Freshwater Macroinvertebrates—Diversity and Bioindication
A special issue of Diversity (ISSN 1424-2818). This special issue belongs to the section "Animal Diversity".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 May 2025 | Viewed by 603
Special Issue Editors
2. Department of Aquatic Ecosystems, Institute of Biodiversity and Ecosystem Research, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, 1000 Sofia, Bulgaria
Interests: hydrobiology; aquatic invertebrates (macrozoobenthos); freshwater (river/lake) ecology; bio-indication and water quality monitoring; structure and functioning of benthic communities; wetland conservation and management; ecological status assessment and monitoring of water bodies (rivers, lakes/reservoirs, and coastal marine waters)
Interests: biodiversity, ecology, and bioindications in aquatic macroinvertebrates (macrozoobenthos); taxonomy, faunistic and ecology of mayflies (Ephemeroptera, Insecta); hydrobiological monitoring; biological quality elements (BQEs); ecological quality assessment
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Freshwater macroinvertebrates represent key communities in aquatic ecosystems. They play a major role in energy transfer between detritus and consumers and organic matter recycling and in ecosystem processes in their entirety (food chain dynamics, productivity, nutrient cycling, and decomposition). The presence or abundance of macroinvertebrates is determined by their tolerance to the specific environmental conditions in which they live.
The composition and the distribution of macrozoobenthos in rivers and lakes are governed by multiple environmental factors that influence the structure of the benthos community, and its distribution pattern can be indicative of the ecological status, integrity, and health of aquatic ecosystems. The importance of macroinvertebrates as a bioassessment tool is widely recognized due to their limited mobility and relatively long life cycles.
Due to their specific sensitivity to human impact, they could characterize the level of eutrophication of aquatic habitats. Aquatic invertebrates are sensitive to environmental changes and could be important long-range indicators of not only water conditions but also air and soil pollution. The ecological preferences of freshwater organisms are used to assess climate change and its effects on the composition and structure of benthos communities in lakes and rivers. In this regard, benthic macroinvertebrate fauna is an essential biological quality element that reflects changes in aquatic ecosystems due to natural and anthropogenic impacts on surface waters.
Dr. Emilia D. Varadinova
Dr. Yanka Vidinova
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
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Keywords
- macrozoobenthos
- diversity
- structure
- invasive species
- bioindication
- bioaccumulation
- biological quality element
- freshwater ecosystems
- ecological status assessment
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