Sublethal effects of temperature on freshwater organisms, with special reference to aquatic insects

摘要: Water temperature is a key variable affecting aquatic organisms. Understanding their response to elevated water temperatures important for estimating upper thermal limits, and ultimately assisting with setting defendable, biologically-relevant guidelines lotic systems. Sublethal effects impacting on an individual organism or species may manifest at higher levels of the hierarchy, namely, populations, communities entire ecosystems. typically include those organism's physiology metabolism (e.g. growth rates, secondary productivity, respiration); phenology development time, voltinism, emergence); reproductive success fitness fecundity, rates egg hatching); behaviour migration, movement, drift); broad-scale ecological richness, composition, density, distribution patterns). are discussed examples drawn from freshwater studies, in particular focused insects. Commonly-used methods, which vary simple, cost-effective, laboratory-based methods more elaborate, expensive, laboratory- field-based assimilated serve as toolbox future research. Ultimately, method adopted depends largely question(s) being asked available resources.