Stressors in Aquatic Ecosystems 

Currently, the extension of the agricultural frontier and urban growth are driving changes in land use in Latin America. River ecosystems' responses to land use change are reflected in shifts in their ecological patterns and processes, which require much more in-depth investigation due to their complexity. Deforestation, water extraction, agricultural chemicals' pollution, and water from urban and industrial wastes, among other things, reduce the availability and quality of water resources. The studies related with this field of research strive to answer issues about how humans influence the functioning of aquatic ecosystems and its biodiversity.

Projects:

• Assessment of aquatic metabolism measurements as functional descriptors of ecosystem health for tropical Andean streams (as PI; closing, September 2023).

• Limnological characterization of the Petaquire Reservoir, a tropical reservoir in an agricultural mountain basin (Coastal Mountain Range, Venezuela). Master's degree thesis by Mary C. Pérez (as PI; In progress).

• Composition and structure of chironomid larval assemblages (Insecta: Diptera: Chironomidae) and their relationships with local and regional environmental factors in rivers of the northern slope of the coastal mountain range, Aragua State, Venezuela. Master's degree thesis of Leidys Molina (as PI; finished, 2014).