Ecosystem can simply be seen as the interaction between the biotic (living) and abiotic (non-living) components of the environment and it is important to note that the activities of one influences the other.
Aquatic ecosystem is simply the interactions between this two listed components in or on water. There are two types of ecosystems i.e the terrestrial and the aquatic but my focus will be on Aquatic ecosystem and it’s threats.
Out of curiosity, I conducted a research on the effects of antibiotics particularly Cefuroxime on aquatic macrophytes and algae. This research was supervised by my Mentor Dr. A.M Chia, a renowned phycologist. The general idea is centered on Aquatic Ecotoxicology I.e the effect of toxicants in aquatic bodies.
Brief summary of the research suggested antibiotics are one major threat to this ecosystem. It happens in a way such that drugs that are consumed by humans are sometimes not completely metabolized (broken down) and this results in them being excreted and a good number of them find their way into aquatic bodies. This leads to impairment of the water body.
Join in on my next post as I delve into this topic
Demigod’s 