Empirically-based modeling and mapping to consider the co-occurrence of ecological receptors and stressors

Martin, Roy W.; Waits, Eric R.; Nietch, Christopher T.

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.08.301

Cited by 4 publications

(3 citation statements)

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“…The application of GIS in ecotoxicology provides opportunities to improve risk assessments and can help develop and refine research and monitoring programs. Further, capitalizing on unique properties of spatial data and using them as a modeling advantage to assess spatial heterogeneity can help to develop more accurate estimations of exposure, effects, and risk (Martin et al 2018). The availability of large-spatial-scale biomonitoring data that is georeferenced is always a challenge when conducting landscape ecotoxicology.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Nevertheless, the theoretical framework has recently been examined in the journal Environmental Toxicology & Chemistry, with perspectives from academia, government, and industry providing insight into the future development and utility of landscape ecotoxicology in spatially explicit risk assessments (Focks 2014). Although there has been an increase in attention paid to spatial analyses in exposure assessments, spatial methods and spatial statistics have not been fully applied to the assessment of exposures and biological responses across large landscapes, particularly through standard methods associated with landscape ecotoxicology (Martin et al 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Moreover, ecosystems are exposed to mixtures of chemicals. Therefore, spatial analytical methods capable of assessing complex exposures and quantifying how the complex exposures and responses change across a landscape are needed (Martin et al 2018). As a result, it is difficult to effectively analyze, interpret, and communicate the results to regulators, policymakers, and other stakeholders, including the general public.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Use of Geographic Information Systems for Spatial Ecological Risk Assessments: An Example from the Athabasca Oil Sands Area in Canada

Eccles

Pauli

Chan

2019

Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry

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There is an acknowledged need in ecotoxicology for methods that integrate spatial analyses in risk assessment. This has resulted in the emergence of landscape ecotoxicology, a subdiscipline of ecotoxicology. However, landscape ecotoxicology has yet to become common practice in risk assessment due to the underdevelopment of techniques and a lack of standardized methods. In the present study, we demonstrate how geographic information systems (GISs) can serve as a standardized platform to integrate data, assess spatial patterns of ecotoxicological data for multiple species, and assess relationships between chemical mixture exposures and effects on biota for landscape ecotoxicological risks assessment. We use data collected under the Joint Oil Sands Monitoring Program in the Athabasca Oil Sands Region in Alberta, Canada. This dataset is composed of concentrations of contaminants including metals and polycyclic aromatic compounds, and health endpoints measured in 1100 biological samples, including tree swallows, amphibians, gull and tern eggs, plants, and mammals. We present 3 examples using a GIS as a platform and geospatial analysis to: 1) integrate data and assess spatial patterns of contaminant exposure in the region, 2) assess spatial patterns of exposures to complex mixtures, and 3) examine patterns of exposures and responses across the landscape. We summarize the methods used in the present study into a workflow for ease of use. The GIS methods allow researchers to identify hot spots of contamination, use georeferenced monitoring data to derive quantitative exposure‐response relationships, and assess complex exposures with more realism. Environ Toxicol Chem 2019;38:2797–2810. © 2019 SETAC

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Use of Geographic Information Systems for Spatial Ecological Risk Assessments: An Example from the Athabasca Oil Sands Area in Canada

Eccles

Pauli

Chan

2019

Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry

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The Silverjaw Minnow, Ericymba buccata: An Extraordinary Lateral Line System and its Contribution to Prey Detection

Jones,

Maia,

Conway

et al. 2024

Integrative and Comparative Biology

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Fishes use their mechanosensory lateral line system to detect local water flows in different behavioral contexts, including the detection of prey. The lateral line system is comprised of neuromast receptor organs on the skin (superficial neuromasts) and within bony canals (canal neuromasts). Most fishes have one cranial lateral line canal phenotype, but the silverjaw minnow (Ericymba buccata) has two: narrow canals dorsal and caudal to the eye and widened canals ventral to the eye and along the mandible. The ventrally directed widened lateral line canals have been hypothesized to be an adaptation for detection of their benthic prey. Multiple morphological methods were used to describe the narrow and widened canals and canal neuromasts in detail. The primary distribution of hundreds of superficial neuromasts and taste buds ventral to the eye and on the mandible (described here for the first time) suggests additional sensory investment for detecting flow and chemical stimuli emanating from benthic prey. The hypothesis that the lateral line system mediates prey localization was tested by measuring five parameters in behavioral trials in which the combination of sensory modalities available to fish was manipulated (four experimental treatments). Fish detected and localized prey regardless of available sensory modalities and they were able to detect prey in the dark in the absence of lateral line input (lateral line ablation with neomycin sulfate) revealing that chemoreception was sufficient to mediate benthic prey detection, localization, and consumption. However, elimination of lateral line input resulted in a change in the angle of approach to live (mobile) prey even when visual input was available, suggesting that mechanosensory input contributes to the successful detection and localization of prey. The results of this study demonstrate that the extraordinary lateral line canal system of the silverjaw minnow, in addition to the large number of superficial neuromasts, and the presence of numerous extraoral taste buds, likely represent adaptations for multimodal integration of sensory inputs contributing to foraging behavior in this species. The morphological and behavioral results of this study both suggest that this species would be an excellent model for future comparative structural and functional studies of sensory systems in fishes.

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Reducing direct physical disturbance also mitigates hidden drivers of decline in a threatened seagrass meadow

Griffin,

Johnston,

Poore

et al. 2024

Front. Conserv. Sci.

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Physical disturbances typically cause ecological impacts within areas of direct contact (primary disturbances) but can also impact surrounding areas through other mechanisms (secondary disturbances). Secondary disturbances are often overlooked, especially in marine ecosystems where sufficiently detailed observation can be difficult to obtain. For example, boat moorings create circular clearings in seagrass meadows by physically scouring the seabed, but visible impacts extend beyond this into surrounding areas due to disturbances such as increased sediment transport, edge effects, and shading from boats. Previous studies on impacts of moorings have not distinguished between primary and secondary disturbances, and secondary disturbances are rarely accounted for in environmental management. We used spatial modelling to examine the primary and secondary disturbances associated with moorings in a meadow of the threatened seagrass Posidonia australis. We compared the disturbance from traditional ‘swing’ moorings with ‘environmentally friendly’ moorings (EFM) designed to reduce scour. Within the scour zone (0-5 m from moorings), we compared seagrass cover around swing moorings with cover around EFM. Further from moorings (5-25 m), we tested the degree of association between seagrass cover and secondary disturbances that may accumulate with mooring density and be influenced by mooring design. We found that mooring design affected the degree of direct disturbance, with cover of P. australis in the scour zone of standard moorings ~49% lower than that of EFMs (p < 0.01). Mooring density had cumulative negative effects on P. australis cover in the surrounding meadow, but the influence of mooring density was reduced when most moorings were EFMs. This suggests that secondary effects contingent on direct physical disturbance (e.g. sediment transport, fragmentation, edge effects) may be stronger than the general influence of moored boats (shading). We use the findings to simulate two broad policy scenarios for mooring designs in P. australis meadows: installing only EFM, or only traditional moorings. The simulations suggest that using only EFM would lead to a 14.2% increase (~164 m2), whereas installing only traditional moorings would lead to a 16% (~187 m2) loss of P. australis cover in this already highly disturbed meadow. Synthesis and applications: We demonstrate a nondestructive approach to assessing primary and secondary disturbances driving the distribution of a threatened seagrass and simulate a range of potential management scenarios that could assist in conserving the species.

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Empirically-based modeling and mapping to consider the co-occurrence of ecological receptors and stressors

Cited by 4 publications

References 58 publications

The Use of Geographic Information Systems for Spatial Ecological Risk Assessments: An Example from the Athabasca Oil Sands Area in Canada

The Use of Geographic Information Systems for Spatial Ecological Risk Assessments: An Example from the Athabasca Oil Sands Area in Canada

The Silverjaw Minnow, Ericymba buccata: An Extraordinary Lateral Line System and its Contribution to Prey Detection

Reducing direct physical disturbance also mitigates hidden drivers of decline in a threatened seagrass meadow

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