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Room-temperature ionic liquids (ILs) are considered to be green chemicals that may replace volatile organic solvents currently used by industry. However, IL effects on aquatic organisms and ecosystems are currently unknown. We studied the acute effects of imidazolium-based ILs on survival of the crustacean Daphnia magna and their chronic effects on number of first-brood neonates, total number of neonates, and average brood size. Lethal concentrations of imidazolium ILs with various anions (X-) ranged from a median lethal concentration (LC50) of 8.03 to 19.91 mg L(-1), whereas salts with a sodium cation (Na+ X-) were more than an order of magnitude higher (NaPF6 LC50, 9,344.81 mg L(-1); NaBF4 LC50, 4765.75 mg L(-1)). Thus, toxicity appeared to be related to the imidazolium cation and not to the various anions (e.g., Cl-, Br-, PF6-, and BF4-). The toxicity of imidazolium-based ILs is comparable to that of chemicals currently used in manufacturing and disinfection processes (e.g., ammonia and phenol), indicating that these green chemicals may be more harmful to aquatic organisms than current volatile organic solvents. We conducted 21-d chronic bioassays of individual D. magna exposed to nonlethal IL concentrations at constant food-resource levels. Daphnia magna produced significantly fewer total neonates, first-brood neonates, and average neonates when exposed to lower concentrations (0.3 mg L(-1)) of imidazolium-based ILs than in the presence of Na-based salts at higher concentrations (400 mg L(-1)). Such reductions in the reproductive output of Daphnia populations could cascade through natural freshwater ecosystems. The present study provides baseline information needed to assess the potential hazard that some ILs may pose should they be released into freshwater ecosystems.

Room-temperature ionic liquids (ILs) are being promoted as environmentally friendly alternatives to volatile organic solvents currently used by industry. Because ILs are novel and not yet in widespread use, their potential impact on aquatic organisms is unclear. We studied the effects of several ILs on the survivorship and behavior (movement and feeding rates) of the freshwater pulmonate snail, Physa acuta. Median lethal concentrations (LC50s) of ILs with imidazolium- and pyridinium-based cations and Br- and PF6- as anions ranged from 1 to 325 mg/L. Toxicity was greatest for ILs with eight-carbon alkyl chains attached to both imidazolium and pyridinium rings and declined with shorter alkyl chains, indicating a positive relationship between alkyl chain length and toxicity. Compared to controls, snails moved more slowly when exposed to butyl- and hexyl-cation ILs at 1 to 3% of LC50 concentrations but were not affected at higher IL concentrations (4-10% of LC50), which is characteristic of U-shaped dose-response curves. Snail movement was not affected by ILs with octyl alkyl groups. Grazing patterns, however, indicated that snails grazed less at higher IL concentrations. Physa acuta egestion rates were reduced in the presence of ILs at 3 to 10% of LC50 concentrations. Thus, nonlethal IL concentrations affected P. acuta behaviors, potentially impacting individual fitness and food web interactions. These results provide initial information needed to assess the potential hazards of ILs should they reach freshwater ecosystems.

Predators can alter the outcome of ecological interactions among other members of the food web through their effects on prey behavior. While it is well known that animals often alter their behavior with the imposition of predation risk, we know less about how other features of predators may affect prey behavior. For example, relatively few studies have addressed the effects of predator identity on prey behavior, but such knowledge is crucial to understanding food web interactions. This study contrasts the behavioral responses of the freshwater snail Physellagyrina to fish and crayfish predators. Snails were placed in experimental mesocosms containing caged fish and crayfish, so the only communication between experimental snails and their predators was via non-visual cues. The caged fish and crayfish were fed an equal number of snails, thereby simulating equal prey mortality rates. In the presence of fish, the experimental snails moved under cover, which confers safety from fish predators. However, in the presence of crayfish, snails avoided benthic cover and moved to the water surface. Thus, two species of predators, exerting the same level of mortality on prey, induced very different behavioral responses. We predict that these contrasting behavioral responses to predation risk have important consequences for the interactions between snails and their periphyton resources.

Chemical signals released by predators or injured prey often induce shifts in the traits of prey species, which may in turn affect species interactions. Here we investigate the role that chemical cues play in mediating species interactions in the littoral food web of lakes. Previous studies have shown that predators induce shifts in the morphology, life history, and behavior of the freshwater snail Physella, but the ecological consequences of developing these inducible defenses are not well documented. We observed habitat use of the freshwater snail Physella gyrina along a depth gradient in a natural lake, and found they increased their use of covered habitats with increasing depth. We hypothesized that this habitat shift was due to changes in the level and type of predation risk, and that the habitat shift would affect periphyton standing crops. These hypotheses were tested in a mesocosm experiment in which we manipulated the presence of molluscivorous fish and crayfish. Predators were confined to cages and snail density was identical in all treatments, so any effects of predators were mediated through trait shifts induced by chemical cues. In the presence of fish, Physella moved under cover, but in the presence of crayfish, Physella avoided cover and moved to the water surface. These non‐lethal effects of predators on snail habitat use influenced the interaction between snails and their periphyton resources. In the presence of fish, periphyton standing crop in covered habitats was reduced to just 8% of periphyton in the absence of fish. Crayfish had no significant effect on periphyton in covered habitats, but they reduced periphyton in near‐surface habitats to 39% of the standing crop in the absence of crayfish. The combined effects of fish and crayfish were generally intermediate to their individual effects. We conclude that because chemical cues often have strong effects on individual traits and trophic interactions are sensitive to trait values, chemical cues may play an important role in shaping the structure and dynamics of food webs.

Perturbations to the density of a species can be propagated to distant members of a food web via shifts in the density or the traits (i.e. behavior) of intermediary species. Predators with differing foraging modes may have different effects on prey behavior, and these effects may be transmitted differently through food webs. Here we test the hypothesis that shifts in the type of predator present in a food web indirectly affect the prey's resource independent of changes in the density of prey. We assessed the importance of predator identity in mediating the grazing effects of the freshwater snail Physa integra on its periphyton resources using field and mesocosm studies. Field observations showed that Physa used covered habitats more in ponds containing fish than in ponds containing crayfish or no predators at all. A field experiment confirmed that snail behavior depended on predator identity. Physa placed near caged pumpkinseed sunfish (Lepomis gibbosus) selected covered habitats, but Physa placed near caged crayfish (Orconectes rusticus) moved to the surface of the water. The effects of predator identity on periphtyon were then examined in a mesocosm experiment, using caged predators. Habitat use of Physa was similar to their habitat use in the field experiment. In the presence of caged sunfish, periphyton standing crop in covered habitats was reduced to 34% of the standing crop in the presence of crayfish. In contrast, periphyton in near-surface habitats was 110% higher in the presence of fish than in the presence of crayfish. Thus, the effects of predator identity on Physa behavior cascaded through the food web to affect the abundance and spatial distribution of periphyton.

Catch rates in gillnets and relative weight (W r ) of walleye Stizostedion vitreum, in Glen Elder Reservoir, Kansas, were lowest during the summer (June-August) and highest during the autumn (September-November). Approximately 80% of their annual growth in length and mass was attained during late summer and autumn. Growth was minimal during winter (January-February) and spring (March-May). The number of walleye with empty stomachs was highest during the summer. Invertebrates (Cladocera, Chironomidae) were common in walleye stomachs during the summer and spring, but contributed little to the ingested biomass. Gizzard shad Dorosoma cepedianum dominated walleye diets (per cent by mass) throughout the year. A bioenergetics model predicted that the proportion of maximum consumption (P c ) was highest during the autumn and was probably due to spatial overlap of walleye and gizzard shad once water temperatures were <22 C. The bioenergetics model predicted that walleye would lose up to 65% of their body mass during the summer if water temperature increased by 10% (as predicted by some global warming models). Growth during the autumn, winter and spring was enhanced up to 150% by increased temperatures. The results of this study indicate that lower condition, reduced consumption and slow growth are a generalized response of walleye to extreme temperatures. Elevated temperatures may have a net positive effect on walleye growth if they can survive the high thermal stress during summer.

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