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- Title
Comparative biodiversity of crustaceans and aquatic insects from various water body types in coastal Mediterranean wetlands.
- Authors
Boix, Dani; Sala, Jordi; Gascón, Stéphanie; Martinoy, Mònica; Gifre, Jaume; Brucet, Sandra; Badosa, Anna; López-Flores, Rocío; Quintana, Xavier
- Abstract
Coastal wetlands are characterized by a high biodiversity. At the same time, biodiversity is one of the main criteria used to establish protection policy priorities, or to propose management actions. In this study, crustacean and aquatic insect species richness in the Empordà wetlands was investigated. These two groups contribute in an important way to the total biodiversity, and still they are seldom taken into account in the management of natural areas. Representative samples (38 points) of all aquatic water body types in the Empordà wetlands were taken monthly (dip net with 250 μm mesh). Sampling was carried out between 1996 and 2000, but until present, only qualitative data have been extracted. A rich fauna of 125 crustacean taxa and 295 aquatic insect taxa were found. Some environments were characterized by low richness and high singularity (isolated artesian freshwater springs), some by high richness and high singularity (estuarine waters, brackish and meso-eutrophic freshwater wetlands), and others by low richness and low singularity (hypertrophic freshwater wetlands and hyperhaline wetlands). Factors determining singularity and richness are discussed. Comparison with crustacean richness of other western Mediterranean wetlands showed a similar high species richness in our study sites, probably due to high spatial heterogeneity of these areas.
- Subjects
FRESHWATER biodiversity; WETLAND ecology; CRUSTACEA; AQUATIC insects; AQUATIC ecology; COASTAL ecology; SPECIES diversity
- Publication
Hydrobiologia, 2007, Vol 584, Issue 1, p347
- ISSN
0018-8158
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1007/s10750-007-0579-8