Plants in aquatic ecosystems: current trends and future directions

Identifying areas of aquatic plant richness in a Mediterranean hotspot to improve the conservation of freshwater ecosystems

“…For example, they could help to identify areas of interest that should be explored further, determine areas to sample in order to complete databases of species presence (Pineda & Lobo, , ), or select areas with restoration potential (Hespanhol, Cezón, Felicísimo, Muñoz, & Mateo, ). Individual species of aquatic plants, as well as aquatic plant communities (Benavent‐González, Lumbreras, & Molina, ), act as key bioindicators in the design of conservation strategies because their distribution and their richness patterns can reveal the health of water bodies and catchments (Lumbreras, Olives, Quintana, Pardo, & Molina, ; O'Hare et al, ; Penning et al, ; Søndergaard et al, ). In efforts to conserve aquatic plants, it is important to limit hydrological alterations and nutrient enrichment, which are two main causes of biodiversity loss in Mediterranean wetlands (Chappuis et al, ; Serrano & Zunzunegui, ).…”

“…Aquatic plants respond well to the predominant water quality pressures in a predictable way. They are stationary and therefore good integrators of recent water‐quality conditions, and they can be easily sampled and assessed (O'Hare et al, ); indeed, they have been used as model organisms for evaluating the ‘good ecological status’ of aquatic ecosystems according to the European Water Framework Directive (WFD; Council of the European Communities, ). Although the WFD is not a directive specifically for the conservation of nature (Hermoso, Abell, Linke, & Boon, ), it recognizes their importance when establishing conservation strategies in freshwater ecosystems (O'Hare et al, ).…”

“…They are stationary and therefore good integrators of recent water‐quality conditions, and they can be easily sampled and assessed (O'Hare et al, ); indeed, they have been used as model organisms for evaluating the ‘good ecological status’ of aquatic ecosystems according to the European Water Framework Directive (WFD; Council of the European Communities, ). Although the WFD is not a directive specifically for the conservation of nature (Hermoso, Abell, Linke, & Boon, ), it recognizes their importance when establishing conservation strategies in freshwater ecosystems (O'Hare et al, ). Thus, aquatic plants may be considered ideal indicators in conservation efforts on the Iberian Peninsula because they occupy the full range of aquatic habitats present (Cirujano, Meco, & García‐Murillo, ); however, aquatic plants have traditionally received less attention than other groups, such as fish or aquatic macroinvertebrates, when developing conservation strategies (Abellán, Sánchez‐Fernández, Velasco, & Millán, ; Guareschi et al, ; Hermoso, Filipe, Segurado, & Beja, ).…”

“…Aquatic plants respond well to the predominant water quality pressures in a predictable way. They are stationary and therefore good integrators of recent water-quality conditions, and they can be easily sampled and assessed (O'Hare et al, 2018); indeed, they have been used as model organisms for evaluating the 'good ecological status' of aquatic ecosystems according to the European Water Framework Directive (WFD; Council of the European Communities, 2000).…”

Editorial: How to halt the extinction of wetland‐dependent plant species? The role of translocations and restoration ecology

“…For example, aquatic macrophytes contribute to riparian and sediment stabilization, nutrient recycling, and water purification. Moreover, aquatic macrophytes act as 'engineering species' , and in some cases may represent a habitat themselves, providing food, shelter, and oxygen for a large number of other organisms, from microbes to vertebrates (Chambers, Lacoul, Murphy, & Thomaz, 2007;O'Hare et al, 2018). The disappearance of aquatic plants may trigger a shift from a clear macrophytedominated state to a turbid phytoplankton-dominated state (Scheffer, Hosper, Meijer, Moss, & Jeppesen, 1993), with drastic effects on trophic systems, a decline in invertebrate and vertebrate species, and a reduction in ecosystem service functions.…”