Complex stress regimes in freshwater ecosystems: trait-based prediction and diagnostics development

环境压力源可以是自然的，生物体已经进化到可以耐受它们，也可以是人类衍生的，对生物体提出了全新的挑战（例如农药耐受性）。因此，环境管理可以被认为是对自然的压力管理。河流系统不断接受多种物质的低水平输入，其中每一种成分可能不超过个别物质的准则，但结合起来可能造成重大的不利影响风险。健全的环境管理需要从背景环境噪声中检测和分离出个体压力源信号，以确定其对生物群的影响程度。河流科学家已经认识到多重压力源制度所带来的挑战，并已开始开发压力源分离和诊断方法的艰巨任务。在这里，我概述了一个程序的研究，探讨如何生物体性状-其基本的形态，生理和生态特征-可以用来开发改进的方法来管理环境压力。要做到这一点，我们需要一个更好的了解性状如何变化与自然环境的变化-这将通过研究河流生物的特点是如何塑造当地河流的栖息地变化（自然压力），以及这种变化的影响，为发展新的生物监测工具。这将在一系列河流站点的1名博士和2名本科生现场助理的协助下进行。在调查的第二条线，与硕士学生的协助下，我将研究现有的知识（加拿大环境监测数据），探索生物性状是如何与人类产生的压力（营养素，农药，金属）的影响，以更好地告知基于性状的诊断工具，最终纳入加拿大水生生物监测计划（CABIN）。此外，利用所获得的知识，在一名硕士生和一名本科生现场助理的协助下，我将研究如何结合自然（捕食者威胁）和人类衍生的压力源（农药暴露）可以从暴露的生物群的性状特征的知识进行预测。

Environmental stressors can be natural, and organisms have evolved to tolerate them, or human-derived, presenting a wholly novel challenge to the organism (e.g. pesticide tolerance). In this way, environmental management can be considered stress management for nature. River systems continuously receive low-level inputs of multiple substances, each component of which may not exceed individual substance guidelines, yet in combination can pose significant risk of adverse effects. Sound environmental management requires detection and separation of individual stressor signals from background environmental noise, to determine their level of influence on the biota. River scientists have recognized the challenge posed by multiple stressor regimes and have begun the difficult task of developing approaches for stressor separation and diagnosis. Here I outline a program of research which examines how organism traits - their basic morphological, physiological and ecological characteristics - can be used to develop improved approaches for the management of environmental stressors. To do this, we require an improved understanding of how traits vary in relation to natural environmental variability - this will be addressed by studying how the characteristics of river organisms are shaped by local river flow habitat variations (natural stress), and the implications of such variation for the development of new biomonitoring tools. This will be carried with the assistance of 1 PhD and 2 undergraduate field assistants at a range of river sites. In a second line of investigation, with the assistance of an MSc student, I will study existing knowledge (Environment Canada monitoring data), to explore how biological traits are related to the effects of human-derived stressors (nutrients, pesticides, metals), to better inform traits-based diagnostic tools, for ultimate incorporation into the Canadian Aquatic Biomontoring program (CABIN). Also, using the knowledge gained, with the assistance of an MSc student and 1 undergraduate field assistant, I will study how combined natural (predator threat) and human-derived stressors (pesticide exposure) can be predicted from knowledge of traits characteristics of exposed biota.