Simulated Field Testing Methods for Pest Control Agents in Lotic and Lentic Ecosystems

The use of plastic wading pools to simulate lentic environments expedites testing of fish control agents and other pesticides. This method permits replication of a variety of water conditions and benthic substrates and facilitates multiple-parameter testing under biological, physical, and chemical conditions comparable to those in different geographic areas. Similarly, a series of “raceways” or troughs arranged with various substrates can be used to simulate lotic environments complete with pool and riffle ecotypes. Water velocity, temperature, chemistry, and biota can be conveniently controlled to evaluate fish control agents, detoxification rates, and effects on both target and nontarget organisms.