User:Ziggy Marmot/Aquatic biomonitoring

The cites (and the corresponding reference section) from the original article did not cut and paste. Nor did the two photos that were in the original article. Not sure if I need to do anything about that. In this article sandbox, I only address changes and edits I proposed and not cites or photos lost in the cut and paste.

Also, how do I add multiple authors to a cite?

= Aquatic biomonitoring = Aquatic biomonitoring is the science of inferring the ecological condition of rivers, lakes, streams, and wetlands by examining the organisms (fish, invertebrates, insects, plants, and algae) that live there. While aquatic biomonitoring is the most common form of biomonitoring, any ecosystem can be studied in this manner.

Contents

 * Purpose
 * Indicator Organisms
 * Common Methods
 * Variables Considered
 * See also
 * External links
 * References

Purpose
Aquatic biomonitoring is an important tool for assessing aquatic life forms and their ecosystems. Monitoring aquatic life can also be beneficial in understanding land ecosystems.

Aquatic biomonitoring can reveal the overall health and status of the environment, can detect environmental trends and how different stressors will affect those trends, and can be used evaluate the effects that various environmental activities may have on the overall health of the environment. Pollution and general stresses to aquatic life have a major impact on the environment. The main sources of pollution to oceans, rivers, and lakes are human caused events or activities, such as: sewage, oil spills, land runoff, littering, ocean mining, and nuclear waste. Rapid changes to an environment, like, pollution, can alter ecosystems and community assemblages, and endanger species that live in or close to water. Many aquatic species also serve as food sources for terrestrial species. Thus, aquatic ecosystems are interconnected with their adjacent terrestrial ecosystem.

A challenge in aquatic biomonitoring, as in many scientific fields, is to simplify data, making data easier for all, the general public included, to understand and relate too.

Indicator Organisms
Aquatic invertebrates, most popularly the larva of the caddis fly sp., are responsive to climate change, low levels of pollution and temperature change. As a result, they have the longest history of use in biomonitoring programs. Additionally, macroscopic species: frogs, fish, and some plant species, as well as, many forms of microscopic life, like bacteria and protozoa are used as indicator organisms in a variety of applications, storm water run-off among them. Many species of Macroalgae are used in biomonitoring for both aquatic and marine environments.

Common Methods
A biomonitoring assessment typically requires two or more sets of data. First, a baseline dataset that, ideally, defines the environment in its natural state, or default state. This is used to compare with any datasets that follow.

Methods employed in aquatic biomonitoring are:

 * monitoring and assessing aquatic species (incl. plants, animals, and bacteria),
 * monitoring the behavior of certain aquatic species and assessing any changes in species behavior, and
 * analyzing the biochemical make-up of the waterbody, and its potential influence on the species that depend on it.

A few common tools of ecological and biological assessments to used in aquatic biomonitoring:

 * Bioassays, where test organisms are exposed to an environment and their response is measured. Typical organisms used in bioassays are certain species of plants, bacteria, fish, water fleas (Daphnia), and frogs.
 * Community assessments, also called biosurveys, where an entire community of organisms is sampled to see what types of taxa remain. In aquatic ecosystems, these assessments often focus on invertebrates, algae, macrophytes (aquatic plants), fish, or amphibians. Rarely, other large vertebrates (reptiles, birds, and mammals) may be considered.
 * Online biomonitoring devices, an example being the use of chemoreceptor cells of mollusks and similar animals to monitor their coastal and fresh water habitats. Different types of animals are used for this purpose either in the lab or in the field. The study of the opening and closing activity of clams' valves is an example of one possible way to monitor in-situ the quality of fresh and coastal waters.

Water quality:
water quality is graded both on appearance—for example: clear, cloudy, full of algae—and chemistry. Determining the specific levels of enzymes, bacteria, metals, and minerals found in water is extremely important. Some contaminants, such as metals and certain organic wastes, can be lethal to individual creatures and could thereby ultimately lead to extinction of certain species. This could affect both aquatic and land ecosystems and cause disruption in other biomes and ecosystems.

Water temperature:
Water body temperature is one of the most ubiquitous variables collected in aquatic biomonitoring. Temperatures at the water surface, in the water column, and at the waterbodies bottom can all provide insight into different aspects of an aquatic ecosystem. Water temperature is directly effected by climate change and can have negative affects on many aquatic species (i.e. salmon).

Community make-up:
Species community assemblages and changes there in can help researchers to infer changes in the health of an ecosystem. In typical unpolluted temperate streams of Europe and North America, certain insect taxa predominate. Mayflies (Ephemeroptera), caddisflies (Trichoptera), and stoneflies (Plecoptera) are the most common insects in these undisturbed streams. In contrast, in rivers disturbed by urbanization, agriculture, forestry, and other perturbations, flies (Diptera), and especially midges (family Chironomidae) predominate.

Local geology:
Local geology can effect sub-surface influences on surface water. Such as, metal contamination.

See also[edit]

 * Ecology portal


 * Bioindicator
 * Biological integrity
 * Biological monitoring working party (a measurement procedure)
 * Indicator species
 * Water pollution

External links[edit]
Categories:
 * Biological Assessment of Water Quality – US EPA
 * US Bioassessment and Biocriteria Programs for Streams and Wadeable Rivers - US EPA


 * Aquatic ecology
 * Bioindicators
 * Environmental science
 * Measurement of biodiversity
 * Water pollution