sentinel species
Ecosystem early warnings
A sentinel species is an organism used to detect environmental hazards or disease outbreaks before they affect humans.
Canaries in coal mines were the classic example—their deaths warned miners of toxic gases.
Today, frogs, bees, and certain fish serve as sentinel species, their health indicating water quality, pesticide exposure, or emerging pathogens.
Bats are sentinel species for zoonotic viruses.
- canaryYellow caged songbird
- coalmineUnderground carbon extraction site
- bioindicatorSpecies showing ecosystem health
- frogTailless leaping amphibian
- amphibianDual-habitat cold-blooded vertebrate
ecosystem · warning · monitor · toxin · pollution · coral · bee · colony collapse · lichen · dead fish · wildlife · die off · environmental · environmental health · bellwether · watchdog · alert · vulnerable
- bioindicatorsbioindicator, lichen, amphibian, frog, salamander
- Ecotoxicologytoxicology, bioassay, LD50, dose-response, lethal dose
- wildlife statusendangered, extinct, vulnerable, threatened, critically endangered
sentinel speciesinvasive species
Harmful non-native organism
cockroach · rat · cockroaches · rats · extremophiles
sentinel, sentinels, species, sentry, sentries, special, speciation, specific, specifically