DARKEST -H2020 (MSCA-IF-EF-ST)(VERBANIA) (DTA.AD002.660)

Thematic area

Earth system science and environmental technologies

Project area

Structure responsible for the research project

Water research institute (IRSA)

Project manager

DIEGO FONTANETO
Phone number: 0323 518300
Email: diego.fontaneto@irsa.cnr.it

Abstract

Subterranean estuaries extend inland into coastal aquifers inhabited by a surprising diversity of endemic subterranean animals with a worldwide distribution. How complex ecosystems thrive in this globally distributed habitat in different hydrological and geological settings is poorly understood. This study aims to integrate a novel global database of subterranean fauna with existing geochemical data and high-resolution hydrogeology maps of the world's aquifers, using modern statistical and modelling methods, to achieve an integrated understanding of the drivers of biodiversity in coastal aquifers and their response to global environmental change. Indeed, coastal aquifers connect the world's oceanic and hydrologic ecosystems and provide water source for more than one billion people in coastal regions, but these habitats are among those most prone to the long-term effects of climate change and human population growth. Therefore, expected outcomes of the study will contribute to the increasing efforts to discover, describe, and sustain groundwater-dependent ecosystems and to identify biological communities that could serve as indicators of the health of groundwater resources.

Start date of activity

01/12/2021

Keywords

DARKEST, MARIE CURIE, MAPPING COASTAL

Last update: 26/08/2025