The role of freshwater copepods in the environmental risk assessment of caffeine and propranolol mixtures in the surface water bodies of Spain
In this study we aimed at assessing: (i) the environmental risk posed by mixtures of caffeine and propranolol to the freshwater ecosystems of Spain; (ii) the sensitivity of freshwater copepod species to the two compounds; (iii) if the toxicity of caffeine and propranolol to freshwater copepods contributes to the environmental risk posed by the two compounds in the freshwater bodies of Spain. The environmental risk was computed as the ratio of MECs (i.e. the measured environmental concentrations) to PNECs (i.e. the respective predicted no-effect concentrations). The effects of caffeine and propranolol on the freshwater cyclopoid Diacyclops crassicaudis crassicaudis were tested both individua…
Metacommunities from bacteria to birds: stronger environmental selection in mediterranean than in tropical ponds
AbstractThe metacommunity concept provides a theoretical framework that aims at explaining organism distributions by a combination of environmental filtering, dispersal and drift. With the development of statistical tools to quantify and partially isolate the role of each of these processes, empirical metacommunity studies have multiplied worldwide. However, few works attempt a multi-taxon approach and even fewer compare two distant biogeographical regions using the same methodology. Under this framework, we tested the expectation that temperate (mediterranean-climate) pond metacommunities would be more influenced by environmental and spatial processes than tropical ones, because of stronge…
Novel sexual dimorphism in a new genus of Bathynellidae from Russia, with a revision of phylogenetic relationships
Bathynellidae is the neglected family of Bathynellacea, a groundwater group of crus- taceans with 33 genera and 107 species described and almost half of them included in the `catch-all¿ genus Bathynella. Due to the morphological homogeneity of the spe- cies, the taxonomic uncertainties have accumulated over time. Therefore, to explore the phylogenetic relationships among taxa, a combined approach using morphologi- cal and molecular data is needed. In this paper, we performed a phylogenetic analysis based on partial sequences of COI and 18S including 30 species of Bathynellidae. This data set represents the most updated one, including a new genus and a new spe- cies (Altainella calcarata gen…
Environment and Space Rule, but Time also Matters for the Organization of Tropical Pond Metacommunities
Metacommunities are dynamic systems, but the influence of time independently of environmental change in their configuration has been rarely considered. Temporary ponds are excellent ecosystem models, as they have well-defined boundaries in time and space; their communities are relatively isolated through a landscape matrix, and the progress of time leads to major changes through ecological succession and in habitat suitability related to hydroperiod dynamics. Therefore, strong temporal effects are expected to influence their metacommunity structure. We surveyed 30 temporary ponds along the dry tropical region of western Costa Rica and Nicaragua at three different moments of their hydroperio…
Recommendations for ecotoxicity testing with stygobiotic species in the framework of groundwater environmental risk assessment.
As a consequence of the growing global dependence on groundwater resources, environmental risk assessments (ERA) for groundwater are increasingly required and, with that, ecotoxicological studies with groundwater fauna (stygofauna). However, the literature on the ecotoxicological studies with stygobiotic species (i.e. species that complete their life cycle exclusively in groundwater) has not expanded significantly since the first paper published in this field. The limitations regarding the use of stygobiotic species for ecotoxicological testing are clear and consistent across the globe; stygobiotic species are often 1) naturally present in low numbers, 2) difficult to collect, and 3) diffic…
AN OVERVIEW ON THE SUBTERRANEAN FAUNA FROM CENTRAL ASIA
Survey of the aquatic subterranean fauna from caves, springs, interstitial habitat, wells in deserts, artificial tunnels (Khanas) of five countries of the former URSS (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tadjikistan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan) located far east the Caspian Sea. The cave fauna present some originalities: - the rich fauna of foraminiferida in the wells of the Kara-Kum desert (Turkmenistan); - the cave fish Paracobitis starostini from the Provull gypsum Cave (Turkmenistan); - the presence of a rich stygobitic fauna in the wells of the Kyzyl-Kum desert (Uzbekistan); - the rich stygobitic fauna from the hyporheic of streams and wells around the tectonic Issyk-Kul Lake (Kyrgyzstan); - the e…
List of cave‐dwelling (hypogeal) species and subspecies considered as troglobites and stygobias of the Iberian Peninsula and the Balearic Islands
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