Chapter 5 Water Quality Analysis Macroinvertebrates In Water

Abstract

The benthic is the bottom part of the water body. Macroinvertebrates are invertebrates that are small yet can be seen by the naked eye. Therefore, benthic macroinvertebrates refer to all small invertebrates that live most of their life at the bottom part of the stream, rivers, lakes, and ponds. Several researchers used these organisms as a biological indicator for assessing water quality for freshwater. However, their compositions and distribution in the benthic area depend on food availability and habitat suitability. Each benthic macroinvertebrate has a different morphology that adapts to certain habitats, which are the substrates at the bottom part of water bodies. Meanwhile, their existence in those habitats plays a role in maintaining the ecosystem which involves food chain mechanisms and also plays a role in the nutrient cycle process as well as filtering several compounds in water. Therefore, ecologists grouped some benthic macroinvertebrates by their feeding behaviour, called a Functional Feeding Group (FFG). There are several categories in this group, such as shredders, scrapers, collectors, predators, grazers, and filterers. Each group plays its role in maintaining water-bodies ecosystems. Any changes in the water bodies will alter their distribution and composition depending on the tolerance level of pollution, survival, and adaptation to their environmental changes. Therefore, benthic macroinvertebrates can assess the ecosystem’s health and water quality in the water bodies by using biotic indexes.