Ecological quality assessment of estuarine macrobenthic communities using an integrative approach.

Macrobenthic communities play a crucial role in the functioning of estuarine ecosystems and serve as bioindicators of environmental quality. This study assessed the ecological quality of an estuarine system using the AMBI and M-AMBI indices. The following parameters were considered: (i) environmental factors (total organic matter, organic carbon, grain size, calcium carbonate), (ii) sediment trace metals (Pb, Zn, Cu, Cr, Co, Ni, Hg, Li, As), (iii) species composition (morphological and molecular identification), and (iv) anthropogenic activities. The results demonstrated notable differences between study areas, reflecting hydrodynamic processes and human activities. The AMBI index indicated that all areas exhibited conditions classified as "slightly disturbed." However, the composition of the ecological groups and M-AMBI results differed according to the identification method. This approach allowed for a more complete understanding of communities, by integrating the influence of anthropogenic activities on the sediment and macrobenthic communities, highlighting the importance of using both identification methodologies.
Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: Joana Marujo Neves reports financial support was provided by Foundation for Science and Technology. Joana Marujo Neves reports equipment, drugs, or supplies, statistical analysis, and writing assistance were provided by Portuguese Institute for the Sea and Atmosphere. Joana Marujo Neves reports equipment, drugs, or supplies was provided by Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre. Joana Marujo Neves reports a relationship with Foundation for Science and Technology that includes: funding grants. If there are other authors, they declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
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