanka: from Science to Application“ investigates two streams each draining different climate zones: a) Yan Oya, a seasonal dry zone stream, flows to the Hurulu Reservoir and is experiencing annual floods during the NE–monsoon (XI. - II.), and b) Eswathu Oya, a perennial wet zone stream, which is a tributary to the Kelani Ganga and flows throughout the year with sudden fluctuations in discharge due to torrential rain. Both 50 m long sites are temporarily influenced by regular annual floods, which cause changes (e.g. channel morphology, nutrient fluxes and biotic characteristics) in the stream ecosystems. First analysis of the organic food base includes the aquatic hyphomycetes, the potential microbial activity (ETS) in biofilms, nutrients in sediments. The comparison with selected temperate-zone streams demonstrates the specific situation of tropical streams like higher potential microbial activities.
IRESA project intends to develop a) the installation of river ecology at scientific level, b) a nucleus for follow-up research and education in river ecology, c) a network between scientists and end-users involved in freshwater affairs, and d) awareness of endangerment and conservation of natural resources in freshwater policies.
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