The need for long‐term investigations in ecology and the contribution of the Freshwater Biological Association

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Abstract
SUMMARY: 1. Long‐term investigations have provided critical data on a number of practical issues that are of concern to society, and have made important contributions to the development and testing of ecological theory.2. Some of the questions answered by long‐term investigations are briefly reviewed. The major objectives of such investigations are usually to provide reliable estimates of base‐line variation, to detect long‐term trends in the mean level of the base‐line, to detect rare events and to provide information for meaningful, testable hypotheses.3. The contributions of the Freshwater Biological Association are listed in a summary table that covers all projects lasting for 20 years or longer with at least one sample per year. Most projects are in the Windermere catchment and it is proposed that the latter should become the first U.K. Long Term Reference Site for the freshwater environment.