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LINKING INDIVIDUAL-LEVEL RESPONSES AND POPULATION-LEVEL CONSEQUENCES
Citation:
Maltby, L., T. J. Kedwards, V. E. Forbes, K. Grasman, J. E. Kammenga, W R. Munns Jr., A. H. Ringwood, J. S. Weis, AND S. N. Wood. LINKING INDIVIDUAL-LEVEL RESPONSES AND POPULATION-LEVEL CONSEQUENCES. Chapter 2, D.J. Baird, G.A. Burton, Jr (ed.), Ecological Variability: Separating Natural from Anthropogenic Causes of Ecosystem Impairment. SETAC Press, Pensacola, FL, , 27-81, (2001).
Description:
The protection of populations is at the heart of ecological risk assessment, yet most studies measure effects on individuals. In this chapter, we outline the need to enhance our ability to project and interpret the effect of stressors on natural populations and to manage risk more effectively. We review the range of population-level endpoints that can be studied before discussing population growth rate in more detail. We discuss how individual-level information may be used to project population-level consequences of stress, and we discuss the advantages and limitations of each method. Finally, we consider models and approaches that have the potential to enhance ecological risk assessment by reducing the uncertainties associated with extrapolating from individuals to populations and by increasing the ecological significance of the projected effects.