Revista Chilena de Historia Natural 86 (1): 21-31, 2013
FORUM
Identification of ecologically relevant species for Ecological Risk
Assessment: A proposal from theoretical ecology
Based on recent advances in ecological network theory, we present an ad hoc
conceptual framework and a methodological proposal for the evaluation of the ecological relevance of species within a
community, oriented towards the Ecological Risk Assessment in Chilean aquatic systems. The procedure is theoretical and
based on the quality of available information, i.e. it does not require experimental tests or field observation. Given the
current and mediumterm expected state of knowledge about the structure of local aquatic communities, the proposed
method is focused towards its application to communities whose level of knowledge is low or medium. The proposal uses
qualitative criteria and quantitative indices (seven topological indices and one index based on qualitative modeling) for
the identification of ecologically relevant species that represent at least three trophic categories within the
community.
Key words:
centrality indices, ecological networks, keystone species, loop analysis, topology.
