Importances of Invertebrates PDF
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Uploaded by FirmerHeliotrope3247
UNIMAS
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Summary
This document explores the ecological and economic significance of invertebrates. It covers topics like nutrient cycling, biodiversity, and how invertebrates act as bioindicators. It also describes the role they play in various economic sectors, like fisheries and aquaculture.
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# Importances of invertebrates ## Ecological ### Nutrient cycling 1. Decomposition 2. Sediment disturbance 3. Habitat formation - Corals - Mollusks - Coral reefs - Shell (shelter) - Support marine life - Refuge to smaller organisms ### Biodiversity - Bioindicators - Criterias - Factors con...
# Importances of invertebrates ## Ecological ### Nutrient cycling 1. Decomposition 2. Sediment disturbance 3. Habitat formation - Corals - Mollusks - Coral reefs - Shell (shelter) - Support marine life - Refuge to smaller organisms ### Biodiversity - Bioindicators - Criterias - Factors contribute - Responds to the tolerance - Food web dynamics - Crucial components in the food web - Primary consumers # Bioindicators ### How they help to monitor the health of the environment. - **Accumulate sensitivity to env. changes** - Sensitive to specific pollutants (changes) - E.g: mussels accumulate heavy metals; level of water content - **Wide range of Bioindicators** - Allows for monitoring across different ecosystems - E.g: Bivalves ### Criteria (5) - **Rapid life cycle** - Short life cycles (nematodes), quickly respond to env. changes (ideal: real-time monitoring) - **Inmobile / Fertile** - Ensures that their responses are specific to the environment - E.g: Mollusks and bivalves - **Easy for sampling / Identification** - Abundant, straightforward to collect, identify - E.g: Earthworms # Factors Contributing to Responses/ Tolerances 1. Behavioral adaption - Organisms adapt their behavior to cope with environment changes - E.g: Certain invertebrates migrate to avoid stress 2. Physiological responses - Internal system of organisms determine their tolerance limits to environmental changes - E.g: Copepods cannot survive if DO levels fluctuate too much 3. Feeding habits - They have diverse feeding strategies, to this affect their sensitivity to their changes in food availability - E.g: Earthworms rely on organic matters, if soil lack organic contents, populations decline. # Economic - **Leeches** - Hiruden - Anti-oxidant - Prevent blood clotting - **Sponges** - Sea cucumber - Coral powder - Cosmetic Product - **Fisheries / Aquaculture** - Crabs, lobsters, mollusks - Copepods, polychaetes - Providing food security - Feed in aquaculture
