Project Monitoring of the recovery of the Upper Delta wetland of the Paraná River after the 2020 fires. Biodiversity in aquatic environments.
Introduction:
The environmental DNA (eDNA) technique will be used, which analyzes the genetic material released by individuals that have transited or inhabited the sampled environment, with the aim of identifying the species to which said material belongs. The type of sampling is non-invasive and allows the analysis of several taxa simultaneously starting from the same sample. This technique generally identifies a greater number of taxa and with lower error rates compared to non-molecular techniques, and requires less sampling effort. In this project it is proposed to address the analysis of diversity of bacteria, plankton, benthic organisms and fish.
Objectives:
The initial hypothesis is that the fire affected the biodiversity of species, mainly bacteria, plankton and benthic organisms, key organisms to guarantee the feeding and balance of the entire system. In general, these organisms are the first to be affected by disturbances in the environment, decreasing their diversity and varying their relative abundance. On the other hand, the fire could have increased the temperature of the water, which decreases the oxygen levels, affecting all living things. Ash can affect fish by clogging their gills and contaminating the water, as well as benthic organisms. Regarding the parameters of the water, there may be changes in the pH due to the transport of ashes and nutrients, through processes of erosion of the surrounding land towards the watercourses.
Related
Director: Vanina Villanova
Members: Sofia Carabajal; Jackeline Ermini; Juan Rubiolo, Kerly Galeth, Ana Paula Martin, Florencia Mascali, Andrés Sciara; Elisabeth Tapia; Pilar Bulacio; Joaquin Ezpeleta; Ignacio García Labari; Flavio Spetale; Javier Murillo.
Spaces/Institutions/Academic Units: Joint Laboratory of Aquatic Biotechnology of the Paraná River Aquarium Scientific, Technological and Educational Center. Faculty of Biochemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences (UNR). Faculty of Exact Sciences, Engineering and Surveying (UNR). Researchers at CIFASIS.
Contact
E-mail vanivillanova@gmail.com – gvillanova@fbioyf.unr.edu.ar