Characterization of the ecological quality of the gallery forest of the river La Sauceda, Durango, Mexico

Abstract

Due to the level of reliability of information that can be obtained, as well as the simplicity and speed in implementation and because of its low cost, a quality index for riparian forests (QBR) was applied in order to characterize the ecological status of the riparian forest associated with the La Sauceda River, in Durango, Mexico. It is one of the major rivers in the San Pedro-Mezquital River basin, the most important source of fresh water for the National Wetlands Biosphere Reserve, a red focus on the conservation of Mexican biodiversity, since it is the mangroves largest and production in North America. The La Sauceda River faces major threats from plans to construct large dams and remove gallery forests. Results from this study showed a forest in poor ecological condition, demonstrating that the index is a reliable tool for hydromorphological diagnosis of rivers and riverbanks.