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Simaika JP, Stribling J, Lento J, Bruder A, Poikane S, Moretti MS, Rivers-Moore N, Meissner K, Macadam CR. Towards harmonized standards for freshwater biodiversity monitoring and biological assessment using benthic macroinvertebrates. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2024; 918:170360. [PMID: 38311088 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.170360] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2023] [Revised: 12/19/2023] [Accepted: 01/20/2024] [Indexed: 02/06/2024]
Abstract
Monitoring programs at sub-national and national scales lack coordination, harmonization, and systematic review and analysis at continental and global scales, and thus fail to adequately assess and evaluate drivers of biodiversity and ecosystem degradation and loss at large spatial scales. Here we review the state of the art, gaps and challenges in the freshwater assessment programs for both the biological condition (bioassessment) and biodiversity monitoring of freshwater ecosystems using the benthic macroinvertebrate community. To assess the existence of nationally- and regionally- (sub-nationally-) accepted freshwater benthic macroinvertebrate protocols that are put in practice/used in each country, we conducted a survey from November 2022 to May 2023. Responses from 110 respondents based in 67 countries were received. Although the responses varied in their consistency, the responses clearly demonstrated a lack of biodiversity monitoring being done at both national and sub-national levels for lakes, rivers and artificial waterbodies. Programs for bioassessment were more widespread, and in some cases even harmonized among several countries. We identified 20 gaps and challenges, which we classed into five major categories, these being (a) field sampling, (b) sample processing and identification, (c) metrics and indices, (d) assessment, and (e) other gaps and challenges. Above all, we identify the lack of harmonization as one of the most important gaps, hindering efficient collaboration and communication. We identify the IUCN SSC Global Freshwater Macroinvertebrate Sampling Protocols Task Force (GLOSAM) as a means to address the lack of globally-harmonized biodiversity monitoring and biological assessment protocols.
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Affiliation(s)
- John P Simaika
- Department of Water Resources and Ecosystems, IHE Delft Institute for Water Education, the Netherlands.
| | - James Stribling
- Tetra Tech, Inc., Center for Ecological Sciences, Owings Mills, MD, USA
| | - Jennifer Lento
- Canadian Rivers Institute and Department of Biology, University of New Brunswick, Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada
| | - Andreas Bruder
- Institute of Microbiology, University of Applied Sciences and Arts of Southern Switzerland. Mendrisio, Switzerland
| | | | - Marcelo S Moretti
- Laboratory of Aquatic Insect Ecology, University of Vila Velha, Vila Velha, Espirito Santo, Brazil
| | - Nick Rivers-Moore
- Centre for Water Resources Research, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, South Africa
| | | | - Craig R Macadam
- Buglife - The Invertebrate Conservation Trust, United Kingdom
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2
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Sinclair JS, Welti EAR, Altermatt F, Álvarez-Cabria M, Aroviita J, Baker NJ, Barešová L, Barquín J, Bonacina L, Bonada N, Cañedo-Argüelles M, Csabai Z, de Eyto E, Dohet A, Dörflinger G, Eriksen TE, Evtimova V, Feio MJ, Ferréol M, Floury M, Forio MAE, Fornaroli R, Goethals PLM, Heino J, Hering D, Huttunen KL, Jähnig SC, Johnson RK, Kuglerová L, Kupilas B, L'Hoste L, Larrañaga A, Leitner P, Lorenz AW, McKie BG, Muotka T, Osadčaja D, Paavola R, Palinauskas V, Pařil P, Pilotto F, Polášek M, Rasmussen JJ, Schäfer RB, Schmidt-Kloiber A, Scotti A, Skuja A, Straka M, Stubbington R, Timm H, Tyufekchieva V, Tziortzis I, Vannevel R, Várbíró G, Velle G, Verdonschot RCM, Vray S, Haase P. Multi-decadal improvements in the ecological quality of European rivers are not consistently reflected in biodiversity metrics. Nat Ecol Evol 2024; 8:430-441. [PMID: 38278985 DOI: 10.1038/s41559-023-02305-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2023] [Accepted: 12/11/2023] [Indexed: 01/28/2024]
Abstract
Humans impact terrestrial, marine and freshwater ecosystems, yet many broad-scale studies have found no systematic, negative biodiversity changes (for example, decreasing abundance or taxon richness). Here we show that mixed biodiversity responses may arise because community metrics show variable responses to anthropogenic impacts across broad spatial scales. We first quantified temporal trends in anthropogenic impacts for 1,365 riverine invertebrate communities from 23 European countries, based on similarity to least-impacted reference communities. Reference comparisons provide necessary, but often missing, baselines for evaluating whether communities are negatively impacted or have improved (less or more similar, respectively). We then determined whether changing impacts were consistently reflected in metrics of community abundance, taxon richness, evenness and composition. Invertebrate communities improved, that is, became more similar to reference conditions, from 1992 until the 2010s, after which improvements plateaued. Improvements were generally reflected by higher taxon richness, providing evidence that certain community metrics can broadly indicate anthropogenic impacts. However, richness responses were highly variable among sites, and we found no consistent responses in community abundance, evenness or composition. These findings suggest that, without sufficient data and careful metric selection, many common community metrics cannot reliably reflect anthropogenic impacts, helping explain the prevalence of mixed biodiversity trends.
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Affiliation(s)
- James S Sinclair
- Department of River Ecology and Conservation, Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum Frankfurt, Gelnhausen, Germany.
| | - Ellen A R Welti
- Department of River Ecology and Conservation, Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum Frankfurt, Gelnhausen, Germany
- Conservation Ecology Center, Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute, Front Royal, VA, USA
| | - Florian Altermatt
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland
- Department of Aquatic Ecology, Eawag: Swiss Federal Institute of Aquatic Science and Technology, Dübendorf, Switzerland
| | - Mario Álvarez-Cabria
- IHCantabria - Instituto de Hidráulica Ambiental de la Universidad de Cantabria, Santander, Spain
| | - Jukka Aroviita
- Freshwater and Marine Solutions, Finnish Environment Institute, Oulu, Finland
| | - Nathan J Baker
- Institute of Ecology, Nature Research Centre, Vilnius, Lithuania
| | | | - José Barquín
- IHCantabria - Instituto de Hidráulica Ambiental de la Universidad de Cantabria, Santander, Spain
| | - Luca Bonacina
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences - DISAT, University of Milano-Bicocca, Milan, Italy
| | - Núria Bonada
- FEHM-Lab (Freshwater Ecology, Hydrology and Management), Department of Evolutionary Biology, Ecology and Environmental Sciences, Facultat de Biologia, Institut de Recerca de la Biodiversitat (IRBio), University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Miguel Cañedo-Argüelles
- FEHM-Lab (Freshwater Ecology, Hydrology and Management), Institute of Environmental Assessment and Water Research (IDAEA), CSIC, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Zoltán Csabai
- Department of Hydrobiology, University of Pécs, Pécs, Hungary
- Balaton Limnological Research Institute, Tihany, Hungary
| | - Elvira de Eyto
- Fisheries Ecosystems Advisory Services, Marine Institute, Newport, Ireland
| | - Alain Dohet
- Environmental Research and Innovation Department, Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Gerald Dörflinger
- Water Development Department, Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment, Nicosia, Cyprus
| | - Tor E Eriksen
- Norwegian Institute for Water Research (NIVA), Oslo, Norway
| | - Vesela Evtimova
- Department of Aquatic Ecosystems, Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Sofia, Bulgaria
| | - Maria J Feio
- Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra, Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, Associated Laboratory ARNET, Coimbra, Portugal
| | - Martial Ferréol
- INRAE, UR RiverLy, centre de Lyon-Villeurbanne, Villeurbanne, France
| | - Mathieu Floury
- Department Community and Ecosystem Ecology, Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB), Berlin, Germany
- Univ Lyon, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, CNRS, ENTPE, UMR 5023 LEHNA, Villeurbanne, France
| | | | - Riccardo Fornaroli
- Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences - DISAT, University of Milano-Bicocca, Milan, Italy
| | - Peter L M Goethals
- Department of Animal Sciences and Aquatic Ecology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Jani Heino
- Geography Research Unit, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Daniel Hering
- Faculty of Biology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany
| | | | - Sonja C Jähnig
- Department Community and Ecosystem Ecology, Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries (IGB), Berlin, Germany
- Geography Department, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Richard K Johnson
- Department of Aquatic Sciences and Assessment, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Lenka Kuglerová
- Department of Forest Ecology and Management, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Umeå, Sweden
| | - Benjamin Kupilas
- Norwegian Institute for Water Research (NIVA), Oslo, Norway
- Institute of Landscape Ecology, Chair for Applied Landscape Ecology and Ecological Planning, University of Münster, Münster, Germany
| | - Lionel L'Hoste
- Environmental Research and Innovation Department, Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Aitor Larrañaga
- Department of Plant Biology and Ecology, University of the Basque Country, Leioa, Spain
| | - Patrick Leitner
- Department of Water, Atmosphere and Environment, Institute of Hydrobiology and Aquatic Ecosystem Management, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Armin W Lorenz
- Faculty of Biology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany
| | - Brendan G McKie
- Department of Aquatic Sciences and Assessment, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Timo Muotka
- Ecology and Genetics Research Unit, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Diana Osadčaja
- Institute of Ecology, Nature Research Centre, Vilnius, Lithuania
| | - Riku Paavola
- Oulanka Research Station, University of Oulu Infrastructure Platform, Kuusamo, Finland
| | | | - Petr Pařil
- Department of Botany and Zoology, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
| | | | - Marek Polášek
- Department of Botany and Zoology, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Jes J Rasmussen
- NIVA Denmark (Norwegian Institute for Water Research), Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Ralf B Schäfer
- iES Landau, Institute for Environmental Sciences, RPTU Kaiserslautern-Landau, Landau, Germany
| | - Astrid Schmidt-Kloiber
- Department of Water, Atmosphere and Environment, Institute of Hydrobiology and Aquatic Ecosystem Management, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | - Alberto Scotti
- Eurac Research, Institute for Alpine Environment, Bolzano/Bozen, Italy
- APEM Ltd, Stockport, UK
| | - Agnija Skuja
- Institute of Biology, University of Latvia, Riga, Latvia
| | - Michal Straka
- Department of Botany and Zoology, Faculty of Science, Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
- T.G. Masaryk Water Research Institute, p.r.i., Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Rachel Stubbington
- School of Science and Technology, Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham, UK
| | - Henn Timm
- Chair of Hydrobiology and Fishery, Centre for Limnology, Estonian University of Life Sciences, Elva vald, Estonia
| | - Violeta Tyufekchieva
- Department of Aquatic Ecosystems, Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Sofia, Bulgaria
| | - Iakovos Tziortzis
- Water Development Department, Ministry of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environment, Nicosia, Cyprus
| | - Rudy Vannevel
- Department of Animal Sciences and Aquatic Ecology, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium
- Flanders Environment Agency, Aalst, Belgium
| | - Gábor Várbíró
- Centre for Ecological Research, Institute of Aquatic Ecology, Debrecen, Hungary
| | - Gaute Velle
- LFI - The Laboratory for Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries, NORCE Norwegian Research Centre, Bergen, Norway
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
| | - Ralf C M Verdonschot
- Wageningen Environmental Research, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, Netherlands
| | - Sarah Vray
- Environmental Research and Innovation Department, Luxembourg Institute of Science and Technology, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Peter Haase
- Department of River Ecology and Conservation, Senckenberg Research Institute and Natural History Museum Frankfurt, Gelnhausen, Germany
- Faculty of Biology, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany
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Fergus CE, Brooks JR, Kaufmann PR, Herlihy AT, Hill RA, Mitchell RM, Ringold P. Disentangling natural and anthropogenic effects on benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages in western US streams. Ecosphere 2023; 14:1-24. [PMID: 38993516 PMCID: PMC11235210 DOI: 10.1002/ecs2.4688] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2023] [Accepted: 07/27/2023] [Indexed: 07/13/2024] Open
Abstract
Stream macroinvertebrate assemblages are shaped by natural and human-related factors that operate through complex hierarchical pathways. Quantifying these relationships can provide additional insights into stream ecological assessment. We applied a structural equation modeling framework to evaluate hypothesized pathways by which watershed, riparian, and in-stream factors affect benthic macroinvertebrate condition in the Western Mountains (WMT) and Xeric (XER) ecoregions in the United States. We developed a conceptual model grounded in theory, empirical evidence, and expert opinion to evaluate the following hypotheses: (1) macroinvertebrate assemblages are primarily driven by proximal, in-stream factors (e.g., water quality and physical habitat); (2) anthropogenic land uses affect macroinvertebrates indirectly by altering in-stream characteristics; and (3) riparian vegetation cover attenuates land use effects. We tested our model separately on three measures of benthic macroinvertebrate assemblage condition: ratio of observed-to-expected taxonomic richness (O/E); a multimetric index (MMI); and richness of Ephemeroptera, Plecoptera, and Trichoptera taxa (EPT). In the WMT, site-level riparian cover, in-stream physical habitat (relative bed stability), and water chemistry (total nitrogen) were the top three predictors of macroinvertebrate assemblages, each having over two times the magnitude of effect on macroinvertebrates compared with watershed-level predictors. In the arid XER, annual precipitation and stream flow characteristics were top predictors of macroinvertebrate assemblages and had similar magnitudes of effect as in-stream water chemistry. Path analyses revealed that land use activities in the watershed and at the stream site degraded macroinvertebrate assemblages indirectly by altering relative bed stability, water quality, and riparian cover/complexity. Increased riparian cover was associated with greater macroinvertebrate condition by reducing land use impacts on stream flow, streambed substrate, and water quality, but the pathways differed among ecoregions. In the WMT, site-level riparian cover affected macroinvertebrate assemblages partly through indirect pathways associated with greater streambed stability and reduced total nitrogen concentrations. In contrast, in the XER, watershed-level riparian cover affected macroinvertebrate assemblages through greater specific stream power. Identifying the relative effects of and pathways by which natural and anthropogenic factors affect macroinvertebrates can serve as a framework for prioritizing management and conservation efforts.
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Affiliation(s)
- C. Emi Fergus
- Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Corvallis, Oregon, USA
| | - J. Renée Brooks
- US EPA, Office of Research and Development, Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment, Pacific Ecological Systems Division, Corvallis, Oregon, USA
| | - Philip R. Kaufmann
- US EPA, Office of Research and Development, Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment, Pacific Ecological Systems Division, Corvallis, Oregon, USA
- Oregon State University, Department of Fisheries, Wildlife and Conservation Science, Corvallis, Oregon, USA
| | - Alan T. Herlihy
- Oregon State University, Department of Fisheries, Wildlife and Conservation Science, Corvallis, Oregon, USA
| | - Ryan A. Hill
- US EPA, Office of Research and Development, Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment, Pacific Ecological Systems Division, Corvallis, Oregon, USA
| | | | - Paul Ringold
- US EPA, Office of Research and Development, Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment, Pacific Ecological Systems Division, Corvallis, Oregon, USA
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4
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Oshun MI, Grantham TE. Leveraging species richness and ecological condition indices to guide systematic conservation planning. JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT 2023; 341:117970. [PMID: 37148768 DOI: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2023.117970] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2022] [Revised: 03/30/2023] [Accepted: 04/16/2023] [Indexed: 05/08/2023]
Abstract
The global crises of biodiversity loss and climate change are interconnected in root cause and solutions. Targeted land conservation has emerged as a leading strategy to protect vulnerable species and buffer climate impacts, however, consistent methods to assess biodiversity and prioritize areas for protection have not yet been established. Recent landscape-scale planning initiatives in California present an opportunity to conserve biodiversity, but to enhance their effectiveness, assessment approaches should move beyond commonly used measures of terrestrial species richness. In this study, we compile publicly available datasets and explore how distinct biodiversity conservation indices - including indicators of terrestrial and aquatic species richness and of biotic and physical ecosystem condition - are represented in watersheds of the northern Sierra Nevada mountain region of California (n = 253). We also evaluate the extent to which the existing protected area network covers watersheds that support high species richness and intact ecosystems. Terrestrial and aquatic species richness showed unique spatial patterns (Spearman R = 0.27), with highest richness of aquatic species in the low-elevation watersheds of the study area and highest richness of terrestrial species in mid- and high-elevation watersheds. Watersheds with the highest ecosystem condition were concentrated in upper-elevations and were poorly correlated with those with the highest species richness (Spearman R = -0.34). We found that 28% of watersheds in the study area are conserved by the existing protected area network. Protected watersheds had higher ecosystem condition (mean rank-normalized score = 0.71) than unprotected areas (0.42), but species richness was generally lower (0.33 in protected versus 0.57 in unprotected watersheds). We illustrate how the complementary measures of species richness and ecosystem condition can be used to guide strategies for landscape-scale ecosystem management, including prioritization of watersheds for targeted protection, restoration, monitoring, and multi-benefit management. Though designed for California, application of these indices to guide conservation planning, design monitoring networks, and implement landscape-scale management interventions provides a model for other regions of the world.
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Affiliation(s)
- Molly I Oshun
- Energy & Resources Group, University of California, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA.
| | - Theodore E Grantham
- Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management, University of California, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA; Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of California, Davis, CA, 95618, USA.
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5
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Cochran JK, Funk DH, Buchwalter DB. Physiological and life history responses in a mayfly (Callibaetis floridanus) inhabiting ponds with saltwater intrusion. Front Ecol Evol 2023. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2023.1135924] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Freshwater salinity varies in natural systems and plays a role in species distribution. Anthropogenic alterations to freshwater salinity regimes include sea level rise and subsequent intrusion of saline waters to inland habitats. While mayflies are generalized to be sensitive to increasing salinity, we still know remarkably little about the physiological processes (and their plasticity) that determine the performance of species in a changing world. Here, we explored life-history outcomes and physiological plasticity in a population of Callibaetis floridanus (Ephemeroptera: Baetidae) from a coastal pond that routinely experiences saltwater intrusion. We reared naiads from egg hatch to adulthood across a gradient of increasing salinities (113, 5,020, 9,921 μS/cm). Radiotracer flux studies (22Na, 35SO4, and 45Ca) were conducted in naiads reared at each salinity, revealing a positive association between ionic concentration and uptake rates. However, the influence of rearing history on ionic influx rates was apparent when naiads were transferred from their respective rearing water to the other experimental conditions. For example, we observed that naiads reared in the low salinity treatment (113 μS/cm) had 10.8-fold higher Na uptake rates than naiads reared at 9,921 μS/cm and transferred to 113 μS/cm. Additionally, naiads acclimated to the higher salinity water exhibited reduced uptake in ion-rich water relative to those reared in more dilute conditions (e.g., in 9,921 μS/cm water, 113 and 5,020 μS/cm acclimated naiads had 1.5- and 1.1-fold higher Na uptake rates than 9,921 μS/cm acclimated naiads, respectively). We found no significant changes in survival (80 ± 4.4%, mean ± s.e.m.) or naiad development time (24 ± 0.3 days, mean ± s.e.m.) across these treatments but did observe a 27% decrease in subimago female body weight in the most dilute condition. This reduction in female weight was associated with higher oxygen consumption rates in naiads relative to the other rearing conditions. Collectively, these data suggests that saline adapted C. floridanus may be more energetically challenged in dilute conditions, which differs from previous observations in other mayfly species.
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Cochran JK, Buchwalter DB. The acclimatory response of the mayfly Neocloeon triangulifer to dilute conditions is linked to the plasticity of sodium transport. Proc Biol Sci 2022; 289:20220529. [PMID: 35892216 PMCID: PMC9326274 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2022.0529] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Relative to a growing body of knowledge about the negative consequences of freshwater salinization, little is known about how aquatic insects respond to progressively ion-poor conditions. Here, we examined life-history and physiological acclimation in Neocloeon triangulifer by rearing nymphs from 1-day post-egg hatch to adulthood across a gradient of decreasing Na concentrations (15, 8, 4, 2 and 1 mg l-1 Na). We found no significant changes in survival, growth, development time and whole-body Na content across these treatments. Radiotracer data revealed that nymphs acclimated to their dilute exposures by increasing their rates of Na uptake and were able to maintain a relatively narrow range of uptake rates (±s.e.m.) of 38.5 ± 4.2 µg Na g-1 h-1 across all treatments. By contrast, the Na uptake rates observed in naive nymphs were much more concentration dependent. This acclimatory response is partially explained by differences in ionocyte counts on the gills of nymphs reared under different salinities. Acclimated nymphs were surprisingly less retentive of their sodium composition when subjected to deionized water challenge. By contrasting our findings with a previous N. triangulifer salinity acclimation study, we show a physiological affinity for dilute conditions in this emerging mayfly model.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jamie K. Cochran
- Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695, USA
| | - David B. Buchwalter
- Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695, USA
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7
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Cochran JK, Orr SE, Buchwalter DB. Assessing the P crit in relation to temperature and the expression of hypoxia associated genes in the mayfly, Neocloeon triangulifer. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2022; 808:151743. [PMID: 34826479 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.151743] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/27/2021] [Revised: 11/08/2021] [Accepted: 11/13/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Hypoxia is a growing concern in aquatic ecosystems. Historically, scientists have used the Pcrit (the dissolved oxygen level below which an animal can no longer oxyregulate) to infer hypoxia tolerance across species. Here, we tested the hypothesis that the Pcrit is positively correlated with temperature in the mayfly, Neocloeon triangulifer. Cross-temperature comparisons showed a modest (r = 0.47), but significant (p < 0.0001) association between temperature and Pcrit despite relatively large interindividual variability (Coefficient of Variance (CV) = 39.9% at 18 °C). We used the expression of hypoxia-responsive genes EGL-9 (an oxygen sensing gene and modulator of HIF-1a activity) and LDH (a hypoxia indicator) to test whether oxygen partial pressure near the Pcrit stimulates expression of hypoxia-responsive genes. Neither gene was upregulated at oxygen levels above the estimated Pcrit, however, at or below the Pcrit estimates, expression of both genes was stimulated (~20- and ~3-fold change for EGL-9 and LDH, respectively). Finally, we evaluated the influence of hypoxic exposure time and pretreatment conditions on the mRNA expression levels of hypoxia-responsive genes. When larvae were exposed to a gradual reduction of DO, hypoxic gene expression was more robust than during instantaneous exposure to hypoxia. Our data provide modest support for traditional interpretation of the Pcrit as a physiologically meaningful shift from aerobic to anaerobic metabolism in N. triangulifer. However, we also discuss limitations of the Pcrit as a proxy measure of hypoxia tolerance at the species level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jamie K Cochran
- Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695, United States of America
| | - Sarah E Orr
- Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695, United States of America
| | - David B Buchwalter
- Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695, United States of America.
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8
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Orr SE, Negrão Watanabe TT, Buchwalter DB. Physiological plasticity and acclimatory responses to salinity stress are ion-specific in the mayfly, Neocloeon triangulifer. ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION (BARKING, ESSEX : 1987) 2021; 286:117221. [PMID: 33975217 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2021.117221] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2021] [Revised: 04/09/2021] [Accepted: 04/20/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Freshwater salinization is a rapidly emerging ecological issue and is correlated with significant declines in aquatic biodiversity. It remains unclear how changing salinity regimes affect the physiology of sensitive aquatic insects. We used the parthenogenetic mayfly, Neocloeon triangulifer, to ask how ionic exposure history alters physiological processes and responses to subsequent major ion exposures. Using radiotracers (22Na, 35SO4, and 45Ca), we observed that mayflies chronically reared in elevated sodium or sulfate (157 mg L-1 Na or 667 mg L-1 SO4) had 2-fold (p < 0.0001) and 8-fold (p < 0.0001) lower ion uptake rates than mayflies reared in dilute control water (16 mg L-1 Na and 23 mg L-1 SO4) and subsequently transferred to elevated salinities, respectively. These acclimatory ion transport changes provided protection in 96-h toxicity bioassays for sodium, but not sulfate. Interestingly, calcium uptake was uniformly much lower and minimally influenced by exposure history, but was poorly tolerated in the toxicity bioassays. With qRT-PCR, we observed that the expression of many ion transporter genes in mayflies was influenced by elevated salinity in an ion-specific manner (general upregulation in response to sulfate, downregulation in response to calcium). Elevated sodium exposure had minimal influence on the same genes. Finally, we provide novel light microscopic evidence of histomorphological changes within the epithelium of the Malpighian tubules (insect primary excretory system) that undergoes cellular degeneration and necrosis secondary to calcium toxicity. We conclude that physiological plasticity to salinity stress is ion-specific and provide evidence for ion-specific toxicity mechanisms in N. triangulifer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah E Orr
- Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 27607, USA
| | - Tatiane Terumi Negrão Watanabe
- Department of Population Health and Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 27607, USA
| | - David B Buchwalter
- Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 27607, USA.
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9
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Weglarz KM, Saunders WC, Van Wagenen A, Pearse WD. Phylogenetic diversity efficiently and accurately prioritizes conservation of aquatic macroinvertebrate communities. Ecosphere 2021. [DOI: 10.1002/ecs2.3383] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Kathryn M. Weglarz
- Department of Biology & Ecology Center Utah State University 5305 Old Main Hill Logan Utah84322USA
| | - W. Carl Saunders
- PACFISH/INFISH Biological Opinion Effectiveness Monitoring Program USDA Forest Service 860 North 1200 East Logan Utah84321USA
| | - Andrew Van Wagenen
- PACFISH/INFISH Biological Opinion Effectiveness Monitoring Program USDA Forest Service 860 North 1200 East Logan Utah84321USA
| | - William D. Pearse
- Department of Biology & Ecology Center Utah State University 5305 Old Main Hill Logan Utah84322USA
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10
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Effects of sample size and network depth on a deep learning approach to species distribution modeling. ECOL INFORM 2020. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ecoinf.2020.101137] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
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11
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Huttunen KL, Muotka T, Karjalainen SM, Laamanen T, Aroviita J. Excess of nitrogen reduces temporal variability of stream diatom assemblages. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2020; 713:136630. [PMID: 31958730 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.136630] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2019] [Revised: 01/07/2020] [Accepted: 01/08/2020] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Nutrient enrichment degrades water quality and threatens aquatic biota. However, our knowledge on (dis)similarities in temporal patterns of biota among sites of varying level of nutrient stress is limited. We addressed this gap by assessing temporal (among seasons) variation in algal biomass, species diversity and composition of diatom assemblages in three streams that differ in nutrient stress, but are otherwise similar and share the same regional species pool. We monitored three riffle sections in each stream bi-weekly from May to October in 2014. Temporal variation in water chemistry and other environmental variables was mainly synchronous among riffles within streams and often also among streams, indicating shared environmental forcing through time. We found significant differences in diatom assemblage composition among streams and, albeit less so, also among riffles within streams. Diatom assemblages in the two nutrient-enriched streams were more similar to each other than to those in the nutrient-poor stream. Taxa richness did not differ consistently among the streams, and did not vary synchronously at any spatial scale. Temporal variation in diatom assemblage composition decreased with increasing DIN:TotP ratio, likely via a negative effect on sensitive taxa while maintaining favorable conditions for certain tolerant taxa, irrespective of season. This relationship weakened but remained significant even after controlling for stochastic effects, suggesting deterministic mechanisms between nutrient levels and diatom assemblage stability. After controlling for stochastic effects temporal variability was best explained by DIN suggesting that excess of nitrogen reduces temporal variability(intra-annual beta diversity) of diatom assemblages. The high temporal variation, and especially the lack of temporal synchrony at the within streams scale, suggests that single sampling at a single site may be insufficient to reliably assess and monitor a complete stream water body. Our results also showed that measures including species identity outperform traditional diversity metrics in detecting nutrient stress in streams.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kaisa-Leena Huttunen
- Department of Ecology and Genetics, University of Oulu, P.O. Box 3000, FI-90014 Oulu, Finland.
| | - Timo Muotka
- Department of Ecology and Genetics, University of Oulu, P.O. Box 3000, FI-90014 Oulu, Finland; Finnish Environment Institute, Freshwater Centre, P.O. Box 413, FI-90014 Oulu, Finland
| | | | - Tiina Laamanen
- Finnish Environment Institute, Freshwater Centre, P.O. Box 413, FI-90014 Oulu, Finland
| | - Jukka Aroviita
- Finnish Environment Institute, Freshwater Centre, P.O. Box 413, FI-90014 Oulu, Finland
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12
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Li Z, Liu Z, Heino J, Jiang X, Wang J, Tang T, Xie Z. Discriminating the effects of local stressors from climatic factors and dispersal processes on multiple biodiversity dimensions of macroinvertebrate communities across subtropical drainage basins. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2020; 711:134750. [PMID: 31810670 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2019.134750] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2019] [Revised: 09/28/2019] [Accepted: 09/29/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Metacommunity ecology emphasizes that community structure and diversity are not only determined by local environmental conditions through environmental filtering, but also by dispersal-related processes, such as mass effects, dispersal limitation and patch dynamics. However, the roles of dispersal processes are typically ignored in bioassessment approaches. Here, we simultaneously explored the potential influences of four groups of factors: local stressors, climatic factors, within-basin spatial factors and basin identity in explaining variation in diversity indices of macroinvertebrate assemblages from seven subtropical tributary rivers. A total of 12 biodiversity indices based on species identities, functional traits and taxonomic relatedness were calculated and used in the subsequent statistical analysis. Our results showed that, although differing in their relative importance, the four explanatory factor groups all played important roles in explaining variation in biodiversity indices. Of the pure fractions, index variation was best explained by local environmental stressors, whereas the other three explanatory factor groups appeared less influential. Furthermore, diversity indices from species, functional and taxonomic dimensions responded distinctly to the focal ecological factors, and differed in their abilities to portray the effects of human disturbances on macroinvertebrate communities. Taxonomic distinctness indices performed best, with the highest amount of variation associated to local stressors and hardly any variation explained by other factors, implying that these indices are robust in portraying human disturbances in streams. However, species diversity and functional diversity indices were also affected by spatial processes and climatic factors, suggesting that these indices should be used with caution in bioassessment. We hence conclude that environmental assessment of riverine ecosystems should not rely entirely on the perspective of species sorting. In contrast, both roles of spatial processes and environmental variables related to human disturbances and climatic variation should be incorporated in management and conservation of riverine ecosystems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhengfei Li
- The Key Laboratory of Aquatic Biodiversity and Conservation, Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan 430072, China.
| | - Zhenyuan Liu
- The Key Laboratory of Aquatic Biodiversity and Conservation, Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan 430072, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China.
| | - Jani Heino
- Freshwater Centre, Finnish Environment Institute, Paavo Havaksen Tie 3, P.O. Box 413, Oulu FI-90014, Finland.
| | - Xiaoming Jiang
- State Key Laboratory of Eco-hydraulic in Northwest Arid Region of China, Xi'an University of Technology, Xi'an 710048, China.
| | - Jun Wang
- Institute of International Rivers and Eco-security, Yunnan University, Kunming 650091, China.
| | - Tao Tang
- The Key Laboratory of Aquatic Biodiversity and Conservation, Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan 430072, China.
| | - Zhicai Xie
- The Key Laboratory of Aquatic Biodiversity and Conservation, Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan 430072, China.
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13
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Gillett DJ, Mazor RD, Norton SB. Selecting Comparator Sites for Ecological Causal Assessment Based on Expected Biological Similarity. FRESHWATER SCIENCE (PRINT) 2019; 38:554-565. [PMID: 37986714 PMCID: PMC10659085 DOI: 10.1086/704926] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2023]
Abstract
Sites in poor ecological condition often require causal assessment to determine appropriate follow-up actions. Site-specific causal assessments can be time consuming. To streamline the process, we describe a quantitative method that expedites a key component of causal assessment: identifying a group of ecologically similar (comparator) sites that are used to compare and contrast biological condition and stressor exposure at the site of interest. A good set of comparator sites should: 1. Be capable of supporting similar biota to the impaired site in the absence of disturbance; 2. Comprise a gradient of biotic condition; and 3. Contain enough sites to assess variability. We used expected biological similarity to select good sets of comparator sites from a large pool of potential sites. Expected biological similarity was measured as Bray-Curtis dissimilarity values (BC) calculated from the expected benthic macroinvertebrate taxa lists produced by a predictive biotic index of stream health. Sets of comparator sites were created for 15 demonstration sites across Southern California in poor condition. We examined the stressor and biological data collected at the 15 sites and their comparators to assess the likelihood that four example stressors - total nitrogen, ammonia, specific conductivity, and bifenthrin - contribute to the poor biotic conditions that were observed. We were able to select more than 100 comparator sites for all but 1 of the 15 demonstration sites at a BC <0.1. These sets of comparator sites were then used to evaluate the four example stressors using two commonly used causal assessment types of evidence. Elevated conductivity was the most frequently supported likely cause among the demonstration sites, though total nitrogen and bifenthrin were also indicated at some sites. Though our specific approach was tailored for application in California's stream bioassessment framework, the concepts could be adapted for any bioassessment program with a large amount of sample data and an associated predictive index of biotic condition. Furthermore, this approach lays the groundwork for developing a novel approach to causal assessment that begins with a rapid, screening-level evaluation of stressors common in a region using these data-rich groups of comparator sites, which then informs follow-up management actions.
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Affiliation(s)
- David J. Gillett
- Southern California Coastal Water Research Project, 3535 Harbor Blvd, Suite 110, Costa Mesa, CA 92626
| | - Raphael D. Mazor
- Southern California Coastal Water Research Project, 3535 Harbor Blvd, Suite 110, Costa Mesa, CA 92626
| | - Susan B. Norton
- United States Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave NW, Washington, DC 20160
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14
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Affiliation(s)
- Greg Spyreas
- Illinois Natural History Survey Prairie Research Institute University of Illinois at Urbana‐Champaign Champaign Illinois 61820 USA
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15
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Sampling the Central Channel Provides Additional Information on Fish Assemblages in a Large Boatable River in the U.S. Midwest. JOURNAL OF FISH AND WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT 2019. [DOI: 10.3996/042019-jfwm-028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
It is a challenge to adequately characterize the fish assemblages of large rivers because of their sizes and high spatial–temporal habitat heterogeneity. Multiple sampling methods are often needed, but their uses increase cost and present difficulty for data standardization. In this study, we examined how much new information central-channel electrofishing sampling could add to typical shoreline electrofishing in a large and relatively shallow river, the lower Wabash River, in the U.S. Midwest. We found that the two types of samples differed markedly in species composition, and each was strongly associated with a subset of species. Shoreline samples captured more fish individuals and species, and reached higher functional diversity, but central-channel samples often captured several large benthivore and migratory species such as Redhorse and Shovelnose Sturgeon. Central-channel electrofishing appears to be a quick and low-cost method to supplement shoreline sampling in monitoring and assessing large shallow rivers.
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16
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Stauffer-Olsen NJ, O'Grady PM, Resh VH. Cytochrome Oxidase I Sequences from Northern and Southern California Suggest Cryptic Baetis (Ephemeroptera: Baetidae) Species. WEST N AM NATURALIST 2019. [DOI: 10.3398/064.079.0207] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Natalie J. Stauffer-Olsen
- Department of Environmental Science, Policy & Management, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720
| | - Patrick M. O'Grady
- Department of Environmental Science, Policy & Management, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720
| | - Vincent H. Resh
- Department of Environmental Science, Policy & Management, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720
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17
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Cao Y, Hawkins CP. Weighting effective number of species measures by abundance weakens detection of diversity responses. J Appl Ecol 2019. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2664.13345] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Yong Cao
- Illinois Natural History Survey Prairie Research Institute University of Illinois Champaign Illinois
| | - Charles P. Hawkins
- Department of Watershed Sciences, Ecology Center National Aquatic Monitoring Center Utah State University Logan Utah
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18
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Shull DR, Smith ZM, Selckmann GM. Development of a benthic macroinvertebrate multimetric index for large semiwadeable rivers in the Mid-Atlantic region of the USA. ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING AND ASSESSMENT 2018; 191:22. [PMID: 30564909 DOI: 10.1007/s10661-018-7153-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2018] [Accepted: 12/10/2018] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
To meet the objective of protecting water quality standards outlined in the US Clean Water Act, many agencies and organizations have created standardized biological assessment methods to evaluate aquatic ecosystem integrity. However, few Mid-Atlantic states have assessment methods specifically designed for rivers with drainage areas ≥ 2600 km2. Most rivers in this region fall into a semiwadeable category, where both wadeable and nonwadeable biological collection methods are difficult to implement. Additionally, these rivers often transcend state boundaries, which hinder consistent assessment determinations between states. Consequently, we developed a benthic macroinvertebrate assessment tool using a modified wadeable collection method for large semiwadeable rivers that can be used across state lines. Our results indicate that the two multimetric indices we developed (summer and autumn) are uniquely effective at distinguishing between least disturbed and stressed environmental conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dustin R Shull
- Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, 400 Market Street, Harrisburg, PA, 17101, USA.
| | - Zachary M Smith
- Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin, 30 West Gude Drive Suite 450, Rockville, MD, 20850, USA
| | - Gordon M Selckmann
- Interstate Commission on the Potomac River Basin, 30 West Gude Drive Suite 450, Rockville, MD, 20850, USA
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19
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Hämäläinen H, Aroviita J, Jyväsjärvi J, Kärkkäinen S. Dangerous relationships: biases in freshwater bioassessment based on observed to expected ratios. ECOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS : A PUBLICATION OF THE ECOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA 2018; 28:1260-1272. [PMID: 29645323 DOI: 10.1002/eap.1725] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2017] [Revised: 02/23/2018] [Accepted: 03/16/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
The ecological assessment of freshwaters is currently primarily based on biological communities and the reference condition approach (RCA). In the RCA, the communities in streams and lakes disturbed by humans are compared with communities in reference conditions with no or minimal anthropogenic influence. The currently favored rationale is using selected community metrics for which the expected values (E) for each site are typically estimated from environmental variables using a predictive model based on the reference data. The proportional differences between the observed values (O) and E are then derived, and the decision rules for status assessment are based on fixed (typically 10th or 25th) percentiles of the O/E ratios among reference sites. Based on mathematical formulations, illustrations by simulated data and real case studies representing such an assessment approach, we demonstrate that the use of a common quantile of O/E ratios will, under certain conditions, cause severe bias in decision making even if the predictive model would be unbiased. This is because the variance of O/E under these conditions, which seem to be quite common among the published applications, varies systematically with E. We propose a correction method for the bias and compare the novel approach to the conventional one in our case studies, with data from both reference and impacted sites. The results highlight a conceptual issue of employing ratios in the status assessment. In some cases using the absolute deviations instead provides a simple solution for the bias identified and might also be more ecologically relevant and defensible.
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Affiliation(s)
- Heikki Hämäläinen
- Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Jyvaskyla, P.O. Box 35, Jyväskylä, FI-40014, Finland
| | - Jukka Aroviita
- Finnish Environment Institute, Freshwater Centre, PO Box 413, Oulu, 90014, Finland
| | - Jussi Jyväsjärvi
- Department of Ecology and Genetics, University of Oulu, P.O. Box 3000, Oulu, FI-90014, Finland
| | - Salme Kärkkäinen
- Department of Mathematics and Statistics, University of Jyvaskyla, P.O. Box 35, Jyväskylä, FI-40014, Finland
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20
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Mustonen KR, Mykrä H, Marttila H, Sarremejane R, Veijalainen N, Sippel K, Muotka T, Hawkins CP. Thermal and hydrologic responses to climate change predict marked alterations in boreal stream invertebrate assemblages. GLOBAL CHANGE BIOLOGY 2018; 24:2434-2446. [PMID: 29341358 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.14053] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2017] [Accepted: 12/12/2017] [Indexed: 05/16/2023]
Abstract
Air temperature at the northernmost latitudes is predicted to increase steeply and precipitation to become more variable by the end of the 21st century, resulting in altered thermal and hydrological regimes. We applied five climate scenarios to predict the future (2070-2100) benthic macroinvertebrate assemblages at 239 near-pristine sites across Finland (ca. 1200 km latitudinal span). We used a multitaxon distribution model with air temperature and modeled daily flow as predictors. As expected, projected air temperature increased the most in northernmost Finland. Predicted taxonomic richness also increased the most in northern Finland, congruent with the predicted northwards shift of many species' distributions. Compositional changes were predicted to be high even without changes in richness, suggesting that species replacement may be the main mechanism causing climate-induced changes in macroinvertebrate assemblages. Northern streams were predicted to lose much of the seasonality of their flow regimes, causing potentially marked changes in stream benthic assemblages. Sites with the highest loss of seasonality were predicted to support future assemblages that deviate most in compositional similarity from the present-day assemblages. Macroinvertebrate assemblages were also predicted to change more in headwaters than in larger streams, as headwaters were particularly sensitive to changes in flow patterns. Our results emphasize the importance of focusing protection and mitigation on headwater streams with high-flow seasonality because of their vulnerability to climate change.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Heikki Mykrä
- Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE), Freshwater Centre, Oulu, Finland
| | - Hannu Marttila
- Water Resources and Environmental Engineering Research Group, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | | | - Noora Veijalainen
- Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE), Freshwater Centre, Modelling and Assessment Unit, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Kalle Sippel
- Finnish Environment Institute (SYKE), Freshwater Centre, Modelling and Assessment Unit, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Timo Muotka
- Department of Ecology and Genetics, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Charles P Hawkins
- Department of Watershed Sciences, Western Center for Monitoring and Assessment of Freshwater Ecosystems, and the Ecology Center, Utah State University, Logan, UT, USA
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21
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Hill RA, Fox EW, Leibowitz SG, Olsen AR, Thornbrugh DJ, Weber MH. Predictive mapping of the biotic condition of conterminous U.S. rivers and streams. ECOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS : A PUBLICATION OF THE ECOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA 2017; 27:2397-2415. [PMID: 28871655 PMCID: PMC5796808 DOI: 10.1002/eap.1617] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2017] [Accepted: 08/23/2017] [Indexed: 05/23/2023]
Abstract
Understanding and mapping the spatial variation in stream biological condition could provide an important tool for conservation, assessment, and restoration of stream ecosystems. The USEPA's 2008-2009 National Rivers and Streams Assessment (NRSA) summarizes the percentage of stream lengths within the conterminous United States that are in good, fair, or poor biological condition based on a multimetric index of benthic invertebrate assemblages. However, condition is usually summarized at regional or national scales, and these assessments do not provide substantial insight into the spatial distribution of conditions at unsampled locations. We used random forests to model and predict the probable condition of several million kilometers of streams across the conterminous United States based on nearby and upstream landscape features, including human-related alterations to watersheds. To do so, we linked NRSA sample sites to the USEPA's StreamCat Dataset; a database of several hundred landscape metrics for all 1:100,000-scale streams and their associated watersheds within the conterminous United States. The StreamCat data provided geospatial indicators of nearby and upstream land use, land cover, climate, and other landscape features for modeling. Nationally, the model correctly predicted the biological condition class of 75% of NRSA sites. Although model evaluations suggested good discrimination among condition classes, we present maps as predicted probabilities of good condition, given upstream and nearby landscape settings. Inversely, the maps can be interpreted as the probability of a stream being in poor condition, given human-related watershed alterations. These predictions are available for download from the USEPA's StreamCat website. Finally, we illustrate how these predictions could be used to prioritize streams for conservation or restoration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryan A Hill
- National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory, Western Ecology Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 200 SW 35th Street, Corvallis, Oregon, 97333, USA
| | - Eric W Fox
- National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory, Western Ecology Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 200 SW 35th Street, Corvallis, Oregon, 97333, USA
| | - Scott G Leibowitz
- National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory, Western Ecology Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 200 SW 35th Street, Corvallis, Oregon, 97333, USA
| | - Anthony R Olsen
- National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory, Western Ecology Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 200 SW 35th Street, Corvallis, Oregon, 97333, USA
| | - Darren J Thornbrugh
- National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory, Western Ecology Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 200 SW 35th Street, Corvallis, Oregon, 97333, USA
| | - Marc H Weber
- National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory, Western Ecology Division, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 200 SW 35th Street, Corvallis, Oregon, 97333, USA
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22
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Mykrä H, Heino J. Decreased habitat specialization in macroinvertebrate assemblages in anthropogenically disturbed streams. ECOLOGICAL COMPLEXITY 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ecocom.2017.07.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
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23
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Kim KS, Chou H, Funk DH, Jackson JK, Sweeney BW, Buchwalter DB. Physiological responses to short-term thermal stress in mayfly (Neocloeon triangulifer) larvae in relation to upper thermal limits. J Exp Biol 2017; 220:2598-2605. [DOI: 10.1242/jeb.156919] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2017] [Accepted: 05/04/2017] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
ABSTRACT
Understanding species' thermal limits and their physiological determinants is critical in light of climate change and other human activities that warm freshwater ecosystems. Here, we ask whether oxygen limitation determines the chronic upper thermal limits in larvae of the mayfly Neocloeon triangulifer, an emerging model for ecological and physiological studies. Our experiments are based on a robust understanding of the upper acute (∼40°C) and chronic thermal limits of this species (>28°C, ≤30°C) derived from full life cycle rearing experiments across temperatures. We tested two related predictions derived from the hypothesis that oxygen limitation sets the chronic upper thermal limits: (1) aerobic scope declines in mayfly larvae as they approach and exceed temperatures that are chronically lethal to larvae; and (2) genes indicative of hypoxia challenge are also responsive in larvae exposed to ecologically relevant thermal limits. Neither prediction held true. We estimated aerobic scope by subtracting measurements of standard oxygen consumption rates from measurements of maximum oxygen consumption rates, the latter of which was obtained by treating with the metabolic uncoupling agent carbonyl cyanide-4-(trifluoromethoxy) pheylhydrazone (FCCP). Aerobic scope was similar in larvae held below and above chronic thermal limits. Genes indicative of oxygen limitation (LDH, EGL-9) were only upregulated under hypoxia or during exposure to temperatures beyond the chronic (and more ecologically relevant) thermal limits of this species (LDH). Our results suggest that the chronic thermal limits of this species are likely not driven by oxygen limitation, but rather are determined by other factors, e.g. bioenergetics costs. We caution against the use of short-term thermal ramping approaches to estimate critical thermal limits (CTmax) in aquatic insects because those temperatures are typically higher than those that occur in nature.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kyoung Sun Kim
- Graduate Toxicology Program, Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695, USA
| | - Hsuan Chou
- Graduate Toxicology Program, Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695, USA
| | - David H. Funk
- Stroud Water Research Center, Avondale, PA 19311, USA
| | | | | | - David B. Buchwalter
- Graduate Toxicology Program, Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC 27695, USA
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24
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Tang T, Stevenson RJ, Infante DM. Accounting for regional variation in both natural environment and human disturbance to improve performance of multimetric indices of lotic benthic diatoms. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2016; 568:1124-1134. [PMID: 27134128 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2016.03.060] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2016] [Revised: 03/10/2016] [Accepted: 03/10/2016] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
Regional variation in both natural environment and human disturbance can influence performance of ecological assessments. In this study we calculated 5 types of benthic diatom multimetric indices (MMIs) with 3 different approaches to account for variation in ecological assessments. We used: site groups defined by ecoregions or diatom typologies; the same or different sets of metrics among site groups; and unmodeled or modeled MMIs, where models accounted for natural variation in metrics within site groups by calculating an expected reference condition for each metric and each site. We used data from the USEPA's National Rivers and Streams Assessment to calculate the MMIs and evaluate changes in MMI performance. MMI performance was evaluated with indices of precision, bias, responsiveness, sensitivity and relevancy which were respectively measured as MMI variation among reference sites, effects of natural variables on MMIs, difference between MMIs at reference and highly disturbed sites, percent of highly disturbed sites properly classified, and relation of MMIs to human disturbance and stressors. All 5 types of MMIs showed considerable discrimination ability. Using different metrics among ecoregions sometimes reduced precision, but it consistently increased responsiveness, sensitivity, and relevancy. Site specific metric modeling reduced bias and increased responsiveness. Combined use of different metrics among site groups and site specific modeling significantly improved MMI performance irrespective of site grouping approach. Compared to ecoregion site classification, grouping sites based on diatom typologies improved precision, but did not improve overall performance of MMIs if we accounted for natural variation in metrics with site specific models. We conclude that using different metrics among ecoregions and site specific metric modeling improve MMI performance, particularly when used together. Applications of these MMI approaches in ecological assessments introduced a tradeoff with assessment consistency when metrics differed across site groups, but they justified the convenient and consistent use of ecoregions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tao Tang
- State Key Laboratory of Freshwater Ecology and Biotechnology, Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan 430072, China; Center for Water Sciences, Department of Integrative Biology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA
| | - R Jan Stevenson
- Center for Water Sciences, Department of Integrative Biology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA.
| | - Dana M Infante
- Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA
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25
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Turunen J, Muotka T, Vuori KM, Karjalainen SM, Rääpysjärvi J, Sutela T, Aroviita J. Disentangling the responses of boreal stream assemblages to low stressor levels of diffuse pollution and altered channel morphology. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2016; 544:954-962. [PMID: 26706766 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2015.12.031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2015] [Revised: 12/04/2015] [Accepted: 12/06/2015] [Indexed: 06/05/2023]
Abstract
Non-point diffuse pollution from land use and alteration of hydromorphology are among the most detrimental stressors to stream ecosystems. We explored the independent and interactive effects of morphological channel alteration (channelization for water transport of timber) and diffuse pollution on species richness and community structure of four organism groups in boreal streams: diatoms, macrophytes, macroinvertebrates, and fish. Furthermore, the effect of these stressors on stream condition was evaluated by Ecological Quality Ratios (EQR) from the national Water Framework Directive (WFD) assessment system. We grouped 91 study sites into four groups that were impacted by either diffuse pollution or hydromorphological alteration, by both stressors, or by neither one. Macroinvertebrate richness was reduced by diffuse pollution, whereas other biological groups were unaltered. Hydromorphological modification had no effect on taxon richness of any of the assemblages. Community structure of all groups was significantly affected by diffuse pollution but not by hydromorphology. Similarly, EQRs indicated negative response by diatoms, macroinvertebrates and fish to diffuse pollution, but not to hydromorphological alteration. Agricultural diffuse pollution thus affected species identities and abundances rather than taxonomic richness. Our results suggest that channelization of boreal streams for timber transport has not altered hydromorphological conditions sufficiently to have a strong impact on stream biota, whereas even moderate nutrient enrichment may be ecologically harmful. Controlling diffuse pollution and associated land use stressors should be prioritized over restoration of in-stream habitat structure to improve the ecological condition of boreal streams.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jarno Turunen
- Finnish Environment Institute, Freshwater Centre, PO Box 413, 90014 Oulu, Finland; Department of Ecology, PO Box 3000, 90014, University of Oulu, Finland.
| | - Timo Muotka
- Department of Ecology, PO Box 3000, 90014, University of Oulu, Finland; Finnish Environment Institute, Natural Environment Centre, PO Box 413, 90014 Oulu, Finland
| | - Kari-Matti Vuori
- Finnish Environment Institute, Laboratory Centre, PO Box 35, 40014, University of Jyväskylä, Finland; Lappeenranta University of Technology, PO Box 20, FI-53851 Lappeenranta, Finland
| | | | - Jaana Rääpysjärvi
- Finnish Environment Institute, Freshwater Centre, PO Box 413, 90014 Oulu, Finland
| | - Tapio Sutela
- Natural Resources Institute Finland, PO Box 413, 90014 Oulu, Finland
| | - Jukka Aroviita
- Finnish Environment Institute, Freshwater Centre, PO Box 413, 90014 Oulu, Finland
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Buss DF, Carlisle DM, Chon TS, Culp J, Harding JS, Keizer-Vlek HE, Robinson WA, Strachan S, Thirion C, Hughes RM. Stream biomonitoring using macroinvertebrates around the globe: a comparison of large-scale programs. ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING AND ASSESSMENT 2015; 187:4132. [PMID: 25487459 DOI: 10.1007/s10661-014-4132-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 84] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2014] [Accepted: 10/28/2014] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
Water quality agencies and scientists are increasingly adopting standardized sampling methodologies because of the challenges associated with interpreting data derived from dissimilar protocols. Here, we compare 13 protocols for monitoring streams from different regions and countries around the globe. Despite the spatially diverse range of countries assessed, many aspects of bioassessment structure and protocols were similar, thereby providing evidence of key characteristics that might be incorporated in a global sampling methodology. Similarities were found regarding sampler type, mesh size, sampling period, subsampling methods, and taxonomic resolution. Consistent field and laboratory methods are essential for merging data sets collected by multiple institutions to enable large-scale comparisons. We discuss the similarities and differences among protocols and present current trends and future recommendations for monitoring programs, especially for regions where large-scale protocols do not yet exist. We summarize the current state in one of these regions, Latin America, and comment on the possible development path for these techniques in this region. We conclude that several aspects of stream biomonitoring need additional performance evaluation (accuracy, precision, discriminatory power, relative costs), particularly when comparing targeted habitat (only the commonest habitat type) versus site-wide sampling (multiple habitat types), appropriate levels of sampling and processing effort, and standardized indicators to resolve dissimilarities among biomonitoring methods. Global issues such as climate change are creating an environment where there is an increasing need to have universally consistent data collection, processing and storage to enable large-scale trend analysis. Biomonitoring programs following standardized methods could aid international data sharing and interpretation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel F Buss
- Laboratório de Avaliação e Promoção da Saúde Ambiental, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, FIOCRUZ, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil,
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May JT, Brown LR, Rehn AC, Waite IR, Ode PR, Mazor RD, Schiff KC. Correspondence of biological condition models of California streams at statewide and regional scales. ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING AND ASSESSMENT 2015; 187:4086. [PMID: 25384371 PMCID: PMC4226928 DOI: 10.1007/s10661-014-4086-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2014] [Accepted: 10/28/2014] [Indexed: 05/05/2023]
Abstract
We used boosted regression trees (BRT) to model stream biological condition as measured by benthic macroinvertebrate taxonomic completeness, the ratio of observed to expected (O/E) taxa. Models were developed with and without exclusion of rare taxa at a site. BRT models are robust, requiring few assumptions compared with traditional modeling techniques such as multiple linear regression. The BRT models were constructed to provide baseline support to stressor delineation by identifying natural physiographic and human land use gradients affecting stream biological condition statewide and for eight ecological regions within the state, as part of the development of numerical biological objectives for California's wadeable streams. Regions were defined on the basis of ecological, hydrologic, and jurisdictional factors and roughly corresponded with ecoregions. Physiographic and land use variables were derived from geographic information system coverages. The model for the entire state (n = 1,386) identified a composite measure of anthropogenic disturbance (the sum of urban, agricultural, and unmanaged roadside vegetation land cover) within the local watershed as the most important variable, explaining 56% of the variance in O/E values. Models for individual regions explained between 51 and 84% of the variance in O/E values. Measures of human disturbance were important in the three coastal regions. In the South Coast and Coastal Chaparral, local watershed measures of urbanization were the most important variables related to biological condition, while in the North Coast the composite measure of human disturbance at the watershed scale was most important. In the two mountain regions, natural gradients were most important, including slope, precipitation, and temperature. The remaining three regions had relatively small sample sizes (n ≤ 75 sites) and had models that gave mixed results. Understanding the spatial scale at which land use and land cover affect taxonomic completeness is imperative for sound management. Our results suggest that invertebrate taxonomic completeness is affected by human disturbance at the statewide and regional levels, with some differences among regions in the importance of natural gradients and types of human disturbance. The construction and application of models similar to the ones presented here could be useful in the planning and prioritization of actions for protection and conservation of biodiversity in California streams.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jason T May
- United States Geological Survey, California Water Science Center, Sacramento, CA, USA,
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Garey AL, Smock LA. Principles for the Development of Contemporary Bioassessment Indices for Freshwater Ecosystems. THE HANDBOOK OF ENVIRONMENTAL CHEMISTRY 2015. [DOI: 10.1007/978-3-319-14212-8_9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
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Cowan-Ellsberry C, Belanger S, Dorn P, Dyer S, McAvoy D, Sanderson H, Versteeg D, Ferrer D, Stanton K. Environmental Safety of the Use of Major Surfactant Classes in North America. CRITICAL REVIEWS IN ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY 2014; 44:1893-1993. [PMID: 25170243 PMCID: PMC4130171 DOI: 10.1080/10739149.2013.803777] [Citation(s) in RCA: 95] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/24/2023]
Abstract
This paper brings together over 250 published and unpublished studies on the environmental properties, fate, and toxicity of the four major, high-volume surfactant classes and relevant feedstocks. The surfactants and feedstocks covered include alcohol sulfate or alcohol sulfate (AS), alcohol ethoxysulfate (AES), linear alkylbenzene sulfonate (LAS), alcohol ethoxylate (AE), and long-chain alcohol (LCOH). These chemicals are used in a wide range of personal care and cleaning products. To date, this is the most comprehensive report on these substance's chemical structures, use, and volume information, physical/chemical properties, environmental fate properties such as biodegradation and sorption, monitoring studies through sewers, wastewater treatment plants and eventual release to the environment, aquatic and sediment toxicity, and bioaccumulation information. These data are used to illustrate the process for conducting both prospective and retrospective risk assessments for large-volume chemicals and categories of chemicals with wide dispersive use. Prospective risk assessments of AS, AES, AE, LAS, and LCOH demonstrate that these substances, although used in very high volume and widely released to the aquatic environment, have no adverse impact on the aquatic or sediment environments at current levels of use. The retrospective risk assessments of these same substances have clearly demonstrated that the conclusions of the prospective risk assessments are valid and confirm that these substances do not pose a risk to the aquatic or sediment environments. This paper also highlights the many years of research that the surfactant and cleaning products industry has supported, as part of their environmental sustainability commitment, to improve environmental tools, approaches, and develop innovative methods appropriate to address environmental properties of personal care and cleaning product chemicals, many of which have become approved international standard methods.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Scott Dyer
- The Procter & Gamble Company, Mason, OH, USA
| | - Drew McAvoy
- University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH, USA
| | | | | | - Darci Ferrer
- American Cleaning Institute, Washington, DC, USA
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Pond GJ, North SH. Application of a benthic observed/expected-type model for assessing Central Appalachian streams influenced by regional stressors in West Virginia and Kentucky. ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING AND ASSESSMENT 2013; 185:9299-9320. [PMID: 24081743 DOI: 10.1007/s10661-013-3253-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2013] [Accepted: 05/11/2013] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
Stream bioassessments rely on taxonomic composition at sites compared with natural, reference conditions. We developed and tested an observed/expected (O/E) predictive model of taxonomic completeness and an index of compositional dissimilarity (BC index) for Central Appalachian streams using combined macroinvertebrate datasets from riffle habitats in West Virginia (WV) and Kentucky (KY). A total of 102 reference sites were used to calibrate the O/E model, which was then applied to assess over 1,200 sites sampled over a 10-year period. Using an all subsets discriminant function analysis (DFA) procedure, we tested combinations of 14 predictor variables that produced DF and O/E models of varying performance. We selected the most precise model using a probability of capture at >0.5 (O/E₀.₅, SD = 0.159); this model was constructed with only three simple predictor variables--Julian day, latitude, and whether a site was in ecoregion 69a. We evaluated O/E and BC indices between reference and test sites and compared their response to regional stressors, including coal mining, residential development, and acid deposition. The Central Appalachian O/E and BC indices both showed excellent discriminatory power and were significantly correlated to a variety of regional stressors; in some instances, the BC index was slightly more sensitive and responsive than the O/E₀.₅ model. These indices can be used to supplement existing bioassessment tools crucial to detecting and diagnosing stream impacts in the Central Appalachian region of WV and KY.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gregory J Pond
- Office of Monitoring and Assessment, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region III, Wheeling, WV, USA,
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31
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Hallstan S, Johnson RK, Willén E, Grandin U. Comparison of classification-then-modelling and species-by-species modelling for predicting lake phytoplankton assemblages. Ecol Modell 2012. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2012.01.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
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Mulder C, Boit A, Mori S, Vonk JA, Dyer SD, Faggiano L, Geisen S, González AL, Kaspari M, Lavorel S, Marquet PA, Rossberg AG, Sterner RW, Voigt W, Wall DH. Distributional (In)Congruence of Biodiversity–Ecosystem Functioning. ADV ECOL RES 2012. [DOI: 10.1016/b978-0-12-396992-7.00001-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
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33
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Cao Y, Hawkins CP. The comparability of bioassessments: a review of conceptual and methodological issues. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2011. [DOI: 10.1899/10-067.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 72] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Yong Cao
- Western Center for Monitoring and Assessment of Freshwater Ecosystems, Department of Watershed Sciences, Utah State University, Logan, Utah 84322-5210 USA
| | - Charles P. Hawkins
- Western Center for Monitoring and Assessment of Freshwater Ecosystems, Department of Watershed Sciences, Utah State University, Logan, Utah 84322-5210 USA
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Schmidt TS, Clements WH, Zuellig RE, Mitchell KA, Church SE, Wanty RB, San Juan CA, Adams M, Lamothe PJ. Critical tissue residue approach linking accumulated metals in aquatic insects to population and community-level effects. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2011; 45:7004-7010. [PMID: 21793485 DOI: 10.1021/es200215s] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/31/2023]
Abstract
Whole body Zn concentrations in individuals (n = 825) from three aquatic insect taxa (mayflies Rhithrogena spp. and Drunella spp. and the caddisfly Arctopsyche grandis) were used to predict effects on populations and communities (n = 149 samples). Both mayflies accumulated significantly more Zn than the caddisfly. The presence/absence of Drunella spp. most reliably distinguished sites with low and high Zn concentrations; however, population densities of mayflies were more sensitive to increases in accumulated Zn. Critical tissue residues (634 μg/g Zn for Drunella spp. and 267 μg/g Zn for Rhithrogena spp.) caused a 20% reduction in maximum (90th quantile) mayfly densities. These critical tissue residues were associated with exposure to 7.0 and 3.9 μg/L dissolved Zn for Drunella spp. and Rhithrogena spp., respectively. A threshold in a measure of taxonomic completeness (observed/expected) was observed at 5.4 μg/L dissolved Zn. Dissolved Zn concentrations associated with critical tissue residues in mayflies were also associated with adverse effects in the aquatic community as a whole. These effects on populations and communities occurred at Zn concentrations below the U.S. EPA hardness-adjusted continuous chronic criterion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Travis S Schmidt
- Fort Collins Science Center, U.S. Geological Survey, Fort Collins, Colorado 80526, USA.
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35
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Pilgrim EM, Jackson SA, Swenson S, Turcsanyi I, Friedman E, Weigt L, Bagley MJ. Incorporation of DNA barcoding into a large-scale biomonitoring program: opportunities and pitfalls. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2011. [DOI: 10.1899/10-012.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Erik M. Pilgrim
- Ecological Exposure Research Division, National Exposure Research Laboratory, US Environmental Protection Agency, 26 West Martin Luther King Dr., Cincinnati, Ohio 45268 USA
| | - Suzanne A. Jackson
- Ecological Exposure Research Division, National Exposure Research Laboratory, US Environmental Protection Agency, 26 West Martin Luther King Dr., Cincinnati, Ohio 45268 USA
| | - Stephanie Swenson
- Department of Entomology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC 20013-7012 USA
| | - Istvan Turcsanyi
- Dynamac Corporation, 1919 Lincoln Dr., Annapolis, Maryland 21401 USA
| | - Ellen Friedman
- Monitoring and Non-Tidal Assessment Division, Maryland Department of Natural Resources, 1919 Lincoln Dr., Annapolis, Maryland 21401 USA
| | - Lee Weigt
- Laboratories of Analytical Biology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, 4210 Silver Hill Rd., Suitland, Maryland 20746 USA
| | - Mark J. Bagley
- Ecological Exposure Research Division, National Exposure Research Laboratory, US Environmental Protection Agency, 26 West Martin Luther King Dr., Cincinnati, Ohio 45268 USA
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36
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Pfrender M, Hawkins C, Bagley M, Courtney G, Creutzburg B, Epler J, Fend S, Ferrington L, Hartzell P, Jackson S, Larsen D, Lévesque C, Morse J, Petersen M, Ruiter D, Schindel D, Whiting M. Assessing Macroinvertebrate Biodiversity in Freshwater Ecosystems: Advances and Challenges in DNA-based Approaches. QUARTERLY REVIEW OF BIOLOGY 2010; 85:319-40. [DOI: 10.1086/655118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
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37
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Cao Y, Epifanio J. Quantifying the responses of macroinvertebrate assemblages to simulated stress: are more accurate similarity indices less useful? Methods Ecol Evol 2010. [DOI: 10.1111/j.2041-210x.2010.00040.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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38
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Hawkins CP, Olson JR, Hill RA. The reference condition: predicting benchmarks for ecological and water-quality assessments. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2010. [DOI: 10.1899/09-092.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 225] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Charles P. Hawkins
- Western Center for Monitoring and Assessment of Freshwater Ecosystems, Department of Watershed Sciences, Ecology Center, Utah State University, Logan, Utah 84322-5210 USA
| | - John R. Olson
- Western Center for Monitoring and Assessment of Freshwater Ecosystems, Department of Watershed Sciences, Ecology Center, Utah State University, Logan, Utah 84322-5210 USA
| | - Ryan A. Hill
- Western Center for Monitoring and Assessment of Freshwater Ecosystems, Department of Watershed Sciences, Ecology Center, Utah State University, Logan, Utah 84322-5210 USA
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39
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Dolédec S, Statzner B. Responses of freshwater biota to human disturbances: contribution of J-NABS to developments in ecological integrity assessments. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2010. [DOI: 10.1899/08-090.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 97] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Sylvain Dolédec
- UMR CNRS 5023 Ecologie Hydrosystèmes Fluviaux, Université Claude Bernard Lyon I, 43 bd du 11 novembre 1918, 69622 Villeurbanne Cedex, France
| | - Bernhard Statzner
- CNRS, Biodiversité des Ecosystèmes Lotiques, 304 Chemin Creuse Roussillon, F-01600 Parcieux, France
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40
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Collier KJ. Linking multimetric and multivariate approaches to assess the ecological condition of streams. ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING AND ASSESSMENT 2009; 157:113-124. [PMID: 18802781 DOI: 10.1007/s10661-008-0521-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2008] [Accepted: 08/28/2008] [Indexed: 05/26/2023]
Abstract
Few attempts have been made to combine multimetric and multivariate analyses for bioassessment despite recognition that an integrated method could yield powerful tools for bioassessment. An approach is described that integrates eight macroinvertebrate community metrics into a Principal Components Analysis to develop a Multivariate Condition Score (MCS) from a calibration dataset of 511 samples. The MCS is compared to an Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI) derived using the same metrics based on the ratio to the reference site mean. Both approaches were highly correlated although the MCS appeared to offer greater potential for discriminating a wider range of impaired conditions. Both the MCS and IBI displayed low temporal variability within reference sites, and were able to distinguish between reference conditions and low levels of catchment modification and local habitat degradation, although neither discriminated among three levels of low impact. Pseudosamples developed to test the response of the metric aggregation approaches to organic enrichment, urban, mining, pastoral and logging stressor scenarios ranked pressures in the same order, but the MCS provided a lower score for the urban scenario and a higher score for the pastoral scenario. The MCS was calculated for an independent test dataset of urban and reference sites, and yielded similar results to the IBI. Although both methods performed comparably, the MCS approach may have some advantages because it removes the subjectivity of assigning thresholds for scoring biological condition, and it appears to discriminate a wider range of degraded conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin J Collier
- Environment Waikato, PO Box 4010, Hamilton East, Hamilton, New Zealand.
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41
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Carlisle DM, Falcone J, Meador MR. Predicting the biological condition of streams: use of geospatial indicators of natural and anthropogenic characteristics of watersheds. ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING AND ASSESSMENT 2009; 151:143-60. [PMID: 18493861 DOI: 10.1007/s10661-008-0256-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2007] [Accepted: 02/29/2008] [Indexed: 05/21/2023]
Abstract
We developed and evaluated empirical models to predict biological condition of wadeable streams in a large portion of the eastern USA, with the ultimate goal of prediction for unsampled basins. Previous work had classified (i.e., altered vs. unaltered) the biological condition of 920 streams based on a biological assessment of macroinvertebrate assemblages. Predictor variables were limited to widely available geospatial data, which included land cover, topography, climate, soils, societal infrastructure, and potential hydrologic modification. We compared the accuracy of predictions of biological condition class based on models with continuous and binary responses. We also evaluated the relative importance of specific groups and individual predictor variables, as well as the relationships between the most important predictors and biological condition. Prediction accuracy and the relative importance of predictor variables were different for two subregions for which models were created. Predictive accuracy in the highlands region improved by including predictors that represented both natural and human activities. Riparian land cover and road-stream intersections were the most important predictors. In contrast, predictive accuracy in the lowlands region was best for models limited to predictors representing natural factors, including basin topography and soil properties. Partial dependence plots revealed complex and nonlinear relationships between specific predictors and the probability of biological alteration. We demonstrate a potential application of the model by predicting biological condition in 552 unsampled basins across an ecoregion in southeastern Wisconsin (USA). Estimates of the likelihood of biological condition of unsampled streams could be a valuable tool for screening large numbers of basins to focus targeted monitoring of potentially unaltered or altered stream segments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daren M Carlisle
- National Water-Quality Assessment Program, US Geological Survey, Reston, VA 20192, USA.
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42
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Stribling JB, Pavlik KL, Holdsworth SM, Leppo EW. Data quality, performance, and uncertainty in taxonomic identification for biological assessments. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2008. [DOI: 10.1899/07-175.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- James B. Stribling
- Tetra Tech, Inc., 400 Red Brook Blvd., Suite 200, Owings Mills, Maryland 21117-5159 USA
| | - Kristen L. Pavlik
- Tetra Tech, Inc., 400 Red Brook Blvd., Suite 200, Owings Mills, Maryland 21117-5159 USA
| | - Susan M. Holdsworth
- Office of Wetlands, Oceans, and Watersheds, US Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Mail Code 4503T, Washington, DC 20460 USA
| | - Erik W. Leppo
- Tetra Tech, Inc., 400 Red Brook Blvd., Suite 200, Owings Mills, Maryland 21117-5159 USA
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43
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Carlisle DM, Hawkins CP. Land use and the structure of western US stream invertebrate assemblages: predictive models and ecological traits. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2008. [DOI: 10.1899/07-176.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- D. M. Carlisle
- National Water-Quality Assessment Program, US Geological Survey, 12201 Sunrise Valley Drive, MS 413, Reston, Virginia 20192 USA
| | - C. P. Hawkins
- Western Center for Monitoring and Assessment of Freshwater Ecosystems, Department of Watershed Sciences, and the Ecology Center, Utah State University, Logan, Utah 84322-5210 USA
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44
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Hughes RM, Peck DV. Acquiring data for large aquatic resource surveys: the art of compromise among science, logistics, and reality. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2008. [DOI: 10.1899/08-028.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 163] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Robert M. Hughes
- Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Oregon State University, 200 SW 35th Street, Corvallis, Oregon 97333 USA
| | - David V. Peck
- Office of Research and Development, National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory, Western Ecology Division, US Environmental Protection Agency, 200 SW 35th Street, Corvallis, Oregon 97333 USA
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45
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Aroviita J, Koskenniemi E, Kotanen J, Hämäläinen H. A priori typology-based prediction of benthic macroinvertebrate fauna for ecological classification of rivers. ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT 2008; 42:894-906. [PMID: 18566856 DOI: 10.1007/s00267-008-9173-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2007] [Revised: 04/14/2008] [Accepted: 05/27/2008] [Indexed: 05/26/2023]
Abstract
We evaluated a simple bioassessment method based on a priori river typology to predict benthic macroinvertebrate fauna in riffle sites of rivers in the absence of human influence. Our approach predicted taxon lists specific to four river types differing in catchment area with a method analogous to the site-specific RIVPACS-type models. The reference sites grouped in accordance with their type in NMS ordination, indicating that the typology efficiently accounted for natural variation in macroinvertebrate assemblages. Compared with a null model, typology greatly increased the precision of prediction and sensitivity to detect human impairment and strengthened the correlation of the ratio of observed-to-expected number of predicted taxa (O/E) with the measured stressor variables. The performance of the typology-based approach was equal to that of a RIVPACS-type predictive model that we developed. Exclusion of rarest taxa with low occurrence probabilities improved the performance of both approaches by all criteria. With an increasing inclusion threshold of occurrence probability, especially the predictive model sensitivity first increased but then decreased. Many common taxa with intermediate type-specific occurrence probabilities were consistently missing from impacted sites, a result suggesting that these taxa may be especially important in detecting human disturbances. We conclude that if a typology-based approach such as that suggested by the European Union's Water Framework Directive is required, the O/E ratio of type-specific taxa can be a useful metric for assessment of the status of riffle macroinvertebrate communities. Successful application of the approach, however, requires biologically meaningful river types with a sufficient pool of reference sites for each type.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jukka Aroviita
- Department of Biological and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä, P.O. Box 35, 40014, Jyväskylä University, Finland.
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Van Sickle J. An index of compositional dissimilarity between observed and expected assemblages. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2008. [DOI: 10.1899/07-111.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- John Van Sickle
- National Health and Environmental Effects Research Laboratory, US Environmental Protection Agency, 200 SW 35th St., Corvallis, Oregon 97333 USA
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Carlisle DM, Hawkins CP, Meador MR, Potapova M, Falcone J. Biological assessments of Appalachian streams based on predictive models for fish, macroinvertebrate, and diatom assemblages. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2008. [DOI: 10.1899/06-081.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 89] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Daren M. Carlisle
- National Water-Quality Assessment Program, US Geological Survey, 12201 Sunrise Valley Drive, MS 413, Reston, Virginia 20192 USA
| | - Charles P. Hawkins
- Western Center for Monitoring and Assessment of Freshwater Ecosystems, Department of Aquatic, Watershed, and Earth Resources, and the Ecology Center, Utah State University, Logan, Utah 84322-5210 USA
| | - Michael R. Meador
- National Water-Quality Assessment Program, US Geological Survey, 12201 Sunrise Valley Drive, MS 413, Reston, Virginia 20192 USA
| | - Marina Potapova
- Patrick Center for Environmental Research, The Academy of Natural Sciences, 1900 Benjamin Franklin Parkway, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103 USA
| | - James Falcone
- National Water-Quality Assessment Program, US Geological Survey, 12201 Sunrise Valley Drive, MS 413, Reston, Virginia 20192 USA
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Stribling JB, Jessup BK, Feldman DL. Precision of benthic macroinvertebrate indicators of stream condition in Montana. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2008. [DOI: 10.1899/07-037r.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- James B. Stribling
- Center for Ecological Sciences, Tetra Tech, Inc., 400 Red Brook Blvd., Suite 200, Owings Mills, Maryland 21117-5159 USA
| | - Benjamin K. Jessup
- Tetra Tech, Inc., 15 State St., Suite 301, Montpelier, Vermont 05602 USA
| | - David L. Feldman
- Montana Department of Environmental Quality, 1520 East 6th Ave., Helena, Montana 59620-0901 USA
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Cao Y, Hawkins CP, Olson J, Kosterman MA. Modeling natural environmental gradients improves the accuracy and precision of diatom-based indicators. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2007. [DOI: 10.1899/06-078.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 83] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Yong Cao
- Western Center for Monitoring and Assessment of Freshwater Ecosystems, Department of Watershed Sciences and Ecology Center, Utah State University, Logan, Utah 84322-5210 USA
| | - Charles P. Hawkins
- Western Center for Monitoring and Assessment of Freshwater Ecosystems, Department of Watershed Sciences and Ecology Center, Utah State University, Logan, Utah 84322-5210 USA
| | - John Olson
- Western Center for Monitoring and Assessment of Freshwater Ecosystems, Department of Watershed Sciences and Ecology Center, Utah State University, Logan, Utah 84322-5210 USA
| | - Mary A. Kosterman
- Surface Water Quality, Idaho Department of Environmental Quality, Boise, Idaho 83706 USA
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50
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Rehn AC, Ode PR, Hawkins CP. Comparisons of targeted-riffle and reach-wide benthic macroinvertebrate samples: implications for data sharing in stream-condition assessments. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2007. [DOI: 10.1899/0887-3593(2007)26[332:cotarb]2.0.co;2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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