ascular flora of permanent and temporary wetlands from Buenos Aires (Argentina)

Abstract

This paper presents an analysis of phytocoenoses and updated lists of the vascular flora (with the exception of Poaceae) of two permanent wetlands, La Balandra and Isla Santiago, and several temporary wetlands (Arroyo Rodríguez, Arroyo El Gato, and others) in the coastal areas of the Rio de La Plata (Buenos Aires Province, Argentina). The study was based on field work and monitoring seasonal wild communities between years 2005 and 2011, with 126 vascular plant taxa identify during the period. Dicotyledons represent the dominant group in both wetlands, followed in number by Monocotyledons and a few Pteridophyta representatives. In the wetland of La Balandra 102 species of vascular plants, including 33 families of Dicotyledons (53 genera), 17 of Monocotyledons (22 genera) and 5 belonging to Pteridophyta (5 genera) were recorded, while in Isla Santiago wetland a total of 116 species were collected belonging to 36 Dicotyledon families (64 genera), 16 to Monocotyledons (25 genera) and 6 to Pteridophyta (7 genus). The phytocoenoses of permanent and temporary wetlands were compared with recorded biodiversity in protected coastal areas, such as the Reserva Provincial de Punta Lara. The biodiversity of Isla Santiago is clearly larger than La Balandra, and is seriously threatened by anthropogenic activity and progress in the zone as a residential area. The temporary wetlands biodiversity is the most diminished in relation to pristine flora, and vulnerability is increasing every year.