In this study, patterns of body size of Phanocerus clavicornis Sharp, 1882 (Coleoptera: Elmidae: Larainae) were investigated along a gradient of change in speed of flow conditions in streams of low order in the Atlantic Rainforest in southeastern Brazil. Specifically, the hypothesis that the distribution of P. clavicornis larvae vary in size in response to variations in the speed of flow in streams was tested. A Surber sampler was used to collect larvae from the streambed during two sampling periods, defined by the rain regime: August in the dry season and February in the rainy season. Possible differences in mean measured body size were tested by analysis of variance (ANOVA). The ANOVA result indicated for all measurements on the larvae collected in first-order streams (head width, prothoracic width and total body length), there were significant differences indicating a morphometric variation due to changing hydraulic conditions, the smallest larvae being associated with the period of greater rainfall. However, the larger streams (3rd order), where the rain events had less impact on the larval size, varied widely. The results of this study suggest that the interstitial space is important for the protection of the larvae from water flow, and that populations of P. clavicornis have high plasticity, a key feature for the occupation of unstable environments for this species. These results are important for an understanding of the life history and behavioural characteristics of the species, which allow them to persist in streams along a gradient of flow disturbance.
aquatic insects; Brazil; flow refugia; habitat heterogeneity
