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<br />64 <br /> <br />Detritus processing organisms in stre"ms flowing through old.,r. <br />stratified forests receive the greatest variation in quality of food. <br />Herbaceous vegetation is high in nutrient content. lo~' in fiber, and upon <br />entry, utilizable by the various invertebr"te processing groups. Deciduous <br />leaves from the shrub layer are higher in fiber conte,nt and may take 60 to <br />90 days after entry to be fully utilized by the bacterial, fungal and <br />invertebrate communities. Conifer leaves take 180-200 days to bE' <br />processed. Therefore, different functional groups process and utilize the <br />detrital input contributed by the different vegetative strata sequentially, <br />at different rates, and according to its quality (Meehan et at. 1977). <br /> <br />The natural balance of a riparian ZOnE! 1s easily upset by the <br />multitude of demands and human activity concentrated in the floodplain. <br />I.'hen attempting to preserve, restore or protect riparian zones it must be <br />kept in mind that for stream ecosystems flooding is a natural process <br />rather than a natural hazard, and that the channel (aquatic zone) and <br />floodplain are complementary. <br />