Ecology and You

People have a hard time understanding environmental biology. Some think it’s boring, others think it’s full of hippies. There is no denying a prone bias to those involved with molecular biology. Medical science and studying what makes us what we are is quite glorious since we’re not neck deep in it. Ecology isn’t glorious in any way. It’s the black sheep of the biology family. The ecologist won’t be able to save you when you’re having a heart attack and definitely won’t be able to tell you the difference between different types of analytical techniques but they will be the ones to ensure that the soil that your food comes from is well protected, the water that you drink is clean and priced well and that when you go to bed the sun will come up the next day you can still breathe the air outside. Ecologists are the ultimate cool kids. The world is our playground and the majority of us really good looking!

For those of you who don’t know, an ecologist is an environmental biologist, or a scientist that works with large-scale biological systems such as animals, forests, water systems, and atmospheric systems. We’re cool because in Canada for 4 months straight we pull 17+ hour field days, get to drive around big boats, get to hike up huge mountain ranges, track and tag animals, go scuba diving, and pretend we’re fantastic chemists. We also get to do a load of experiments that are pretty baller that include watching particles settle out of giant sedimentation towers and recording how long it takes.

Studies are rarely preformed for our own selfish curiosity and ultimately effect the population of the area they are preformed in. Confused about how a field team going out into the middle of BC in mid May just to see whether a few plankton are kicking around in a lake effects you? Just where is your hard earned taxpayer money going? Lets break it down shall we?

Pretend you’re living in Kelowna, B.C. Your family decides for a nice mid May barbeque they would like grilled Salmon. The Salmon comes from the area since importing Salmon from the Great Lakes or the Atlantic is far too costly and I mean, who wouldn’t want Pacific coast Salmon.

The study is performed in a lake with the outflow connecting, eventually to the Skeena River. The river is a major breeding ground for Salmon in the area. The lake is being monitored for various nutrient levels as well as the presence of various plankton communities. Over the last 5 years, plankton communities have decreased due to a new invasive species that is outcompeting the plankton allowing for an increase in phosphorus levels downstream, and decreasing food availability for Salmon in the breeding grounds. What is worse, an increase in logging has caused the water in the lake connected to breeding ground to increase by 2˚C. Salmon are very sensitive to changes in water chemistry and the fry are even more sensitive to these environmental impacts. As you could imagine, a shortage in food and proper growing conditions leads to fry mortality rates, decreased populations and a more expensive meal for you.

Obviously this is very exaggerated as most scientific studies are but the idea is there. The factors mentioned are all very real and do happen quite often. While populations generally go through cycles of inflation similarly to how temperatures increase and decrease in a cycle, these studies are done to ensure the proper action is taken to defend and protect the environment and organisms involved in the issue.

We’re all connected, just like Mufasa told Simba in The Lion King. Each decision we make takes us down a different path. There is no going back so we should make sure each time we act it is the best choice, not just for ourselves but also for each individual that could be affected. In the next 5 to 10 years ecology is going to explode. It is predicted that the next major war will be over the availability of fresh water. Too many people think that ecology has no effect on them and that there are more important aspects of science. That was true 50 years ago but unfortunately is no longer the case. Technology brought us into the lab and now a desperate situation has made us go back outside. Help us out and make yourself aware of the impact you’re making.