Individuals versus organisms versus populations in the definition of ecological assessment endpoints
Suter, GW, II; Norton, SB; Fairbrother, A
HERO ID
656589
Reference Type
Journal Article
Year
2005
Language
English
PMID
| HERO ID | 656589 |
|---|---|
| In Press | No |
| Year | 2005 |
| Title | Individuals versus organisms versus populations in the definition of ecological assessment endpoints |
| Authors | Suter, GW, II; Norton, SB; Fairbrother, A |
| Journal | Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management |
| Volume | 1 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Page Numbers | 397-400 |
| Abstract | Discussions and applications of the policies and practices of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) in ecological risk assessment will benefit from continued clarification of the concepts of assessment endpoints and of levels of biological organization. First, assessment endpoint entities and attributes can be defined at different levels of organization. Hence, an organism-level attribute, such as growth or survival, can be applied collectively to a population-level entity such as the brook trout in a stream. Second, assessment endpoints for ecological risk assessment are often mistakenly described as “individual level,” which leads to the idea that such assessments are intended to protect individuals. Finally, populations play a more important role in risk assessments than is generally recognized. Organism-level attributes are used primarily for population-level assessments. In addition, the USEPA and other agencies already are basing management decisions on population or community entities and attributes such as production of fisheries, abundance of migratory bird populations, and aquatic community composition. |
| Doi | 10.1002/ieam.5630010409 |
| Pmid | 16639906 |
| Wosid | WOS:000209712100010 |
| Is Certified Translation | No |
| Dupe Override | No |
| Is Public | Yes |
| Language Text | English |
| Keyword | Assessment endpoint; Population; Community; Organism; Level of organization |
| Is Peer Review | Yes |