Limnology BIOL 362 WMAN 446

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LimnologyBIOL 362 / WMAN 446

• Lecture 1
• Introduction to Limnology
• the class and the science
• January 8, 2007
• JTPetty Class Notes

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Importance of Attending Class Grades vs.
Attendance (Spring 2005)
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WHAT IS LIMNOLOGY?
Study of fresh and saline waters contained within
terrestrial or continental boundaries
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BOGS, SWAMPS and MARSHES WETLANDS
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LAKES and PONDS
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RESERVOIRS
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Small Headwater Stream
Unnamed Tributary of Crooked Run of Elk River
Pocahontas County, WV
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Large Stream / Small River
Middle New River Gorge
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Large River
Mississippi River at Ohio River Confluence
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THE HABITATS
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WHY STUDY LIMNOLOGY?
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The Value of Water as an Economic Good

• Irrigation
• Industry
• Drinking Water Supply

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The Value of Aquatic Ecosystem Services
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Ecosystem
A functioning natural unit with interacting
biotic and abiotic components in a system whose
boundaries are determined by cycles and fluxes of
energy, materials, and organisms (e.g., Great
Lakes Ecosystem, Okeefenokee Swamp Ecosystem,
Monongahela River / Tributary Complex)
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Ecosystem Services
The conditions and processes through which
natural ecosystems, and the species that make
them up, sustain and fulfill human life.
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Aquatic Ecosystem Goods and Services

• Flood Control
• Transportation
• Real Estate Value
• Recreation
• Purification of Human and Industrial Wastes
• Habitats for Plants and Animals
• Efficient Production of Fish, other Foods, and
  Marketable Goods

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Flood Control
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Transportation
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Real Estate Value
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Recreation
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Biodiversity
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Food
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Contemporary Issues in Limnology

• Ecosystem Concept
• Watershed Scale Perspective
• Effects of Land Use on Aquatic Ecosystem Condition

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Stream Habitats and Spatial Scale
Drainage Network gt10 km 10,000 yrs
Segment 1 km 100 1000 yrs
Reach 100 1000 m 10 100 yrs
Channel Unit 10 100 m 1 10 yrs
Microhabitat 1 10 m 1 day 1 year
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HUMAN ACTIVITIES

• Agriculture
• Construction / Urban Development
• Chemical Production
• Dams
• Water Diversion
• Forestry
• Mining
• Power Generation
• Over Fishing
• Species Introductions (intentional and accidental)

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AQUATIC ECOSYSTEM IMPACTS

• Nutrient Loading and Eutrophication
• Sedimentation
• Acid Precipitation
• Acid Mine Drainage
• Altered Stream Flow
• Unstable Channel Morphology
• Migration Barriers
• Thermal Pollution
• Exotic Species