ISSN:
1573-5125
Keywords:
aquatic ecology
;
hydrobiology
;
history
;
The Netherlands
Source:
Springer Online Journal Archives 1860-2000
Topics:
Biology
Notes:
Abstract The development of the scientific discipline of aquatic ecology in The Netherlands is described. Dutch aquatic ecology originated in the second half of the 19th century, mainly around the Zoological Station of the Netherlands Zoological Society. In 1888 P.P.C. Hoek was appointed fisheries advisor to the government and thus became the first fulltime professional aquatic ecologist of the country. From 1888 into the first half of the 20th century marine ecology slowly developed around the Zoological Station and the Government Institute for Fisheries Research, which originally were housed in the same building at Den Helder. Freshwater ecology, referred to as hydrobiology, had a later start in about 1920. Hydrobiology in The Netherlands included also brackish-water ecology. Hydrobiology was especially important at the University of Amsterdam. After 1950, a period of growth led to the establishment of several new institutes and university departments in which aquatic ecology was practised, as well as to a considerable increase of the staff numbers in existing institutes. In the same period the largely descriptive hydrobiological studies were replaced by causal-analytical, experimental work in aquatic ecology. Another line of research was ecosystem studies modelled after the then current ideas of the International Biological Programme 1966–1976. Environmental considerations stimulated aquatic ecology in The Netherlands again after 1970. After 1980, the field stabilized and at some places even decreased. The success of aquatic ecology in The Netherlands is ascribed to the geographic nature of the country with its variety of waters and its intimate relationships with water, to the fact that aquatic ecology is able to provide answers at the same spatial scale as the questions asked by water quality managers and to the opportunities offered by large-scale civil engineering projects.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/BF02085869
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