Major
Environmental Science
Anticipated Graduation Year
2023
Access Type
Open Access
Abstract
Red swamp crayfish (Procambarus clarkii) is an invasive species established in the Chicago River. Prior research has shown that poor water quality increases metabolic stress levels for many organisms. I exposed red swamp crayfish to polluted water from the Brandon Road Lock and Dam and measured oxygen consumption using respirometry. Higher metabolic stress generates increased oxygen consumption. My results show that red swamp crayfish are not significantly affected by the polluted water. This finding is consistent with being a highly tolerant species found in a wide variety of habitats.
Faculty Mentors & Instructors
Dr. Reuben Keller, Professor, Department of Environmental Science; Natalia Szklaruk, Graduate Student, Department of Environmental Science
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License.
Red Swamp Crayfish (Procambarus clarkii) Stress Levels in Polluted Water
Red swamp crayfish (Procambarus clarkii) is an invasive species established in the Chicago River. Prior research has shown that poor water quality increases metabolic stress levels for many organisms. I exposed red swamp crayfish to polluted water from the Brandon Road Lock and Dam and measured oxygen consumption using respirometry. Higher metabolic stress generates increased oxygen consumption. My results show that red swamp crayfish are not significantly affected by the polluted water. This finding is consistent with being a highly tolerant species found in a wide variety of habitats.