Aquatic Ecology/Adv. Aquatic Ecology

EEES 47/57/7730 – 3 credits (Fall 2011)

• Introduction

• Syllabus

• Why study aquatic ecology?

• Chapter 1 – Dodson

Aquatic Ecology:

A discipline that uses the principles/methods of ecology to study aquatic environments.

Fig. 1.2 & 1.3. Location of lakes and streams mentioned in the text book

Pre

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ce

of

we

tlan

ds

Northern Canada/Alaska

Continental U.S. EquatorialNeotropics

Nu

mb

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of

we

tla

nd

sc

ien

tis

ts

Latitude distribution of wetlands based on Matthews and Fung (1987), global lakes and wetlands database (GLWD), and gross wetland map (redrawn from Lehner and Doll 2004)

Why study Aquatic Ecology?Some recent headlines

• Record amounts of dissolved phosphorus hit Lake Erie

Why study Aquatic Ecology?Some recent headlines

• Record amounts of dissolved phosphorus

hit Lake Erie

• Algae blooms could threaten Lake Erie

ecosystem (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5TlXQazNx00)

Why study Aquatic Ecology?Some recent headlines

• Record amounts of dissolved phosphorus

hit Lake Erie

• Algae blooms could threaten Lake Erie

ecosystem (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5TlXQazNx00)

Why are you taking Aquatic Ecology

A. I love lakes, rivers, and oceans and the organisms found in them

B. Aquatic ecosystems provide a unique model system for the study of complex ecological processes

C. I like to fish

D. This was the only elective I could schedule

Describe your level of exposure to aquatic ecosystem. Have you done some research? Do you fish, snorkel, SCUBA, hike near rivers etc……..

epilittoral

supralittoraleulittoral

spray zone

spray & wavesbetween high & low water

upper littoral; emergent veg

middle littoral; floating veg

lower littoral; submerged veg

littoriprofundal; photosynthetic bacteria & algae

profundal; no vegetation or algae

litto

ral

pelagia

Within-Lake Zones

epilimnion

metalimnionthermocline

hypolimnion

Introduction to some aquatic organisms & habitats

pelagic zone: water column in lake, ocean, or estuary (not often applied to rivers).

plankton: pelagic organisms that can’t swim well in the horizontal plane ex. algae (phytoplankton), invertebrates (zooplankton), and larval fish

necton: pelagic organisms that can swim well in the horizontal plane ex. adult fish

benthic zone: the bottom of a lake, river, estuary or ocean. Includes algae, plants, invertebrates, and fish.

planktonnekton

benthos

River habitats pool: deep, slow velocity, fine substrates run: between pool & riffle riffle: shallow, high velocity, gravel cobble substrate

RR

R R

PP

PP

flow

P R

P R

P

gravel bars

Kalff 2002

Experimental duration vs. experimental area in limnology

Crater Lake, Oregon

Add image crater lake and Great Lakes watershed

Crater Lake, Oregon: 600 m deep and 53 km2 large caldera lake (NPS)

Fig. 1.12. Charles Elton's “box and arrow” nitrogen cycle model (1927)

Fig. 1.13. Generalized food web model of a lake (boxes labeled with names of aquatic taxa, as opposed to a trophic model dealing with energy and nutrient flow)

Fig. 1.14. Trophic model (Lindeman 1941)

Empirical predictive model

"A lecture is a process in which information passes from the notes of the professor into the notes of the student

without passing through the minds of either."

(Gilstrap and Martin, 1975)