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RESEARCH ARTICLE

Multidisciplinary ecological assessment of the Alcantara River (Sicily, Italy) using bioindicators

L. Guglielmo A , F. Azzaro B , C. Baviera A , A. Bergamasco B , S. N. Bissett C , C. Brugnano A , G. Caruso B , F. Decembrini B , A. L. Garey D , A. Granata A , C. Gugliandolo A , V. Lentini A , M. A. Lo Gullo A , T. L. Maugeri A , M. Pansera A , F. Raimondo A , L. P. Rodriguez Valdes A , L. A. Smock D , A. Spanò A , P. Trifilò A , J. K. Vick C , D. R. Young C , G. Zagami A , J. C. Zinnert C and R. Minutoli A E
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Messina, Viale Ferdinando Stagno d’Alcontres 31, 98166 S. Agata, Messina, Italy.

B Institute for Coastal Marine Environment (IAMC)-CNR, Section of Messina, Spianata S. Raineri 86, 98122 Messina, Italy.

C Department of Biology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA 23284, USA.

D VCU Rice Environmental Center, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA 23284, USA.

E Corresponding author. Email: rminutoli@unime.it

Marine and Freshwater Research 65(4) 283-305 https://doi.org/10.1071/MF13044
Submitted: 14 February 2013  Accepted: 24 July 2013   Published: 18 October 2013

Abstract

This study was developed within the framework of a broad international project, ‘Ecological water quality assessment of the Alcantara (Italy), James (USA) and Guadalfeo (Spain) rivers using bioindicators’, established by the Center for Integrative Mediterranean Studies (CIMS), a collaborative research centre consisting of the University of Messina – Italy, Virginia Commonwealth University – USA, and the University of Cordoba – Spain. The primary objective of the study was the validation of a multi-disciplinary ecological approach at different taxonomic levels for biomonitoring of the Alcantara River (Sicily, Italy) using bioindicators. This study examined the primary physical, chemical and biological features of the river through an interdisciplinary and synoptic approach using bioindicators that included riparian plant physiology, the microbial, zooplanktonic and macroinvertebrate assemblages, Coleoptera (Insecta) and river hydrology. Sampling of the river and riparian areas was conducted at sites from the river’s headwaters to the mouth. The study provided information on the ecological status of the Alcantara River along its course and tested the use of a variety of bioindicators, rather than a single biotic or physicalattribute, to determine the river’s health.

Additional keywords: biological indicators, biomonitoring, rivers, water quality.


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