Groundwater is a hidden global keystone ecosystem

Groundwater is a vital ecosystem of the global water cycle, hosting unique biodiversity and providing essential services to societies. Despite being the largest unfrozen freshwater resource, in a period of depletion by extraction and pollution, groundwater environments have been repeatedly overlooke...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Saccò, Mattia, Mammola, Stefano, Altermatt, Florian, Alther, Roman, Bolpagni, Rossano, Brancelj, Anton, Brankovits, David, Fišer, Cene, Gerovasileiou, Vasilis, Griebler, Christian, Guareschi, Simone, Hose, Grant C., Korbel, Kathryn, Lictevout, Elisabeth, Malard, Florian, Martínez, Alejandro, Niemiller, Matthew L., Robertson, Anne, Tanalgo, Krizler C., Bichuette, Maria Elina, Borko, Špela, Brad, Traian, Campbell, Matthew A, Cardoso, Pedro, Celico, Fulvio, Cooper, Steven J. B., Culver, David, Di Lorenzo, Tiziana, Galassi, Diana M. P., Guzik, Michelle T., Hartland, Adam, Humphreys, William F., Ferreira, Rodrigo Lopes, Lunghi, Enrico, Nizzoli, Daniele, Perina, Giulia, Raghavan, Rajeev, Richards, Zoe, Reboleira, Ana Sofia P. S., Rohde, Melissa M., Fernández, David Sánchez, Schmidt, Susanne I., Heyde, Mieke van der, Weaver, Louise, White, Nicole E., Zagmajster, Maja, Hogg, Ian, Ruhi, Albert, Gagnon, Marthe M., Allentoft, Morten E., Reinecke, Robert
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2024
País:España
Institución:Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)
Repositorio:DIGITAL.CSIC. Repositorio Institucional del CSIC
OAI Identifier:oai:digital.csic.es:10261/388346
Acceso en línea:http://hdl.handle.net/10261/388346
https://api.elsevier.com/content/abstract/scopus_id/85179317094
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Biodiversity
Biomes
Climate change
Conservation
Ecology
Ecosystems
Groundwater-dependent ecosystem
Subterranean
Water cycle
Descripción
Sumario:Groundwater is a vital ecosystem of the global water cycle, hosting unique biodiversity and providing essential services to societies. Despite being the largest unfrozen freshwater resource, in a period of depletion by extraction and pollution, groundwater environments have been repeatedly overlooked in global biodiversity conservation agendas. Disregarding the importance of groundwater as an ecosystem ignores its critical role in preserving surface biomes. To foster timely global conservation of groundwater, we propose elevating the concept of keystone species into the realm of ecosystems, claiming groundwater as a keystone ecosystem that influences the integrity of many dependent ecosystems. Our global analysis shows that over half of land surface areas (52.6%) has a medium-to-high interaction with groundwater, reaching up to 74.9% when deserts and high mountains are excluded. We postulate that the intrinsic transboundary features of groundwater are critical for shifting perspectives towards more holistic approaches in aquatic ecology and beyond. Furthermore, we propose eight key themes to develop a science-policy integrated groundwater conservation agenda. Given ecosystems above and below the ground intersect at many levels, considering groundwater as an essential component of planetary health is pivotal to reduce biodiversity loss and buffer against climate change.

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