You are here:
Assessing the population impacts of pesticides on delta smelt
Citation:
Etterson, M., K. Flynn, S. Kadlec, AND N. Pollesch. Assessing the population impacts of pesticides on delta smelt. SETAC North America, Sacramento, CA, November 04 - 08, 2018.
Impact/Purpose:
Methods are needed to extrapolate laboratory-derived measures of chemical toxicity to estimates of effect in natural populations. Many candidate methods exist, with different data requirements. Ecological models differ in the degree to which they are commensurate with laboratory-derived toxicity data and we here explore the applicability of the emerging integral projection model framework for application to population-level risk assessment for federally listed species.
Description:
Under section 7 of the US Endangered species act, USEPA is responsible for ensuring that its actions, including pesticide registrations, do not place federally listed species at jeopardy. Here we evaluate the utility of a new USEPA fish population model, prototyped for Fathead Minnow (Pimephales promelas) when parameterized and applied to Delta Smelt (Hypomesus transpacificus), a federally listed endangered species. The model is a size-structured integral projection model that can incorporate chemical and non-chemical stressors to estimate effects on population trajectories. Here we present how this modeling framework can be adapted for the life history of the delta smelt, where different life-stages occupy spatially distinct areas, reproduction is semelparous, and pesticide exposure occurs in pulses.