Salinity is a serious threat to freshwater ecosystems, particularly those near coastal areas. An increase in salinity produces drastic changes in community structure of freshwaters, sometimes in an irreversible fashion. Thus, freshwater species must cope with salinity stress in a manner proportional to their degree of tolerance. Bearing this in mind, we studied the acute and chronic effects of different salinity concentrations in two species of cladocerans: Daphnia magna Straus, a standard test organism, and Daphnia longispina O. F. Müller, an autochthonous species. Salinity experiments were based on successive dilutions of a stock solution of NaCl in a synthetic medium. The results showed that D. magna is more tolerant than D. longispina, both in acute (EC50 5.9 and 2.9 g/L, respectively) and chronic (EC50 5.0 and 2.2 g/L, correspondingly) exposures. In the chronic exposure, salinity caused a significant reduction in fecundity and a developmental delay (increase in age at first reproduction), as well as a decrease in the growth rate of daphnids. However, these effects were mainly observed at salinity concentrations where mortality occurred.

The aim of this study was to examine antibiotic resistance (AR) dissemination in coastal water, considering the contribution of different sources of faecal contamination. Samples were collected in Berlenga, an uninhabited island classified as Natural Reserve and visited by tourists for aquatic recreational activities. To achieve our aim, AR in Escherichia coli isolates from coastal water was compared to AR in isolates from two sources of faecal contamination: human-derived sewage and seagull faeces. Isolation of E. coli was done on Chromocult agar. Based on genetic typing 414 strains were established. Distribution of E. coli phylogenetic groups was similar among isolates of all sources. Resistances to streptomycin, tetracycline, cephalothin and amoxicillin were the most frequent. Higher rates of AR were found among seawater and faeces isolates, except for last-line antibiotics used in human medicine. Multi-resistance rates in isolates from sewage and seagull faeces (29% and 32%) were lower than in isolates from seawater (39%). Seawater AR profiles were similar to those from seagull faeces and differed significantly from sewage AR profiles. Nucleotide sequences matching resistance genes blaTEM, sul1, sul2, tet(A) and tet(B), were present in isolates of all sources. Genes conferring resistance to 3rd generation cephalosporins were detected in seawater (blaCTX-M-1 and blaSHV-12) and seagull faeces (blaCMY-2). Plasmid-mediated determinants of resistance to quinolones were found: qnrS1 in all sources and qnrB19 in seawater and seagull faeces. Our results show that seawater is a relevant reservoir of AR and that seagulls are an efficient vehicle to spread human-associated bacteria and resistance genes. The E. coli resistome recaptured from Berlenga coastal water was mainly modulated by seagulls-derived faecal pollution. The repertoire of resistance genes covers antibiotics critically important for humans, a potential risk for human health.