Aquatic insects are the dominant invertebrate fauna
in most freshwater ecosystems, and figure prominently in
the work of a diverse range of researchers, students,
and environmental managers. Often employed as indicators
of ecosystem health, aquatic insects are also commonly
used as model systems to test hypotheses in ecological
topics including metapopulation and metacommunity
dynamics, recruitment limitation, trophic interactions,
and trophic networks. Due to their complex life cycles,
aquatic insects must master both terrestrial and aquatic
environments, crossing these ecosystem boundaries during
different stages of development and reproduction.
In this wide-ranging text, life under and on top
of the water surface are covered in unusual detail,
including the biomechanics of life in water, locomotion
underwater and on surface films, gas exchange,
physico-chemical stressors, feeding, sensory perception
and communication, reproduction, egg-laying and
development, and the evolution of aquatic habits. The
threatened status of freshwaters around the world,
coupled with an expanding population of researchers and
managers charged with their well-being, signals the
importance of such a book as many individuals seek to
understand how insects function in these often
challenging physical environments. Interest in
freshwaters may never have been higher with
ever-increasing conflict between water allocation for
human (agricultural) use and conservation.
Aquatic Entomology is suitable for
graduate students, researchers, and managers interested
in the subject from a perspective of either basic or
applied ecology. It will also be a valuable
supplementary text for courses in limnology or
freshwater ecology, entomology, and water resource
management.
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