A novel method reveals how channel retentiveness and stocks of detritus (CPOM) vary among streams differing in bed roughness

Abstract

1. Coarse particulate organic matter (CPOM) is a fundamental resource in freshwater streams, providing food, shelter and habitat for diverse invertebrate taxa and playing a key role in metabolism in low‐order streams. Benthic CPOM stocks are determined by rates of supply and breakdown of detritus and by channel retentiveness (i.e. the capacity for the channel to trap and retain CPOM). We focussed on factors affecting the retentiveness of channels, which theoretically differs among streams with different sediment sizes and concomitant channel morphology. 2. We developed a new, rapid method to measure retentiveness using line‐intercept surveys along transects. With this rapid approach, we surv..