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Open Call for Research Projects in ICTS-Doñana!

The Singular Scientific and Technical Infrastructure Doñana Biological Reserve (ICTS-Doñana) announces the opening of a call for international research projects in the Doñana Natural Space.

Las altas temperaturas están provocando que las lagunas y las marismas de Doñana pierdan agua rápidamente

La superficie inundada en la marisma es de un 78% pero la profundidad es escasa. Por otra parte, sólo el 1,9% de las lagunas temporales están inundadas. Las precipitaciones crean una oportunidad...

Traffic noise causes lifelong harm to baby birds

A study with CSIC participation reveals for the first time that car noise harms individuals throughout their lifetime even years after exposure

Illegal wildlife trade, a serious problem for biodiversity and human health

A research team led by the Doñana BIological Station and the University Pablo de Olavide have detected wild-caught pets in 95% of the localities in the Neotropic and warns of the risk of zoonotic...

Urbanization and loss of woody vegetation are changing key traits of arthropod communities

Urbanization is favouring smaller beetle species and larger spider species with greater dispersal capacity.

The loss of woody areas is linked to a decline in the duration of the activity...

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Determination of anthropogenic contamination in surface waters using helophytes

Determination of anthropogenic contamination in surface waters using helophytes

Nitrogen (N) loading from anthropogenic activities is contributing to the eutrophication and degradation of wetlands worldwide. Doñana (southwestern Spain), includes a dynamic marshland protected as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, which has a catchment area exposed to increasing N inputs from intensive agriculture and poorly treated urban wastewaters. Identifying the sources of N entering this iconic wetland complex is vital for its conservation. To this end, multiyear (2014–2016), spatially-explicit data on N concentration in water samples were combined with measurements on the relative abundance of N stable isotopes (d15N) in Bolboschoenus maritimus and Typha domingensis, two dominant helophytes (i.e. emergent macrophytes) in the Doñana marsh and entry streams. Overall, plant tissues from entry streams showed higher d15N values than those from the marsh, particularly in those streams most affected by urban wastewaters. Isotopic values did not differ between plant species. Water samples affected by isotopically-enriched urban wastewaters and other diffuse organic N inputs (e.g. livestock farming) had relatively high Dissolved Inorganic Nitrogen (DIN) concentrations. In contrast, in streams mainly affected by diffuse N pollution from greenhouse crops, high DIN values were related to isotopically-depleted N sources (e.g., inorganic fertilizers). Thus, helophytes, in combination with other parameters such as N concentration in water or land cover, can be valuable indicators of anthropogenic pressures in Mediterranean wetlands. Helophytes have widespread distributions, and can be readily sampled even when water is no longer present. However, identification of specific N sources through helophyte d15N values is limited when key potential N sources are isotopically undistinguishable (e.g. fertilizers vs. atmospheric sources). informacion[at]ebd.csic.es: Paredes et al (2019) Stable isotopes in helophytes reflect anthropogenic nitrogen pollution in entry streams at the Doñana World Heritage Site. Ecol Indicators 97: 130-140. Doi 10.1016/j.ecolind.2018.10.0009


https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1470160X18307702