Department of Biology, Division of Ecology, Faculty of Marine and Environmental Sciences, University of Cadiz, 11510 Puerto Real (Cadiz), Spain.
Mar Pollut Bull. 2013 Mar 15;68(1-2):46-54. doi: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2012.12.025. Epub 2013 Jan 30.
The aim of this study was to develop an ecological quality index based on the seagrass Zostera noltii (ZoNI) according to the WFD requirements. Eleven Z. noltii meadows of SW Iberian Peninsula under contrasting levels of anthropogenic disturbance were considered: 5 sites in Ria Formosa (Portugal), and 6 sites in Spain (Huelva and Cadiz). Environmental quality was assessed through nutrients of the water column and seagrass variables from different organization levels; those variables were analyzed using PCA (47% of explained variance on the first component) to calculate the ecological quality ratio (that was significantly correlated to the environmental variables, R(2)=0.51, p<0.01) and the ecological quality status of the sites. As a result, 4 sites were classified as good, 6 sites as moderate and 3 sites as poor ecological status. The developed index ZoNI showed to be suitable to assess the ecological status of estuarine and coastal systems in SW Iberian Peninsula reflecting their water quality.
本研究旨在根据 WFD 的要求，建立基于海草 Zostera noltii（ZoNI）的生态质量指数。研究考虑了西班牙西南部伊比利亚半岛上具有不同人为干扰水平的 11 个 Z. noltii 草地：5 个位于罗塔湾（葡萄牙），6 个位于西班牙（韦尔瓦和加的斯）。通过水柱营养物质和不同组织层次的海草变量来评估环境质量；使用 PCA 对这些变量进行分析（第一分量解释了 47%的方差），以计算生态质量比（与环境变量显著相关，R²=0.51，p<0.01）和站点的生态质量状况。结果，4 个站点被归类为良好，6 个站点为中等，3 个站点为较差的生态状况。开发的 ZoNI 指数适用于评估西班牙西南部伊比利亚半岛河口和沿海系统的生态状况，反映了其水质。
