In an effort to protect aquatic life from hazardous chemical exposure, regulatory agencies develop water quality criteria, numeric standards that describe the maximum concentration of a chemical in water that will not harm the majority of species. While these criteria are intended to be broadly protective of aquatic life, there are substantial uncertainties regarding the makeup of the data that are used to derive these criteria. A recent study by Alice Coleman, a PhD student in the Edmands Lab, identified major taxonomic gaps and significant taxonomic patterns of sensitivity in aquatic toxicity data, both of which have profound implications for the development of water quality criteria in the future. The full study can be found in Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry.