Although invertebrate communities are used in the evaluation of create
d freshwater wetlands, spatial patterns of invertebrate community stru
cture are frequently ignored. Invertebrate distributions are generally
associated with plant community distribution in natural aquatic ecosy
stems. In this study, 180 core samples were collected to examine assoc
iations between chironomid (Diptera) genera and emergent vegetation co
mmunities in a single created freshwater herbaceous wetland in central
Florida. Three of the five common genera were significantly more abun
dant (p<0.05, Wilcoxon Rank Sum Test) in areas with greater than 50% c
over by emergent vegetation than in open water, but no differences wer
e found between areas dominated by Pontederia cordata and areas domina
ted by mixed emergent vegetation. Samples from an area of open water a
nd an area with over 80% cover by P. cordata showed significant differ
ences in abundances of all common chironomid genera (P<0.05, Wilcoxon
Rank Sum Test). Results suggest that sampling designs for studies comp
aring benthic invertebrate communities from natural and created wetlan
ds should consider the possible associations between vegetation and in
vertebrate communities.