Invertebrates and habitat quality as indicators of the biological condition of the coast of the Río de la Plata river, Argentina
Estuaries are productive ecosystems that provide ecosystem goods and services, although human development causes stresses that deteriorate the quality of their waters. The Río de la Plata river presents geographic and socioeconomic relevance, besides areas of importance in the conservation of biodiversity. The objective of this study was to analyze some of the structural and functional characteristics of the meso and macroinvertebrate assemblage along 155 km of the freshwater intertidal zone, applying multivariate analysis and comparing the sampling sites subject to different types of anthropogenic disturbances. Fifty-eight taxa were identified whose total abundance ranged from 570 to 345000 individuals/m2. The highest values of richness, structural and functional diversity, and percentages of sensitive taxa were recorded in recreational areas that have vegetated coasts, a high degree of connectivity and a natural state of riparian habitats. The multivariate analysis organized the sampling sites along a turbidity-conductivity gradient and a eutrophication-contamination gradient. The cluster analysis revealed the following groups: 1) sites with little impact of protected and recreational areas, 2) sites with anthropogenic impact and domestic discharges, 3) sites highly impacted by industrial and sewage discharges, and 4) sites located close to the front of maximum turbidity. These results showed that the characteristics of the habitat and the water determine the assemblages of invertebrates. The structural and functional descriptors analyzed can act reliably in the evaluation of the ecological quality and the biotic integrity of the Argentinian intertidal sector of the river.
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Digital revista |
| Language: | spa |
| Published: |
Asociación Argentina de Ecología
2022
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| Online Access: | https://ojs.ecologiaaustral.com.ar/index.php/Ecologia_Austral/article/view/1924 |
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