On Thursday, November 2, at 11:00 h, Begoña Araujo, PhD in Marine Sciences from the University of Vigo, presented the most important results of her doctoral thesis in the talk titled “Importance of Sandy Beaches in the Recycling of Organic Matter.”
In the context of global change, it is essential to develop the tools needed to mitigate its potential impacts on the coast. For this reason, understanding the functioning of the coastal ecosystem—as the interface between the sea and the land—is fundamental for managing coastal resources and sustainably enjoying these areas.
In this context, Begoña Araujo, under the supervision of Mariano Lastra and Jesús López, researchers in the Coastal Ecology group at the Marine Research Center of the University of Vigo, developed her doctoral thesis. The main objective was to provide new insights into the importance of sandy beaches as major “digestive” systems of organic matter and to gather information on the key physical, environmental, and biological factors that influence their metabolism.
During the lecture, the speaker highlighted the ecological importance of sandy beaches and presented the key results and conclusions regarding the role of stranded macroalgae in ecosystem metabolism (CO₂ flux, nutrient supply, etc.), both in interstitial water and intertidal sediments, the functional role of macrofaunal consumers, and the main factors influencing the rate of organic matter decomposition.
