Title
Drought and aquatic ecosystems [electronic resource] : effects and responses / P. Sam Lake.
ISBN
9781444341782 (electronic bk.)
9781405185608
Imprint
Chichester, West Sussex ; Hoboken, N.J. : Wiley-Blackwell, 2011.
Language
English
Description
1 online resource (xiv, 381 p., [4] p. of plates) : ill. (some col.), maps (some col.)
Call Number
QL596.S3 E26 2011eb
Dewey Decimal Classification
595.76/49
Summary
"Droughts are a major hazard to both natural and human-dominated environments and those, especially of long duration and high intensity, can be highly damaging and leave long-lasting effects. This book describes the climatic conditions that give rise to droughts, and their various forms and chief attributes. Past droughts are described including those that had severe impacts on human societies. As a disturbance, droughts can be thought of as "ramps" in that they usually build slowly and take time to become evident. As precipitation is reduced, flows from catchments into aquatic systems decline. As water declines in water bodies, ecological processes are changed and the biota can be drastically reduced, though species and populations may survive bu using refuges. Recovery from drought varies in both rates and in degrees of completeness and may be a function of both refuge availability and connectivity. This book reviews the rather scattered literature on the impacts of drought on the flora, fauna and ecological processes of aquatic ecosystems ranging from small ponds to lakes and from streams to estuaries. The effects of drought on the biota of standing waters and flowing waters and of temporary waters and perennial systems are described and compared. In addition, the ways in which human activity can exacerbate droughts are outlined. In many parts of the world especially in the mid latitudes, global warming may result in increases in the duration and intensity of droughts."--P. [4] of cover.
Bibliography, etc. Note
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Access Note
Access limited to authorized users.
Source of Description
Description based on print version record.
Introduction : the nature of droughts
Types of drought and their assessment
The perturbation of hydrological drought
Droughts of the past : dendrochronology and lake sediments
Water bodies, catchments and the abiotic effects of drought
Drought and temporary waters
Drought, floodplain rivers and wetland complexes
Drought and perennial aquatic systems : plants and invertebrates
Drought and fish of standing and flowing waters
Estuaries and drought
Human-induced exacerbation of drought effects on aquatic ecosystems
Conclusions.
