ECOL 417 Midterm 1

Limnology

the study of inland waters - lakes (freshwater and saline), reservoirs, rivers, streams, wetlands, and groundwater - as ecological systems interacting with their drainage basins and the atmosphere

Freshwater Ecology

the study of the structure, function, and change of organisms in fresh waters as affected by their dynamic physical, chemical, and biotic environments

• saline waters (>0.3% or 3g/L) are excluded from this definition

Types of waterbodies

• characterized using mostly physical characteristics (size, depth, flow/residence time) but also chemical and biological characteristics

• lentic

• lotic

lentic

still water

• ex. lake, pond, wetland

lotic

flowing water

• ex. creek, stream, river

lake vs pond vs wetland: ponds

• first identification by size

• ponds are small (<5 ha area) and shallow (<5m depth)

• limited emergent vegetation (<30% coverage)

• where light penetration goes throughout entirety of lake

lake vs pond vs wetland: lakes

• anything bigger than ponds size

lake vs pond vs wetland: wetlands

• more than <30% coverage of emergent vegetation

lake morphology

physical shape of lakes

lake morphometry

measurement of the shape of lakes (quantitative info)

why does lake morphology matter?

lake origin tells us about morphology which tells us the physical (ex. temp), chemical, and biological parameters (ex. organisms expected to see)

lake origins: glacial