What is the optimal temperature for most aquatic plants and animals?
1. Temperature preference may vary among species, but all species can tolerate slow, seasonal changes better than rapid changes caused from thermal pollution. Thermal stress and shock occurs when temperatures change more than 1-2 degrees Celsius within 24 hours. 2. Most aquatic organisms live in an optimal temperature range of 5-25 degrees Celsius. What factors are affected by your watershed s temperature? 1. Increases in water temperature can cause changes in aquatic plants. For example, as the temperature increases, the rate of photosynthesis increases. As photosynthesis increases, the number of aquatic plants increases. This can lead to a number of plants or an algal bloom. The faster plants grow, the faster they die. When they die they are decomposed be aerobic bacteria, which consume oxygen in this process. This event may also decrease the amount of dissolved oxygen in the water, which organisms need to survive. 2. Increases in water temperature can also cause changes in aquatic a
