Peter H Doering PhD Section Administrator Coastal Ecosystems South Florida Water Management District West Palm Beach Florida Caloosahatchee River Science Workshop Florida Gulf Coast University ID: 685527
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Ecological Indicators for a Healthy Caloosahatchee Estuary
Peter H. Doering, Ph.D.Section Administrator, Coastal Ecosystems South Florida Water Management DistrictWest Palm Beach Florida
Caloosahatchee River Science Workshop
Florida Gulf Coast University
November 19, 2013Slide2
Outline What is an ecological indicator?
Why use them?What constitutes a good indicator?What indicators are currently used in the Caloosahatchee?Slide3
What is a Healthy Ecosystem?
or
“We all know one when we see one”Slide4
The Iowa Great Lakes
East Lake Okoboji
West Lake
OkobojiSlide5
Ecosystem HealthEcosystem Health:
The system’s ability to realize functions desired by society and maintain them over a long period of time. (Rombouts et al. 2013 Ecological Indicators 24: 353-365.)Slide6
What is an Ecological Indicator?
Indicators are quantitative representations of the forces that drive a system, of responses to forcing functions, or of previous, current or future states of a system. (Salas et al. 2006. Ocean and Coastal Management 49:308-331.)
Air Pollution in the Northeast: Hazecam Network
View from Cadillac Mountain
Nov. 8, 1999
Aug. 25, 1999
Visual Range = 199 mi
Visual Range= 30 miSlide7
Why Use Them?Ecosystems are complex and indicators can help describe them in simpler
terms Indicators are used because it is impossible to measure everything all the time: it costs too much and takes too much timeWhen they are used effectively, indicators are expected to reveal conditions and trends that help in management, planning and decision-makingSlide8
East Lake Okoboji
Everglades
Water Quality
Trophic Status
Metric
Hydro-period
Water Depth
Prey Availability
Indicator of
Algae Blooms
Roseate Spoonbills
Chlorophyll a
Number
of Nests
Indicators of Ecosystem Health
Forcing
Functions
Nutrient
Loading,
Flushing,
Food Web
Hydrology
(Climate,
H
2
O Mgmt)Slide9
An Indicator can be:
A single species or parameter A group of species or communityAn aggregated measure or index
FL Trophic State Index for Lakes =
f(TN, TP, Chla)
Index of Biotic Integrity = f(Community metrics)
Seagrasses
SpoonbillsSlide10
What makes a good indicator?
Representative of the systemSufficiently sensitive to provide an early warning of changeCapable of providing a continuous assessment over a wide range of stress
Relatively independent of sample size
Easy and cost effective to measure, collect, assay, or calculate
Able to differentiate between natural cycles and trends and those induced by anthropogenic stress
Relevant to ecologically significant
phenomena
Noss, R.F. 1990. Indicators for monitoring biodiversity: A hierarchical approach. Conservation Biol. 4(4): 355-364.
Or
The Seven Habits of a Highly Effective IndicatorSlide11
Or
Some Additional Criteria for a Highly Effective IndicatorIts meaning can be easily communicated to many audiencesCan form the basis for measurable targets to allow for assessments of success of restoration or management actionsIndicates a feature specific enough to result in management action or corrective action
Doren, R.F et al. 2009.
Ecological Indicators
9S: S2-S16
.
Salas
et al. 2006.
Ocean
and Coastal Management 49:308-331.
What makes a good indicator?Slide12
Ecosystem ComplexityBecause ecosystems are complex, one indicator is unlikely to reflect all of
it, so multiple indicators are probably necessaryIndividual indicators provide discrete pieces of information about one, or perhaps few constituents of the ecosystem, while the suite of indicators in combination is intended to reflects the status of the larger ecosystemDoren, R.f et al. 2009. Ecological Indicators
9S: S2-S16Slide13
Complexity in an Estuary: The Salinity Gradient
0
10
5
15
20
25
30
Salinity Gradient psu
Within most estuaries salinity varies spatially, being low at the head and
high near the mouth. Different organisms occupy different portions of the estuarine salinity gradient. Multiple indicators
are required to reflect conditions along different portions of the salinity gradient
Prefer Low Salinity
Prefer Higher SalinitySlide14
Attributes
Conceptual Ecological Model
Attributes
are a subset of the components of the natural system that represent the overall ecological conditions of the system, some of which may be useful as
indicators.Slide15
Ecological Indicators in the Caloosahatchee
Ecological Indicator
Used
By
For
SAV
SFWMD, RECOVER, CHNEP, FDEP
Freshwater
Inflows, Ecosystem Condition, Goal/ Target, Water Quality (TMDL, NNC)
Oysters
SFWMD, RECOVER, CHNEP
Freshwater
Inflows, Ecosystem Condition, Goal/ Target
Fish
CHNEP
Goal/TargetSlide16
Ecological Indicators in the Caloosahatchee
Monitoring some of these indicators for over a decade.Are they telling us what we need to know?Are they still appropriate?Understanding of the Caloosahatchee has increased since the original ecological model.Are there other useful indicators we should be using?Slide17
QuestionsWhat driver is the indicator sensitive to and is this ecologically relevant?What are the strengths and limitations of this indicator and what more do we need to know?Slide18
Thank You
Kitchell Key, San Carlos Bay
Ecological Indicators
for a Healthy Caloosahatchee Estuary
Peter H. Doering, Ph.D.
Section Administrator, Coastal Ecosystems
South Florida Water Management District
West Palm Beach Florida