The charophyte flora in a Ramsar Mediterranean wetland (Albufera de València Natural Park, Spain) during the period 2007-2010

The Albufera de València Natural Park (AVNP) is an internationally recognised coastal region.
With an area of 21000 ha, it is composed of a large lagoon surrounded by marshlands devoted to
rice crops, a web of irrigation channels connecting the rice fields to the lagoon, small freshwater-tobrackish
ponds patchily scattered throughout an area of sand dunes separating the lagoon from the
sea, a set of springs and newly created artificial wetlands. In the ‘60s and ‘70s, the area was seriously
affected by urbanisation, development of agriculture, industry, etc., and many of the indicated
water bodies were destroyed. At present, managers have restored some of these aquatic ecosystems.
Between 2007 and 2010 we visited 32 sites (six rice fields, 10 ponds, eight springs, four channels
and four sites in two artificial wetlands) and studied the richness of charophyte species. In addition
to macroalgae, we sampled sediments as well (searching for charophyte oospores and gyrogonites).
Fifteen charophyte taxa were identified (Chara aspera, Ch. braunii, Ch. canescens, Ch. globularis,
Ch. hispida var. baltica, Ch. hispida var. hispida, Ch. imperfecta, Ch.vulgaris var. contraria, Ch.
vulgaris var. inconnexa, Ch. vulgaris var. longibracteata, Ch. vulgaris var. vulgaris, Lamprothamnium
papulosum, Nitella hyalina, Tolypella glomerata and T. prolifera), 14 of them as growing specimens.
Chara vulgaris was the most abundant taxon. Rice fields were one of the systems with the highest
charophyte richness. Approximately 30% of the Iberian charophyte flora (46 taxa) and 58% of that
in the province of Valencia (26 taxa) are represented within the AVNP. Eleven taxa of the genus
Chara are present on the Iberian Peninsula, and seven of them were found within the limits of
the AVNP. A comparison with charophyte richness in other West Mediterranean wetlands is also
provided.