Use of fauna as biomonitors
Five criteria by which to evaluate the suitability of faunal species as biomonitors are proffered. The criteria which should be considered include: species response to environmental condition, distribution of species, cost of biomonitoring, precision of measurements and ease of maintaining a monitoring system. As an example, the criteria are used in assessing the utility of using nesting Great Blue Herons as biomonitors of fate and effects of environmental contaminants. Emphasis is placed on a method of determining optimal sampling based on cost and precision of measurements of environmental condition. Heron excreta, collected from nine colonies throughout the arid, Mid-Columbia region of Washington, was analyzd to determine levels of specific pollutants. Analyses of variance components were conducted and estimates of within and among-colony variance in levels of selected pollutants are provided. From such variance estimates, numbers of colonies and samples within colonies needed to obtain precise estimates of pollutant levels are determined. The costs of each aspect of sampling are accounted for and are incorporated into a cost function to estimate the cost of sampling. Costs associated specifically with colonies and those attributed to samples within colonies are related to estimates of among and within-colony variation in pollutant levels. This enables determination of the most cost-effective allocation of sampling effort. This method of associating precision and cost is also applied to counts of fledglings for assessment of effects.
- Research Organization:
- Pacific Northwest Lab., Richland, WA (USA)
- DOE Contract Number:
- AC06-76RL01830
- OSTI ID:
- 5688203
- Report Number(s):
- PNL-SA-10954; CONF-830872-2; ON: DE83016082
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: Renewable resources inventory for monitoring changes and trends meeting, Corvallis, OR, USA, 15 Aug 1983
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
BIRDS
CONTAMINATION
WATER POLLUTION
BIOLOGICAL INDICATORS
COST
FECES
FOOD CHAINS
MONITORING
SAMPLING
STATISTICS
WASHINGTON
ANIMALS
BIOLOGICAL MATERIALS
BIOLOGICAL WASTES
FEDERAL REGION X
MATERIALS
MATHEMATICS
NORTH AMERICA
POLLUTION
USA
VERTEBRATES
WASTES
520200* - Environment
Aquatic- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport- (-1989)