Mediterranean saline streams in southeast Spain: What do we know?

Many Mediterranean streams in arid and semiarid areas are naturally saline systems due to the presence of evaportic rocks of Miocene or Triassic origin. Despite the fact that these aquatic ecosystems are rare in Europe, they are common in southeast of Spain. The environmental constraints of these semiarid saline streams are imposed by both geological and climatic conditions. This paper is a compilation and summary of the principal results obtained from various studies on semiarid saline streams in the Iberian southeast. Available data for these typical environments in the region covers diverse issues such as those regarding their physical and chemical features, typology, biodiversity, community structure and ecosystem functioning, as well as different ecological and evolutionary aspects of their biota (e.g. ecophysiological responses, life cycles and phylogeography). Issues concerning the conservation of these habitats, such as the main human uses, impacts, threats and their management are also summarised. Finally, topics in need of further research are provided. The current knowledge of saline streams in southeastern Spain highlights the physical and ecological singularity of these environments, and their high conservation value. Saline streams are particularly interesting due to their halotolerant/halophilic biota and high number of rare and endemic species.

► This study summarises the available information on southeast Iberian saline streams.
► Three types of saline streams with specific macroinvertebrate communities were found.
► Saline streams show low species richness while rare and endemic species are abundant.
► The study of these ecosystems highlights their physical and ecological interest.
► Despite their importance saline streams are still poorly valued and severely threatened.