Water bugs (Nepomorpha) as indicators of freshwater quality

Abstract

Aquatic bugs (Nepomorpha) are generally considered less suitable for assessing water quality than other macroinvertebrate taxa. In this review, I demonstrate that there are three areas where aquatic bugs may be suitable for bioindication purposes. The monitoring of the changes in water salinity, in concentrations of pyrethroid insecticides, and in eutrophication using aquatic bug species and communities are the three areas. Both the salinity of water bodies and the eutrophication can be correlated with the disappearance and/or appearance of species within the genus Micronecta and the family Corixidae, as well as with changes in the dominance of certain species. Attempts have already been made to model these phenomena, but no established methods are yet available. However, existing data can serve as a starting point for development such methods. Pyrethroids are highly toxic to aquatic bugs, just as to other aquatic organisms. Among them, deltamethrin is widely used in Hungary for mosquito control. This practice should be avoided also from the perspective of aquatic bugs.